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Sustainable Construction Engineering and Management: Enablers of Change, Part II

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A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Sustainable Engineering and Science".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (20 December 2022) | Viewed by 24086

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Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Edmundas Kazimieras Zavadskas

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Guest Editor

Research Institute of Sustainable Construction, Vilnius Gediminas Technical University, LT-10223 Vilnius, Lithuania
Interests: operations research; optimization and decision analysis; multicriteria decision making; multiattribute decision making (MADM); decision support systems; civil engineering; energy; sustainable development; fuzzy sets theory; fuzzy multicriteria decision making; sustainability; management; game theory and economical computing knowledge management
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Prof. Dr. Jurgita Antucheviciene

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Department of Construction Management and Real Estate, Vilnius Gediminas Technical University, LT-10223 Vilnius, Lithuania
Interests: civil engineering; multiple-criteria decision making; multiple-criteria optimization in construction technology and management; sustainability
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Dr. M. Reza Hosseini

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School of Architecture and Built Environment, Deakin University, Melbourne, Australia
Interests: construction management; civil engineering; building information modeling
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Dr. Amirhosein Ghaffarianhoseini

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Guest Editor

School of Future Environments, Auckland University of Technology, Auckland 1337, New Zealand
Interests: architectural design; building science; building performance; intelligent buildings; smart cities

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Concern about sustainability is becoming indispensable to delivering projects and making decisions across the architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) industry. It is, therefore, incumbent upon all related fields such as construction management, project management, and engineering to recalibrate their working practices and redefine processes to comply with sustainability principles. Numerous opportunities are available for incorporating the concept of sustainability in the AEC industry. Projects can become sustainable in numerous ways. Sustainability can be integrated across the entire life cycle of a built asset, ranging all the way from mining of raw construction materials, components manufacturing, and procurement methods, to conceptualisation of projects, design, shipment, and transportation, assembly, commissioning, operations, maintenance, refurbishing; to eventual demolition and disposal. All these procedures can be enhanced through adopting sustainability enablers that facilitate change. Chief among all are smart technologies, advanced decision support systems, and ever-sophisticated efficient operational systems, which are designed for augmenting sustainability and making projects greener.

This proposed and pioneering ‘Special Issue’ aims to provide a platform for construction researchers who seek to showcase the emergent findings from their research not only on the roles various sustainability enablers, but also on how these enablers can disrupt the AEC industry’s ways of working. This Special Issue welcomes articles that offer novel insight into the challenges and opportunities for integrating these enablers into AEC projects, to advance the agenda of making projects sustainable in all facets. Both conceptual and technical papers and those focusing on specific operational or procedural solutions are encouraged. Submitted papers can be project-focused or may target organizations or industry at a strategic level, as their level of analysis. All pillars of sustainability comprising environmental, social, or economic considerations in AEC projects are welcome. Articles that explore decision support systems, theoretical aspects of multiple criteria modelling and optimization in crisp or uncertain environment or elaborate on the state-of-the-art case studies related to sustainable construction decision aiding, are appreciated.

Prof. Dr. Edmundas Kazimieras Zavadskas
Prof. Dr. Jurgita Antucheviciene
Dr. M. Reza Hosseini
Dr. Amirhosein Ghaffarianhoseini
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

sustainable construction site selection
sustainable building design
sustainable building materials, components, and buildings
making construction and building technologies sustainable
green construction processes
construction economics for sustainability
green supply chain management
sustainable construction procurement
contracting for sustainable projects
green infrastructure construction and management
industrial relations for social sustainability
green building maintenance
building life-cycle analysis
building energy efficiency
sustainable project cost management
deconstruction, sustainable demolition and disposal
health and safety on projects
sustainable risk management
urban and regional sustainability
information technologies for sustainable construction
circular economy adoption in construction projects
multiple-criteria decision making (MCDM)
multi-attribute decision making (MADM)
multi-objective decision making (MODM)
multi-attribute utility theory (MAUT)
interval-valued fuzzy sets
intuitionistic fuzzy sets
neutrosophic sets
grey systems
rough sets
computer-aided problem solutions
research and development

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Published Papers (7 papers)

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Research

17 pages, 1537 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Scenario Prediction of Carbon Emission Peak of Urban Residential Buildings in China’s Coastal Region: A Case of Fujian Province

by Yanyan Ke, Lu Zhou, Minglei Zhu, Yan Yang, Rui Fan and Xianrui Ma

Sustainability 2023, 15(3), 2456; https://doi.org/10.3390/su15032456 - 30 Jan 2023

Cited by 7 | Viewed by 1869

Abstract

With the acceleration of China’s urbanization process, the importance of energy conservation and emission reduction in the building sector has become increasingly prominent. The effective control of carbon emissions in coastal provinces has a decisive impact on achieving the carbon emissions peak target nationwide. Based on the analysis of the influencing factors, this study establishes an urban residential buildings carbon emission prediction model by combining the IPAT model and the ridge regression model. In addition, the prediction model is combined with scenario analysis to simulate the evolution of carbon emission trends of urban residential buildings in Fujian Province from 2018 to 2050 under different scenarios. The results show that total population, urban living area, residents’ consumption expenditure, urbanization rate, per capita GDP, and energy structure are key factors affecting carbon emissions from urban residential buildings in coastal cities. Only under the ultra-low carbon model scenario can Fujian’s urban residential buildings achieve the carbon peak goal in 2027 (13.4748 million tons of CO₂), which requires a reduction of 59.67% compared to that under the baseline model scenario. This study can provide an effective reference for energy conservation and emission reduction work of the regional scale and even the national scale. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Construction Engineering and Management: Enablers of Change, Part II)

