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Procedia Engineering 196 (2017) 980 – 987

Creative Construction Conference 2017, CCC 2017, 19-22 June 2017, Primosten, Croatia

Sustainable Construction in Sultanate of Oman: Factors Effecting

Materials Utilization

Sina Safinia*, Zamarad Al-Hinai, Hussin A.M Yahia,Mohammed F.M. Abushammala

Middle East College, KOM, Rusayl, Muscat PC 124,Oman

Abstract

Due to rapid growth in population and economy in Oman, housing and urban expansion are considered as high priorities for
development. Despite attempts for promotion of sustainable building construction in the sultanate, construction industry has not
yet embraced the concept in many sectors. Sustainable construction materials, as the major component to enable the construction
of sustainable buildings, have not been implemented in most construction projects in Oman. This research aimed to find the main
obstacles that prevent the application of sustainable construction materials in Oman. Two main methods of research included
review of literature and interviews with experts from construction industry to identify important factors. Questionnaires prepared
based on the factors identified from interviews and literature review, were distributed between members of construction industry
in various sectors. Results of this survey indicate that according to members of construction industry, factors that are significantly
preventing the effective application of sustainable construction materials in the order of impact are: lack of demand and culture of
green construction, high costs of sustainable construction materials and lack of knowledge regarding sustainable construction
materials.

©
© 2017
2017Published by Elsevier
The Authors. Ltd. by
Published This is an open
Elsevier Ltd.access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license
(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).
Peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of the Creative Construction Conference 2017.
Peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of the Creative Construction Conference 2017
Keywords: Oman construction industry, sustainable construction materials, obstacles.

* Corresponding author. Tel.: +968-92064083; fax: +968- 24446028.

E-mail address: sn_safinia@yahoo.com

1877-7058 © 2017 Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license
(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).
Peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of the Creative Construction Conference 2017
doi:10.1016/j.proeng.2017.08.039
 Sina Safinia et al. / Procedia Engineering 196 (2017) 980 – 987 981

1. Introduction

The continuous development in construction and neglecting the environmental needs lead to negative impact on
the environment and its surrounding [1, 2]. Over the past years, a rapid development in construction sector has been
observed at the Middle East region which increases the level of per capita energy consumption [3, 4]. The worldwide
building construction sector consumes approximately 40% of energy produced in the world [5]. The Middle East
countries produce high amount of per capita carbon dioxide emission, and even considered among the highest
countries contribute to carbon dioxide emissions [6]. Sustainable buildings enhance quality of life, work
productivity, and create healthy environment. Therefore, sustainable construction or green buildings has been
identified as the response of the building construction sector to the challenge of sustainable development [7]. The
sustainable construction commonly uses green materials, reduces energy consumption, saves water, preserves indoor
air quality, and many more.
Oman is one of the Middle East countries with a middle-income economy and produces lower oil and gas than
other countries of the Persian Gulf Cooperation Council with higher production cost [8]. Rapid population growth,
income level, rapid development and urbanization have a direct impact on the increase of energy, water demand, and
construction. The Omani construction projects have been raised by 9.4% annually between the years 2012 and 2016,
and expected to expand between the years 2017 and 2021 [9]. Therefore, the government of Oman has decided to
broadly practice the sustainable or green construction to mitigate the demand on energy and water needs, and to
minimize the environmental impacts associated with the rapid construction and development [10]. As a part of Oman
Vision 2020, the Government of Oman is investing continuously in constructing large-scale infrastructure projects
[11]. Some of these projects are already undertaking sustainable building practices and using green building
materials which supports the country’s growth scheme. Utilizing sustainable materials can significantly reduce the
damages of construction to the environment. However, it is not only adding the green materials in building that
affect the environment impacts, but the methods of building and operating with these materials have a huge impact
as well. [10]
The selection of building materials is a very important and complex task in every construction project [12], which
can be determined with numerous preconditions, decisions, and considerations. Therefore, detail information on
building material and product must be constantly studied for the best material selection during the design phase in
every construction project [13]. The use of sustainable materials in construction to replace traditional materials
enhances the overall environmental sustainability and reduces the environmental impacts during the building life
cycle. The use of environmentally friendly materials in building construction preserves natural resources and reduces
pollution [14]. Furthermore, it offers specific benefits to the building owner and building occupants. However, many
construction projects are still only applying traditional materials. The use of sustainable materials in construction
encounters various obstacles [6, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21]. Identifying these obstacles in the Sultanate of Oman can
boost the application of green buildings broadly in the country.
This paper attempts to discover these obstacles in Oman. The findings and data from existing literature, interviews
and the result analysis of expert’s survey identified a generic set of factors that discourage the implementation of
sustainable materials in Oman construction industry.

