Building information modeling (BIM) offers various deterministic and uncertain benefits and costs. Although there are similarities between such costs and benefits in developed and developing countries, these factors should be analyzed carefully for each region/country due to differences in economic and technical status as well as available policies and regulations. Numerous studies have demonstrated the benefits and shortcomings of BIM adoption around the globe; however, there is scarce comprehensive research focusing on Iran with unique financial circumstances. The aim of this research is to investigate the benefits, opportunities, costs and risks (BOCRs) offered by BIM implementation in Iran as a developing country with high potential in but less adoption of BIM in construction projects. After identifying the BOCRs of BIM adoption from the literature, the Interval-Valued Fuzzy Delphi Method was used to identify the BOCRs while a novel multi-criteria decision-making approach (i.e., fuzzy parsimonious analytic hierarchy process) was employed to analyze BOCRs, respectively. The results showed that 4 out of 46 BOCRs gathered from the literature were not significant for Iran and should be omitted from further analysis, while one cost factor was added to the list. Also, it was revealed that “Facilitates project communication among stakeholders”, “Integrating life-cycle assessment dimensions to the decision-making process”, “Cost/efforts required to personnel training” and “Lack of national standard, procedures and guidelines” were the most significant BOCRs, respectively. These findings contributed to filling the research gap in BIM adoption in Iran using a novel methodology that provides deep insights into BIM adoption for practitioners and can be used as a basis for developing theoretical and conceptual research frameworks. The findings of this study are built upon the opinions of experts within the context of Iran and should be considered as a snapshot of the BOCRs of the adoption of BIM in Iranian construction projects while these are not futureproofed.

https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/15/5/4035/pdf?version=1677230912

Developing an MCDM Model for the Benefits, Opportunities, Costs and Risks of BIM Adoption

This research aimed to investigate the green practices in the mega construction project of the China–Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). Over recent years, there has been an increasing need for adopting and implementing more green and sustainable practices, leading to national and international sustainable and green environmental agendas. To address the issue, green project practices were considered an independent variable comprising green design, procurement, and construction. The dependent variables were environmental performance and economic performance. Primary data were collected from respondents working on the CPEC project. A representative sample of 276 respondents was used. The analysis was conducted using PLS-SEM. The results indicated that green design significantly influences economic performance, green procurement has a positive and significant effect on environmental performance, and green construction has a positive and significant impact on both environmental and economic and financial performance. The research showed that construction management at CPEC should adopt all facets of green project practices together, reducing negative environmental effects, increasing environmental benefits, and improving long-term economic performance in the area.

/pdf/green-practices-in-mega-development-projects-of-china-2j2v87y7.pdf

Green Practices in Mega Development Projects of China–Pakistan Economic Corridor

Temporal and spatial changes in land use and ecosystem service value based on SDGs’ reports: a case study of Dianchi Lake Basin, China

In 2015, the 17 Sustainable Development Goal (SDGs) were introduced by the United Nations. Among them, SDG 9 (Industry, innovation and infrastructure) refers to the notion of ‘resilient’ and ‘sustainable’ infrastructure to promote the transition towards sustainable industrialisation. The notion of ‘sustainable infrastructure’ has been subject of debate over time. The variety of definitions and assessment frameworks used to categorise sustainability components by academics and professional bodies, call for the need to further investigate and reflect on the concept. Hence, this exploratory study aims to provide first evidence on how the term is conceived and interpreted by companies. To this goal, a manual content analysis on non-financial disclosures published by the top-10 European construction companies, is conducted. Findings suggest that firms largely refer to SI in relation to the early phases of the project life-cycle, while neglecting the ultimate stage (i.e., dismantling). Furthermore, there is not a consensus towards a unifying representation of the components enclosed in the notion of SI, although all companies appear to agree with its ‘green’ attributes (e.g., energy intensity, emissions, materials). Consistently, a prevailing use of environmental assessment criteria is testified. The emphasis placed on other sustainability-related issues (i.e., social and economic) and the broadness of stakeholders’ interests addressed vary considerably across corporate reports, thus supporting that the concept of SI is still fragmented and in evolution. 

The Concept of Sustainable Infrastructure: A Content Analysis of Construction Companies Reports

Australian metals and mining companies are the focus of this study because mining activities are a significant source of waste products on a global scale, and to date, there has been no systematic review or comparison of how these companies report their waste management practices. Recognising that waste management is an important issue with future implications, this study is guided by one primary research question: What is the nature and extent of waste management disclosures by the top metals and mining companies in Australia? 

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdfdirect/10.1111/acfi.13125

Aseel A. Hussein

Papers

Sustainable procurement in construction and the realisation of the sustainable development goal (SDG) 12