Building Construction Industry Research Articles

Design for Circular Manufacturing and Assembly (DfCMA): Synergising Circularity and Modularity in the Building Construction Industry

Modular construction is emerging into the limelight in the construction industry as one of the front-running modern methods of construction, facilitating multiple benefits, including improved productivity. Meanwhile, Circular Economy (CE) principles are also becoming prominent in the Building Construction Industry (BCI), which is infamous for its prodigious resource consumption and waste generation. In essence, the basic concepts of modular construction and CE share some commonalities in their fundamental design principles, such as standardisation, simplification, prefabrication, and mobility. Hence, exploring ways of synergising circularity and modularity in the design stage with a Whole Life Cycle (WLC) of value creation and retention is beneficial. By conducting a thorough literature review, supported by expert interviews and brainstorming sessions, followed by a case study, the concept of Design for Circular Manufacturing and Assembly (DfCMA) was proposed to deliver circularity and modularity synergistically in circularity-oriented modular construction. This novel conceptualisation of DfCMA is envisaged to be a value-adding original theoretical contribution of this paper. Furthermore, the findings are expected to add value to the BCI by proposing a way forward to synergise circularity and modularity to contribute substantially towards an efficient circular built environment.

Eco-Friendly Brick Produced from Bagasse Ash and Lime, Jaggery: A Study of Waste Reuse

The building construction industry in India, which is one of the fastest-growing in the world, heavily relies on limited natural resources, especially burned clay bricks, which raise greenhouse gas emissions. This study investigates the viability of using the laterite soil-based bagasse bricks as an affordable and environmentally friendly substitute. This brick's greater compressive strength, decreased water absorption, and improved insulating qualities are the result of combining sugarcane bagasse—a byproduct of sugar production—with the laterite soil, lime, and jaggery. These bricks' low weight limits the dead load in tall structures, which lowers the price of building with reinforced cement concrete (RCC). Employing bagasse also lessens the effects of stubble burning, an ancient custom in India that seriously pollutes the air. The goal of the study is to encourage the use of laterite soil-bagasse bricks as an environmentally friendly building material by highlighting their many uses in construction. This research aims to encourage environmentally friendly practices in the building sector by promoting the use of sustainable materials by architects, designers, and builders. Key Words: Sustainable construction, laterite soil, bagasse bricks, greenhouse gas emissions, compressive strength, insulation, stubble burning, eco-friendly materials, RCC construction.

Prevalence of injury and utilization of personal protective equipment among building construction workers and associated factors in Bale and West Arsi Zones, southeast Ethiopia 2022.

The building construction industry is well known for being one of the most dangerous industries worldwide. Statistics show it is one of the most dangerous occupations in the world. The aim of this study is to assess the prevalence of injury, personal protective equipment usage among building construction workers, and associated factors in Southeast Ethiopia. Institutional-based cross-sectional study was done among 406 selected construction workers in Southeast Ethiopia. Study participants were selected randomly. Data were collected by using a structured questionnaire. Descriptive statistics was used to summarize study variables. Binary logistic regression was utilized to investigate factors associated with injury among study participants. Accordingly, adjusted odds ratio along its 95% confidence interval were calculated and a p value of <0.05 was used to declare statistical significance. Generalized linear models were utilized to investigate factors associated with the use of personal protective equipment. Accordingly, an adjusted odds ratio with a 95% confidence interval was determined and a p value of <0.05 was used as a level to declare a significant statistical association. In this research 406 building construction workers were interviewed and 393 participants gave complete responses, yielding a 96.8% response rate. Of all participants included in this study, 27 (6.8%) drink alcohol and 26 (6.6%) chew khats. Uses of personal protective equipment among study participants was 133 (33.3%, with a 95% confidence interval of 28.3% to 37.7%). Of 393 participants in this study, 213 (54.2%) of them sustained at least one building work-related injury in the last year. The commonest type of injury that occurred among this population was abrasion 43.3% followed by muscular pain (13%). Not having orientation about personal protective equipment, without safety training, didn't use personal protective equipment, and rural residence were factors significantly associated with injury among building construction workers. Residence, age, monthly income, service year, orientation about personal protective equipment, safety training, and start using personal protective equipment immediately after the job offers were significantly associated with the uses of personal protective equipment by participants of this study. In general, this study has identified a relatively high prevalence of injury and low use of personal protective equipment in the study subjects and associated factors.