2. Objective

This research aimed to discover the primary factors which obstruct the utilization of sustainable construction
materials in Oman.

3. Methodology

In order to accurately identify the factors which are preventing the industry to implement green construction
materials, a comprehensive research method was applied.
First through in-depth review of literature, five major factors were identified. Moreover, interviews with number of
experts from different sectors of construction industry were conducted to include the local professionals’ opinions
and inputs. During the interviews participants were asked to state the possible reasons of deficient utilization of
982 Sina Safinia et al. / Procedia Engineering 196 (2017) 980 – 987

sustainable materials. Based on the answers from the interviews and factors identified from the literature, a set of
questionnaires were prepared and distributed within the stakeholders in construction industry in three groups;
contractors and consultants, government employees and managers and construction materials suppliers. The target
of questionnaire was to rate the factors in the order of impact that they have on the industry. The members of the
industry were asked about their experience in sustainable construction and subsequently to select from 1 to 5 to what
level they believe each factor is preventing the use of sustainable materials. (very low, low, medium, high, very
high)

3.1. Review of Obstacles in Implementing Sustainable Material (desktop study)

x High Costs
High commercial costs in sustainable construction, particularly, upfront costs for procurement of sustainable
materials, is one of the major causes of discouragement among the stakeholders and decision makers. [16,15,17].
Moreover higher costs of labour and installations as well as amounts spent to ensure consistency with design
specifications, can also add up to the final costs when sustainable materials are implemented. [20]
[16, 15] Zhang et al. and Griffin et al. describe that although costs of sustainable materials can be higher in
comparison to traditional materials. Most stakeholders assume that this applies to all sustainable projects.
Incorporating sustainable materials may require extensive amount of time to integrate with other parts of the project.
Therefore, delays caused to adapt to these new materials may have financial consequence for the stakeholders. [6]
x Lack of knowledge regarding sustainable construction materials
[17]Sin et al. and [16] Griffn et al. classify awareness with respect to concept of sustainable materials and green
options within the stakeholders as a major challenge in adapting sustainability in construction. [18] Szydlik states
that lack of knowledge and bad experience can cause poor “perception” of sustainable construction among the
experts in construction industry.
Insufficient understanding of this concept has been found as an obstacle for green development in Oman by
Powmya and Abidin. [21]
x Unsatisfactory enforcement of Green regulations
[20]Darko and Chan find shortage in authority and enforcement of Green Building regulations as an obstacle in
sustainable construction. [17]Sin et al. discuss that inefficient regulation cannot be correctly enforced as it should be
and therefore will discourage the investors to favour sustainable options during the decision making process of a
construction project. [21] Powmya and Abidin argue that government should emphasize more on regulatory
‘pressure’ in order to drive sustainability in Omani construction industry.
x Shortage in publicizing sustainable materials
Actively promoting green construction and materials is recognized as an essential factor that leads to more
sustainable selections by the decision makers. [22] Olubunmi et al. [23] state that governments hold responsibility
towards promoting sustainable construction through arranging incentives. [21] Powmya and Abidin find shortage in
promoting sustainability as an obstacle in green construction. Moreover they emphasize on the importance of
education and training as well as media and advertisement with respect to publicizing sustainable materials. [10]
x Lack of demand and culture of green construction
Clients demand is a major motivation in the construction industry that can encourage the adaption of sustainable
materials. [20, 18, 16] If the customers show no interest in living in green and environmental friendly buildings it
would be extremely challenging for the decision makers to implement sustainable materials in the construction. [24]
Lack of demand and culture for sustainable construction has been identified as a barrier in several countries; China
[15], India [25], Ghana [26] and US [27]. Zhang et al [15] argue that this phenomenon takes place when the concept
of sustainable lifestyle and social responsibility towards environment are not yet stabilized within the potential
buyers. In Oman, the lack of demand has been linked to the lack of knowledge with respect to sustainable
construction.[21]

