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Sustainable Construction, Development and Management in the Built Environment
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Sustainable Construction, Development and Management in the Built Environment

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Sustainable Urban and Rural Development".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 April 2018) | Viewed by 119872

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Bon-Gang Hwang

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Building, School of Design and Environment, National University of Singapore, 4 Architecture Drive, Singapore 117566, Singapore
Interests: sustainable construction management; project performance assessment and improvement; project productivity innovation and improvement; project risk management and decision making
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Ming Shan

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Civil Engineering, Central South University, 68 South Shaoshan Road, Changsha 410075, China
Interests: construction professional ethics; sustainable construction management; project assessment
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Over the past two decades, the sustainable movement has penetrated most areas of our society, including the building and construction industry. As a promising research area, sustainable construction has attracted considerable attention from the academia worldwide and has generated a vast body of knowledge. The primary objective of this Special Issue of Sustainability is to solicit original theoretical, methodological, and empirical research papers focusing on sustainable construction, with specific topics that can be, but not limited to sustainable development, sustainable construction management, sustainable construction finance, maintenance of sustainable buildings, innovation in sustainable construction, and policy and legislation of sustainable development. In addition, review and opinion papers that summarize the state-of-the-art, research gaps and the further directions of the sustainable construction are also welcome.

Prof. Dr. Bon-Gang Hwang
Dr. Ming Shan
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • Sustainable Development
  • Sustainable Construction
  • Sustainable Construction Finance
  • Maintenance of Sustainable Buildings
  • Innovation in Sustainable Construction
  • Policy and Legislation of Sustainable Development

Published Papers (19 papers)

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19 pages, 5629 KiB  
Article
The Cause and Evolution of Urban Street Vitality under the Time Dimension: Nine Cases of Streets in Nanjing City, China
by Xiaodong Xu, Xinhan Xu, Peng Guan, Yu Ren, Wei Wang and Ning Xu
Sustainability 2018, 10(8), 2797; https://doi.org/10.3390/su10082797 - 07 Aug 2018
Cited by 31 | Viewed by 5216
Abstract
Street vitality is associated with a comfortable human-based public environment and urban sustainability. In most current studies, street vitality is assessed considering single or multi factors; however, the impact of time dimension is ignored. This study selects nine different year-built streets in old, [...] Read more.
Street vitality is associated with a comfortable human-based public environment and urban sustainability. In most current studies, street vitality is assessed considering single or multi factors; however, the impact of time dimension is ignored. This study selects nine different year-built streets in old, main, and new urban areas, in Nanjing, China, proposes a framework to assess street vitality considering the different time dimensions and selects the following factors: street form, including building density, continuity, and height-width; street business type, including store density, function density, and permeation rate; and street accessibility, including location, the number of entrances/exits, transportation, and walkability. After calculating the values of the subfactors, a ranking method was applied to assign the ranking of impact of all factors for a comprehensive analysis. The results showed that Pipa Street, Wufu Street in a main urban area, and Hongmiao Street had the highest street vitality and the highest rankings of almost all the factors. Street vitality in different periods demonstrated that street vitality in new urban areas is lower compared with old and main urban areas. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Construction, Development and Management in the Built Environment)
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14 pages, 605 KiB  
Article
The Relationship between Unbilled Accounts Receivable and Financial Performance of Construction Contractors
by Minhyuk Jung, Shira You, Seokho Chi, Ilhan Yu and Bon-Gang Hwang
Sustainability 2018, 10(8), 2679; https://doi.org/10.3390/su10082679 - 31 Jul 2018
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 5127
Abstract
Operating profit is one of the most important measures in financial statements to evaluate a organizational performance. In the construction industry, however, the profit has a possibility to be misestimated as a loss and can be included in Unbilled Accounts Receivable (UAR) and [...] Read more.
