Yunus, R and Yang, J (2014) Improving ecological performance of industrialized building systems in Malaysia. Construction Management and Economics, 32(1-2), pp. 183-195. ISSN 01446193
Abstract
For construction stakeholders to fully embrace sustainability, its long-term benefits and associated risks need to be identified through holistic approaches. Consensus among key stakeholders is very important to the improvement of the ecological performance of industrialized building systems (IBS), a building construction method gaining momentum in Malaysia. A questionnaire survey examines the relative significance of 16 potentially important sustainability factors for IBS applications. To present possible solutions, semi-structured interviews solicit views from experienced IBS practitioners, representing the professions involved. Three most critical factors agreed by key stakeholders are material consumption, waste generation and waste disposal. Using SWOT analysis, the positive and negative aspects of these factors are investigated, with action plans formulated for IBS design practitioners. The SWOT analysis based guidelines have the potential to become part of IBS design briefing documents against which sustainability solutions are contemplated, selected and implemented. Existing knowledge on ecological performance issues is extended by considering the unique characteristics of IBS and identifying not only the benefits, but also the potential risks and challenges of pursuing sustainability. This is largely missing in previous research efforts. Findings to date focus on providing much-needed assistance to IBS designers, who are at the forefront of decision-making with a significant level of project influence. Ongoing work will be directed towards other project development phases and consider the inherent linkage between design decisions and subsequent sustainability deliverables in the project life cycle.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | decision support; ecological; industrialized building system; Malaysia; sustainability |
| Index terms: | critical factor, designer, waste generation, linkage, life cycle, industrialized building system, Malaysia, project development, holistic approach, profession, survey, building construction, decision support, interview, briefing, design decision, consumption, waste disposal, questionnaire, practitioner, documents, decision-making |
| Subjects: | decision analysis, building construction, environmental engineering, design practice, Geography, professional development, project delivery, risk assessment, profession, data collection methods, business, consumer economics, environmental impact, scope management, value management, institututions, practitioner |
| Topics: | Risk Management, Stakeholder Management, Roles and Professions, Sustainability, Construction Technology, Business Strategy, Information Management, Research Practice, Geographical Context, Project Management, Design Practice |
| Descriptive scope: | 4 PCEA |
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