3.2. Extracting factors based on experts opinions (interview)

Following Factors are extracted based on the interviews with experts form the industry.
 Sina Safinia et al. / Procedia Engineering 196 (2017) 980 – 987 983

x Inadequate experience of designers and builders with new materials and technology
x Construction companies’ cautiousness to detach from traditional methods and use sustainable materials
x Unavailability of sustainable materials
x Shortage in Government’s interest and initiative
x Difficulty and complexity of working with sustainable construction materials
x Insufficiency of encouraging policies towards sustainable materials
x Unpopularity of Sustainability Concept
x Limited recycling plants

4. Result and analysis

SPSS software was used to analyse the data received from questionnaire. The result represents the responses of
contractors and consultants, suppliers and clients in the government. Where, the following tables display
demographic information, statistical analysis of the responses and rank of the factors.

4.1. Demographic information

Table1.Participants demographic information

Participants’ Years of Experience in Construction Industry

Experience Per cent %
Frequency Cumulative Per cent

0-2 years 20 32.3 32.3

2-5 27 43.5 75.8

5-10 13 21.0 96.8

More than10 2 3.2 100.0

Total 62 100.0

Participants’ Sectors in Construction Industry

Sectors
Frequency Per cent % Cumulative Per cent
Contractor 27 43.5 43.5

Supplier 9 14.5 58.1

Government Departments 26 41.9 100.0

Total 62 100.0

Participants’ Experience with Sustainable Construction Projects

Experience with sustainable
construction Frequency Per cent Cumulative Per cent

Yes 7 11.3 11.3

No 55 88.7 100.0

Total 62 100.0

The table demonstrated that while 43.5% of participants have 2-5 years of experience in Omani construction
industry, only 3.2 % have worked here more than years. Moreover 43.5% of the respondents of the questioners are
from the contractor companies, 42% from the government departments and 14.5% are the construction material
suppliers. 88.7% did not participate in sustainable concentrated construction project.
984 Sina Safinia et al. / Procedia Engineering 196 (2017) 980 – 987

4.2. Factors effecting inefficient utilization of sustainable construction materials in Oman

Table2. Factors effecting inefficient utilization of sustainable construction materials

Codes Factors
F1 Unpopularity of Sustainability Concept within the members of construction industry
F2 Difficulty and complexity of working with sustainable construction materials
F3 Lack of knowledge regarding sustainable construction materials
F4 Unavailability of sustainable materials
F5 Insufficiency of encouraging policies towards sustainable materials
F6 Shortage in Government’s interest and initiative with the utilization of sustainable construction materials
F7 High Costs of Sustainable construction materials
F8 Unsatisfactory enforcement of Green regulations
F9 Construction companies cautiousness to detach from traditional methods and use sustainable materials
F10 Limited recycling plants
F11 inadequate experience of designers and builders with new materials and technology
F12 Shortage in publicizing sustainable materials
F13 Lack of demand and culture of green construction

35
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
F13 F12 F11 F10 F9 F8 F7 F6 F5 F4 F3 F2 F1

very low low medium high very high

Figure 1.Main 13 factors that prevent the application of sustainable construction materials in Oman

Out of totally thirteen obstacles that may affect the application of sustainable construction materials in Oman,
unpopularity of the concept of sustainability, being selected by 18(29%) and shortage in publicizing by 14 (22.6%)
participants were the factors that received highest number in very low category of impact. Difficulty of working
with sustainable materials with 1(1.6%) and high costs of sustainable construction materials with 2(7.2%) received
the lowest number of sections among the participants of this survey within this category. Unsatisfactory enforcement
of Green regulations and inadequate experience of designers and builders with new materials and technology with
31(50%) were highest and high costs of sustainable construction materials with 9(14.5%) and lack of demand and
culture of green construction with 8(12.9%) were the lowest factors with respect to low impact class.