Operating profit is one of the most important measures in financial statements to evaluate a organizational performance. In the construction industry, however, the profit has a possibility to be misestimated as a loss and can be included in Unbilled Accounts Receivable (UAR) and shown as a profit; this is due to the uncertainty of predicting a total construction cost and project progress on which the calculation of profit is based. UAR results from the different perceptions regarding project progress between clients and contractors and can include costs related to loss that cannot be acknowledged as a progress. Therefore, UAR can be a significant clue to understanding estimation errors of a contractor’s financial performance data. This study investigated the possibility of estimation error of contractors’ operating profit by analyzing the relationship between UAR and other relevant financial performance measures. The accounting data of 41 Korean major contractors was collected and analyzed based on the correlation analysis. The results of this study implies that the profit of construction companies has the possibility to contain estimation errors, causing a significant variance in the process of adjusting the evaluation errors at the end of projects, which can cause unexpected losses to investors. In addition, this study found that the UAR containing estimation errors could be different depending on market in which contractors operate; therefore, when dealing with contractors’ financial performance data, it is necessary to discern whether their profit data contains distortion and, in the case that errors are included, appropriate data preprocessing should be conducted for more reliable and sustainable construction investment and project management. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Construction, Development and Management in the Built Environment)
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13 pages, 543 KiB  
Article
Key Issues for Implementation of Environmental Planning Policy: Construction Management Practice
by Kim Maund, Thayaparan Gajendran and Graham Brewer
Sustainability 2018, 10(7), 2156; https://doi.org/10.3390/su10072156 - 25 Jun 2018
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 5828
Abstract
A plethora of regulatory environmental planning policies constrain on-site construction operations, to theoretically minimise negative environmental impact and create sustainable practice. However, it is widely acknowledged that the construction sector continues to remain a significant cause of environmental degradation, even in contexts where [...] Read more.
A plethora of regulatory environmental planning policies constrain on-site construction operations, to theoretically minimise negative environmental impact and create sustainable practice. However, it is widely acknowledged that the construction sector continues to remain a significant cause of environmental degradation, even in contexts where policies and regulations exist. In this manner, a disparity exists between policy intent and policy outcome. The purpose of this study is to explore how policy implementation may influence the disparity between policy intent and policy outcome in the context of regulatory environmental planning policy and on-site construction environmental management operations. Importantly, the study moves beyond State authorities responsible for, inter alia, policy formulation and ratification, as it concentrates upon policy users: ground level implementation actors (government and non-government) and activities. Understanding key issues associated with policy implementation from the literature, a two-stage qualitative research design was adopted to explore policy implementation. In addition to key issues with policy implementation identified in the literature, the findings identified four context-specific conditions that impact upon successful implementation: policy operationalisation, organisational position, professional belief, and specialist knowledge and understanding. The implications demonstrate cultural change across the sector as fundamental for successful policy outcomes, and ultimately, environmental protection. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Construction, Development and Management in the Built Environment)
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27 pages, 936 KiB  
Article
Critical Factors on the Capital Structure of Public–Private Partnership Projects: A Sustainability Perspective
by Jing Du, Hongyue Wu and Xianbo Zhao
Sustainability 2018, 10(6), 2066; https://doi.org/10.3390/su10062066 - 18 Jun 2018
Cited by 36 | Viewed by 6536
Abstract
Scientific capital structure is the key to guarantee sufficient funds and achievement of objectives of Public–Private Partnership (PPP) projects, while inappropriate capital structure has caused the failure of many projects. Meanwhile, sustainability is an important concept that should be concerned during the life [...] Read more.
Scientific capital structure is the key to guarantee sufficient funds and achievement of objectives of Public–Private Partnership (PPP) projects, while inappropriate capital structure has caused the failure of many projects. Meanwhile, sustainability is an important concept that should be concerned during the life cycle of PPP projects. Therefore, this study aimed to: (1) identify the critical factors influencing the capital structure of PPP projects from a sustainability perspective; and (2) analyze the relationships between the factors and the capital structure based on qualitative comparative analysis (QCA). This study identified seven critical factors influencing the capital structure of PPP projects. Moreover, the non-economic indicators should be concerned as well as the economic indicators. Thus, proper capital structure not only provides ample funds but also promotes the long-term healthy operation of projects and creates positive effects on the industry, region and society. Furthermore, the findings indicated that benefit, external situation, cost, ability of private sector and government support were the top critical factors. In addition, although risk did not show great importance, it had close relationship with other factors, which means risk should be concerned comprehensively. This study enriches the theoretical research about the capital structure of PPP projects and offers a new idea about the integration of sustainability and PPP projects. In addition, it supports the reasonable selection of capital structure in practice and promotes the practical application of sustainability on PPP projects. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Construction, Development and Management in the Built Environment)
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14 pages, 2331 KiB  
Article
Dynamically Controlled Length of Training Data for Sustainable Portfolio Selection
by Sarunas Raudys, Aistis Raudys and Zidrina Pabarskaite
Sustainability 2018, 10(6), 1911; https://doi.org/10.3390/su10061911 - 07 Jun 2018
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2485
Abstract
In a constantly changing market environment, it is a challenge to construct a sustainable portfolio. One cannot use too long or too short training data to select the right portfolio of investments. When analyzing ten types of recent (up to April 2018) extremely [...] Read more.
