Jaillon, L C (2009) The evolution of the use of prefabrication techniques in Hong Kong construction industry. PhD thesis, Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong.
Abstract
The construction industry in Hong Kong heavily relies on conventional cast in-situ construction involving extensive use of timber formworks and wet trades. In 2001, the Construction Industry Review Committee report described the construction activities in Hong Kong as ‘labour intensive, dangerous and polluting’. Globally, however, the recent trend is prefabrication, which is being increasingly used in the building industry, alleviating some of the environmental burdens associated with conventional construction. Very few studies have assessed the sustainable construction aspects of prefabrication in dense urban environments in terms of economic, environmental and social benefits and limitations of using prefabrication. Prefabricated building components have been adopted in Hong Kong for over two decades for high-rise buildings from the public sector. There is a need to study the use of prefabrication in high-rise buildings, especially for projects in the private sector given the global trend towards sustainable construction. This research project aims to investigate the evolution and application of precast construction in high-rise buildings and assess the sustainable construction aspects of prefabrication in dense high-rise urban environments like Hong Kong. In this research, five major ways of collecting and analysing data are pursued, using a combination of quantitative and qualitative methodologies: questionnaire surveys, compilation of a database, detailed case studies of recently completed buildings in Hong Kong, face-to-face interviews, and site observations. The study reveals that a wider application of prefabrication in buildings in Hong Kong could significantly contribute to economical, environmental and social benefits, especially in dense urban environments. In the detailed case studies, on an average, a reduction of 65% of construction waste, 16% of labour requirement on-site and 15% of construction time is noted when adopting prefabrication techniques. The findings also reveal that prefabrication combined with modular design and standard precast elements saves time and construction/design costs, as the prefabricated building system is not reinvented for each project. The study suggests that a critical agenda should include the development of serious aspiration towards a more environmentally responsible and sustainable building industry (e.g.closed-loop material principles) to achieve a healthy built environment and efficient use of resources.
| Item Type: | Thesis (Doctoral) |
|---|---|
| Thesis advisor: | Poon, C S |
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | built environment; private sector; building industry; formwork; in-situ; timber; design cost; fabrication; prefabrication; sustainable building; sustainable construction; Hong Kong; case studies; interview; questionnaire survey |
| Index terms: | sustainable construction, social benefit, interview, survey, face, questionnaire, methodology, evolution, sustainable building, urban environment, high-rise building, case study, Hong Kong, database, public sector, construction activity, formwork, private sector, design cost, built environment, building industry, modular design, in-situ, construction time, construction waste, fabrication, construction industry, prefabrication, labour requirement, prefabricated building |
| Subjects: | waste management, design methods, urban sustainability, data collection methods, construction type, environmental science, construction operations, psychology, Geography, sustainable construction, theoretical framing, manufacturing engineering, management, research methods, economics, administrative law, infrastructure and transport systems, industry analysis, project controls, data management, building construction |
| Topics: | Construction Technology, Research Practice, Business Strategy, Cost Management, Site Management, Organizational Design, Time Control, Design Practice, Digital Applications, Urban Studies, Sustainability, Geographical Context, Engineering Principles, Legal Issues |
| Descriptive scope: | 5 PCTEA |
N.B. Descriptive scope is a count of how many of the five facets of empirical research are indicated by the words used in title, abstract and keywords. It is not intended as a judgement on the research; merely a count of the kind of word we would expect to indicate Phenomenon, Concepts, Theoretical framing, Empirical techniques, Analytical techniques. If all five are present, then a code of “5 PCTEA” will indicate this. If you feel the coding for this record is questionable, we welcome discussion around the terms we matched or the way we categorized them. The facet you would expect may not be coded, or a facet may be coded inappropriately. This can also bear on a larger question, of which facets should be treated as defining in construction management research. Please get in touch, and we will look at it. More details here