LCC Estimation Model: A Construction Material Perspective

An integrated framework of life-cycle environmental, human health, and economic impact assessment for urban water systems

Water scarcity presents a pressing and lasting challenge to many large cities, necessitating adaptations in urban water systems. Developing reliable water resources is crucial for enhancing water security, yet concerns regarding costs and environmental impacts persist. To address this, we have developed an integrated framework that combines life cycle assessment (LCA), quantitative microbial risk assessment (QMRA), and life cycle costing (LCC) for evaluating the environmental, public health, and economic impacts of water systems. Our approach culminates in a unified monetary representation encapsulating the overall life-cycle costs of the urban water system borne by all stakeholders. City-wide and district-level water systems in Hong Kong were analyzed to demonstrate the benefits of this integrated LCA-QMRA-LCC approach over individual assessments. By quantifying both private and external costs (e.g., environmental and health impacts), we found that the external costs can exceed 50 % of the private costs in both cases, which would potentially influence the decision-making outcomes. Notably, for the district-level study that compared the use of seawater and reclaimed water for toilet flushing, disparities were unveiled between the individual and integrated assessments, underscoring the necessity of a broad LCA-QMRA-LCC framework. This research equips decision-makers with a comprehensive analytical tool, addressing concerns across a broader spectrum of stakeholders and fostering sustainable and cost-effective urban water management.

Tools Towards the Sustainability and Circularity of Data Centers

We are living in an age when data centers are expanding, require abundant spaces, and are an integral part in the urban communities, using massive amounts of environmental resources, and remains in the foreseeable future as the primary driver of the global energy consumption. This demand is disruptive and at times of both peril and opportunity due to impacts such as the COVID-19 pandemic, which is altering the demand of digital infrastructure around the world. With the global call for zero carbon emissions, there needs to be solutions put in place for the de-carbonization of data centers. New innovations are made available, which will have an economic, social, and environmental impact on data centers. Concepts such as circular economy and fourth industrial revolution technologies are useful procedural tools that can be used to systematically analyze data centers, control their mining and critical raw materials, can be utilized in the transition towards a sustainable and circular data center, by objectively assessing the environmental and economic impacts, and evaluating alternative options. In this paper, we will look at the current research and practice, the impact on the United Nations Sustainable Development goals, and look at future strides being taken towards more sustainable and circular data centers. We had discovered that decreasing the environmental effect and energy consumption of data centers is not sufficient. When it comes to data center architecture, both embodied and operational emissions are critical. Data centers also have a vital societal role in our daily lives, enabling us to share data and freely communicate via social media, transacting on the blockchain with cryptocurrencies, free online education, and job creation. As a result, sustainability and efficiency measures have expanded in a variety of ways, including circularity and its associated tools, as well as newer technologies.

Method of Planning Repairs of the Installation including Building Waste

Repairs of water supply, sewage and central heating installations in residential buildings should be carried out systematically. However, very often, renovation dates are postponed, which results in installation failures. The failures of water supply, sewage and central heating installations, due to the currently used methods of masking them and running them as under-plaster and under-floor installations, are always connected with the damage and necessity of reconstruction of the building elements. As a result, renovation work has to be carried out to a greater extent and the amount of construction waste is much greater. The analysis of different renovation strategies of water supply, sewage and central heating systems in residential buildings made in traditional technology has been carried out. The article presents the results of the research on the effects of the postponement of the renovation works on the changes in the technical condition of the building and on the scope of renovation works. The aim of the research is to develop a method for planning repairs of the installation taking into account optimization of the amount of construction waste. The aim of the research is also to answer the question: To what extent does the postponed repair of water and sewage installations influence the amount of construction waste? In the proposed method, the Prediction of Reliability according to Rayleigh Distribution (PRRD) model is used. The results of the research indicate the necessity of conducting the renovation works of the installation in a timely manner due to the increasing amount of construction waste and the introduced reduction of its amount with the increase of the recycling rate.

