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Implementing Innovative and Modern Methods of Construction for Achieving Triple-Bottom-Line...
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Implementing Innovative and Modern Methods of Construction for Achieving Triple-Bottom-Line of Sustainability

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

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (11 March 2023) | Viewed by 12352

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Monty Sutrisna

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Built Environment, Massey University, Auckland 0745, New Zealand
Interests: construction management; advanced technologies in construction; construction stakeholders and knowledge-based systems and artificial intelligence
Dr. Wajiha Mohsin Shahzad

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Built Environment, Massey University, Auckland 0745, New Zealand
Interests: offsite construction; construction productivity; design for manufacturing and assembly (DfMA); construction management

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Built environment professionals and scholars have been increasingly voicing growing concerns about the adverse implications of built environment development on the natural environment and resources. Massive construction and relevant built environment activities across the globe supporting rapid urbanization have significantly consumed natural resources and are contributing to more than 50% of all greenhouse gas emissions. Sustainability issues arising from built environment development have reached a point that requires a serious rethink and an overhaul in how construction projects are delivered. The concept of sustainability conventionally comprises social, environmental, and economic aspects while creating a balance between the natural environment and the built environment. These three intertwined sustainability dimensions are typically referred to as the triple bottom line (TBL) of sustainability. While featured in many discourses, TBL have not been specifically used as the main measurement mechanism to establish how innovative and modern construction methods of construction such as offsite construction (OSC), modularization, design for manufacturing and assembly (DfMA), industrialized building system (IBS), construction automation, and other innovative techniques can enhance sustainability.

Various researchers have confirmed the positive impact of various innovative and modern methods of construction methods on the economy, society, and environment. However, these have been typically developed in isolation from each other, and a much more holistic understanding to achieving TBL of sustainability by implementing innovative and modern methods of construction in measurable manners still needs to be developed.

This Special Issue aims to develop a holistic understanding of the relationship between the innovative and modern methods of construction and their sustainability performance measured within the TBL framework. Performance assessment of offsite construction, modularization, DfMA, IBS automated, and other innovative construction techniques against the three underpinnings of sustainability—society, economy, and the environment—should be considered critical to minimize the negative implications of built environment development on natural environment and resources. To achieve this aim, this Special Issue invites quality research papers that report practices around the world on how innovative and modern methods of construction can support the achievement of TBL during the development of the built environment in a more measurable manner. This is envisaged to also include lessons learned and the drivers and challenges in achieving TBL of sustainability through implementing such innovative and modern methods of construction. It is anticipated that this compilation of contemporary research and advancements in implementing innovative and modern methods of construction can be an important milestone for the built environment discipline to systematically achieve the TBL of sustainability and contribute to the global efforts to preserve and futureproof our environment and society. 

Prof. Dr. Monty Sutrisna
Dr. Wajiha Mohsin Shahzad
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

  • construction
  • innovative and modern methods
  • Triple Bottom Line (TBL)
  • offsite construction (OSC)
  • design for manufacturing and assembly (DfMA)
  • modularisation

