Zhang, S; Zhong, B; Wu, H; Tang, B and Sepasgozar, S M E (2026) Impact of industry 4.0 digital technologies on optimal construction strategies: Owner preference perspective on construction service perception and unreliability costs. Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, 152(1): 04025222, ISSN 0733-9364
Abstract
Prefabricated construction, recognized as a sustainable and efficient construction method, is increasingly popular due to its potential to mitigate climate change. However, assessing its profitability and effectively utilizing Industry 4.0 digital technologies necessitates strategic stakeholder engagement. This study examines contractors' optimal construction strategies-traditional, prefabricated, or hybrid-under heterogeneous owner preferences, specifically construction service perception and unreliability costs. A game-Theoretic model is developed to characterize the interaction between contractors and owners. The findings indicate that the optimal construction strategy is influenced by the owner's construction service perception (associated with traditional construction) and the costs of unreliability (associated with prefabricated construction). Specifically, when these factors are moderate, a hybrid strategy that integrates prefabricated and traditional construction is most effective. Conversely, when unreliability costs and construction service perceptions are either high or low, contractors should opt for either purely traditional or purely prefabricated construction. Digital technologies play a dual role in promoting prefabrication. Contractors are more inclined to adopt prefabricated construction when digital technologies significantly reduce the owner's unreliability costs; otherwise, they are less likely to embrace prefabrication. This study contributes by incorporating customer preference theory into a construction strategy model and analyzing how Industry 4.0 technologies influence contractor decisions. Practically, enhancing owner preferences and improving digital technologies capabilities are key to promoting prefabrication. These findings emphasize the practical application of game theory models in addressing sustainability in the construction industry, providing insights to promote prefabricated construction practices and management from a new perspective of owner preferences.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | construction service perception; construction strategies; game theory; industry 4.0 digital technologies; unreliability costs |
| Index terms: | climate change, preference, digital technology, hybrid strategy, game theory, construction method, strategy, prefabrication, construction industry, interaction, customer preference, stakeholder engagement, profitability, owner, traditional construction, industry 4.0 |
| Subjects: | strategic management, climate science, economic analysis, decision-making and reasoning, building construction, heritage and conservation, behavioral psychology, business, computing systems, community and social dimensions, technology adoption, decision models, management, sociology, industry analysis |
| Topics: | Sustainability, Stakeholder Management, Construction Technology, Business Strategy, Research Practice, Site Management, Design Practice, Digital Applications |
| Descriptive scope: | 3 PCT |
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