Lean Construction Concept Used to Develop Infrastructure Facilities for Tourism Clusters

The relevance of the article is conditioned on tourist infrastructure problems and underdevelopment when creating and developing territorial clusters, for which there is not enough research materials in the context of tourism cluster facilities construction, despite the fact that the issues of lean construction (LC) are widely covered. Based on the relevance, the main hypothesis of the study was determined. It consists of the fact that the use of lean construction can increase the efficiency of construction megaprojects in the field of tourism clusters. The objective of this study is to develop a mechanism for the development of tourism clusters based on the lean construction concept that will be aimed at increasing the efficiency of construction projects taking into account the accumulated world experience. Within the framework of the tasks set, the analysis of the lean construction methodological base was carried out, methodological recommendations aimed at increasing the efficiency of construction megaprojects of tourism clusters based on the lean construction concept were developed, a model for the implementation of lean construction in infrastructure projects of tourism clusters, as well as a checklist of the analysis technology were elaborated. The proposed methodological approach to the implementation of tourism cluster megaprojects based on the lean construction concept is the basis for organizing and planning development activities at the tactical and operational levels. To assess the effectiveness of lean construction tool introduction to implement infrastructure projects of tourism clusters, a comparative analysis was carried out and the construction time and lifecycle cost of a typical guest house were calculated without taking into account the lean construction methodology and after its introduction. The results obtained, namely, the duration of the project and costs at life cycle stages made it possible to conclude that the proposed methodological approach is effective.

Impact of Information and Communication Technology on Sustainable Supply Chain and Cost Reducing of Waste Management in Slovak Construction

Sustainability in construction can be perceived across several areas. Sustainable supply chain and cost management are two of them. If this issue is addressed in the management of sustainable building materials and waste management in the implementation of construction projects, in the context of sustainability, cost management and supply chain management affect the overall success of construction projects. The aspect of sustainability is based on reducing costs and, thus, also material items. At the same time, there is a focus on the use of waste or its economic and ecological disposal. Finally, sustainability means the setting up of logistics processes. Information and communication technologies can significantly help supply chain and cost management and construction waste management. This means, on the one hand, minimizing the consumption of materials and, thus, also costs, and on the other hand, by optimally setting up the supply chain and logistics, using materials and funds efficiently and optimizing waste management. The research discusses the impact of information and communication technology on a sustainable chain and cost management on various construction projects in Slovakia. The research aims to analyze information and communication technology’s influence on a sustainable chain and cost savings of waste in construction projects. The main research hypothesis is based on the assumption that information and communication technology positively affect sustainable chain and cost management of waste in the Slovak construction industry. Data collection was performed through an online questionnaire. It contained three primary areas of data collection: The first part contained questions about the characteristics of the research sample. The second concerned the use of information and communication technologies and the third pertained to their impact on sustainability and reducing the costs of the waste management process in construction. The research samples consisted primarily of foreign companies operating in Slovakia. From the point of view of the participants in the construction project, these were developers, contractors, sub-contractors and designers. The Kruskal–Wallis test was used to confirm this hypothesis. The research provides an overview of information and communication technologies and their impact on supply chain and cost management of waste in construction.

Statistical Methods in Bidding Decision Support for Construction Companies

On the border of two phases of a building life cycle (LC), the programming phase (conception and design) and the execution phase, a contractor is selected. A particularly appropriate method of selecting a contractor for the construction market is the tendering system. It is usually based on quality and price criteria. The latter may involve the price (namely, direct costs connected with works realization as well as mark-ups, mainly overhead costs and profit) or cost (based on the life cycle costing (LCC) method of cost efficiency). A contractor’s decision to participate in a tender and to calculate a tender requires an investment of time and company resources. As this decision is often made in a limited time frame and based on the experience and subjective judgement of the contractor, a number of models have been proposed in the literature to support this process. The present paper proposes the use of statistical classification methods. The response obtained from the classification model is a recommendation to participate or not. A database consisting of historical data was used for the analyses. Two models were proposed: the LOG model—using logit regression and the LDA model—using linear discriminant analysis, which obtain better results. In the construction of the LDA model, the equation of the discriminant function was sought by indicating the statistically significant variables. For this purpose, the backward stepwise method was applied, where initially all input variables were introduced, namely, 15 identified bidding factors, and then in subsequent steps, the least statistically significant variables were removed. Finally, six variables (factors) were identified that significantly discriminate between groups: type of works, contractual conditions, project value, need for work, possible participation of subcontractors, and the degree of difficulty of the works. The model proposed in this paper using a discriminant analysis with six input variables achieved good performance. The results obtained prove that it can be used in practice. It should be emphasized, however, that mathematical models cannot replace the decision-maker’s thought process, but they can increase the effectiveness of the bidding decision.

