Lifecycle Framework for Sustainable Residential Buildings in Malaysia

2014 ◽  
Vol 39 (4) ◽  
pp. 14-27
Author(s):  
Mahdokht Ebrahimi ◽  
Hamzah Abdul Rahman ◽  
Faizul Azli Mohd-Rahim ◽  
Wang Chen
Keyword(s):  
Construction Industry ◽  
Environmental Sustainability ◽  
Expert Panel ◽  
Residential Buildings ◽  
Economic Sustainability ◽  
Level Of Involvement ◽  
Slow Pace ◽  
Sustainable Performance ◽  
Comprehensive Framework ◽  
Systematic Framework

In Malaysia, there are a few numbers of frameworks and checklists in order to evaluate the sustainable performance of buildings. In addition, most of these assessment frameworks or checklists focus on environmental sustainability disregarding social and economic pillars. The research in social and economic sustainability in the construction industry is pushing forward, albeit at a slow pace. In addition, the growing number of sustainable criteria in the literature highlights the importance of a systematic framework for construction initiatives. This research aims to propose a comprehensive framework based on three pillars of sustainability, and, additionally, to categorize them in a manner that is applicable for all relevant stakeholders based on their level of involvement and needs. Finally, it identifies the relation between each criterion and stage of the construction lifecycle with the assistance of an expert panel. This research produces a framework that is useful for Malaysian construction stakeholders to reinforce their approach towards sustainability through social and economic aspects that are currently underestimated in the construction industry.

Green and sustainable practices in the construction industry

2019 ◽  
Vol 26 (6) ◽  
pp. 1063-1086 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jaber Shurrab ◽  
Matloub Hussain ◽  
Mehmood Khan
Keyword(s):  
Factor Analysis ◽  
Construction Industry ◽  
Environmental Sustainability ◽  
Corporate Image ◽  
Performance Model ◽  
Sustainable Construction ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Green Construction ◽  
Sustainable Performance ◽  
The Impact

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to differentiate between sustainable and green construction and significantly contribute to empirical investigations related to the impact of green construction factors on sustainable performance and to test the theory of planned behavior in the construction context and empirically assess green construction factors and the performance model. The model incorporates green construction factors that link construction activities with suppliers and customers to support environmental sustainability. Design/methodology/approach Data collected from 120 construction industry respondents were analyzed using exploratory factor analysis, which identified seven green construction factors. Two conformity factor analysis models were created to test the relationship fitness of the components and measure the impact of green construction factors on the sustainable performance of the construction. Findings The results provide substantial evidence that shows that the adoption of green construction factors by construction firms leads to improved sustainable performance. The overall perspective of respondents within the construction industry, according to the questionnaire survey, shows that the benefits, such as an improved corporate image and sustainable competitive advantage, increase compliance with customers’ expectations within the construction industry. Research limitations/implications This study covered private construction companies and measured the construction industry professional’s feedback without including the clients. Practical implications The results of this study will support the future success of ecological sustainability and green construction initiatives, mainly on enforcement and incentives; moreover, the results of this study will ensure that regulations will cover green practices for all types of projects and will be formally monitored for compliance. Originality/value The originality of this paper stems from drawing boundaries between green and sustainable construction and exploring the impact of green management on the sustainable performance of the construction industry. Most of the related previous works have used the concepts of green and sustainability interchangeably, and there is a lack of studies in this regard, particularly in the construction industry.

scholarly journals FORROS DE GESSO E PVC COMPARATIVAMENTE AO FORRO DE MADEIRA: AVALIAÇÃO DO CICLO DE VIDA DE EMISSÕES DE CO2 [Gypsum and PVC Ceiling Linings comparatively to Timber Ceiling Linings: Life Cycle Carbon Emissions Assessment]

2018 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Lissa Gomes Araújo ◽  
Júlia Santiago de Matos Monteiro Lira ◽  
Rosa Maria Sposto
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle ◽  
Construction Industry ◽  
Carbon Emissions ◽  
Environmental Sustainability ◽  
Building Materials ◽  
Residential Buildings ◽  
Secondary Data ◽  
Hybrid Analysis ◽  
Alternative Means ◽  
Increase Productivity

