Environmental Sustainable Engineering & Logistic

This document discusses the challenges and issues influencing project cost and completion time in sustainable construction, types of renewable energy suitable for the project, supply chain management and material resource procurement, and health and risk factors associated with the project. It also emphasizes the importance of considering environmental and social factors in construction projects.

Environmental Sustainable
Engineering & Logistic

TABLE OF CONTENT
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
PART A ..........................................................................................................................................1
1. Challenges and issues influencing project cost and completion time .....................................1
2. Types of renewable energy or sustainable sources suitable for this project ...........................3
PART B ...........................................................................................................................................5
1. Supply chain management and material resource procurement .............................................5
2. Health and risk factors associated with the project .................................................................7
PART C............................................................................................................................................8
1. Active or passive system for the project and its environmental impact ................................8
CONCLUSION ...............................................................................................................................9
REFERENCES .............................................................................................................................10

INTRODUCTION
Sustainable construction is defined as the construction activities or processes which
efficiently utilise environmental resources and are equally responsible towards environmental
concerns throughout the entire life cycle of the building or construction activities (Marzouk and
Azab, 2017). The purpose of such activities is to minimise the environmental as well as adverse
health impact which are caused by construction processes. It includes activities such as selection
of non-toxic environmental material, waste reduction, protection and sustainable use of
environment resources. The report will discuss various environmental and social factors which
can influence the aspect of construction project. It will also discuss the health risk factors and
supply chain issues related to project. Further the project will discuss the use of suitable active
and passive system for the sustainable construction of building.
PART A
1. Challenges and issues influencing project cost and completion time
For achieving the desired profits it is mandatory that project must be completed on time
and within recommended budget estimates. The various challenges which can be faced during
construction project are as follows:
Environmental challenges:
With increasing concern about sustainability it has been becoming challenging for the
construction industry to adopt sustainable practices. It is not only essential from the perspective
of cost and energy efficiency but is also important from the legislative perspective and project
efficiency. All nations of the world have upgraded to sustainable construction practices and thus
it is vital for the construction companies to follow all legislations regarding resource utilisation
and the environmental impact of the project (Sayeeduddin and Chavan, 2016). The failure to
consider this aspect can enhance the project cost in terms of legal penalties as well as inefficient
resource utilisation. Due to the environmental issues climate changes, pollution and scarcity of
natural resources is also critical challenge faced by the organisation.
Thus sudden change in climate, natural calamities due to global warming and resource
shortage can cause unpredicted delay in the project completion. Hence it is required that project
must have strategies to overcome such unpredicted environmental consequences and material or
legislative challenges imposed by the environmental factors (Khatib, 2016). The project may also
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delayed by the fact that when there is need of making some changes in design or technologies in
regards to local environment.
Economic:
Another factor which has significant impact on the project cost is economy. The
economical aspect influences the material cost, availability, labour cost as well as taxations. It
also influences the purchasing decision and ability of the customers. The inflation and fluctuation
in interest rates can also affect the project finance and investment (Banihashemi and et.al., 2017).
Thus for optimising the project benefits it is necessary that these factors must be taken into
account so that possible risks can be eliminated. For instance when inflation rates are high and
minimum wages for labour is also high then in such circumstances project may be highly costly.
The long term nature of construction project leads to considerable difference in the overall
budget and project outcomes (Yılmaz and Bakış, 2015). When economy is unstable then it may
also be difficult to have investors and potential buyers for the project and thus project can be
delayed.
Historic and cultural issues:
The cultural factors are also known to be important factor in affecting construction
practices and outcomes. Most of the project sites have strong influence of the history and thus
the architecture of construction design and sites is preferred to be inspired by historical aspects.
However such characteristic designs of particular region can add extra to the cost as well as
project duration. The completion of project with historic design and architecture needs additional
time, resources and cost.
The factors such as employee engagement, work culture, technology and motivation
factors for construction employees strongly depends upon cultural factors. Thus the behaviour
and practices of the work force can affect the project completion (Almahmoud and Doloi, 2015).
If work force is managed effectively and their cultural aspects are taken into account then it can
lead to better productivity and work can be completed in planned duration of time. The
management practices as well as efficiency and performance of employees is strongly affected
by the cultural factors (Carvajal-Arango and et.al., 2019). Thus the overall impact on
performance attribute of labours can bring significant differences in the project cost and time.
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2. Types of renewable energy or sustainable sources suitable for this project
The proposed project of new shopping centre building can use various sustainable or
renewable energy sources. The most suitable sources for the project are as follows:
Solar electric or photovoltaic (PV) system:
Solar PV arrays are able to directly convert the solar energy into electricity which can be
used for the building (Hosseini and et.al., 2017). The PV modules can be installed on building as
well as on nearby structures of the building. The flat plate single layer solar cells are highly
efficient in terms of energy efficiency.