Life Cycle Cost Analysis of a Single-Family House in Sweden

The objective of this paper was to explore long-term costs for a single-family house in Sweden during its entire lifetime. In order to estimate the total costs, considering construction, replacement, operation, and end-of-life costs over the long term, the life cycle cost (LCC) method was applied. Different cost solutions were analysed including various economic parameters in a sensitivity analysis. Economic parameters used in the analysis include various nominal discount rates (7%, 5%, and 3%), an inflation rate of 2%, and energy escalation rates (2–6%). The study includes two lifespans (100 and 50 years). The discounting scheme was used in the calculations. Additionally, carbon-dioxide equivalent (CO2e) emissions were considered and systematically analysed with costs. Findings show that when the discount rate is decreased from 7% to 3%, the total costs are increased significantly, by 44% for a 100-year lifespan, while for a 50 years lifespan the total costs show a minor increase by 18%. The construction costs represent a major part of total LCC, with labor costs making up half of them. Considering costs and emissions together, a full correlation was not found, while a partial relationship was investigated. Results can be useful for decision-makers in the building sector.

The Implementation Factors of Information and Communication Technology in the Life Cycle Costs of Buildings

Life cycle cost management is an integral part of buildings construction. The life cycle cost approach can be considered an objective approach because it considers all life cycles of buildings. Information and communication technology is one of the critical factors for the success of construction projects. Several studies point to the importance of information and communication technology use in life cycle cost management. Generally, information and communication technology can be helpful in the cost management process of buildings. However, few implementation factors of information and communication technology are used in the life cycle cost management of buildings. The research assumes that the most critical implementation factor is the investment cost for information and communication technologies used in cost management during the life cycle. The relative importance index method was used to evaluate and quantify the final rank of implementation factors. The Kruskal–Wallis test was used to confirm or reject research results that were statistically significant.

Renovation Management Method in Neglected Buildings

Renovation works to buildings are often not carried out or there are shifts in time, which causes degradation of the building. The article presents an analysis of the consequences of abandoning renovation works. The aim of this article is to present a method of preliminarily planning renovations of a MRUB (Managing Renovation in Un-renovated Buildings). This method of decision-making support is based on the consequences in the case of the omission of renovations. The omission of renovations may lead to a threat to the stability of the building’s structure, threaten the lives of its users, and further damage the building by damaging further elements, or even cause a building disaster. Often, as a result of the abandonment of renovation, usually caused by the lack of the owner, improper manager, or irresponsible owners, these objects are degraded. The consequences of the failure of renovating buildings lead to irreversible processes of destruction. As a result of the research, it was found that it was not only a bad technical condition that was a prerequisite for carrying out the renovation. The consequences of the absence of renovation works, in addition to the technical condition, should be a motivating factor. The problem of the abandonment of renovations is presented using the example of the palace in Drwalewice.

Environmental Footprint of Cementitious Adhesives—Components of ETICS

Energy saving is one of the strategic challenges facing our civilization today. Without decisive actions to reduce energy consumption, it is impossible to maintain the current standard of living. Energy consumption for heating and cooling purposes is one of the primary energy consumption sources in many countries. The external thermal insulation composite system (ETICS), which is today the most widely used solution in EU countries, increases buildings’ energy efficiency. This article investigates the impact of producing cementitious adhesives, as part of ETICS with expanded polystyrene (EPS) or mineral wool (MW), on the natural environment using the cradle-to-gate life cycle assessment (LCA) method. Cementitious adhesives have a relatively low impact on most of the environmental indicators analyzed in the paper concerning other ETICS components. The paper aims to raise awareness of the importance of the environmental impact related to the production of cementitious adhesives. Knowledge of the construction products’ environmental impact is fundamental for creating reliable databases, based on which, in the future, their environmental requirements will be determined. The environmental performance of building elements is essential for the correct determination of the buildings’ sustainability.

