Disruption to construction supply chains during COVID-19 in developing economies: A strategic framework for sustainable and resilient logistics

Abstract

he COVID-19 pandemic exposed critical vulnerabilities in construction supply chains, specifically in the case of developing economies. These disruptions affected not only performance and resilience but also the ability to maintain low-carbon and sustainable logistics operations. This study explores the root causes of construction supply chain disruption during the pandemic and aims to propose a strategic framework to enhance resilience and sustainability. For this purpose, a Likert-scale questionnaire was developed from literature. The survey was administered online across India, and 360 valid responses were received. The resulting dataset analyzed using exploratory factor analysis and second-order confirmatory factor analysis was used to measure the criticality of the causes of supply chain disruption identified from the literature. The importance of the factors was evaluated based on the factor loading (FL) of the variables. From the analysis it was observed that stakeholder constraints were the main cause of disruption (FL = 0.64), with significant impacts also from external pressures and resource constraints (FL = 0.534 and 0.45). Additionally, operational (FL = 0.28) and financial challenges (FL = 0.28) indicated a moderate effect but played a crucial role. Based on these findings resource–stakeholder adaptability framework was recommended to manifest the development of resilient and low-carbon construction logistics. The study offers practical insights for policymakers and supply chain managers by recommending targeted strategies such as improved stakeholder coordination, adaptive resource planning, and digital integration. The research contributes to sustainable logistics literature by exploring the causes of a major disruption event within a high-emission, resource-intensive sector in the context of a developing economy.

Keywords: Construction Supply Chains, COVID-19 Disruption, Risk Management, Supply Chain Resilience, Sustainable Logistics