Thirty participants (48.4%), highest among all factors, believe that difficulty and complexity of working with
 Sina Safinia et al. / Procedia Engineering 196 (2017) 980 – 987 985

sustainable and high costs of sustainable construction materials are moderately affecting the industry with respect to
use of sustainable materials. Whereas only 13 respondents (21%), lowest among all, find shortage in publicizing as
a moderate factor. 26 (41.9%) respondents considered that Lack of demand and culture of green construction is
highly preventing the use of sustainable materials. The factor, shortage in publicizing sustainable materials, was the
factor that received the lowest number of in high impact category, only 3(4.8%).Inadequate experience of
designers and builders with new materials and technology and high costs of Sustainable construction materials
towards sustainable materials with 9 (14.5%) were the highest and unpopularity of sustainability concept within the
members of construction industry with 1 (1.6%) was the lowest factors with respect to group with very high level of
impact.

Table3. Ranking of factors effecting inefficient utilization of sustainable construction materials

Factors Rank Mean

F13 1 3.2903

F7 2 3.2742

F3 3 2.8710

F2 4 2.7903

F11 5 2.6935

F6 6 2.6935

F4 7 2.6290

F9 8 2.5645

F5 9 2.4516

F8 10 2.3710

F10 11 2.3387

F12 12 2.1774

F1 13 2.0968

The above table demonstrates the rank between total 13 factors that are possibly preventing the use of sustainable
material in construction industry. These facto were extracted from the literature review and interviews with experts.
Factor 13 and 7 include 3 and above Mean, while factors 3,2,11,6,4,9 are between 2.9 and 2.5. Factors 5,8,10 and 12
are in the range of 2.45 and 2.09. Three following factors are positioned in the top of the ranking;

30
25
20
15 Rank1-F13
10 Rank2-F7
5
Rank3-F3
0

Figure2. 3 top rank factors that prevent the application of sustainable construction materials in Oman
986 Sina Safinia et al. / Procedia Engineering 196 (2017) 980 – 987

1.Lack of demand and culture of green construction

This factor comes as first in the ranking with Mean of 3.2903.it was selected by 5 participants (8.1%) as very high
and 26 participate (42%) as high impact factor that is preventing the use of sustainable materials in construction
industry. Not only, this factor was identified in the literature review furthermore during the interviews was
supported by members of industry. All interviews discussed that demand for sustainable materials is limited only to
few individual cases and lack of established green lifestyle and culture is preventing construction industry to adopt
the relevant martials and technology. Experts suggested that by improving publicity and demonstrating the benefits
of this culture and providing examples of successful projects, the demand and culture of green construction can be
improved.

2.High Costs of Sustainable construction materials

Total number of 9 participants (14.5%) selected this factor as very high and 9 (19.4%) as high impacting factor
while 30(48.4%) placed it in moderate level of impact. This factor is second in the ranking with mean of 3.2742.
Many scholars find this factor as a significant setback in advancement of stabilizing sustainable construction. Some
of the experts mentioned that most members of the industry believe that applying any sustainable material will
increase the final cost of the work and this is still alarming for the most decision makers in the industry. One
interviewee discussed that strategies by the government to increase the number of local sustainable materials
producers can reduce the initial procurement costs and hence more developers will consider applying this materials
and technologies.

3.Lack of knowledge regarding sustainable construction materials

Lack of knowledge, the third factor in the ranking, with the mean of 2.8710, was selected by 9 participants (14.5%)
as high and 8 participants (13%) as very high. Many literatures support this factor and this study revealed that it is
still contributing as an obstacle towards application of sustainable materials. Improving the general public
knowledge through use of media as well as training courses through local professional associations is suggested by
experts during the interviews of this research as possible methods to overcome this barrier.

5. Conclusion

Entire members of construction industry and users can not benefit from advantages of using sustainable materials
until the existing obstacles in establishing sustainable construction are identified. This research revealed that from
all the possible potential obstacles, Lack of demand and culture of green construction, High Costs of Sustainable
construction materials and Lack of knowledge regarding sustainable construction materials are significantly
causing setback in development of green and sustainable construction in Oman. Proper actions and polices should be
put into place consequently to overcome these problems. Members of construction industry in Oman seem to have
high expectations form government in terms of resolving the existing difficulties. While undeniably governments
have an imperative role, proactive measures in individual, corporate and professional association’s level can also
enhance the pace of improvements particularly to create higher levels of social responsibility and awareness among
the stakeholders.

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank the interviewees and respondents for their cooperation in completing this
research and management of Middle East College for their support and encouragement.
 Sina Safinia et al. / Procedia Engineering 196 (2017) 980 – 987 987

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