In a constantly changing market environment, it is a challenge to construct a sustainable portfolio. One cannot use too long or too short training data to select the right portfolio of investments. When analyzing ten types of recent (up to April 2018) extremely high-dimensional time series from automated trading domains, it was discovered that there is no a priori ‘optimal’ length of training history that would fit all investment tasks. The optimal history length depends of the specificity of the data and varies with time. This statement was also confirmed by the analysis of dozens of multi-dimensional synthetic time series data generated by excitable medium models frequently considered in studies of chaos. An algorithm for determining the optimal length of training history to produce a sustainable portfolio is proposed. Monitoring the size of the learning data can be useful in data mining tasks used in the analysis of sustainability in other research disciplines. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Construction, Development and Management in the Built Environment)
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38 pages, 2045 KiB  
Article
A Quantitative Method for Prediction of Environmental Aspects in Construction Sites of Residential Buildings
by Luis Claudio A. Borja, Sandro Fábio César, Rita Dione A. Cunha and Asher Kiperstok
Sustainability 2018, 10(6), 1870; https://doi.org/10.3390/su10061870 - 04 Jun 2018
Cited by 10 | Viewed by 6276
Abstract
Despite the sectoral initiatives, the construction industry faces difficulties in incorporating effective environmental impact control systems in construction sites. Most of the instruments have been adopting a qualitative approach to environmental issues, with few cases of a quantitative approach. This article introduces a [...] Read more.
Despite the sectoral initiatives, the construction industry faces difficulties in incorporating effective environmental impact control systems in construction sites. Most of the instruments have been adopting a qualitative approach to environmental issues, with few cases of a quantitative approach. This article introduces a quantitative method for predicting environmental aspects and impacts during the construction of residential buildings, through the integration between environmental indicators and construction cost bases. The methodology was based on the analysis of the relationships among activities, aspects and environmental impacts considered in EU Eco-Management and Audit Scheme (EMAS) for the development of the method and its mathematical representation. A case study was carried out to evaluate the method using the bill of quantities (BOQ) from two residential construction sites to measure their environmental aspects. The results suggest the usefulness of the method in the decision-making process on the allocation of control systems and, in some cases, recommending the execution of off-site services to reduce the impacts on the site’s neighborhood. Additionally, the method proved to be easy to apply to evaluate construction sites, as well as flexible to incorporate other activities, adapting to the demand of builders and municipalities to reduce the environmental impacts of construction sites. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Construction, Development and Management in the Built Environment)
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14 pages, 244 KiB  
Article
A Preliminary Investigation of the Transition from Green Building to Green Community: Insights from LEED ND
by Peng Wu, Yongze Song, Xin Hu and Xiangyu Wang
Sustainability 2018, 10(6), 1802; https://doi.org/10.3390/su10061802 - 30 May 2018
Cited by 25 | Viewed by 4470
Abstract
The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design for Neighborhood Development (LEED ND) rating system has been considered one of the major tools to assess the performance of green communities. However, few studies have been conducted on how the traditional focus on green building [...] Read more.
