Design waste mapping: a project life cycle approach

An ever-increasing amount of global research on construction waste has been conducted over the past two decades, ranging from ‘soft’ mapping and management, reduction tools and methodologies to ‘hard’ material and recycling technologies. However, the current state of research is largely dominated by endeavours to manage waste that has already been produced. Hence, there is a need for a shift from ‘end-of pipe’ solutions that focus on on-site waste management to a source-based approach that is aimed at ‘life cycle’ analysis. This research engaged a sample population from the major UK architectural and contracting firms through 24 interviews to investigate the underlying origins, causes and sources of waste across all project life cycle stages. Respondents reported that designing out waste has never been the most glamorous end of sustainable design. Moreover, the results reveal that waste generation is affected by a wide practice of not embedding waste reduction in briefing and contractual documents, no baseline setting, and lack of designers’ understanding of design waste origins, causes and sources. This is hindered by limited know-how and incoherent coordination and communication between project members and impeded by time constraints and disjointed design information. Collectively, these impediments disallow the consideration, engagement and implementation of designing out waste

Innovation in cleaner production through waste recycling in composites

Purpose: At present Glass Reinforced Plastic (GRP) waste recycling is very limited due to its intrinsic thermoset composite nature and non-availability of viable recovery options. The purpose of this paper is to assess the recycling potential of GRP waste powder and fibre in concrete, cement and rubber composites. Design/methodology/approach: Extensive laboratory experiments were conducted to examine the suitability of GRP waste in concrete, cement, and rubber composites. GRP waste samples were processed and suitable tests were performed to measure the mechanical properties of the resulting three composites. Findings: The findings of this experimental investigation confirmed that GRP waste can be used as a partial replacement for virgin and raw materials in composites. Furthermore, the addition of GRP waste powder and fibre to composites has the potential to improve their mechanical properties. Research limitations/implications: Results show that the use of GRP waste powder in concrete and rubber composites and GRP waste fibre in architectural cladding panels has technical, economic and environmental benefits. As such, the findings of this research pave the way for viable technological options for substituting quality raw materials by GRP waste in pan-industry composites and improving their mechanical properties. However, resulting recycled composites depend upon the consistency and quality of GRP waste powder and fibre, and the access to specialised composite material manufacturing facilities. Furthermore, full compliance tests including durability studies and requirements, which may depend upon specific applications, are recommended. Practical implications: The adopted methodological approach of this research and subsequent experimental results pave the way for viable technological options for substituting quality raw materials by GRP waste in pan-industry composites. It is anticipated that the results of this research would help diverting GRP waste from landfill to more useful industrial applications. Originality/value: Growing technological innovations, ample market value and demand for GRP composites all over the world has trigged interest in optimising GRP waste recovery. However, few solutions for GRP waste recycling into value-added industrial products are being explored. The work reported so far is very limited and did not show viable applications for GRP waste composites. Hence, this research sets out to examine the suitability of GRP waste powder and fibre in concrete, cement, and rubber composites. © Emerald Group Publishing Limited

Investigation into contractors' responsible sourcing implementation practice

Over the last few years there has been an increasing demand for more efficient ways of procuring materials in terms of reducing their impacts on the environment. The UK Strategy for Sustainable Construction introduced a voluntary target of 25% of all resources in the construction industry to be responsibly sourced by 2012. At the time of writing there has been very limited research on responsible sourcing (RS), particularly in terms of contractors' current practices and implementation at project level. Therefore, an assessment of the current status of RS among the top 100 UK contractors has been captured using a questionnaire survey and follow-up interviews. The results indicate that no clear RS responsibility has been established, and there is no cohesive, top-down strategy from the strategic level (sustainability managers) to the implementation level (procurement mangers) in place in contracting companies. On the other hand, there was agreement that government leadership through the implementation of RS in all public projects could be a significant catalyst to drive RS in construction projects

Feasibility of zero carbon homes in England by 2016: a house builder's perspective