Recycled plastics based impact noise resilient layer development

Sustainability and the carbon footprint reduction is commonly associated with recycling and secondary use of materials, for example also in the building construction industry. For decades, experts have been dealing with this topic across the entire spectrum of the development of building structures. One of the areas where soft recycled materials find suitable application is the area of building acoustics with a focus on impact noise attenuation. This contribution focuses on resilient layers dedicated for lightweight floating floors. This type of flooring is very often used in the reconstruction of apartments in apartment buildings. There is usually no possibility to realize heavy floating floors or for static reasons or reasons of the structural height of rooms or door openings. The work focuses on the development of floor underlayer mats based on recycled material in several variants. These were experimentally compared with conventional materials used in practice as the so-called impact sound insulation layers under laminate floors in terms of improving the impact noise insulation as well as the dynamic stiffness and the loss factor.

AI and IoT for Energy Optimization

The Energy sector all over the world is faced with the challenges on how to control wastages to its minimal bearing point with a view to optimize its consumption. The generation is capital intensive and the demand by the consumers is very high and the global world cannot wait to have a carbon free zone. Hence, the need for a greener and clean energy without leakages or wastages by the consumers The research work is focusing on the role of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Internet of Things (IOT) for energy optimization in Nigeria, a country where the demand for energy is far higher than its supply in both government buildings, residential buildings as well as market and business places. The emergence of Internet of Things (IOT), smart technologies and AI (artificial intelligence) has made it possible to integrate renewable energy solutions together with a view to meet up consumer’s demand and to create a carbon free environments to improve Energy generation without causing major harm to the environment as well as reducing energy wastages by both the generating company and the consumers in the Building Construction Industry (BCI) With our current nature of power supply, Artificial Intelligence and Internet of Things are needed to synchronize the conventional power source and other backups sources like the fuel (diesel and PMS) generators and solar for steady power supply and by extension, steady work flow in the offices, residential buildings, business shops and market places. The Building Construction Industry in Nigeria has a market size of about USD$105.8 billion in 2023 with an annual expectancy growth projection of &gt;3% for a population of about 225.604 million people hence, the urgent need for more energy generation and proper optimization. Finally, this paper will also look at some of the challenges with AI and IOT technologies in building structures as well as possible recommendations for a better greener carbon free environment

Assessing The Impact of Rising Cost of Materials On Construction Activities in Enugu, Enugu State, Nigeria

This study focused on assessing the impact of rising cost of building materials on construction activities in Enugu, Enugu state, Nigeria. The aim of this study is to assess the impact of rising cost of materials on construction activities in Enugu, Nigeria in order to proffer a solution to the rise in the cost of these materials used in everyday construction in Enugu state. With the following objectives; to identify the factors that lead to increasing cost of material in Enugu State, Nigeria; to assess the impact of rising cost of materials on construction activities in Enugu; to proffer solutions to the rise in the cost of building materials. The research design employed was primary and secondary which encompasses descriptions and quantitative analysis on a randomly selected sample of receipt of building materials from the suppliers over the years. The population of the study is 223 professionals in the field and sample size of 143 which was gotten using Taro Yamane formula. The findings of the study reveals that the factors that lead to increasing cost on the building construction activities in Enugu State are; fluctuations in material costs, design changes and scope creep, regulatory compliance and permitting, project delays, weather and environmental factors, technology and innovation costs, interest rates and financing costs, and others. Finally, the study recommends that there will be need for relevant authorities in the building industry to re-examine and educate the people on its existence and equally generate the possible ways of reducing the increasing cost of building materials so as to enhance the building construction industry in Nigeria.