The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design for Neighborhood Development (LEED ND) rating system has been considered one of the major tools to assess the performance of green communities. However, few studies have been conducted on how the traditional focus on green building can be effectively transitioned to green communities. In order to facilitate the transition process, this paper reviews and analyzes the credits obtained from LEED ND 2009 certified plans. A total of 55 projects were identified from the LEED project directory of the U.S. Green Building Council. The performance of these neighborhood development projects, including project landscape, percentage of achievement and predictors of LEED ND rating, was analyzed. The performance was then compared with the performance of green buildings certified under LEED New Construction (LEED NC). The results indicate that there is an unbalanced allocation of credits to economic, social and environmental sustainability in the LEED ND rating. In addition, green infrastructure and building credits, such as wastewater management, on-site renewable energy and solar orientation, have extremely low percentage of achievement, indicating that these credits should be redesigned. The results provide useful insights for developers to prepare for LEED ND certification and for regulatory bodies to improve the performance of the current LEED ND rating system. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Construction, Development and Management in the Built Environment)
19 pages, 880 KiB  
Article
How Does Transformational Leadership Promote Innovation in Construction? The Mediating Role of Innovation Climate and the Multilevel Moderation Role of Project Requirements
by Yanchun Zhang, Junwei Zheng and Amos Darko
Sustainability 2018, 10(5), 1506; https://doi.org/10.3390/su10051506 - 10 May 2018
Cited by 59 | Viewed by 8780
Abstract
Innovation plays a critical role in the sustainable development of the construction industry. This research aims at examining transformational leadership’s role in shaping employees’ innovative behavior by analyzing the mediating effect of innovation climate and the cross-level moderating effect of innovativeness as a [...] Read more.
Innovation plays a critical role in the sustainable development of the construction industry. This research aims at examining transformational leadership’s role in shaping employees’ innovative behavior by analyzing the mediating effect of innovation climate and the cross-level moderating effect of innovativeness as a project requirement. To achieve this aim, a questionnaire survey was conducted with 300 construction industry professionals in China and 251 valid replies were received. Data collected by the questionnaire were analyzed using the method of hierarchical linear modeling (HLM). The results showed that transformational leaders could nurture a mutual climate for innovation to motivate employees’ innovative behaviors. In addition, innovativeness as a project requirement at the project level strengthens the indirect link amongst transformational leadership and innovative behavior via the innovation climate. Therefore, in the presence of higher innovativeness as a project requirement, transformational leadership is more prone to exert a positive influence upon an individual’s innovative behavior via the perceived innovation climate. The research findings improve understanding of the roles of leadership and innovation climate in affecting individual behavioral outcomes, and could help project managers and leaders encourage innovative ideas within project organizations. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Construction, Development and Management in the Built Environment)
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21 pages, 2206 KiB  
Article
Factors Affecting Green Residential Building Development: Social Network Analysis
by Xiaodong Yang, Jiayu Zhang and Xianbo Zhao
Sustainability 2018, 10(5), 1389; https://doi.org/10.3390/su10051389 - 01 May 2018
Cited by 31 | Viewed by 5775
Abstract
Green residential buildings (GRBs) are one of the effective practices of energy saving and emission reduction in the construction industry. However, many real estate developers in China are less willing to develop GRBs, because of the factors affecting green residential building development (GRBD). [...] Read more.
Green residential buildings (GRBs) are one of the effective practices of energy saving and emission reduction in the construction industry. However, many real estate developers in China are less willing to develop GRBs, because of the factors affecting green residential building development (GRBD). In order to promote the sustainable development of GRBs in China, this paper, based on the perspective of real estate developers, identifies the influential and critical factors affecting GRBD, using the method of social network analysis (SNA). Firstly, 14 factors affecting GRBD are determined from 64 preliminary factors of three main elements, and the framework is established. Secondly, the relationships between the 14 factors are analyzed by SNA. Finally, four critical factors for GRBD, which are on the local economy development level, development strategy and innovation orientation, developer’s acknowledgement and positioning for GRBD, and experience and ability for GRBD, are identified by the social network centrality test. The findings illustrate the key issues that affect the development of GRBs, and provide references for policy making by the government and strategy formulation by real estate developers. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Construction, Development and Management in the Built Environment)
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13 pages, 6519 KiB  
Article
Optimizing the Construction Job Site Vehicle Scheduling Problem
by Jaehyun Choi, Jia Xuelei and WoonSeong Jeong
Sustainability 2018, 10(5), 1381; https://doi.org/10.3390/su10051381 - 30 Apr 2018
Cited by 13 | Viewed by 3257
Abstract
Concrete is one of the most important, versatile, and widely used building materials worldwide. Thus, an optimized delivery schedule of ready-mixed concrete (RMC) is a critical issue that can reduce CO2 emission from RMC delivery vehicles. RMC is the most popular form [...] Read more.
