Resource efficiency in industrialized housing construction – A systematic review of current performance and future opportunities

Abstract

Improved resource efficiency in the construction industry is needed to balance sustainability requirements with growing demand for new infrastructure. Resource efficiency includes the reduction of primary and non-renewable materials, the creation of high-quality products with minimal waste, and the retention of long-term product value. One potential source of resource efficiency is the increased adoption of industrialized housing construction which includes novel construction methods and products. Current literature identifies numerous opportunities for resource efficiency in industrialized housing construction. However, this literature is scattered across several sources and units of analysis. Using a Systematic Literature Review, this paper identifies eight recurrent product and process-related themes and fifteen specific subthemes of resource efficiency in industrialized housing construction across building lifecycle phases. These themes can be based on product such as the use of innovative and industrial materials or on process such as the use of inventory monitoring and tracking. Additional industry and regulatory themes are also identified. Furthermore using frequency analysis of literature, the paper finds while themes of resource efficiency exist across all building lifecycle phases, the most recurring themes occur in design, manufacturing and logistics phases. There is less literature dedicated to resource efficiency during occupancy and end-of-life phases. The paper further discusses how early design decisions such as material design have a systems-level impact that propagates throughout the building lifecycle, and how a beyond-systems approach is needed between stakeholders and processes to integrate current resource efficiency potentials into industrialized housing construction practice. Finally, the paper identifies future research directions for resource-efficient industrialized housing construction including concepts of circular economy, value chain coordination, and socio-economic impacts.