Main Constituents of Sustainability in Construction Design - Essay Example

? Sustainability in construction starts at the design stage of a project. Identify and explain the main constituents of sustainable design. Table of contents 1. Introduction ………………………………………………………………………3 2. Sustainability design in construction……………………………………………..3 2.1 Key issues of sustainability in construction projects……………………………3 2.2 Sustainable design in construction projects……………………………………..5 3. Conclusion………………………………………………………………………..8 References………………………………………………………………………….. 9 Appendix……………………………………………………………………………10 1. Introduction Sustainability is highly involved in the construction industry. Still, the use of the rules of sustainability in the construction projects has been a rather recent trend, if taking into consideration the effects of construction on the environment (Luff 2008). In addition, not all countries set sustainability as a term for accepting plans related to construction projects (Luff 2008). UK is one of the countries that first recognized the value of sustainability in construction. It should be noted that the promotion of sustainability in construction has a series of implications, meaning especially the cost involved and the availability of expertise professionals for developing construction projects based on sustainability. Current paper focuses on a particular aspect of sustainability, as related to construction: the sustainable design and its constituents. The literature published in regard to this subject has been reviewed in explore the particular issue. It is revealed that sustainable design is a complex and demanding process which can be completed successfully only if it is appropriately supported in all its phases. 2. Sustainability design in construction 2.1 Key issues of sustainability in construction projects Sustainability, as part of a construction project, is commonly related to certain issues, such as ‘green building, energy and climate’ (Luff 2008, p.152). However, such approach is not correct. Sustainability could be effectively promoted through construction only if a series of additional issues would be addressed: issues such as ‘health, economics and transport’ (Luff 2008, p.152) should be considered as indispensable elements of sustainability, as the term is used in all sectors, not just in construction. Through a similar approach, the involvement of sustainability in construction has been related to the management of issues such as ‘the disposal of waste material used in construction projects and the use of environmental-friendly engineering systems’ (CERF 1996, p.95). The level at which sustainability will be involved in a construction project depends on the willingness of the project’s designer to incorporate sustainability in the project’s plan and the availability of resources required (CERF 1996). In order to understand the role of sustainability in construction, it would be necessary to refer to the characteristics of sustainability in general. In the literature, sustainability has been defined as ‘the management of natural resource base…. and continued satisfaction of human needs for the present and future generations’ (Vogt et al. 2012, p.1). Dresner (2008) supports that sustainability should be defined as ‘the effort for securing the interests of future generations without setting in risk the interests of current generations’ (Dresner 2008, p.70). According to Morris and Pinto (2010) when being related to a construction project, sustainability refers to the various ‘issues from construction and throughout the life cycle of the building/ facility involved’ (Morris and Pinto 2010, p.124). In its own, sustainability is a term quite wide, incorporating issues related to ‘environment, society and economics’ (Morris and Pinto 2010, p.124). Myers (2013) also notes that sustainability is not exclusively related to the environment. Rather, the term is used for referring to the ‘environmental, social and economic aspects of a project’ (Myers 2013, p.271). Also, it is made clear that the key priority of sustainability should be the minimization of risks and the achievement of the most, as possible, benefits in regard to a project. 2.2 Sustainable design in construction projects Abraham (2005) explains that the design phase of a sustainable construction project is different from the project’s planning phase. The former, which is involved in this paper, is expected to have three levels: a) the design of the project is developed as of its ‘conceptual elements and of its scheme’ (Abraham 2005, p.394), b) the design of the project is developed in its final form and c) the contract of the project is prepared (Abraham 2005). Meeting the criteria of sustainable design can be a challenging task even for professionals who have a long experience in such projects (Thompson and Sorvig 2007). Kelly, Morledge and Wilkinson (2009) note that when planning a construction project, designers need to take into consideration not just sustainability but also issues such as the potential re-use and the level of safety of the site/ building involved but also the trends held both locally and globally in regard to sites/ buildings of similar use. Kubba (2010) explains that the key priority of sustainability in construction should be the development of construction projects that can respond to a series of needs, such as: ‘the need for reducing waste produced during the construction process, the need for controlling the energy used in buildings or other sites, the need for securing the health of people living or visiting a site/ building and the need for limiting the negative effects of buildings/ sites on the environment (Kubba 2010). The above needs should be regarded as constituents of sustainable design at the level that they should be taken into