Construction Project & Risk Management, Waste Material Utilization, and Historical Conservation in the Building Industry

A special issue of Buildings (ISSN 2075-5309). This special issue belongs to the section "Construction Management, and Computers & Digitization".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (20 August 2023) | Viewed by 10046

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Collage of Civil Engineering & Architecture, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
Interests: construction management; waste management in building projects; BIM; stakeholder management; risk management in construction industry; waste management in mega projects; CO2 emission; delays in construction projects; waste material utilization; real estate economics; performance management
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Guest Editor
Centre for Sustainable Road Freight and Centre for Logistics and Sustainability, Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh EH14 4AS, UK
Interests: waste management; built environment; infrastructure development and analysis; road infrastructure analysis; artificial intelligence computing; modelling and simulation
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Construction project management is a field that is focused on the management of finances and related issues in the construction industry. With the rapid emergence and evolution of engineering and technology advancements, construction management has become more focused on the management of various aspects of the building industry. Some of these aspects include the monitoring of the production of materials, the use of information technology, and the conservation and restoration of historic and modern buildings. This field also covers the analysis of structural and functional issues in buildings and structures.

In addition, various environmental factors such as the use of waste materials and the construction management of buildings have been considered for sustainable development. Over the last few years, the development of new modelling and design techniques has been instrumental in improving the scope and complexity of construction management. A new era of resolutions for the construction industry is beneficial for both masonry and concrete units. These include the use of new technologies to produce reinforcements such as internal and superficial reinforcements, as well as the use of fibres for high-strength concrete structures. Significant advancements have been made in the probabilistic analysis and forecasting of historical monuments and buildings. Two of the most common building materials used today are reinforced concrete and masonry. Due to the increasing number of environmental factors and the need for sustainable development, the construction industry has started to adopt new strategies and procedures. One of these is the development of construction management, which is an advanced field that involves the management of resources.

The use of new technology to produce reinforced concrete has allowed engineers to improve the strength constraints and sound insulation of structures to comply with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It has also allowed them to create new types of reinforced concrete that are more effective at reducing the shrinkage effect. Significant progress has been made in forecasting and assessing the durability and safety of buildings and structures. This Special Issue focuses on the use of new and waste materials in the design and construction of structures. It aims to introduce the concept of circular economy models and their applications in the reinforcements and material solutions for masonry and reinforced concrete structures.

This Special Issue also deals with the various parameters related to construction management. This allows the authors to develop new and innovative solutions for the design and construction of masonry and reinforced concrete structures. Therefore, this Special Issue calls for papers in (but not limited to) the following areas:

  • Project management;
  • Risk and critical management;
  • Optimization of building assets;
  • BIM techniques for the building sector;
  • Waste material utilization model;
  • Resource management;
  • Conservation of historic buildings;
  • Structural analysis;
  • Scanning of historic shrines;
  • Cement composites;
  • RCC structures;
  • Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Dr. Ahsan Nawaz
Dr. Iftikhar Hussain
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. Buildings is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly 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 2600 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

  • building Industry 4.0
  • project management
  • sustainable construction
  • cause of delays
  • historic buildings
  • built heritage
  • waste and circular economy
  • waste material utilization
  • construction management
  • conservation
  • BIM
  • artificial intelligence
  • prediction
  • optimization
  • cost planning