Concrete is one of the most important, versatile, and widely used building materials worldwide. Thus, an optimized delivery schedule of ready-mixed concrete (RMC) is a critical issue that can reduce CO2 emission from RMC delivery vehicles. RMC is the most popular form of concrete material supplied to construction projects. When delivering RMC to construction sites, optimizing the transportation can be complex since there are many alternatives in terms of route choice. The objective of this research was to optimize the travel operation of RMC delivery vehicles to ensure that they travel via the most economical routes. The researchers developed a dynamic simulation model to solve this vehicle scheduling problem (VSP), applied an ant colony optimization (ACO) algorithm as a mathematical model, and analyzed the results achieved by the basic and improved ACO methods; the goals were to reduce travel distance and improve the simulation’s performance. Ultimately, the researchers found that the improved ACO method provided a more optimized transportation solution with a higher level of efficiency. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Construction, Development and Management in the Built Environment)
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15 pages, 975 KiB  
Article
Investigating Young Consumers’ Purchasing Intention of Green Housing in China
by Lin Zhang, Liwen Chen, Zezhou Wu, Sizhen Zhang and Huanbin Song
Sustainability 2018, 10(4), 1044; https://doi.org/10.3390/su10041044 - 02 Apr 2018
Cited by 112 | Viewed by 10081
Abstract
The issues of energy crisis, environmental degradation, and climate change present a severe challenge to the sustainable development in China. The development of green building (GB) is considered one of the most popular strategies toward a sustainable construction industry. Apart from advanced green [...] Read more.
The issues of energy crisis, environmental degradation, and climate change present a severe challenge to the sustainable development in China. The development of green building (GB) is considered one of the most popular strategies toward a sustainable construction industry. Apart from advanced green technologies, consumers’ purchasing intention toward green housing (GH) plays a crucial role in the large-scale promotion of GB. However, which determinants significantly affect consumers’ purchasing intention remain unclear, especially for the young generation in developing countries. This study attempts to investigate young consumers’ purchasing intention of GH in China. On the basis of extended theory of planned behavior (TPB), seven constructs are identified, and nine hypotheses are proposed. A total of 241 responses were collected from the questionnaire survey, and structural equation modeling was employed to test the proposed hypotheses. Governmental incentives are affirmed to be the most important determinant, followed by consumers’ attitude toward behavior and subjective norm. Perceived behavioral control is an insignificant determinant for young consumers to purchase GH. In addition, subjective knowledge has an indirect effect through attitude toward behavior. Environmental concern also confirms an indirect effect through attitude toward behavior and subjective norm toward purchasing intention, respectively. Thus, the government is implied to play a crucial role in GH promotion at this stage. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Construction, Development and Management in the Built Environment)
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15 pages, 917 KiB  
Article
Do Looks Matter? A Case Study on Extensive Green Roofs Using Discrete Choice Experiments
by Jan Vanstockem, Liesbet Vranken, Brent Bleys, Ben Somers and Martin Hermy
Sustainability 2018, 10(2), 309; https://doi.org/10.3390/su10020309 - 25 Jan 2018
Cited by 38 | Viewed by 7588
Abstract
Extensive green roofs are a promising type of urban green that can play an important role in climate proofing and ultimately in the sustainability of our cities. Despite their increasingly widespread application and the growing scientific interest in extensive green roofs, their aesthetics [...] Read more.
