Integration of life cycle assessment and life cycle cost using building information modeling: A critical review

Abstract

Integrating life cycle assessment (LCA) and life cycle cost (LCC) is important for assessing and balancing the economic and environmental impact of buildings, and Building Information Modeling (BIM) offers a potential way of doing this. However, despite an ample amount of published work about the integration of LCA and LCC using BIM, no thorough review of this has yet been conducted. This study, therefore, aims to address this gap by reviewing the relevant peer-reviewed papers involved. After summarizing the applications of LCA, LCC, and BIM, a four-step methodology framework is presented for the development of BIM integrated LCA and LCC: (1) defining the system boundary of LCA and LCC; (2) defining the basic parameters and inventory analysis; (3) obtaining the environmental impact and cost results; (4) analyzing and optimizing the results. The results identify three main approaches for BIM integrated LCA and LCC: (1) using existing BIM software to obtain bills of quantities and other data, (2) exporting data from BIM model to an external platform, and (3) including information within the BIM model. Additionally, applications in life cycle stages and possible future research directions are further discussed. The study provides insights for both industry practitioners and academic researchers.