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

25 pages, 4825 KiB  
Article
Assessment of Sustainability and Efficiency Metrics in Modern Methods of Construction: A Case Study Using a Life Cycle Assessment Approach
by Héctor Hernández, Felipe Ossio and Michael Silva
Sustainability 2023, 15(7), 6267; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su15076267 - 06 Apr 2023
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2330
Abstract
The construction industry faces various sustainability challenges, and modern methods of construction (MMC) have been promoted as an effective alternative to mitigate environmental impact and improve productivity. However, to gain a thorough understanding of the benefits, there is a need for more objective [...] Read more.
The construction industry faces various sustainability challenges, and modern methods of construction (MMC) have been promoted as an effective alternative to mitigate environmental impact and improve productivity. However, to gain a thorough understanding of the benefits, there is a need for more objective data. To address this, the present study employs a simplified life-cycle assessment (LCA) methodology to evaluate a set of environmental and efficiency metrics in a case study. The study aims to demonstrate the benefits of using an MMC known as the “VAP system” by comparing it with its conventional counterpart built with reinforced masonry. Adopting the MMC resulted in significant reductions in embodied carbon (EC) and embodied energy (EE) related to materials, as well as a reduction in global warming potential (GWP), cumulative energy demand (CED), and construction waste. Additionally, it shortened delivery times and increased labor productivity. Furthermore, when both local and European parameters were considered in the evaluation, the percentage of materials circularity (PMC) was higher. The study concludes that the adoption of the MMC leads to higher sustainability by reducing carbon emissions, minimizing construction waste, and conserving resources. This research has significant implications for promoting the adoption of MMC globally, leading to more sustainable and efficient construction practices. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Implementing Innovative and Modern Methods of Construction for Achieving Triple-Bottom-Line of Sustainability)
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16 pages, 2119 KiB  
Article
Analytic Network Process-Based Sustainability Life Cycle Assessment of Concrete Bridges in Coastal Regions
by Ignacio J. Navarro, José V. Martí and Víctor Yepes
Sustainability 2022, 14(17), 10688; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su141710688 - 27 Aug 2022
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1888
Abstract
Since establishing the Sustainable Development Goals in 2015, the assessment of the sustainability performance of existing and future infrastructures has been in the spotlight of the scientific community. This is because the construction sector is essential for promoting the social welfare and economic [...] Read more.
Since establishing the Sustainable Development Goals in 2015, the assessment of the sustainability performance of existing and future infrastructures has been in the spotlight of the scientific community. This is because the construction sector is essential for promoting the social welfare and economic development of countries, but is also one of the main environmental stressors existing to date. However, assessing infrastructure sustainability throughout its life cycle remains a significant challenge, as the criteria involved in sustainable design are often complex and conflicting. The Analytic Network Process (ANP) is recognized as a powerful decision-making tool to model such problems. Here, the life cycle sustainability performance of different design alternatives for a concrete bridge near the shore is evaluated using ANP. The obtained results are compared with those obtained using the conventional Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP). The results obtained using ANP are more reliable than those derived from the conventional AHP in terms of the expert’s consistency and the number of comparisons made. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Implementing Innovative and Modern Methods of Construction for Achieving Triple-Bottom-Line of Sustainability)
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34 pages, 5209 KiB  
Article
The LCT Challenge: Defining New Design Objectives to Increase the Sustainability of Building Retrofit Interventions
by Chiara Passoni, Elisabetta Palumbo, Rui Pinho and Alessandra Marini
Sustainability 2022, 14(14), 8860; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su14148860 - 20 Jul 2022
Cited by 11 | Viewed by 2496
Abstract
The decarbonization of the construction sector, which is one of the most impactful sectors worldwide, requires a significant paradigm shift from a linear economy to a circular, future-proofed and sustainable economy. In this transition, the role of designers and structural engineers becomes pivotal, [...] Read more.
The decarbonization of the construction sector, which is one of the most impactful sectors worldwide, requires a significant paradigm shift from a linear economy to a circular, future-proofed and sustainable economy. In this transition, the role of designers and structural engineers becomes pivotal, and new design objectives and principles inspired by Life Cycle Thinking (LCT) should be defined and included from the early stages of the design process to allow for a truly sustainable renovation of the built environment. In this paper, an overview of LCT-based objectives and principles is provided, critically analyzing the current state of the art of sustainability and circularity in the construction sector. The effectiveness of applying such design principles from the early stages of the design of retrofit interventions is then demonstrated with reference to a case study building. Four seismic retrofit alternatives made of timber, steel and concrete, conceived according to either LCT principles or traditional, were designed and compared to a demolition and reconstruction scenario on the basis of five common environmental impact indicators. The indicators were calculated adopting simplified LCA analyses based on Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs), considering the product and End of Life stages of the building. The results of the comparative analyses confirm that LCT-based retrofit solutions are less impactful than both the traditional seismic retrofit interventions and the demolition and reconstruction scenario. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Implementing Innovative and Modern Methods of Construction for Achieving Triple-Bottom-Line of Sustainability)