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14 pages, 8303 KiB

Open AccessArticle

UAV-Based High-Rise Buildings Earthwork Monitoring—A Case Study

by Hyung Cheol Park, Titi Sari Nurul Rachmawati and Sunkuk Kim

Sustainability 2022, 14(16), 10179; https://doi.org/10.3390/su141610179 - 16 Aug 2022

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 2327

Abstract

Unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) is one of the most prominent technologies in the construction industry for data collection purposes. Compared with traditional methods, UAVs collect data faster and more efficiently at a lower cost. One of the construction works that can be monitored using UAV is earthwork. Earthwork monitoring is essential to complete the earthwork on time, according to plan, and within budget. This paper presents an application study on the UAV-based earthwork monitoring of a high-rise building project in the Republic of Korea. Earthwork of building projects have distinct characteristics. The area is excavated downwards to tens of meters deep, thus contractors deal with several types of soil. The building project is usually built in a densely built area. Therefore, contractors must monitor the slope as it poses landslide risk to surrounding areas. UAV can calculate the excavated volume, monitor the progress and the site, and document earthwork periodically and strategically. Based on case study, this study compared estimated volume based on GPS and actual excavated volume based on UAV survey and found 0.71% difference, indicating the reliability of surveying using UAV. However, the volume per soil type was quite different between both methods, resulting in 15.8% (USD 183,057) cost difference. This study shows that UAV technology is effective in monitoring the actual excavated volume, thus supporting fair business practices and transparency between stakeholders. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Construction Engineering and Management: Enablers of Change, Part II)

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20 pages, 2334 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Process View to Innovate the Management of the Social Housing System: A Multiple Case Study

by Giovanna Mangialardi, Angelo Corallo, Mariangela Lazoi and Barbara Scozzi

Sustainability 2022, 14(14), 8294; https://doi.org/10.3390/su14148294 - 6 Jul 2022

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2532

Abstract

All countries recognize the right to adequate housing for all human beings. Yet, in many countries, social housing is in a critical state: most buildings need to be restored and better services should be guaranteed. Such actions should be part of a larger plan aimed to overcome the organizational and technological backwardness of the agencies that manage the social housing system. With a not large, but old public asset, the Italian context may represent an interesting case to start investigating difficulties and problems in the management of the social housing system that, as it occurs in most Mediterranean countries, arise when the public housing rental model is adopted. In the paper, a multiple case study on five Italian regional public Agencies responsible for the social housing system is discussed. In particular, the theoretical lens of process theory and ambidextrous business process management are adopted to study the Agencies’ “problematic situation” and identify innovative solutions to address it. The paper contributes to research and practice on process innovation and digital transformation of public administrations: three important lessons are derived and discussed also taking into consideration Industry 5.0, the vision on the future of industry recently proposed by the European Commission. Finally, the adoption of process theory combined with ambidextrous Business Process Management is an underexplored research method in the field of Architecture, Engineering, Construction, and Facility Management (AEC/FM) research. The results reported in the study reaffirm the potential deriving from its adoption also in such a field. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Construction Engineering and Management: Enablers of Change, Part II)

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13 pages, 1405 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Drawing a Path towards Circular Construction: An Approach to Engage Stakeholders

by Filipe Almeida, Castorina S. Vieira, José Ricardo Carneiro and Maria de Lurdes Lopes

Sustainability 2022, 14(9), 5314; https://doi.org/10.3390/su14095314 - 28 Apr 2022

Cited by 9 | Viewed by 3107

Abstract

The activities conducted in the building and construction sector should be guided by circular economy principles, which will result in the implementation of greener practices fostering both the development of economy and protection of the environment. This work proposes and discusses an innovative approach based on a concerted strategy between stakeholders to accelerate the transition to a circular construction paradigm, which involves, as sustainable development, the definition of three dimensions to guide the process: (a) the assignment of key roles to the government and construction professionals; (b) the improvement of the industry to perform a proper management of construction and demolition waste; and (c) the development of sustainable practices at the construction site. In addition to the discussion about the different stakeholder partnerships that must exist, key ideas that should be adopted by industry to deliver recycled materials and products to the building and construction sector are proposed in this work. Moreover, measures to assist in the management of both the traditional and innovative materials and products incorporating recycled waste at the construction site are suggested targeting the implementation of more sustainable practices within this context. A broad use of the ideas proposed in this work in the building and construction sector may lead to encouraging outcomes in the next decade. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Construction Engineering and Management: Enablers of Change, Part II)