(Source: Solar for a Commercial or Public Building, 2019)
As compare to the residential or utility scale systems, shopping mall will use commercial
system which is smaller in size and is capable to deliver the power for multiple buildings or
various districts of the commercial building. The huge size of building will also make it possible
to locate the system in impactful location or in less visibility such as above parking structure or
on roof top. It will also give an advantage to minimise the power loss involved in long distance
transmission (Omardin, Abidin and Ali, 2015). In addition to the PV systems solar heat can also
be used for heating water in conventional steam generator for producing electricity. This can be
used by mirror covered dishes which helps to concentrate the solar energy.
Bioenergy:
The biomass such as organic waste of plants, wood, residue from forestry or agriculture
and organic components of waste products can also be used to produce energy (Yu and et.al.,
2018). The existing biomass technology can also be used to break down the organic matter for
releasing stored energy from sun. For instance biopower or bio fuel can be utilised for electricity
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Illustration 1: Solar electric system

and heating needs of building. Another example of using biomass energy is in the form of wood
pellet system or cordwood system (Sonebi, Ammar and Diederich, 2016). The cordwood is
burned to provide the heat supply which is then supplied to building heaters. Using technologies
such as combined heat and power as small biomass system can also be developed within building
for generating power.
Solar ventilation air preheating or solar thermal system:
The most competitive sustainable method for producing heat which can be used by the
building is solar water heating system. The heat energy form sun is absorbed and transferred to
heat the water. These systems have low maintenance cost and are highly reliable. In addition to
this heating system building can also use ventilation preheating system. These system heat the
ventilation air and thus are highly energy efficient solution for the application which needed high
volume of ventilation air. The solar energy absorbed and collected from sun is then transferred to
thermal boundary layer of air. The system can be installed in the mall in retrofit project as well.
Since the solar energy availability is one of the prime resource required for this system it is very
low cost and reliable with minimum efforts in its maintenance and operations.
Wind energy:
Wind energy is produced by the non-uniform solar heating of surface of the earth. The
flow of wind or motion energy harnesses the wind turbines for producing electricity and to
power the energy requirements of shopping mall. The wind turbines consist of propeller like
blades which continuously rotates for harnessing energy present in the wind. However prior
installing the turbine it is necessary to assure that wind speed and availability is adequate on the
site. Most of the wind turbines have operating life of around 20 years and requires minimum
maintenance (Wang, Zhang and Lu, 2018). For the proposed project roof mounted wind system
will be used so that it can make optimum use of cost, building design and structure as well as
noise. A small wind electric system will lower the electricity cost of the building by 50-70%.
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(Source: Research Could Help Spur Adoption of Wind-Power Integrated Commercial Buildings,
2019)
(Source: Varney, 2018)
PART B
1. Supply chain management and material resource procurement
Supply chain describes the hierarchy of supply contracts which is essential for procuring
building assets. It involves all products, services, logistics, raw materials, finished goods and
products. The first suppliers for the proposed project of building mall are design consultant who
gives a energy and cost efficient design for the building (Zuofa and Ochieng, 2016). This is
one of the key supply chain issue in construction projects that designers and suppliers of top
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Illustration 2: Wind energy system
integrated in commercial building
Illustration 3: Rooftop wind energy
system for buildings

level have fair agreement but as the chain develops contractual liabilities are reduced and chain
terminals are often not locked. The procurement of construction material resources involves
various approaches of identifying, choosing and obtaining materials required for the construction
activity. For procurement process traditional procurement routes are followed.
On the basis of building design tender documents including drawing, bills of quantities
and work schedules are prepared. Design consultants are often retained by the clients so that
additional modification of design can be made. Supply chain management emphasis on various
aspects such as inventory management, time horizon, total cost approach, channel leadership,
inventory levels and speed of operations and amount of sharing risks and rewards (Kamali and
Hewage, 2017). The material resource procurement involves a suitable approach for planning,
controlling and execution of construction activities.
The purpose of such activities is to ensure that all necessary materials are available when
required in right quantity and quality. The construction material cost and quality can have huge
impact on project cost, quality as well as work safety. Thus project emphasis is made to lower
the procurement cost without affecting quality. The first stage of material procurement involves
the estimation of material required, planning, budget and programming so that necessary
decisions can be made. On the basis of planning procurement is scheduled and purchased.
However the process or supply chain does not terminate at this stage and also involves further
process of inspection and proper receiving of material.