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19 pages, 1249 KiB  
Article
Social Impact Assessment Comparison of Composite and Concrete Bridge Alternatives
by David Martínez-Muñoz, Jose V. Martí and Víctor Yepes
Sustainability 2022, 14(9), 5186; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su14095186 - 25 Apr 2022
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2391
Abstract
The definition of sustainability includes three fundamental pillars: economic, environmental, and social. Studies of the economic impact on civil engineering infrastructures have been focused on cost reduction. It is not necessarily in line with economic sustainability due to the lack of other economic [...] Read more.
The definition of sustainability includes three fundamental pillars: economic, environmental, and social. Studies of the economic impact on civil engineering infrastructures have been focused on cost reduction. It is not necessarily in line with economic sustainability due to the lack of other economic factors. Moreover, the social pillar assessment has been weakly developed compared to the economic and the environmental ones. It is essential to focus on the social pillar and evaluate clear indicators that allow researchers to compare alternatives. Furthermore, bridge life cycle assessment studies have been focused on concrete options. This has resulted in a lack of analysis of the impact of composite bridge alternatives. This study is conducted in two stages. The first part of the study makes a cradle-to-grave social and environmental sustainability evaluation with the SOCA v2 and ecoinvent v3.7.1 databases. This assessment is carried out on four concrete and composite bridge alternatives with span lengths between 15 and 40 m. The social impact weighting method and recipe have been used to obtain the social and environmental indicators. The second part of the study compares the results obtained from the social and environmental assessment of the concrete and the composite alternatives varying the steel recycling rate. The bridge alternatives are prestressed concrete solid slab, prestressed concrete lightened slab, prestressed concrete box-girder, and steel–concrete composite box-girder. The results show that composite options are the best for environmental impact, but the concrete box girder solutions are better for social impact. Furthermore, an increase in the steel recycling rate increases the social impact and decreases the environmental one. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Implementing Innovative and Modern Methods of Construction for Achieving Triple-Bottom-Line of Sustainability)
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27 pages, 1526 KiB  
Article
Offsite Sustainability—Disentangling the Rhetoric through Informed Mindset Change
by Volkan Ezcan and Jack Steven Goulding
Sustainability 2022, 14(8), 4606; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su14084606 - 12 Apr 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1937
Abstract
The construction sector and concomitant supply chain has been acknowledged in the literature as a major contributor to environmental “stress”, from the design, sourcing and extraction of raw materials through to transportation, design, construction and demolition. Clear indicators/solutions have been showcased as vehicles [...] Read more.
The construction sector and concomitant supply chain has been acknowledged in the literature as a major contributor to environmental “stress”, from the design, sourcing and extraction of raw materials through to transportation, design, construction and demolition. Clear indicators/solutions have been showcased as vehicles for reducing this stress, ranging from lifecycle costing through to waste reduction strategies, carbon assessment and “green” environmental assessment tools to name but a few. However, this paper argues that whilst some of these (intervention strategies) may have had some positive effects, the main challenge rests with people—inter alia, the key decision-makers and leadership structures with the “position power” to effect change. Acknowledging this as a supposition, this paper uses three discreet construction organisations engaging in offsite construction as a micro-study (cf. cross-case study) to evaluate sustainability perceptions. In doing so, it focuses specifically on sustainability practices and business processes underpinning technology (adoption, absorption and diffusion), including the perceptions of different stakeholders involved in each of these three companies. In total, 30 respondents from three organisations (cases) participated in this study, representing three tiers of management (top, middle and first line). Priority areas are highlighted, along with the reasons supporting these perspectives. Findings from this work present a new technology diffusion sustainability model for offsite construction. This model identifies sustainability causal links, super catalysts, actuators, barriers, forces and facilitators. More importantly perhaps, this work presents a clear case for “conjoined thinking” in order to instill a collective mindset change and common purpose for those wishing to evidence offsite sustainability. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Implementing Innovative and Modern Methods of Construction for Achieving Triple-Bottom-Line of Sustainability)
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