A dialectical system framework for adopting modular integrated construction

Abstract

Modular Integrated Construction (MiC) has emerged as an innovative technological approach in the high-rise, high-density city of Hong Kong to address the shortages of housing, skilled labour and to boost productivity and quality in the built environment. The current context of MiC in Hong Kong is mainly driven by the significant government instigation accompanied by policies, regulations, financial incentives, and government-initiated MiC projects. Despite such governmental support and its known benefits, the adoption of MiC is still at an ‘infancy’ stage of development in terms of industry-wide uptake, due to its complex nature. Therefore, it is vital to boost the collaboration of construction industry participants to accelerate MiC adoption in Hong Kong at the industry level. This requires a joint focus on a consolidated new direction of MiC uptake and adoption. To underpin and justify this new direction, a dialectical system framework is developed in this paper to review and synthesize the apposite systematic literature, to conceptualize the industry uptake of MiC in Hong Kong. Thereby, the focus was widened towards the technical, social, and co-evolved economic and political aspects and geographical boundaries. Subsequently, the system framework was developed to indicate significant components of policy and regulations (regulatory context), technology uptake, stakeholder collaboration and economic and financial inducement, research and development and their inter-relations.