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19 pages, 1978 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Performance Prediction of Construction Projects Based on the Causes of Claims: A System Dynamics Approach

by Ramin Ansari, Mohammad Khalilzadeh, Roohollah Taherkhani, Jurgita Antucheviciene, Darius Migilinskas and Shohreh Moradi

Sustainability 2022, 14(7), 4138; https://doi.org/10.3390/su14074138 - 30 Mar 2022

Cited by 9 | Viewed by 3892

Abstract

Conflict in human relations is unavoidable; therefore, it can occur in construction projects that are full of many human relationships. These conflicts can lead to claims if interlocutors do not agree. The main result of the claims is the delay and overrun of costs in construction projects. Additionally, poor management of claims affects the success of construction projects and their budget and schedule. Moreover, controlling claims ensures the successful completion of construction projects and minimizes delays and disputes. This study sought to improve the project performance by ranking the causes of claims and examining their impacts on Key Performance Indicators (KPI) using the combined AHP-TOPSIS (Analytic Hierarchy Process-Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution) method. Given that construction projects are constantly evolving and becoming more complex and have many linear and nonlinear relationships and structures, these projects can be considered as a kind of system dynamics. The system dynamics have been used for nearly four decades to analyze and improve the performance of construction projects. This study attempted to provide a model with a system dynamics approach to predict the performance of construction projects based on the reasons for the claim. In this model, the most important performance indicators, interactions between them, and the relationship of these indicators with the reasons for claiming were simulated. The results showed that delays are the most important reasons for making claims, and they have a great impact on the KPIs such as scheduling, sustainability, customer satisfaction, quality, and team satisfaction, respectively. In the modeling and simulation discussion in this study, the proposed model simulated the dependencies between the KPIs of construction projects and their changes over time and provides a better understanding of how performance indicators interact with each other. Additionally, it can be used as a basis for simulating different management policies to find the best solution to prevent and correct the negative effects of poor performance. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Construction Engineering and Management: Enablers of Change, Part II)

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17 pages, 1300 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Investigating the Environmental Impacts of Construction Projects in Time-Cost Trade-Off Project Scheduling Problems with CoCoSo Multi-Criteria Decision-Making Method

by Sayyid Ali Banihashemi, Mohammad Khalilzadeh, Edmundas Kazimieras Zavadskas and Jurgita Antucheviciene

Sustainability 2021, 13(19), 10922; https://doi.org/10.3390/su131910922 - 30 Sep 2021

Cited by 31 | Viewed by 5223

Abstract

Currently, construction projects have a significant share in environmental pollution. Usually, the employers and managers of construction projects pay attention to the project implementation with the shortest duration and the lowest cost, whereas less attention is paid to the environmental effects of the implementation of projects. Sustainable development requires the planning and implementation of construction projects, taking environmental impacts, along with other factors, into account. Few studies have investigated the balancing time, cost, and environmental effects. Although the selection of an execution method for the project activity requires the use of decision-making methods, these methods have not been used in the project scheduling problems. This study seeks to simultaneously minimize the project time, cost, and environmental impacts. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the environmental impact of project activities in three physical, biological, and social aspects throughout the construction projects, and to attempt to minimize them as measurable values. In this paper, the environmental effects of an urban water supply construction project as a real case study are assessed in different activity execution modes by the Leopold matrix and the best execution mode of each project activity is selected using the CoCoSo (combined compromise solution) multi-criteria decision-making method, considering the time–cost-environmental impact trade-off. The CoCoSo method is employed because of its high flexibility compared to other multi-criteria decision-making methods. The results of this study will direct managers and stakeholders of construction projects to pay more attention to the environmental effects of construction project activities, together with the other conventional project goals and objectives, such as the time and cost. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Construction Engineering and Management: Enablers of Change, Part II)

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28 pages, 1004 KiB

Open AccessArticle

An Integrated Decision Support Model Based on BWM and Fuzzy-VIKOR Techniques for Contractor Selection in Construction Projects

by Aziz Naghizadeh Vardin, Ramin Ansari, Mohammad Khalilzadeh, Jurgita Antucheviciene and Romualdas Bausys

Sustainability 2021, 13(12), 6933; https://doi.org/10.3390/su13126933 - 20 Jun 2021

Cited by 18 | Viewed by 3519

Abstract

Sustainable development of any country to some extent depends on successful accomplishment of construction projects, particularly infrastructures. Contractors have a key role in the success of these projects. Hence, the selection of a competent contractor as a complicated and hard decision process has a vital importance in the destiny of any construction project. Contractor selection is in essence a multicriteria decision-making that ought to encompass so many aspects of the project and the client’s requirements on one hand and the capabilities and past records of the contractors on the other hand. Failure in selecting a competent contractor may cause time and cost overruns; quality shortcomings; increasing in claims, disputes and change orders; and even failure of the project. In spite of deficiencies of selecting a contractor by the rule of “the lowest bid price”, it still prevails in many countries including Iran. In this paper, a new contractor selection model based on the best-worst method (BWM) and well-known Fuzzy-VIKOR techniques is proposed as a solution to overcome the deficiencies of the traditional “lowest bid price” rule. An illustrative example of a water channel construction project verified the applicability of the proposed model in practice. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Construction Engineering and Management: Enablers of Change, Part II)

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