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

12 pages, 2339 KiB  
Article
Recycling of Materials from Renovation and Demolition of Building Structures in the Spirit of Sustainable Material Engineering
by Slawomir Czarnecki and Marlena Rudner
Buildings 2023, 13(7), 1842; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings13071842 - 21 Jul 2023
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 3302
Abstract
In the European Union, more than 20% of residential buildings were constructed prior to 1945 and are approaching the end of their projected lifespan. This necessitates renovations or demolitions of these structures. A study was conducted to analyze the quantity of waste generated [...] Read more.
In the European Union, more than 20% of residential buildings were constructed prior to 1945 and are approaching the end of their projected lifespan. This necessitates renovations or demolitions of these structures. A study was conducted to analyze the quantity of waste generated during the dismantling of a representative building from that era. Construction waste is produced during the building process and its disposal can be costly. Sustainable material engineering offers a solution by promoting the reuse of waste materials. When designing new products, manufacturers should consider using waste materials and ensure they have an extended lifespan, efficient life cycle management, and sustainable consumption. A study has shown that researchers are currently exploring the potential use of waste steel, bricks, wood, and glass in composite materials. Direct reuse of waste in the construction industry has also been observed. However, users’ preferences show that while environmental concerns are important, good quality and price are still the primary factors that drive consumer demand. Therefore, materials made from waste materials must demonstrate excellent parameters to gain consumer acceptance. Education initiatives such as green building certifications and education programs for construction professionals and the general public can help promote sustainable practices. Despite progress made in sustainable development, there is still a need for further education to encourage the adoption of sustainable practices. Full article
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15 pages, 4897 KiB  
Article
Risk Identification of Building Construction Projects in Egypt
by Elhosin Yousri, Ahmed El Badawy Sayed, Moataz A. M. Farag and Ahmed Mohammed Abdelalim
Buildings 2023, 13(4), 1084; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings13041084 - 20 Apr 2023
Cited by 19 | Viewed by 4294
Abstract
Risk identification is integral to construction management. The severe consequences of identified risk factors on time and cost performance can be addressed by improved risk management. The identification and preparation of responses to risk factors affects the risk management process directly and indirectly. [...] Read more.
Risk identification is integral to construction management. The severe consequences of identified risk factors on time and cost performance can be addressed by improved risk management. The identification and preparation of responses to risk factors affects the risk management process directly and indirectly. Recent changes in the valuation of the Egyptian currency against foreign currencies during the last year and measures to cut down on the importation of engineering materials and equipment have had significant effects on the existing and recognized regulations concerning construction in Egypt. A pilot survey with expert engineers is a crucial step in completing research. In this research study, 15 experts were asked to discuss the collected risk factors from previous studies to verify the workability of these factors in Egypt. Thirty-five risk factors were selected during the pilot survey, which was distributed to 95 participants. To facilitate the analysis process, the collection was based on a five-point Likert scale. Therefore, redefining and arranging the risks according to the current circumstances is the main objective of this study. The proposed model identified different high-risk factors that could cumulatively affect overall performance, such as funding problems from contractors, material price fluctuations, unrealistic estimates of the duration of project activities, and shortages of construction materials in the market. Thus, to help stakeholders achieve project success, these high-risk factor components should be identified and controlled duly. Full article
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15 pages, 2498 KiB  
Article
Design—Construction Phase Safety Risk Analysis of Assembled Buildings
by Ran Lv, Jiaying Chen, Qiao Sun and Ziyang Ye
Buildings 2023, 13(4), 949; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings13040949 - 3 Apr 2023
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2031
Abstract
To reduce the impact of safety risks on assembled buildings, this paper explores the factors affecting the safety risks of constructed buildings from the perspective of linkage between the design and construction phases. The method identifies 10 first-level risk indicators and 25 s-level [...] Read more.
To reduce the impact of safety risks on assembled buildings, this paper explores the factors affecting the safety risks of constructed buildings from the perspective of linkage between the design and construction phases. The method identifies 10 first-level risk indicators and 25 s-level safety risk indicators in five dimensions of prefabricated components, personnel, management, environment, and technology in both the design and construction phases, utilizing literature induction, expert interviews, questionnaire surveys, and Porter’s diamond model. The structural equation model was used to quantify the weights of the 25 s-level safety risk indicators to highlight the safety risk analysis of the assembled building and avoid risk. The results of the study show that it is important to analyze the safety risk linkage between the design phase and construction phase of the assembled building; from the perspective of the design-construction phase linkage, controlling the safety risk in the design phase can effectively reduce the safety risk in the construction phase. Full article
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