The UK government set itself a 60 per cent reduction of carbon dioxide emissions target on 2000 levels by 2050. This commitment will require carbon reductions to be made by all industries including the housing sector which presently accounts for 27 per cent of carbon dioxide emissions. The house building industry is the subject of numerous government policies and legislation, but none are as demanding as the Code of Sustainable Homes, which set a ‘world-beating’ target for all new homes to be zero carbon by 2016. This paper sets out to investigate the feasibility of building zero carbon homes in England by 2016 from a house builder’s perspective. A comprehensive opinion of the feasibility of zero carbon homes is gathered through a questionnaire survey and in-depth semi-structured interviews with the major UK housing developers. The research found that there are currently numerous legislative, cultural, financial and technical barriers facing house builders to deliver zero carbon homes in England by 2016..The surveyed house builders concurred that these challenges are not insurmountable provided that a swift, all-embracing and above all realistic strategy is adopted and implemented across the supply chain

An investigation of design waste causes in construction

The construction, demolition and excavation waste arising in the UK is estimated at 109 million tonnes per year. Much had been published on ways to improve on-site waste management and recycling activities but very few attempts made to address design generated waste. This paper examines previous studies on architects’ approach towards construction waste minimisation; and by means of a postal questionnaire sent to the 100 top UK architectural practices, investigates: the origins of design waste; waste minimisation design practices in the UK; and barriers to design out waste. The findings reveal that architects consider that waste is mainly produced during site operations and rarely generated during the design stages. However, about one third of construction waste could essentially arise from design decisions. Results also indicate that a number of constraints, namely: lack of interest from clients and attitudes towards waste minimisation are seen as disincentives to a proactive and sustainable implementation of waste reduction strategies during the design process

Reducing construction waste in healthcare facilities: a project lifecycle approach

The NHS has one of the largest property portfolios in the UK, comprising hospitals, clinics, dental offices, out-patient surgery centres, birth centres and nursing homes. Additionally, it is experiencing historic levels of growth with the largest programme of investment the country has ever seen where 25 per cent of hospitals are being replaced or upgraded; 100 new hospitals to be constructed by 2010; and 3000 GP premises being built/replaced/refurbished. As a result, a significant number of environmental concerns and challenges need to be addressed, namely the reduction of water and energy consumption, and more significantly waste generation. In the UK, construction of healthcare facilities creates over 350,000 tonnes of waste, which is about 20 per cent of all generated waste in the UK. Construction waste generation is a global issue and several studies have been performed in different parts of the world to develop methods and tools for waste prevention, reduction, reuse and recycling. However, many of these studies adopted a linear approach by focussing on a specific project phase, such as design, procurement or construction, and a more integrated approach is required to holistically assess and evaluate waste causes and origins throughout the project lifecycle. Hence, this paper, part of a doctoral study, sets out to develop a life cycle construction waste mapping for healthcare facilities. An in-depth literature review has been conducted to identify the extent of the problem and provide a foundation for the PhD study that aims to develop a project lifecycle strategy for reducing construction waste in healthcare facilities. The paper concludes that construction waste is generated throughout the project lifecycle covering design, procurement, construction and demolition. However, literature revealed that there are a number of unique characteristics related to the construction and operation of healthcare facilities if compared with typical buildings, which is mainly due to their organisational and functional complexities. Hence, there is a need to develop a bespoke lifecycle waste mapping in healthcare buildings

Approach of standard design models in the Saudi Ministry of Interior projects

Construction is one of the major industrial sectors of the Saudi Arabian economy, accounting for 6.6 per cent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in 2004. There has been a steady and rapid increase in both number and size of building construction projects during the past decade. However, there have been concerns regarding achievement of high performance and value for money from these projects. The Saudi Ministry of Interior (SMOI) is responsible for providing security for the lives and properties of the citizens. The Ministry has a 20-year strategic budget of £4,515,738,575 for constructing buildings such as police stations, civil defence, hospitals, etc. In order to improve projects performance, the SMOI has recently adopted the use of Standard Design Models (SDMs) which have the same specifications, materials and quality requirements. However, many of the projects currently under construction still suffer a range of performance failures such as, completion delays, breakdown of execution and dissatisfied clients. This paper summarises the initial findings of research that sets out to develop a dynamic framework for improving the performance of the SMOI’s SDM-based projects. The paper discusses the experience of SMOI in adopting SDMs, explores the process used to produce such models and the expected benefits of using these models. The main conclusion suggests that the SDMs used by the SMOI indeed have tangible benefits that are leading to improved project performance in the construction industry