Another important aspect of material management and procurements involves inventory
control, storage warehousing, safe handling and transport. With the emphasis on sustainable
construction practices the construction projects are also paying attention to waste management so
that resource utilisation can be improved and cost optimisation can be achieved. There are
several factors which also cause delay in procurement process such as ineffective scheduling,
delay in the approval of material from the client side, delayed purchase orders or late delivery of
the materials.
The supply chain planning phase includes various factors to be taken into analysis or
consideration so that advanced software tools can be used to estimate the material quantity and
designs. The classification of locally available materials, materials which need fabrication, price
factor also play major role in supply chain management and procurement procedures (Molavi
and Barral, 2016) . The modern procurement methods of construction supply chain are beneficial
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in terms of higher productivity at low cost. It also minimises the margin for equipment
maintenance. Such kind of material management is also beneficial in providing longer term
coordination, project planning and improved responsiveness from the delivery services.
2. Health and risk factors associated with the project
Construction sites are often associated with the high risk factors and huge damage to
property as well as lives of individuals. Thus it is recommended that principles of health and
safety (H&S) are strictly taken into consideration so that associated risk factors can be minimised
(Sonebi, Ammar and Diederich, 2016). There are various regulations such management of H&S
at work regulation 1999, personal protective equipment at work regulations 1992 and manual
handling operations regulations. At the project site workers may require to handle heavy
machineries as well as toxic material.
Thus all workers must be provided suitable training to handle such risky material during
the production activities. There must be facilities for dealing with emergency accident situations
as well as all employees must have protective wearing such as gloves, helmet, glasses and other
necessary suits. Construction project also involves shift of material from one place to another as
well as working in complex situations such as on roofs or walls. Thus there must be necessary
protective arrangements so that risk factors such as fall risk, fire, exposure to harmful objects or
equipments, transportation incidences, collapses and drowning can take place during production.
As per the health and safety principle such type of risks must be regularly assessed and identified
so that prevention and minimisation strategies can be employed.
The long term exposure to construction environment, raw material, heavy sound and
material can impose various health complications. Thus the working condition and duration must
be improved so that health risks due to such factors can be reduced (Yılmaz and Bakış, 2015).
The selection of suitable technology and education is also critical aspect in reducing the exposure
to risk and related hazards. All employees must be provided training for safe work procedures so
that fall risk and other safety risk related to equipments and material can be handled. The
construction sites must also have necessary and effective safety tools for avoiding any accidents.
Health and safety in the construction project is necessary to take into consideration due to three
main factors which are legislation, human resources and financial reasons.
The failure to implement safety procedures at work place can result in accidents and loss
of lives. In addition to the ethical perspective it can also impose severe complications from the
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cost and legislative aspect. The negligence to work place safety also cause dissatisfaction among
employees can influence their commitment towards work practice and quality of the work. The
limited work safety for the employees and project members can also result in compromise in
project delivery time and cost quality. The safety hazards or accidents can cause addition cost of
utilised time of injured employees, termination of work activities, property damage as well as
loss of supervisory time.
Thus use of suitable safety management system is vital from both humanitarian and
business aspect. It lowers the damage to property and lives of human being, enhances morale and
industrial relation, quality and control. Effective safety program can prevent maximum of work
place accidents. Various attributes or activities of the construction project such as toxins,
airborne fibres, electricity, asbestos, unintended collapse, vibration & hand syndrome, slips and
trips, fall risk and accidents related to material handling are very risky and life threatening
(Kamali and Hewage, 2017). Thus it is important that safety principles such as risk assessment,
monitoring, controlling, safety measures and their evaluation and training programs must be
done as an integral part of the construction project.
PART C
1. Active or passive system for the project and its environmental impact
The development of active and passive systems for the building are beneficial for making
construction sustainable. It enhances the energy efficiency and reduces the cost of electricity or
energy consumption of the building. The proposed project can also use both active and passive
systems for the building. The use of active techniques and systems enhances the energy
conservation and provides more economical and sustainable solution to the problem. One of the
example of such system is use of active solar energy system. TH use of PV panels, building
integrated PV and solar collectors can convert solar energy into electricity. Similarly solar
thermal energy system can also converts solar radiations into thermal energy.
Apart from these systems wind energy system, geothermal system are also part of the
active systems for the buildings (Sonebi, Ammar and Diederich, 2016). These system explore the
available potential of energy or sources of electricity instead of completely relying on non-
renewable energy sources for the building energy needs. In addition to these active methods
buildings can also be used or provided with the passive techniques. For instance the passive solar
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systems can have direct, indirect or isolated gain system with the building. In direct gain systems
windows allow sunlight to directly enter into occupied space.