Overlooked carbon sinks in the house building industry and the influential factors

The study aims to establish a carbon sink measurement model for the house building industry and analyze the time-varying characteristics of influential factors. China's house building industry exhibited an increasing trend in carbon sink, from 0.336 billion tons in 2000 to 234.1 million tons in 2020. This study defines the carbon sink coefficient of the house building industry to understand its carbon sink capacity. From 2000 to 2020, the average carbon dioxide absorption per square meter of floor space annually, throughout its life cycle, is 2.09 kg. Factors influencing the carbon sink were analyzed using Logarithmic Mean Divisia Index (LMDI) model. The most influential factor was resource consumption intensity, followed by value dependence level and output scale effect. Employing Time-Varying Parameter Vector Autoregression (TVP-VAR), this study examines the impact of macro factors on carbon sinks at various lead times and specific points. Resource consumption intensity exhibits significant time-varying effects. Value dependence level negatively influences, primarily in the medium and long terms, while the output scale effect consistently shows a positive influence, mainly in the long term. Scenario forecasting suggests that by 2035, under low-carbon transition scenarios, carbon sinks could increase by 8.28% and 17.26% compared to baseline and high-carbon crude scenarios, respectively. To foster this growth, prolonging the service life of houses, enhancing construction site management and waste treatment, and employing higher value-added production factors are recommended.

Impacts of COVID-19 on the Building Construction Industry in Nepal

The COVID-19 epidemic has created unprecedented challenges for global economies, affecting every industry, including the building construction industry in Nepal as well. This research aims to examine the impact of the COVID-19 epidemic on the building construction industry in Nepal. This study examines institutional, psychological, individual, operational, contractual, and financial factors. To achieve the objective, data were collected from 330 Nepalese construction professionals using a structured Likert scale questionnaire and analyzed with Smart PLS version 3 software for partial least squares structural equation modeling. The reliability and validity of both the measurement and structural models were tested and found satisfactory. All six factors were found to be significant at a 5% level of significance. Among all factors, the institutional factor was found as the most significant factor with a t-value of 7.654 and a beta value of 0.679, emphasizing the crucial role of institutional support in Nepal's building construction industry. The psychological factor also emerged as the second most significant influential factor (t value: 6.087, beta value: 0.463), underscoring the profound effect on the mental well-being of professionals in the field. The finding highlights the critical importance of institutional support and the profound influence of psychological factors on the well-being of construction professionals, necessitating targeted interventions to support the industry's recovery and resilience.

Enhancing Thermal and Daylight Performance of Historic Buildings with Passive Modifications; A Tropical Case Study

Historical buildings worldwide hold immense potential for adaptive reuse within the framework of the circular economy, a concept gaining traction in the building construction industry for its role in reducing carbon emissions. Many of these structures boast passive building design strategies, which inherently lower energy demands. Among these, thermal mass and daylight harvesting emerge as pivotal strategies for achieving indoor thermal and visual comfort, respectively. However, with the advent of significant climate change and evolving built environments, the efficacy of these historical passive strategies is subject to debate. This study focuses on a residential building constructed in the 17th century by Dutch settlers in Galle, Sri Lanka, serving as a case study. The research targets improvements in both thermal and visual comfort. Thermal performance analysis was conducted through air temperature measurements, revealing a notable 3-hour time lag and a 2.5°C reduction in peak air temperature during the day. Conversely, nighttime measurements indicated a rise in indoor temperature compared to ambient conditions. Using Design Builder software, the building was modelled to assess its daylighting conditions. Drawing upon thermodynamic principles and daylight harvesting techniques, the study proposes building envelope interventions and ventilation strategies to address nighttime overheating and enhance daylight utilization. The results demonstrate that these modifications can potentially reduce nighttime heat by 2-3°C, while also decreasing the energy requirement for lighting comfort from 51.10 kWh/m² per annum to 44.84 kWh/m² per annum. This research showcases the effectiveness of judiciously implemented interventions in historical buildings, illustrating tangible improvements in both thermal/visual performance and energy efficiency. Leveraging inherent qualities of historical structures and integrating modern design strategies to these buildings can play a vital role in sustainable urban development and energy conservation efforts.

Analyzing The Causes of Project Failure and Cost Overruns in Building Construction Industry by Using a Mixed-Methods Approach

This study investigated the reasons for project failures and cost overruns in building construction. The building construction industry is well known for chronic issues such as fragmentation, cost overruns, poor working conditions, and insufficient quality, all of which result in project failure. Project failure and cost are the two most essential indicators of success in a construction project because they have an equal impact on all project participants, both favorably and negatively. These problems have been evident for many years across the global construction industry, requiring the identification of the primary causes to address these challenges. The use of both quantitative and qualitative approaches was important, as it made it easier to accomplish the overall goal of solving the problem because quantitative data were collected via surveys and qualitative data were collected through interviews. Data was gathered from 104 team members in Pakistan's building construction industry. The top five reasons for project failure were poor project management, poor design, frequent design changes, design errors, bureaucracy, corruption, poor quality, and poor site management. The top five reasons for cost overruns were poor start-up planning, poor project cost estimation, poor weather conditions, political situations, and the economic instability of the country. Minimizing these factors can contribute to a greater probability of project success and overall improvement in the construction industry.