Extensive green roofs are a promising type of urban green that can play an important role in climate proofing and ultimately in the sustainability of our cities. Despite their increasingly widespread application and the growing scientific interest in extensive green roofs, their aesthetics have received limited scientific attention. Furthermore, several functional issues occur, as weedy species can colonize the roof, and extreme roof conditions can lead to gaps in the vegetation. Apart from altering the function of a green roof, we also expect these issues to influence the perception of extensive green roofs, possibly affecting their acceptance and application. We therefore assessed the preferences of a self-selected convenience sample of 155 Flemish respondents for visual aspects using a discrete choice experiment. This approach, combined with current knowledge on the psychological aspects of green roof visuals, allowed us to quantify extensive green roof preferences. Our results indicate that vegetation gaps and weedy species, together with a diverse vegetation have a considerable impact on green roof perception. Gaps were the single most important attribute, indicated by a relative importance of ca. 53%, with cost coming in at a close second at ca. 46%. Overall, this study explores the applicability of a stated preference technique to assess an often overlooked aspect of extensive green roofs. It thereby provides a foundation for further research aimed at generating practical recommendations for green roof construction and maintenance. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Construction, Development and Management in the Built Environment)
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23 pages, 2926 KiB  
Article
Incorporating Road User Costs into Integrated Life-Cycle Cost Analyses for Infrastructure Sustainability: A Case Study on Sr-91 Corridor Improvement Project (Ca)
by Eul-Bum Lee, David K. Thomas and Douglas Alleman
Sustainability 2018, 10(1), 179; https://doi.org/10.3390/su10010179 - 12 Jan 2018
Cited by 19 | Viewed by 4669
Abstract
Life-cycle cost analysis (LCCA) is a decision-making tool that allows governing agencies the ability to assess several long-term alternative investment options. This paper presents a LCCA analysis process which integrates the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) program, RealCost (a road user cost calculation program), [...] Read more.
Life-cycle cost analysis (LCCA) is a decision-making tool that allows governing agencies the ability to assess several long-term alternative investment options. This paper presents a LCCA analysis process which integrates the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) program, RealCost (a road user cost calculation program), the FHWA-endorsed Construction Analysis for Pavement Rehabilitation Strategies (CA4PRS) and Caltrans specific design tools (CalFP and CalAC), into the existing Caltrans LCCA process (a modified version of the FHWA LCCA process). In using tools backed by the FHWA and validated through previous agency use, the presented process has a potential to be replicated on urban corridor improvement projects across the US while aiding agencies in achieving economical sustainability throughout the infrastructure maintenance phases. This paper also fills the gap identified by Ozbay et al. in 2004, incorporating road user cost calculations into the LCCA process. Validation was achieved through the execution of the recently completed $1.4 B US California SR-91 Corridor Improvement Project. The SR-91 team used the presented tool to choose one of the two alternatives (maintain HOV SR-91 lane and add I-15 HOV lane using long-life Portland Cement Concrete Pavement or add Express Lane to SR-91 and I-15 using long-life Continuously Reinforced Concrete Pavement and Asphalt Concrete Pavement), equating to an estimated life-cost savings of $32 M. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Construction, Development and Management in the Built Environment)
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2529 KiB  
Article
Regional Variations of Credits Obtained by LEED 2009 Certified Green Buildings—A Country Level Analysis
by Peng Wu, Yongze Song, Jun Wang, Xiangyu Wang, Xianbo Zhao and Qinghua He
Sustainability 2018, 10(1), 20; https://doi.org/10.3390/su10010020 - 29 Dec 2017
Cited by 32 | Viewed by 6251
Abstract
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) is one of the most widely recognized green building rating systems. With more than 20% of the projects certified in non-United States (US) countries, LEED’s global impact has been increasing and it is critically important for [...] Read more.
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) is one of the most widely recognized green building rating systems. With more than 20% of the projects certified in non-United States (US) countries, LEED’s global impact has been increasing and it is critically important for developers and regulatory authorities to understand LEED’s performance at the country level to facilitate global implementation. This study therefore aims to investigate the credit achievement pattern of LEED 2009, which is one of the well-developed versions of LEED, by using 4021 certified projects in the US, China, Turkey, and Brazil. The results show that significant differences can be identified on most rating categories, including sustainable sites, water efficiency, energy and atmosphere, indoor environmental quality, and innovation in design. Using a post hoc analysis, country-specific credit allocation patterns are also identified to help developers to understand existing country-specific green building practices. In addition, it is also found that there is unbalanced achievement of regional priority credits. The study offers a useful reference and benchmark for international developers and contractors to understand the regional variations of LEED 2009 and for regulatory authorities, such as the U.S. Green Building Council, to improve the rating system, especially on designing regional priority credits. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Construction, Development and Management in the Built Environment)
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951 KiB  
Article
Critical Factors Influencing Business Model Innovation for Sustainable Buildings
by Xiaojing Zhao, Tengyuan Chang, Bon-Gang Hwang and Xiaopeng Deng
Sustainability 2018, 10(1), 33; https://doi.org/10.3390/su10010033 - 23 Dec 2017
Cited by 18 | Viewed by 5286
Abstract
Despite significant policy drives, the wide adoption of sustainable building (SB) is hindered by factors such as high upfront cost and long payback period. Business model (BM) innovation is therefore highly demanded to help SB professionals to cope with the challenges and convert [...] Read more.