Similarly an example of indirect gain includes a thermal storage between indoor space
and facade As a result of this heat is stored in exterior walls or roof and are then distributed to
indoor. The use of these active and passive systems contributes significantly in to the
environment. For instance most of the buildings does not have any active or passive system.
Thus in such buildings or construction projects all energy needs are fulfilled by the electricity
generated by the non-renewable energy sources.
However it creates excessive exploitation of the natural resources and also have serious
implications related to environment such as pollution or climate change. Further such resources
are available in limited quantity only and thus for long term and sustainable use it is required that
their alternatives must be chosen and adopted at the earliest and at wider level (Yılmaz and
Bakış, 2015). In this response active and passive system can provide a low cost and easy
alternative solutions to the traditional approaches of energy utilisation. There is wide scope of
solar, wind and other renewable energy sources which can be used with both active and passive
system in cost and environment efficient manner.
CONCLUSION
It can be concluded from the report that sustainability is vital for cost optimisation,
energy efficiency, proper utilisation of resources, environmental safety as well as for gaining
competitive advantage in existing and future construction industry. It has been also analysed
from the study that it is mandatory for the construction service providers to taken health and
safety aspects into consideration. It not only helps in success of project but also contributes in
safe construction practices and compliance with regulations. It has been also evaluated from the
study that use of sustainable energy sources can make buildings more energy efficient and
sustainable both in terms of economy and environmental.
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REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Almahmoud, E. and Doloi, H.K., 2015. Assessment of social sustainability in construction
projects using social network analysis. Facilities. 33(3/4). pp.152-176.
Banihashemi, S. and et.al., 2017. Critical success factors (CSFs) for integration of sustainability
into construction project management practices in developing countries. International
Journal of Project Management. 35(6). pp.1103-1119.
Carvajal-Arango, D. and et.al., 2019. Relationships between lean and sustainable construction:
Positive impacts of lean practices over sustainability during construction phase. Journal
of Cleaner Production.
Hosseini, M.R. and et.al., 2017. Sustainability by Information and Communication Technology:
A paradigm shift for construction projects in Iran. Journal of cleaner production. 168.
pp.1-13.
Kamali, M. and Hewage, K., 2017. Development of performance criteria for sustainability
evaluation of modular versus conventional construction methods. Journal of cleaner
production. 142. pp.3592-3606.
Khatib, J. ed., 2016. Sustainability of construction materials. Woodhead Publishing.
Marzouk, M. and Azab, S., 2017. Analyzing sustainability in low-income housing projects using
system dynamics. Energy and Buildings. 134. pp.143-153.
Molavi, J. and Barral, D.L., 2016. A construction procurement method to achieve sustainability
in modular construction. Procedia engineering. 145. pp.1362-1369.
Omardin, M.A., Abidin, N.Z. and Ali, W.D.W., 2015. Concept of Environmental Sustainability
Awareness Strategies in Pre-Construction Stage. J. Trop. Resour. Sustain. Sci. 3. pp.103-
116.
Sayeeduddin, M.S. and Chavan, M.F., 2016. Use of Waste Glass Powder As A Partial
Replacement of Cement In Fibre Reinforced Concrete. IOSR Journal of Mechanical and
Civil Engineering (IOSR-JMCE) e-ISSN, pp.2278-1684.
Sonebi, M., Ammar, Y. and Diederich, P., 2016. Sustainability of cement, concrete and cement
replacement materials in construction. In Sustainability of Construction Materials (pp.
371-396). Woodhead Publishing.
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Wang, H., Zhang, X. and Lu, W., 2018. Improving Social Sustainability in Construction:
Conceptual Framework Based on Social Network Analysis. Journal of Management in
Engineering. 34(6). p.05018012.
Yılmaz, M. and Bakış, A., 2015. Sustainability in construction sector. Procedia-Social and
Behavioral Sciences. 19., pp.2253-2262.
Yu, M. and et.al., 2018. Integrating sustainability into construction engineering projects:
Perspective of sustainable project planning. Sustainability. 10(3). p.784.
Zuofa, T. and Ochieng, E., 2016. Sustainability in construction project delivery: A study of
experienced project managers in nigeria. Project Management Journal. 47(6). pp.44-55.
Online
Research Could Help Spur Adoption of Wind-Power Integrated Commercial Buildings. 2019.
[Online]. Accessed through <https://www.sparkenergy.com/en/blog/archive/wind-power-
for-commercial-buildings/>
Varney,. J., 2018. Rooftop wind energy system. Science photo library. [Online]. Accessed
through <https://fineartamerica.com/featured/rooftop-wind-energy-system-jim-
varneyscience-photo-library.html>
Solar for a Commercial or Public Building. 2019. [Online]. Accessed through
<https://www.pugetsoundsolar.com/seattle-energy-code-solar.html>
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