RESUMO:  A crescente necessidade de gerar economia e aumentar a produtividade na construção civil tem incentivado a busca por meios e métodos alternativos, o que aumentou a atenção direcionada a materiais mais eficientes, inclusive quanto ao aspecto da sustentabilidade ambiental. O objetivo deste trabalho é quantificar as emissões de CO2 dos sistemas de vedação horizontal interna utilizados em edificações habitacionais, ou mais precisamente, sistemas de forros de gesso acartonado e de PVC, comparativamente ao forro de madeira. Para o alcance deste objetivo utilizou-se a metodologia ACVCO2, com análise híbrida, dados secundários e dimensionamentos comerciais. O sistema de forro de madeira apresentou emissões 26% maiores que a do PVC e 67% maiores que a do gesso. Este trabalho chama a atenção para os sistemas de vedações horizontais internas e a preocupação com outros materiais da construção civil cujo impacto é tão preocupante quando o do cimento.ABSTRACT: The growing need to provide savings and increase productivity in the construction industry has encouraged the search for alternative means and methods, increasing the pursuit for more efficient materials, especially under the aspect of environmental sustainability. The objective of this work is to quantify the CO2 emissions of the internal horizontal sealing systems used in residential buildings, or more accurately, ceiling linings of gypsum plasterboard and PVC, compared to the timber lining. To reach this objective, the ACVCO2 methodology was applied, with hybrid analysis, secondary data and following commercial standards. The timber lining system presented emissions 26% higher than that of PVC and 67% higher than that of gypsum. This paper draws attention to the internal horizontal sealing systems and the concern with other building materials whose impact is as concerning as that of cement.

scholarly journals Nanotechnology Innovations in Construction Industry and Environmental Sustainability

2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (11S) ◽  
pp. 286-291
Keyword(s):  
Construction Industry ◽  
Environmental Sustainability ◽  
Research Review ◽  
Environmental Damage ◽  
The Sustainable Development ◽  
Future Challenges ◽  
Future Potential ◽  
Living Organisms ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Near Future

Nanotechnology is a speedily increasing and innovating range of research, where advanced characteristics of resources manufactures on the nanoscale can be exploited as advantages for people at large through various methods or mechanisms of construction. Being a varied technical and scientific arena that brings and covers numerous application kinds, the contribution of nanotechnological innovations is immense for various sectors of construction industries. It also possesses a large future potential for ecological efficiency, which is dire need of the hour. In construction industry there are many factors involved to achieve the major goal of sustainability like smart design, planning through which energy can be saved, resource usage can be reduced and environmental damage can be avoided. No doubt, the application of nanotechnology materials and its various causes on the atmosphere and living organisms are not clearly defined yet which can become a problem. For instance, leakage of materials into the water resources, and seas, as well, discharge of nanoparticles into the air generating dust and exposure to harmful materials during various construction, maintenance and use etc. Considering tremendous revolution in Nanotechnological field there is an important aspect in relation to the impact of nanoparticles and nanomaterials on human health and environment which should be discussed at length. This paper intends to give a research review of current and near future, safety and eco-efficiency applications of nanotechnology to not only improve and maintain but also deal with certain future challenges and directions related to the sustainable development.

scholarly journals Trade-off between India’s Trade Promotion and its Environmental Sustainability

2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 405
Author(s):  
Manasi Gore ◽  
Meenal Annachhatre
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Environmental Pollution ◽  
Foreign Trade ◽  
Environmental Sustainability ◽  
National Income ◽  
Petroleum Products ◽  
Economic Sustainability ◽  
Green Products ◽  
Gold Silver ◽  
Petroleum Refineries