Historic Building Thermal Diagnostics Algorithm Presented for the Example of a Townhouse in Lviv

This paper presents a proposal for a historic building thermal diagnostics algorithm for the example of a historical townhouse located in Lviv, Ukraine. The authors proposed a testing and diagnostics procedure that should precede design and renovation work associated with improving the energy standard of the buildings under discussion. The procedure was presented using a case study of a selected historical building. The scope of the study included an assessment of the building’s technical condition, thermal vision diagnostics, wall moisture, and water absorption in the context of protection against rain. Sample thermal and hygrothermal calculations were performed for a sample architecture element. The calculations included simulations of partition envelope behaviour after planned thermal retrofitting had been carried out. Performing the presented thermal diagnostics methods in three interlinked blocks (A, B, and C) shall ensure the proper thermal retrofitting of historical buildings in the context of their further occupancy.

Analysis of the Thermal Retrofitting Potential of the External Walls of Podhale’s Historical Timber Buildings in the Aspect of the Non-Deterioration of Their Technical Condition

The paper discusses thermal quality improvement in historic buildings. It is based on a case study of a wooden historical building in an architectural style typical of Zakopane, located in the Podhale region of Poland. The building’s historical value and timber structure prevent the application of typical thermal retrofitting solutions. This paper presents an analysis of the possibilities of the improvement of energy performance of a historic building (villa) which included: a review of the available energy performance improvement solutions applicable to this type of building, with a particular focus on applying internal insulation; a technical condition assessment using non-invasive methods, the identification of problematic areas in terms of the thermal retrofitting of buildings with timber walls and decks; in situ tests: thermovision tests which showed the places with temperature distribution field disturbances in the building’s envelope, focusing on thermal bridges; measurements of actual thermal transmittance coefficients for extant partitions; measurements of the building’s airtightness and the microclimate in selected rooms; numerical analysis: an assessment of the influence of the thermal bridges on the building’s existing condition, an analysis of water content changes in wall systems post-insulation. The presented approach enables the improvement of the energy performance of timber historical buildings while preserving the historical value of its architecture. It is innovative because it tries to fill in a research gap concerning a lack of relevant guidelines in Poland. The research questions that the authors asked were as follows. Is it possible to improve the thermal insulation of a building’s wooden walls without adversely affecting the building’s technical condition? With regard to the necessity to meet nZEB (nearly zero energy building) standards, is it feasible to improve the timber walls of historical buildings? The study found that under the correct assumptions and while maintaining a responsible approach to design, it is possible to improve the energy performance of historical buildings without interfering with historical heritage.

Consequences of Abandoning Renovation: Case Study—Neglected Industrial Heritage Building

The abandonment of renovation works is an extremely important factor causing degradation of the building. Omission of repairs may lead to a threat to the stability of the building’s structure, threaten the lives of users, further damage to the building by damaging further elements. The aim of this article is to analyze the consequences of abandoning renovation works in order to minimize the occurrence of construction failures in the future. The article presents problems related to the abandonment of repair works of damaged elements. A classification of the effects of abandonment of repairs for historic buildings has been worked out. Industrial heritage buildings were often not used for a long time, and the lack of maintenance very often caused their partial or even complete destruction. The progressive degradation of buildings is mainly the result of human negligence, lack of effective, and continuous maintenance. The problem of abandonment of repairs is presented on the example of the granary in Krosno Odrzańskie.

Life Cycle Prediction and Maintenance of Buildings

The sustainability of the built environment can only be achieved through the maintenance planning of built facilities during their life cycle, considering social, economic, functional, technical, and ecological aspects [...]