Construction waste minimisation in the UK healthcare industry

Over recent years, there has been considerable growth in healthcare infrastructure investment throughout Europe where billions of Euros are invested in new and refurbished healthcare facilities. In the UK, capital expenditure on healthcare has increased from around £1.1 billion in 1997/98 to around £5.5 billion in 2007/08; an increase in real terms of almost four times the expenditure in 1997. As a result, several environmental concerns and challenges, including construction waste generation, have emerged. There is a consensus in the literature that factors causing construction waste span the project life cycle, however, healthcare facilities have different features compared to other buildings due to functional and operational complexities. By means of a questionnaire followed by interviews with construction industry practitioners specialising in healthcare facilities, this paper aims to identify the level of importance given in the healthcare industry to minimising construction waste; recognising the effect on construction waste generation due to complexity and special features of healthcare facilities; exploring causes of waste particular to the healthcare lifecycle and to examining the waste minimisation strategies used in the industry. The findings revealed that lifecycle waste mapping in healthcare facilities is similar to other types of buildings. Results also indicate that waste management is not treated as a priority in the briefing and design stages of most healthcare facilities and is still seen as the responsibility of the contractor. Initiating waste minimisation practices at the construction stage inevitably results in loosing a number of effective waste reduction opportunities at the beginning of the project. The findings from this research contributes to a growing body of literature on sustainable healthcare construction and to support NHS policy on ‘greening the environment’ through reduction of construction waste. This paper concludes that a more integrated lifecycle approach is required to effectively reduce healthcare construction waste

A framework for improving project performance of standard design models

Improving project performance in the construction industry poses several challenges for stakeholders. Recently, there have been frequent calls for the importance of adopting standardisation in improving construction design as well as the process and a focus on learning mapping from other industries. The Saudi Ministry of Interior (SMoI) has adopted a new Standard Design Model (SDM) approach for the development of its construction programme to effectively manage its complex project portfolio and improve project performance. A review of existing literature indicates that despite the adoption of SDM repetitive projects, which enable learning from past mistakes and improving the performance of future projects, it has been realised that there is a lack of learning instruments to capture, store and disseminate Lessons Learnt (LL). This research proposes a framework for improving the project performance of SDMs in the Saudi construction industry. Eight case studies related to a typical standard design project were performed that included interviews with of 24 key stakeholders who are involved in the planning and implementation of SDM projects within the SMoI. The research identified 14 critical success factors CSFs have a direct impact on the SDM project performance. These are classified into three main CSF-related clusters: adaptability to the context; contract management; and construction management. A framework, which comprises the identified 14 CSFs, was developed, refined and validated through a workshop with 12 key stakeholders in the SMoI construction programme. Additionally, a framework implementation process map was developed. Web-based tools and KM were identified as core factors in the framework implementation strategy. Although many past CSF-related studies were conducted to develop a range of construction project performance improvement frameworks, the paper provides the first initiative to develop a framework to improve the performance of standard design and repetitive projects

Circular economy in construction: current awareness, challenges and enablers

The application of circular economy thinking in construction, which is in its infancy, has been largely limited to construction waste minimisation and recycling. Little research on circular economy from a systems perspective including how new business models might enable materials to retain high residual values has been undertaken. Utilising the results from a survey and a follow up workshop, this paper provides an analysis of an industry-wide perspective of circular economy awareness, challenges and enablers. The survey results indicate that whilst there is industry-wide awareness of the concept, clients, designers and subcontractors are the least informed and this is a key challenge for greater adoption. The absence of incentives to design products and buildings for disassembly and reuse at end of life is a significant challenge. To encourage greater implementation of circular economy principles throughout the supply chain, a clear economic case is paramount, supported by metrics, tools and guidance