Effect of Project Control Practices on the Performance of Building Construction Companies in Uganda: A Case Study of the City of Kampala

This research paper analytically evaluates the project control practice levels used by the building construction companies within Kampala, Uganda. The research also assesses the impact of project control practices on the productivity of companies. The research was performed to ascertain the current control practices among 160 respondents from various construction companies registered with the Uganda Registration Services Bureau. This research used amalgamation from multiple studies in the literature to obtain the variables. This research adopts 34 standard control practices from 4 vital project control duties: planning, monitoring, analyzing, and reporting. These project control tasks were organized using mean response ratings grounded in their relevance to the construction companies. This process authorized researchers to prioritize tasks based on their perceived importance or relevance to the construction companies involved. Results showed that evaluating performance with the use of S-curves (4.32), timely access to information and encouragement (4.55), report representation using quantitative tools 4.75, and cost value comparison application during analysis (4.76) were rated least among the control practices. On the other hand, the top project control practices included formulation of the project schedule (8.88), project feasibility validation (8.86), budgeting for each activity (8.84), key project route definition (8.81), team awareness of the budget (8.77), setting realistic targets for projects (8.50), and consultation from subcontractors (8.74). From the results obtained by the sample respondents specified, it can be concluded that planning is the most vital project control task practiced in the building construction industry in Uganda. In addition, this research ascertained a substantial relationship between project control practices and the performance of building construction companies. Accordingly, this research recommends that project control practices be effectively observed by both contracting and consulting companies to enhance their overall performance and governance.

A review on composites: Selection and its applications

This review article summarizes the various components in the field of composites. A composite is a material which consists of two or more individual materials blended together or joined together to form a newer material which is meant for their improved properties. In this article, the different categories of the composite materials and the materials used as composites are discussed. The major objective of this study is to know about the various materials, which can be act as the reinforcement and the matrices. The methods of fabrication of the composites are also discussed in an elaborate manner. Over 80,000 types of the materials are available in the world, estimation suggests in the research on engineering materials. It includes metallic compounds and non – metallic components, such as ceramics, glasses, plastics, semiconductors, etc.This article also discusses about the details of the composites such as advantages and drawbacks, matrix systems, reinforcement volume, characteristics such as mechanical, physical, thermal and tribological properties. In expansion to this, also gives the over view for the application of the composites in different field on domestic applications, bio – medical applications and several industrial applications. A lot of tools also be there to select the material for the composites to support the production.Most importantly, in this review the natural fibre composites are dealt with more concern. And the criteria for the material selection such as strength, stiffness, cost, weight, renewability, recyclability, biodegradability, eco – friendly and availability are taken into account for the selection. In recent years, since the importance of the natural fibre composites in various applications in automotive, aerospace, defence, medical, furniture and building construction industries. This will be greatly beneficial for the researchers and the academicians, to understand about the natural fibre composites as well as their applications.

Weight and structural considerations of potential green roof growth: Media compositions for the Nigerian building industry

Abstract The principal objective of this paper was to assess the physical properties and weight or structural implications of some potential green roof growth media compositions practicable for use in the Nigerian built environment. The study carried out an essential selection of material constituents of growth media blends mixed in a 3:1:1 ratio of natural stone-based gravels, soil and compost respectively. Six substrate blends based on later-ite stones, ory and empirical field evaluation methods. The results revealed that the granite-based blend is the heaviest sample with 1,713.30 kg/m3 in its saturated state, while the lightest in weight is the pumice blend with 869.30 kg/m3 which is 50.7% less than the granite blend. The heaviest and the lightest outlined models were subsequently subjected to a weight analysis on a proposed reinforced concrete flat-roofed structure. The results showed that all the extensive green roof samples fall within the IBC stipulated range. The heaviest granite substrate obtained a design load of 0.951 kN/m2, while the lightest pumice blend recorded a design load of 0.576 kN/m2. Hence, it stands to offer an optimum alternative in green roof retrofitting projects for existing flat-roofed buildings. The study, therefore, submits that all samples evaluated involve readily available materials in the studied area and can be used with respect to their characteristic properties as presented in this study. It also serves as a reference point for all stakeholders in the research and building construction industry in Nigeria and beyond.

