Ogunbiyi, O; Goulding, J S and Oladapo, A (2014) An empirical study of the impact of lean construction techniques on sustainable construction in the UK. Construction Innovation, 14(1), pp. 88-107. ISSN 1471-4175
Abstract
Purpose - The contribution of lean construction techniques in sustainable construction cannot be over emphasised, as sustainable development is now enshrined in government policy. In addition, lean construction is now faced with the challenges of sustainable development, continuous improvement, waste elimination, a stronger user focus, increased value for money along with high quality management of projects and supply chains, and improved communications. This paper presents an exploratory study from extant literature and the results of the use of questionnaire survey among construction participants to explore the contribution of implementing lean construction techniques in sustainable construction. Design/methodology/approach - Surveys of UK-based construction professional were conducted. The data collected were analysed with SPSS 19.0 version software using the percentile method, Cronbach ' s α reliability test, Kruskal Wallis test, Kendall ' s coefficient of concordance and one sample t-test. Findings - Results from this study indicate that there are several benefits associated with implementation of lean construction and sustainable construction. The overall perspective of professionals within the construction industry, according to questionnaire survey, shows that benefits such as improved corporate image and sustainable competitive advantage, improved process flow and productivity, improvement in environmental quality and increased compliance with customer ' s expectations are realised following integration of principles of lean construction and sustainable construction within construction industry. Just-in-time, visualisation tool, value analysis, daily huddle meetings and value stream mapping are the most common lean tools/techniques for enabling sustainability. This study also identified several areas of linkage between lean and sustainability such as waste reduction, environmental management, value maximisation, and health and safety improvement among others. Originality/value - The originality of this paper lies in its consideration of lean construction principles to better understand its impact on sustainable construction. This research contributes to the awareness of the benefits that can be derived from the implementation of lean construction in sustainable construction within the construction industry.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | sustainability,sustainable construction,lean construction |
| Index terms: | sustainable development, survey, maximization, exploratory study, value analysis, compliance, lean construction, sustainable construction, health and safety, waste reduction, visualization, value-for-money, integration, methodology, questionnaire, just-in-time, productivity, continuous improvement, linkage, value stream mapping, competitive advantage, implementation, construction industry, quality management, environmental management, empirical study, construction professional, government policy, environmental quality |
| Subjects: | business, data collection methods, public policy, contractual arrangements, algorithms, research methods, sustainability assessment, management, design practice, performance measurement, professional development, sustainable construction, evaluation, health safety and environment, building construction, lean logistics, organizational analysis, market analysis, quality assurance, financial analysis, industry analysis |
| Topics: | Information Management, Research Practice, Health and Safety, Cost Management, Business Strategy, Sustainability, Governance, Procurement, Supply Chain Management, Value Management, Quality Management, Digital Applications, Design Practice, Site Management, Organizational Design |
| 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