Despite significant policy drives, the wide adoption of sustainable building (SB) is hindered by factors such as high upfront cost and long payback period. Business model (BM) innovation is therefore highly demanded to help SB professionals to cope with the challenges and convert the value of SB into profit. Nevertheless, few studies examined BM innovation in the building sector and factors influencing BM innovation for SB are unclear. This paper aims to identify the critical factors that propel companies to innovate BM for SB. First, a literature review and expert interviews were conducted to identify and filter the drivers for BM innovation within the SB context. Second, a questionnaire survey was conducted to collect data on the significance of the selected influencing factors from 132 SB professionals. Finally, a model based on fuzzy set theory was used to ascertain the critical factors influencing BM innovation for SB. Twenty-four critical influencing factors in six categories from the external environment and internal organization were finalized, namely, market and economic, policy and legislation, technology and industry structure, social-culture, entrepreneurship, and organizational learning. The findings illuminate the motivations when developing BM for sustainability and provide strategies on BM innovation for practitioners and policy makers. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Construction, Development and Management in the Built Environment)
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2103 KiB  
Article
Investigating How the Rents of Small Urban Houses are Determined: Using Spatial Hedonic Modeling for Urban Residential Housing in Seoul
by Jaewoong Won and Jae-Su Lee
Sustainability 2018, 10(1), 31; https://doi.org/10.3390/su10010031 - 23 Dec 2017
Cited by 19 | Viewed by 4222
Abstract
The Seoul metropolitan government has launched the Urban Residential Housing (URH) program to address the shortage of small urban houses, and enhance residential stability for the increasing number of one- and two-person households in Seoul, Korea. While studies have examined the price premium [...] Read more.
The Seoul metropolitan government has launched the Urban Residential Housing (URH) program to address the shortage of small urban houses, and enhance residential stability for the increasing number of one- and two-person households in Seoul, Korea. While studies have examined the price premium of locational and neighborhood environmental features for houses in general, little is known about how and to what extent these features influence the rents of small urban houses. We estimate and compare conventional and spatial hedonic price models (HPMs) to examine the effects of those features on the monthly rents of URH units, while using geographic information system techniques to measure the variables. We found that the spatial HPM outperforms the conventional HPM in terms of goodness of fit measures. All of the locational features, and most of the variables with respect to the neighborhood environment, had a significant impact on rents. Rent tended to be lower in areas adjacent to a university, suggesting that it is a good place for one and two-person households to enhance residential affordability. However, access to parks does not appear to be important for residents. We conclude that the people who live in small urban houses are inclined to place a premium on rents in different ways. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Construction, Development and Management in the Built Environment)
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230 KiB  
Article
A Global Review of Sustainable Construction Project Financing: Policies, Practices, and Research Efforts
by Ming Shan, Bon-Gang Hwang and Lei Zhu
Sustainability 2017, 9(12), 2347; https://doi.org/10.3390/su9122347 - 16 Dec 2017
Cited by 45 | Viewed by 10914
Abstract
Despite the increasing investment in sustainable development over the past decade, a systematic review of sustainable construction project financing is lacking. The objectives of this paper are to conduct a systematic review to examine the policies, practices, and research efforts in the area [...] Read more.