A Final Cost Estimating Model for Building Renovation Projects

The construction sector in Greece has been developing radically in the field of building renovations. The foremost problem for projects in the building construction industry is producing an accurate and reliable cost estimate at the onset of construction. The artificial neural network (AΝΝ) approach, using data available at the early stages of the project, can help resolve or prevent any kind of difficulty that could make the successful completion of a building less likely. ANNs have been highly efficient in gaining results which could prevent the failure of building constructions projects. The ultimate goal is to highlight the usefulness of the adoption of ANNs models to predict the final cost of a building renovation project. Thus, construction companies could avoid financial failure, provided that the gap between cost prediction and final cost for renovation projects is minimized. This paper presents an artificial neural network (ANN) approach for predicting renovation costs in Greek construction projects. The study, based on a comprehensive literature review and real renovation data from construction companies, employs IBM SPSS Statistics software to build, train, and test the ANN model. The model, which uses initial cost, estimated time, and initial demolition cost as inputs, is based on the radial basis function procedure. The model presents high performance with up to 2% sum of squares error and near zero relative error, demonstrating the ANN’s effectiveness in estimating total renovation costs.

Cradle-to-gate embodied carbon assessment of green office building using life cycle analysis: A case study from Sri Lanka

One of the most significant contributors to the economies of many nations is the building and construction sector. However, this industry is one of the world's most significant contributors to greenhouse gas emissions. Hence, the concept of green building (GB) has emerged as the cornerstone of sustainable development. Even though GBs have a variety of advantages, the use of low-carbon materials is still lacking for both traditional buildings and green buildings in the Sri Lankan context, and energy-intensive building materials are responsible for 80% of the carbon emissions of the construction industry in the world. In Sri Lanka, buildings make up more than 70.9% of contracts and consume a significant amount of raw materials, and office buildings use 33% of the raw materials. Therefore, this research aimed to assess the embodied carbon (EC) of green office buildings and to provide potential measures to reduce the EC of buildings in Sri Lanka. Following the case study research strategy, the EC emission was calculated using the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) method for an eight-storey Platinum-rated green office building in Sri Lanka. The results showed that the green office building had an EC 583.82 kgCO2e/m2 of the gross floor area. Reinforcement steel was found to be the significant EC material, contributing 47.88% of the total EC. In addition to that, ready-mixed concrete, cement block, plywood, and aluminium are the other highly intensive EC materials in this study. The findings showed that the use of low-carbon materials, materials minimising design, utilisation of reusable or recycled materials, utilisation of local or regional materials, and utilisation of eco-labelling materials are potential measures to reduce cradle-to-gate EC in the building construction industry in Sri Lanka.

Investigating issues confronting women participation in the building construction industry in Ondo state, Nigeria

This study examined the issues confronting women participation in the building construction industry in Nigeria. The nature of work in the construction sector requires physical exactions and it is accompanied with stress which often leads to physical and muscular pain. Also the work environment at work site may not be so conducive as to consider the feminine nature of the woman. Four research questions guides the study and two research hypotheses was tested at 0.05 level of significance. The study adopts simple random sampling techniques in selecting the respondents so that each member of the population have chance of being represented in the sample. One hundred respondents were selected due to shortage of site available in Ondo State. The results revealed that building construction industry on women participation enable them build their confident in the work environment, increase their knowledge, encourage the development of career, reduces joblessness and encourage productivity. The study concluded that there is a discrimination and gender bias in the Ondo State building construction sector, and that some employers prefer to employ men for their construction projects, and the main reason behind was that, the state is predominantly a secular state and the majority of people has a unique culture, but in reality, male and female in terms of employment requirements and career development should have equal opportunity, the study recommends that the industry should improve the environmental factors in respect to women by introducing flexible work hours, reducing work load and making the work less tedious and stressful for women participation.

