Circular Economy in the Construction Industry: A Step towards Sustainable Development
Construction is a resource-intensive industry where a circular economy (CE) is essential to minimize global impacts and conserve natural resources. A CE achieves long-term sustainability by enabling materials to circulate along the critical supply chains. Accordingly, recent research has proposed a...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2022-07-01
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| Series: | Buildings |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2075-5309/12/7/1004 |
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| author | Maria Ghufran Khurram Iqbal Ahmad Khan Fahim Ullah Abdur Rehman Nasir Ahmad Aziz Al Alahmadi Ali Nasser Alzaed Mamdooh Alwetaishi |
| author_facet | Maria Ghufran Khurram Iqbal Ahmad Khan Fahim Ullah Abdur Rehman Nasir Ahmad Aziz Al Alahmadi Ali Nasser Alzaed Mamdooh Alwetaishi |
| author_sort | Maria Ghufran |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Construction is a resource-intensive industry where a circular economy (CE) is essential to minimize global impacts and conserve natural resources. A CE achieves long-term sustainability by enabling materials to circulate along the critical supply chains. Accordingly, recent research has proposed a paradigm shift towards CE-based sustainability. However, uncertainties caused by fluctuating raw material prices, scarce materials, increasing demand, consumers’ expectations, lack of proper waste infrastructure, and the use of wrong recycling technologies all lead to complexities in the construction industry (CI). This research paper aims to determine the enablers of a CE for sustainable development in the CI. The system dynamics (SD) approach is utilized for modeling and simulation purposes to address the associated process complexity. First, using content analysis of pertinent literature, ten enablers of a CE for sustainable development in CI were identified. Then, causality among these enablers was identified via interviews and questionnaire surveys, leading to the development of the causal loop diagram (CLD) using systems thinking. The CLD for the 10 shortlisted enablers shows five reinforcing loops and one balancing loop. Furthermore, the CLD was used to develop an SD model with two stocks: “Organizational Incentive Schemes” and “Policy Support.” An additional stock (“Sustainable Development”) was created to determine the combined effect of all stocks. The model was simulated for five years. The findings show that policy support and organizational incentive schemes, among other enablers, are critical in implementing a CE for sustainable development in CI. The outcomes of this study can help CI practitioners to implement a CE in a way that drives innovation, boosts economic growth, and improves competitiveness. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T12:08:51Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-9d05503d8cf74ae28eea2eca2e194d5b |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2075-5309 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T12:08:51Z |
| publishDate | 2022-07-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Buildings |
| spelling | doaj.art-9d05503d8cf74ae28eea2eca2e194d5b2023-11-30T22:55:14ZengMDPI AGBuildings2075-53092022-07-01127100410.3390/buildings12071004Circular Economy in the Construction Industry: A Step towards Sustainable DevelopmentMaria Ghufran0Khurram Iqbal Ahmad Khan1Fahim Ullah2Abdur Rehman Nasir3Ahmad Aziz Al Alahmadi4Ali Nasser Alzaed5Mamdooh Alwetaishi6Department of Construction Engineering and Management, National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST), Islamabad 44000, PakistanDepartment of Construction Engineering and Management, National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST), Islamabad 44000, PakistanSchool of Surveying and Built Environment, University of Southern Queensland, Springfield, QLD 4300, AustraliaDepartment of Construction Engineering and Management, National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST), Islamabad 44000, PakistanDepartment of Electrical Engineering, College of Engineering, Taif University, P.O. Box 11099, Taif 21944, Saudi ArabiaDepartment of Architecture Engineering, College of Engineering, Taif University, P.O. Box 11099, Taif 21944, Saudi ArabiaDepartment of Civil Engineering, College of Engineering, Taif University, P.O. Box 11099, Taif 21974, Saudi ArabiaConstruction is a resource-intensive industry where a circular economy (CE) is essential to minimize global impacts and conserve natural resources. A CE achieves long-term sustainability by enabling materials to circulate along the critical supply chains. Accordingly, recent research has proposed a paradigm shift towards CE-based sustainability. However, uncertainties caused by fluctuating raw material prices, scarce materials, increasing demand, consumers’ expectations, lack of proper waste infrastructure, and the use of wrong recycling technologies all lead to complexities in the construction industry (CI). This research paper aims to determine the enablers of a CE for sustainable development in the CI. The system dynamics (SD) approach is utilized for modeling and simulation purposes to address the associated process complexity. First, using content analysis of pertinent literature, ten enablers of a CE for sustainable development in CI were identified. Then, causality among these enablers was identified via interviews and questionnaire surveys, leading to the development of the causal loop diagram (CLD) using systems thinking. The CLD for the 10 shortlisted enablers shows five reinforcing loops and one balancing loop. Furthermore, the CLD was used to develop an SD model with two stocks: “Organizational Incentive Schemes” and “Policy Support.” An additional stock (“Sustainable Development”) was created to determine the combined effect of all stocks. The model was simulated for five years. The findings show that policy support and organizational incentive schemes, among other enablers, are critical in implementing a CE for sustainable development in CI. The outcomes of this study can help CI practitioners to implement a CE in a way that drives innovation, boosts economic growth, and improves competitiveness.https://www.mdpi.com/2075-5309/12/7/1004causal loop diagramcircular economyconstruction industrysustainable developmentsystem dynamics |
| spellingShingle | Maria Ghufran Khurram Iqbal Ahmad Khan Fahim Ullah Abdur Rehman Nasir Ahmad Aziz Al Alahmadi Ali Nasser Alzaed Mamdooh Alwetaishi Circular Economy in the Construction Industry: A Step towards Sustainable Development Buildings causal loop diagram circular economy construction industry sustainable development system dynamics |
| title | Circular Economy in the Construction Industry: A Step towards Sustainable Development |
| title_full | Circular Economy in the Construction Industry: A Step towards Sustainable Development |
| title_fullStr | Circular Economy in the Construction Industry: A Step towards Sustainable Development |
| title_full_unstemmed | Circular Economy in the Construction Industry: A Step towards Sustainable Development |
| title_short | Circular Economy in the Construction Industry: A Step towards Sustainable Development |
| title_sort | circular economy in the construction industry a step towards sustainable development |
| topic | causal loop diagram circular economy construction industry sustainable development system dynamics |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2075-5309/12/7/1004 |
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