The concept of sustainable development involves three components namely economic, social and environmental. In a developing economy like that of India, the economic sustainability demands higher growth of key economic indicators such as National income, employment generation, production, consumption and even the foreign trade. The growth of foreign trade and that of the exports are very critical for the foreign exchange reserves essential to pay for the imports in India. Trade as an engine of the economic growth thus fulfils the essential implication for economic sustainability. But in achieving this growth, economy’s environmental sustainability is at stake. This is because, the top export products of India still comprise of petroleum products (18%) , agricultural products (12%), textiles and yarns together at 11 % and chemicals (10%). All these exports in their production have immensely contributed towards environmental pollution in one way or the other. Mining for gold, silver and diamonds resulted in water pollution, Green House Gas emission, and soil erosion. Petroleum refineries are a major source of hazardous and toxic air pollutants such as particulate matter (PM).Though India’s contribution to the total world trade is yet negligible, while promoting the major exports as mentioned above the natural resources are exploited too much and thus create a threat to India’s environmental sustainability. This paper therefore advocates the need for the Green products’ exports to make India’s growth story even environmentally sustainable. Keywords: Sustainable development, Green products, Exports, Imports, Environmental Pollution

scholarly journals Quantitative risk analysis procedure for economic project sustainability.

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jithin Arakkatt Shaji
Keyword(s):  
Risk Analysis ◽  
Construction Industry ◽  
Construction Projects ◽  
Quantitative Methods ◽  
Economic Sustainability ◽  
Key Factors ◽  
Paper Briefly ◽  
Cost Variance ◽  
Project Sustainability ◽  
Project Deliverables

The paper briefly explains the importance of quantitative procedures of risk analysis in large and medium scale projects for the sustenance of project economic sustainability. Globally, several construction projects are being descoped and tend to close out before attaining the initial project deliverables due to cost and schedule overruns. The quantitative methods can sieve the key factors and forecast the tangible impacts that can lead to schedule or cost variance in a project. It can guide the project stakeholders for timely decision making and mitigate the risks associated to achieve the project goals. Today, the quantitative methods are pivotal to analyze the impacts of Covid-19 crises in Construction industry which are increasingly apparent. Keywords- Project economic sustainability, Risk analysis, Quantitative methods

Offsite construction in the Australian low-rise residential buildings application levels and procurement options

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Tong Lin ◽  
Sainan Lyu ◽  
Rebecca Jing Yang ◽  
Linda Tivendale
Keyword(s):  
Construction Industry ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Residential Buildings ◽  
Analysis Method ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Content Type ◽  
High Rise ◽  
The World ◽  
Different Levels ◽  
Selection Of

PurposePrefabricated housing has become a boom industry across the world; however, the uptake of offsite construction (OSC) approaches in Australian low-rise buildings is rather low compared with high-rise buildings in other countries. This study aims to investigate and analyse the adoption of different levels of OSC approaches and the selection of different procurement options in Australian low-rise residential buildings.Design/methodology/approachThe research objectives were pursued through a mixed research method. An empirical questionnaire survey was carried out with 35 professionals in the Australian building and construction industry. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 20 interviewees and analysed using thematic analysis method in NVivo software.FindingsThe research results found that the most suitable OSC level for Australian low-rise buildings is components-based prefabrication and identified the barriers to OSC uptake for each OSC level. The study also showed that the best option of procuring prefabricated products is from Australian manufacturers, followed by Australian suppliers/dealers and overseas manufacturers. Panelised prefabrication and components-based prefabrication are ranked as the most suitable OSC approaches for Australian manufacturers. Modular prefabrication is regarded as the most suitable for overseas manufacturer, while components-based prefabrication is the most suitable for Australian suppliers/dealers.Originality/valueThe selection of various OSC approaches and different procurement options in the low-rise residential buildings are scarcely explored topic, and thus, this study provides knowledge of interest for both researchers and practitioners.

scholarly journals Identifying and prioritizing delay factors in Iran’s oil construction projects

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Aliyeh Kazemi ◽  
Eun-Seok Kim ◽  
Mohammad-Hossein Kazemi
Keyword(s):  
Construction Industry ◽  
Construction Projects ◽  
Successful Implementation ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Construction Contracts ◽  
Fuzzy Delphi ◽  
Low Efficiency ◽  
Comprehensive Framework ◽  
Governmental Management ◽  
Laws And Regulations