A Methodology for Determining the Rehabilitation Needs of Buildings

The appropriate rehabilitations planning of buildings should be based on the analysis of rehabilitation needs. This article proposes a methodology for Determining the Rehabilitation Needs of Buildings (DRNB). The DRNB method can be used for buildings made with traditional technology. The methodology provides the possibility to prioritize the analyzed objects and their elements as well as to determine the sequence of rehabilitation needs of any buildings and their elements. The method can be used for a single building or several buildings. The obtained results can be compared and order relations between them can be determined, which will allow the planning of repair works. In setting the priorities in the DRNB method, the implementation of the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) was used. The article presents also the application the DRNB method and results of determination of rehabilitation needs for residential buildings that are located in Poland in Zielona Góra. Determining the rehabilitation needs of building components should be the first stage of planning repair works. The DRNB method helps to determine which elements in which buildings need necessary rehabilitation now, which elements of rehabilitation are important now, and which elements can be rehabilitated later—i.e., if the repair works are only useful and are not currently necessary.

Web-Based Architecture for Automating Quantity Surveying Construction Cost Calculation

Quantity Surveying (QS) is a process concerned with controlling and managing the costs of construction projects. QS Measurement relies on sophisticated measurement rules that are understood by experienced practitioners. Traditional QS systems, such as standard paperwork, are time-consuming and only approximate the cost estimate. This paper aims to design and deploy a web-based framework for automating the cost estimation of concrete construction, using ASP.NET. It introduces a user-friendly interface, which ensures that the work is completed in the chronological order of the construction phases. The proposed QS framework offers a reliable and time-efficient estimation method, in comparison to other methods (i.e., human labor using paper or Excel), which was tested using real data and was validated by experts and consultant companies. Furthermore, it automated the reading of project information from construction maps, which reduced errors when estimating costs. It could also automatically determine the project location using Google Maps and could quickly guide the user to the location. The proposed QS framework automated the manual and Excel work of cost computing with an accuracy of 99%, reducing human calculation errors. It also effectively reduced the calculation time to only three days (compared to 114 days of manual work or 19 days of Excel work). The comparison result of the Quantity Surveyor’s average paid salary indicated that using web-based QS framework helps in reducing the cost estimation time and labor costs.

Assessing the Sustainability of Alternative Structural Solutions of a Building: A Case Study

The implementation of sustainable solutions in the design of buildings is one of the main elements in achieving the transition to sustainability. The variety of structural elements and availability of sustainable materials, and the different preferences of clients, architects, and structural designers make the decision-making process difficult. This research aims to develop a decision model for applying to the early design stage. This work evaluates the sustainability of the load-bearing structures of a commercial building. Three types of load-bearing structures have been selected and compared concerning different physical parameters, cost of construction, cost of materials, technological dimensions (duration expressed in person-hours and machine-hours), and environmental impact. The methodology combines the building information modeling, sustainability criteria, and multi-criteria decision-aiding methods. The presented case study illustrates the proposed approach. The study revealed that multi-criteria decision aiding methods give the possibility to improve the selection process and to assess the sustainability of alternative structural solutions at an early stage of building design. The proposed decision model is versatile and therefore can be applied for different cases.

Value of Technical Wear and Costs of Restoring Performance Characteristics to Residential Buildings

Each building, over the course of subsequent years of use, undergoes wear, with a deterioration of its technical condition. As a result of this, the performance characteristics of a building decrease with the passing of time, with their complete or partial restoration requiring repair and renovation works to be carried out. It is the task of real estate managers or owners to maintain the building in a non-deteriorating technical and functional condition. In order to preserve the technical and functional condition of a building at an adequate level, methodological support of decision-making processes pertaining to the conducting of rational maintenance management is necessary. The present article presents a proposal of a model allowing for the accurate assessment of the costs of renovation and repair works on a building at a given stage of its use, and their relationship with the value of the technical wear of the building in the same time period. Residential buildings constructed using traditional technology were subjected to analysis. In the carried out analysis, temporal methods applied for calculating the level of technical wear were applied, with the PRRD (prediction of reliability according to Rayleigh distribution) model of changes in the performance characteristics applied to determine the costs of renovation works necessary for restoring performance characteristics to the building.