Sustainability in Building Construction: A Comparison Between Certified and Non-certified Companies

Building construction is one of the most important sectors in Brazil. According to the data from the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE in Portuguese), its participation in the Gross National Product (GNP), between 2010 and 2013, were about 5% and employed about 9% of the Brazilian population. This high importance, the sector allowed new players to enter the market, increasing competitiveness. In this context, a strategy of the construction companies is to incorporate, in their management, certification systems and also, the search for sustainability, which should include the economy, equity and ecology. This article analyzes business sustainability in Building Construction (residential) in the city of Joao Pessoa in six major construction companies, having as variables the seven revolutions to sustainable: markets, values, transparency, life cycle technology, partnerships, timing and corporate governance. The field research (methodology) was carried out through interviews guided by a questionnaire, elaborated from the bibliographic. It can be concluded that companies that have certifications in Building Construction (residential) have a more sustainable management than those that do not have certification, because (a) they work with processes to mitigate environmental impacts, certified companies have management plans waste and non-certified companies do not have; (b) certified companies are able to maximize their profits, more effectively, through the application of transparent management; (c) there are better health and safety conditions for employees. In terms of governance and timing, all companies need to be better organized, independent of certification. It follows that certified companies seek and are closer to sustainability than non-certified.