DOES INDEPENDENT COMMISSIONER CONTRIBUTE TO DECREASE EARNINGS MANAGEMENT AND TAX AVOIDANCE ACTIVITIES

This study examines the independent commissioner's role in moderating earnings management's effect on tax avoidance practices in the building construction industry. This study uses data from building construction sector companies listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange during 2017-2020. Of the 15 companies observed, 42 samples were obtained using purposive sampling to be used in the study. They are processing data using regression analysis with cross-sectional data. The study results show that the company's earnings management positively affects tax avoidance activities carried out by building construction companies. Meanwhile, an independent commissioner does not affect the relationship between earnings management practices and corporate tax avoidance. Keywords: Corporate Governance, Earnings Quality, Tax Planning

The Influence of Fundamental and Macroeconomic Factors on Stock Returns in Building Construction Companies Listed on the Indonesian Stock Exchange for the 2018-2022 Period

This research focuses on analyzing the impact of fundamental and macroeconomic factors on stock returns within the building construction sector of companies listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange during the period from 2018 to 2022. Employing a quantitative, associative approach, the study encompasses a population of 25 building construction companies, with a purposive sampling method narrowing it down to 14 companies. The research employs multiple linear regression analysis using IBM SPSS Statistics 26 software as the analytical tool. The findings reveal that the Return on Equity Ratio (ROE) and Debt to Equity Ratio (DER) exert a negative and significant influence on stock returns. Furthermore, economic growth (GDP) demonstrates a positive and significant impact, while inflation and interest rates exhibit a negative and insignificant effect on stock returns. Collectively, these factors, including ROE, DER, GDP, inflation, and interest rates, collectively exert a significant influence on stock returns. The implications of these findings underscore the importance of considering these factors for investors, policymakers, and practitioners in the building construction industry.

Implications Fraud Diamond in Fraudulent Financial Statements on Property, Real Estate and Building Construction Industries

Fraudulent financial statements involve intentional actions of manipulating or hiding information in financial reports to deceive users. Understanding the factors behind such fraud can be explored through the Diamond Scheme Theory, consists of four materials: opportunity, rationalization, ability, and pressure. The aim of this research analyze the impact of each component of the Fraud Diamond on fraudulent financial statements. The quantitative research methodology focuses on industries in the real estate, construction and property sectors listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange starting 2020 to 2022. The sample includes 69 companies selected through purposive sampling. Utilizing multiple linear regression analysis using SPSS 26 is employed for analysis. The study results reveal that, individually, only the capability variable within the Fraud Diamond has a significant negative impact on fraudulent financial statements. Pressure, opportunity, and rationalization variables do not show a significant influence. Additionally, when considered collectively, there is no discernible impact of the Fraud Diamond components on fraudulent financial statements.

A Eutectic Mixture of Calcium Chloride Hexahydrate and Bischofite with Promising Performance for Thermochemical Energy Storage

Thermochemical energy storage using salt hydrates is a promising method for the efficient use of energy. In this study, three host matrices, expanded vermiculite, expanded clay, and expanded natural graphite were impregnated with a eutectic mixture of CaCl2·6H2O and bischofite (MgCl2·6H2O). These composites were subjected to various humidity conditions (30–70% relative humidity) at 20 °C over an extended hydration period to investigate their cyclability. It was shown that only expanded natural graphite could contain the deliquescent salt at high humidity over 50 cycles. Hence, the expanded natural graphite composites containing either CaCl2·6H2O or CaCl2·6H2O/bischofite eutectic mixture were placed in a lab-scale open packed bed reactor, providing energy densities of 150 and 120 kWh/m3 over 20 h, respectively. The eutectic composite showed slightly lower temperature lift, water uptake rate, and power output but at reduced cost. Using the eutectic mixture also decreased the composite’s dehydration temperature at which the maximum mass loss rate occurred around 16.2 °C to 62.3 °C, allowing recharge using less energy-intensive heating methods. The cost of storing 1 kWh of energy with expanded natural graphite composites is only USD 0.08 due to its stability. This research leveraging cost-effective composites with enhanced stability, reaction kinetics, and high thermal energy storage capabilities benefits renewable energy, power generation, and the building construction research communities and industries by providing a competitive alternative to sensible heat storage technologies.