contemporary issues in building collapse and its implications for sustainable development建筑物倒塌的当代问题及其对可持续发展的影响.pdf

Buildings 2012, 2, 283-299; doi:10.3390/buildings2030283 OPEN ACCESS buildings ISSN 2075-5309 /journal/buildings/ Article Contemporary Issues in Building Collapse and Its Implications for Sustainable Development Abimbola O. Windapo 1,* and James O. Rotimi 2 1 Department of Construction Economics and Management, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch 7701, South Africa 2 School of Engineering, Faculty of Design and Creative Technologies, Auckland University of Technology, Auckland 1142, New Zealand; E-Mail: jrotimi@aut.ac.nz * Author to whom correspondence should be addressed; E-Mail: Abimbola.windapo@uct.ac.za; Tel.: +27-21-650-3443; Fax: +27-21-689-7564. Received: 9 May 2012; in revised form: 16 June 2012 / Accepted: 4 July 2012 / Published: 25 July 2012 Abstract: This paper examines contemporary issues in building collapse and its implications for sustainable development in Nigeria. It explores whether the approach to construction by industry stakeholders is in line with the principles of sustainable development following the spate of building collapses in Nigeria. The rationale for the investigation stems from the view by scholars that construction industry stakeholders’ do not seem to consider the future in their current activities. The study establishes that the approach to construction by industry stakeholders do not match sustainable principles, and contributes to general under perforxmance of buildings. The paper recommends an overhaul