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Metaverse Applications in Construction Research: Are We There Yet?
Get PDFDespite the significant potential of extended reality (XR) technologies in construction research, achieving a collaborative virtual environment that allows real-time engagements among various geographically remote stakeholders is a challenge. Building upon XR technologies, metaverse technology was introduced recently in construction research as a possible solution to address this issue, as it allows multiple users to engage and communicate in virtual environments. Being introduced recently, the applications of the metaverse in construction research (ConVerse) remain immature, vague, and unexplored. Seasoned researchers interested in the ConVerse research still need a reference guide to better understand the potential of the metaverse and its current applications. As such, this paper introduces a comprehensive review of the ConVerse applications, highlighting the research themes and assessing the exploitation level of the metaverse technology based on a set of six defined criteria. It also explores the current deficiencies of the ConVerse applications and the needed measures to achieve a higher level of maturity. The results showed that the Design Review applications contribute most to the ConVerse literature, followed by Activities Planning and Safety applications. It was also revealed that no article in the ConVerse literature had considered the whole six criteria of the metaverse, while 76.2% overlooked at least two criteria, and only 23.8% missed only one criterion. Subsequently, the paper highlights four main future directions to leverage the use of metaverse technology in the ConVerse research. This paper serves as a helpful guide for ConVerse researchers and provides them with a sound foundation for future research
Fostering Sustainable Urban Energy Transitions: Backcasting for Positive Energy Districts and Digital Twin strategies in a European context
Get PDFPositive Energy Districts (PEDs) have emerged as a key urban innovation to accelerate the transition toward climate neutrality and sustainability in cities. This study explores the integration of backcasting methodologies and Digital Twin (DT) strategies to advance the development of PEDs. A two-step approach was employed: participatory backcasting workshops to co-create long-term visions and actionable strategies, and DT technology applications tailored to three Urban Living Labs (ULLs) in Vienna (Austria), Gothenburg (Sweden), and Sakarya (Türkiye). The backcasting process facilitated the identification of pathways to energy efficiency, renewable energy integration, and decarbonization, creating a structured yet adaptable roadmap for PED development. DT functionalities—including Digitize, Visualize, Simulate, Predict, and Orchestrate—transformed these plans into operational tools, enabling real-time monitoring, predictive modeling, and adaptive energy management. The study underscores the critical role of stakeholder collaboration in aligning local priorities with sustainability goals and demonstrates the capacity of DT frameworks and PEDs to enhance energy efficiency in diverse urban contexts. However, challenges such as scalability, resource intensity, and sustaining long-term engagement persist. This dual approach highlights the potential of integrating participatory planning with advanced digital tools to bridge the gap between visionary energy goals and practical implementation, offering a replicable framework for urban energy transitions and decarbonization
Collaborative Approach to Home Flood Insurance: Mapping Stakeholder Engagement via Actor-Network Diagram
Get PDFHomeowners often struggle with flood insurance affordability pressure due to rising premiums, which has become a primary concern. Addressing this issue requires collaborative efforts to develop a functional home flood insurance system that would enhance the resilience of vulnerable homeowners and communities. Currently, there is a gap in knowledge on how stakeholders within a Collaborative Flood Insurance System (CFIS) interact to address this challenge. This study aims to identify the relevant stakeholders and map their interactions within the system with the aim of improving the affordability of home flood insurance. Using an integrative literature review approach, the study identifies key stakeholders, including governments, policymakers, insurers, financial institutions, homeowners, multilateral organisations, technological providers, and relevant professional researchers, and examines their current collaborative efforts. An Actor-Network Diagram (AND) based on Actor-Network Theory (ANT) is used to illustrate the interconnectedness of these stakeholders, providing a foundational understanding of their contributions to a CFIS. The study found that an insurer-centric approach dominates current collaborations among the relevant stakeholders. Findings offer valuable insights for policymakers on how to develop effective CFISs, highlighting the need for structured collaborative approaches. This research work lays the groundwork for further studies on stakeholder interactions, governance models, and the integration of innovative technologies in disaster insurance. While the study extends ANT to disaster insurance as a theoretical contribution, it offers practical recommendations for enhancing stakeholder collaboration to improve the resilience of disaster insurance systems. Further studies should empirically test the framework in diverse disaster contexts and socio-political environments
