Procurement of ethical construction products

A number of methods have been devised to assess the environmental performance of construction materials. Less attention, however, has been paid to social and economic issues associated with different construction products, which are frequently sourced from a wide range of countries. The extraction and manufacture of construction products can have positive effects by creating jobs, increasing skills and boosting economies. Negative impacts have, however, also been known to arise, which at their most extreme may involve the confiscation of land, use of child labour, corruption and dangerous working conditions. Given that the global construction industry is worth approximately US$3·2 trillion, there is great potential for positive action by specifiers to drive significant improvements in social, economic and environmental conditions on an international scale. There is also increasing pressure for organisations to reduce corporate risk through adopting ethical procurement practices. The lack of information and understanding relating to social and economic issues makes it hard for architects, surveyors, engineers, building managers, property owners and others to make informed choices regarding ‘ethical procurement’. This paper reviews initiatives, organisations and tools that are relevant to the ethical procurement of construction products.