Purpose Successful implementation of construction projects is one of the crucial factors for the economic development of every country. The main part of the countries’ capital is allocated to civil and infrastructure projects annually, most of which are accomplished with delay. Construction projects are often criticized for overrunning time and budgets. Analyzing the factors causing delay is essential for omitting them and timely implementation of these projects. Due to the importance of oil projects, this study aims to investigate and analyze the factors causing a delay in Iran’s oil construction projects. Design/methodology/approach In this research, after a broad literature review, using the fuzzy Delphi method, a total of 75 delay factors were identified under 11 major categories of owner, contractor, consultant, equipment, labor, materials, design, contract and contractual relations, laws and regulations, environmental factors, and managerial factors. Then, by using the best-worst method, the factors were prioritized. Findings The results showed that sanction, governmental management systems, weak project management by the contractor, technical and managerial weaknesses of the consultant, financial problems and delay in payment by the owner, low efficiency of the equipment, low productivity of the workforce, changes in laws and regulations, inappropriate organizational structure linking to the project, changes in the design, and changes in the price of materials are the most crucial factors causing a delay in Iran’s oil construction projects. Research limitations/implications These findings are expected to have significant contributions to Iran’s oil construction industry in controlling the time overruns in construction contracts. Originality/value The main contribution of this study is to develop a comprehensive framework in which, causes of delay in Iran’s oil construction projects are addressed and prioritized.

scholarly journals The Main Drivers for Sustainable Decisions in a Family Business That Impact the Company’s Performance

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (20) ◽  
pp. 8659
Author(s):  
Adriana Cioca ◽  
Kassam Wehbe ◽  
Delia Popescu ◽  
Constanta Popescu
Keyword(s):  
Human Resources ◽  
Family Business ◽  
Investment Decisions ◽  
Family Businesses ◽  
Economic Sustainability ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Sustainable Performance ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Good Operation

The successful ways in which families have conducted their businesses decade after decade have drawn scholars’ attention to what the mainstream ideas are when it comes to making sustainable decisions. This article focuses on the main drivers behind sustainable decisions made by family businesses with respect to three pillars: economic, environmental, and social. In this context, the authors’ aim is to present a statistical model for forecasting companies’ future revenue in the next financial year by analyzing the relationship between the main internal drivers of family businesses and their corresponding financial objectives. Additionally, the analysis of the long-term strategy and the short-term actions indicates an understanding of environmental awareness. Reaction time in investment decisions represents a challenge for the sustainable performance of family companies. Human resources with good operation management in family businesses contribute to the assurance of long-term business stability and high returns on investments. The results will contribute to the literature on economic sustainability of family businesses.

Perception of Building Occupants on the use of Generating Sets

2017 ◽  
Vol 13 (6) ◽  
pp. 300
Author(s):  
A.B Wahab
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Sustainability ◽  
Technological Development ◽  
Residential Buildings ◽  
Physiological Effect ◽  
Commercial Buildings ◽  
Generating Sets ◽  
Different Types ◽  
Major Bottleneck ◽  
Analyse Data ◽  
Quota Sampling

Poor power supply is a major bottleneck to the technological development of the country and this has forced building occupants to shift to dependence on generating sets of different types and brand which subject its users to myriad of effects. This study was aimed at assessing perception of the users of generators in buildings on the effects associated with its usage in Ibadan Metropolis, Nigeria. The study area was divided into core, transition and suburban residential zones. Multistage and quota sampling techniques were used to select respondents sampled in residential and commercial buildings respectively. Descriptive and inferential statistical techniques were used to analyse data collected. The study showed that 50.29%, 51.19%, 45.90% of residential buildings’ respondents in the core, transition and suburban zone while 56.41%, 43.33% and 42.86% of occupants of commercial buildings in the corresponding core, transition and suburban zone indicated that hearing problem was the most physiological effect that the use of generating sets exposed them to. Cut injuries from the elcetro-mechanical components of generating sets were the most prominent injuries had by the occupants of residential buildings while irritation of the eyes during refueling was the most significant effect had by respondents in the commercial buildings. High cost of fuel and damage to electrical appliances were the most uncomfortable indicator with uncomfortability index of 0.804 and 0.776 in residential and commercial buildings respectively. The study also found that the use of generating sets had caused structional, functional and aesthetical effects on the building elements. It was recommended that there is dire need on the part of government to enhance environmental sustainability by provision of sustainable energy sources to buildings in view of the effects associated with the use of generating sets.

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