Generative AI in Construction: Emerging Trends and Use Cases
Get PDFThe construction industry is beginning to explore generative artificial intelligence (AI) technologies to address complex data management challenges and inefficiencies within traditional workflows, particularly in design, planning, and project management. Although there is growing interest in generative AI in construction, the understanding of its trends and opportunities remains scattered. This paper investigates the current trends, applications, and research needs for generative AI in construction through a bibliometric analysis of 148 publications from Scopus and Google Scholar. The keyword co-occurrence map highlights several search clusters, with a strong focus on Building Information Modeling (BIM), digital twins, sustainability, construction safety, structural and architectural design, education, and project management. Generative AI technologies like Generative Adversarial Networks (GANs), large language models (LLMs), Generative Pre-trained Transformer (GPT), and diffusion models play critical roles in this research area. By pinpointing key research gaps, it underscores avenues for future investigation and empowers researchers to expand and refine the latest advancements in this dynamic field, propelling progress toward a more efficient, resilient, and sustainable built environment
Enhancing the Practice of Sustainable Construction Materials in the Construction Industry of Developing Countries
No full textGlobally, the utilization of sustainable construction materials has recently gained more attention. However, this practice faces different barriers in developing countries, where economic constraints, rapid urbanization, and other issues often complicate the adoption of sustainable practices. The study aimed to explore the key drivers, facilitators, and barriers to the practice of sustainable construction materials in the construction industry of developing countries. For this, a systematic literature review was preferred to identify relevant studies in the study area. After screening with inclusion/exclusion criteria, 22 publications were selected for further analysis. A thematic analysis was employed to explore the differentdrivers, facilitators, and barriers using ATLASti.24 software. This includes the key drivers: Alternative Materials, Experimental Study, Government Policies and Regulations; Facilitators: Construction Material Circularity, Indigenous Practice/Knowledge, Use of Material Sustainable Performance Score; Barriers: Lack of Awareness and Knowledge; High Cost of Sustainable Materials; and Lack of Collaboration among Construction Stakeholders. A concerted effort by various stakeholders to address these key elements will be crucial in advancing the practice of sustainable materials
Collaborative design technologies and methods for sustainable built environment
Get PDFIn the present design process, designers still operate relatively alone, each in their own swimming lane . Coordination between different design trades typically takes place in BIM coordination meetings organized by consultants. The process is reactive, and the feedback loops are long and error prone. Reaching successfully multi-criteria design solutions can be very difficult. This is eminently a burning issue with sustainability which is imposing new criteria and requirements for design solutions. Collaboration is widely understood as a necessity to successfully manage the ever-increasing complexity and demands of construction. Advanced collaboration consists of frequent reliable information sharing and constant working together. Naturally this requires specific technologies, and when these technologies are implemented, fundamental changes are likely to happen concerning design processes and roles of key professionals. This paper shall first open the BIM based collaborative solutions and practices as a possibility for reaching design solutions for sustainable built environment. Second, certain technologies for collaboration are presented for explain the possibilities further. Third, workshops-based research data and relating analyses are introduces for explaining the dimensions of targeted design collaboration. The obtained results are pointing out the need for more dynamic design processes and solutions supporting this movement. The current design business conventions and mindsets of designers are seen as challenges for changes towards dynamic collaboration practices
BIM Implementation Challenges in NZEB Projects: Perspectives from Constructors
Get PDFThe construction industry consumes vast natural resources, which can be mitigated through sustainability initiatives like Net-Zero Energy Buildings (NZEBs). However, Building Information Modeling (BIM) implementation in NZEB projects faces challenges that hinder its widespread adoption. This study examines these challenges, and the knowledge and skills required to address them. Surveys and interviews with NZEB constructors reveal key barriers such as resistance to change, lack of expertise, and high training costs. Correlation analysis shows that reluctance to adopt BIM is strongly linked to knowledge gaps and financial constraints, highlighting the need for targeted training investments. Additionally, software incompatibility is a major issue, restricting collaboration and efficiency. The study identifies essential knowledge areas, including proficiency in sustainability-related analysis software, energy modeling, and BIM integration with performance simulation tools. Addressing these challenges requires investment in training, improved BIM software interoperability, and better industry-wide adoption strategies. Emerging digital technologies, including Artificial Intelligence (AI), offer potential solutions to enhance BIM workflows and decision-making in NZEB projects. These findings provide insights into BIM adoption trends and future technological directions, supporting sustainable construction and net-zero objectives