Despite the increasing investment in sustainable development over the past decade, a systematic review of sustainable construction project financing is lacking. The objectives of this paper are to conduct a systematic review to examine the policies, practices, and research efforts in the area of sustainable construction project financing, and to explore the potential opportunities for the future research. To achieve these goals, this paper first reviewed the sustainable construction project financing practices implemented by four representative developed economies including the United Kingdom, the United States, Singapore, and Australia. Then, this paper reviewed the efforts and initiatives launched by three international organizations including the United Nations, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, and International Finance Corporation. After that, this paper reviewed the research efforts of sustainable construction project financing published in peer-review journals and books. This paper identified four major research themes within this area, which are the review of financial stakeholders and market of sustainable construction, benefits and barriers to sustainable construction project financing, financial vehicles for sustainable construction projects, innovative models and mechanisms for sustainable construction project financing. Additionally, this paper revealed five directions for the future research of sustainable construction project financing, which are the identification of financial issues in sustainable construction projects, the investigation of financial vehicles for sustainable construction projects in terms of their strengths, limitations, and performances, the examination of critical drivers for implementing sustainable construction project financing, the development of a knowledge-based decision support system for implementing sustainable construction financing, and the development of best practices for implementing sustainable construction project financing. This paper contributes to the body of knowledge by reviewing existing policies, practices, and research efforts in the area of sustainable construction project financing. Meanwhile, the findings from this paper benefit the industry as well, because they are able to provide the practitioners with a holistic view of sustainable construction project financing, thereby enhancing their knowledge and skills in this regard. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Construction, Development and Management in the Built Environment)
891 KiB  
Article
The Velocity of Density: Can We Build More Sustainable Cities Fast Enough?
by Markus Moos
Sustainability 2017, 9(12), 2326; https://doi.org/10.3390/su9122326 - 13 Dec 2017
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 7288
Abstract
Urban planners now commonly advocate for increases in density of the built environment to reduce car dependence and enhance the sustainability of cities. The analysis in this paper asks about the speed at which density as a sustainability policy can be implemented. The [...] Read more.
Urban planners now commonly advocate for increases in density of the built environment to reduce car dependence and enhance the sustainability of cities. The analysis in this paper asks about the speed at which density as a sustainability policy can be implemented. The Greater Toronto Hamilton Area (GTHA) is used as a case study to measure how quickly existing areas could be densified to meet minimum transit supportive density thresholds. Almost 70% of existing residents live in neighborhoods with densities below minimum transit supportive densities. The findings show that increases in minimum densities could be attained roughly within the target time horizon of existing growth plans, but that these increases hinge on assumptions of continuing high growth rates. The sustainability of cities relies on a high ‘velocity of density’, a term proposed in the paper to refer to the speed at which density can be implemented. Density is often slowed or halted by local residents, which could prove problematic if sustainability objectives require speedy implementation, for instance to address climate change. Analysis of the velocity of density suggests that planning for sustainability, and climate change, in cities would benefit from considering a broader set of solutions to car dependence in existing low-density areas than changes to the density of the built form alone. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Construction, Development and Management in the Built Environment)
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Opinion
The Era of Sustainability: Promises, Pitfalls and Prospects for Sustainable Buildings and the Built Environment
by Emilia Conte
Sustainability 2018, 10(6), 2092; https://doi.org/10.3390/su10062092 - 20 Jun 2018
Cited by 12 | Viewed by 6631
Abstract
Following 25 years of efforts in the field, the author discusses the situation of the construction sector by reflecting on the 3Ps of the era of sustainability: the promises of sustainability; the pitfalls in the interpretation of sustainability for construction; the prospects for [...] Read more.
Following 25 years of efforts in the field, the author discusses the situation of the construction sector by reflecting on the 3Ps of the era of sustainability: the promises of sustainability; the pitfalls in the interpretation of sustainability for construction; the prospects for sustainable buildings and the built environment in the future. The paper is organized into five sections. The first section introduces the emergence of sustainable construction, its promises and challenges for architects and engineers. The second section considers how sustainability has been interpreted in practice in construction, i.e., primarily through the process of greening buildings and the built environment. The third section describes the main pitfalls that such interpretation has determined, including the role played by evaluation and assessment systems for sustainable buildings. The fourth section examines prospective paths to overcoming such pitfalls, with particular concerns for new professionalisms and the ensuing role for higher education. The fifth section concludes by supporting the idea that the era of sustainability is still necessary, if sustainability itself becomes a sort of ‘container concept’ of all that is necessary for long-lasting natural and human life on Earth. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Construction, Development and Management in the Built Environment)
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