UAV-DL-Based Computer Vision Framework for Construction Worker Pose Estimation
Get PDFTraditional ergonomic assessments in construction are limited by subjectivity, intermittent monitoring, and scalability challenges. To address these issues, this study presents a framework integrating unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and deep learning-based computer vision for automated ergonomic risk assessment of construction workers. The framework utilizes UAVs to capture aerial footage of workers, enabling continuous monitoring across large and complex sites. Leveraging MediaPipe for pose estimation, the framework detects key body landmarks and calculates joint angles, providing an objective representation of worker postures. These joint angles are then mapped to the Rapid Entire Body Assessment (REBA) scoring system through custom algorithms, which translate postural data into standardized ergonomic risk scores. By integrating pose estimation with REBA scoring, this framework offers an automated, data-driven approach to identify and categorize ergonomic risks, facilitating proactive interventions to reduce musculoskeletal disorder (MSD) risks on construction sites. This study demonstrates the potential of UAVs and computer vision to enhance construction safety through scalable, objective, and continuous ergonomic assessment
Scientometric review of barriers to carbon trading adoption in the construction industry
No full textThe construction industry is a significant contributor to global carbon emissions. To reduce the impact of climate change, carbon trading has become an emerging domain. The urgent requirement for construction projects to comply with relevant environmental regulations shows that carbon trading application to the construction industry is expected to aid the industry mitigate its carbon emissions. The purpose of this study is to undertake a scientometric literature review of the barriers construction industry faces in adoption of carbon trading. Scopus and Web of Science were the databases adopted. Relevant keywords aided by Boolean search operators were used. Of 342 articles retrieved, 68 were duplicates after data was subjected to Systematic Review Assistant-Deduplication Module (SRA-DM). Remaining 274 articles were screened further at title and abstract levels. Furthermore, 75 articles that lacked barriers were excluded. The main body of the remaining 199 articles were skimmed in identifying relevant articles. Only 116 articles were found to be relevant to the study. 10 documents were not accessible and hence 106 papers were used for data analysis. Content analysis was used to extract and synthesise the barriers. Scientometric analysis was undertaken using VOSViewer software. From findings, significant barriers were lack of awareness of carbon market opportunities, low prices of carbon, lack of trust by parties and high transaction costs. Keyword analyses and author analyses were the scientometric analyses undertaken. This study is significant as identification of the barriers is timely, worth researching and practical leading to strategies to mitigate them and contribute to sustainable development
Four Futures One Solution for a Sustainable Reduction in Construction Delay and Disruption Disputes by 2030
Get PDFScenario planning is a research method that enables leaders to prepare for the future by revealing the impending opportunities and threats to businesses and markets. Although scenario planning has been used to forecast forces that will impact the construction sector, none of the recent studies investigates the potential of dispute reduction solutions to mitigate the negative impact of such future developments. Thus, the objectives of this study are to (i) offer a conceptual dispute reduction solution; (ii) establish the characteristics of four hypothetical scenarios based on the main forces that will impact the construction sector in 2030 and (iii) seek verification of the offered solution, including its ability to mitigate the impact of these forces. Therefore, the research methods are literature analysis, synthesis and evaluation, to fulfil objective one, and scenario planning, to realise objectives two and three. The research findings reveal that source materials, contract provisions and technology are the three tenets of a conceptual solution that can reduce delay and disruption disputes over matters of fact. Climate change and profit margins are the main forces that will impact the construction sector in 2030. As the consequences of climate change are likely to increase, contract terms that allocate risks associated with it are likely to be modified and insurance companies are liable to increase indemnification premiums, or become unable to cover such risks. This paper offers an innovative conceptual solution that increases contractual certainty through a risk allocation mechanism that mitigates the impact of those forces