consideration by the designer during all the phases of the design process. In a recent report of the Business and Enterprise Committee of British Parliament emphasis has been given on the relationship of sustainable construction with certain issues. Reference is made in particular to the potentials of waste management, resources management and transport to influence the performance of a construction project in terms of sustainability (Business and Enterprise Committee, British Parliament 2008, p.15). In any case, the demands of a sustainable building can be many, as made clear through the graph in Figure 1 (Appendix) where the barriers, drivers and opportunities of a sustainable building are presented (Dangana, Pan and Goodhew 2012, p.1460). The above demands should be taken into account by the designers working on construction projects based on the rules of sustainability. At this point, an important issue should be discussed: could the introduction of standards helps towards the increase of effectiveness of sustainable design? Existing standards related to sustainability have helped to keep the quality of construction projects at satisfactory level. However, the occurrence of severe environmental damages, as a result of the deterioration of climate worldwide, can lead to the change of the standards of sustainability across the region involved (Thompson and Sorvig 2007). For example, a quite strong earthquake can result to the differentiation of existing requirements in regard to building design and construction (Thompson and Sorvig 2007). Moreover, cities, where construction projects are significantly developed, if compared to rural areas, need to be prepared for events related to climate change, such as hurricanes, earthquakes, flood and so on (Thompson and Sorvig 2007). Also, cities, due to their population, are believed as having a critical role in climate changes internationally (Thompson and Sorvig 2007). For this reason, the incorporation of a series of sustainability-related standards in the construction process has become unavoidable (Thompson and Sorvig 2007). LEED, i.e. ‘Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design’ (Thompson and Sorvig 2007, p.6) is a framework of rules used for evaluating the alignment of a construction project with the rules of sustainability. The above framework was introduced by the ‘US Green Building Council’ (Thompson and Sorvig 2007, p.6) and aims to secure the promotion of sustainability in modern construction projects. In the context of LEED, constructions projects are reviewed and evaluated as of their quality in regard to five sectors: ‘Site, Water, Materials, Energy and Indoor Environmental Quality’ (Thompson and Sorvig 2007, p.6). The above sectors can be considered as the constituents of Sustainable design because of the following reason: all these sectors need to be carefully reviewed during the design phase of a construction project. If the quality of a construction project as of these sectors is quite high, then the specific project is given a total of 69 points, which reflect the excellence of a construction project in terms of sustainability (Thompson and Sorvig 2007). Performing high in terms of LEED system is a critical target for most designers working in the construction industry. In fact, a designer who is able to provide a construction project which is aligned with the terms of LEED can be awarded a LEED certification; the latter is categorized as ‘gold, silver or platinum’ (Thompson and Sorvig 2007, p.6) depending on the volume of LEED’s points that a construction project gathers. It should be noted that despite its value, LEED can also have certain implications, such as its cost which can be high as indicated in the graph presented in Figure 2 (Appendix). 3. Conclusion The elements of sustainable design are not standardized. Rather, they tend to be differentiated according to the priorities set by the designer, the resources available and the needs that the project involved should address. In general, three are the areas that are most likely to influence sustainable design in construction: environment, society and economics. Each of these areas can be quite wide incorporating various issues; a construction project does not have to address all these issues. In addition, these areas can intervene in construction projects in different ways and at different levels of the construction process, i.e. not only in the design process. However, setting in advance, i.e. during the design process, the terms of sustainability to which a construction project is aligned increases the chances for the project’s success as of the promotion of sustainability. References Abraham, M. (2005). Sustainability Science and Engineering: Defining Principles. Amsterdam: Elsevier. Civil Engineering Research Foundation, CERF (1996). Construction Industry Research Prospectuses for the 21st Century: Engineering and Construction for Sustainable Development : Technical Report. Washington: ASCE Publications. Dangana, Z., Pan, W. and Goodhew, S. (2012) Delivering sustainable buildings in retail construction. Proceedings of 28th Annual ARCOM Conference, 3-5 September 2012, Edinburgh UK, Association of Researchers in Construction Management, 1455-1465. Available at http://www.arcom.ac.uk/-docs/proceedings/ar2012-1455-1465_Dangana_Pan_Goodhew.pdf Dresner, S. (2008). The Principles of Sustainability. London: Earthscan. Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Business and Enterprise Committee (2008) Construction Matters: Report, Together with Formal Minutes. London: The Stationery Office. Kelly, J., Morledge, R. and Wilkinson, S. (2009) Best Value in Construction. Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons. Kubba, S. (2010). Green Construction Project Management and Cost Oversight. Oxon: Taylor & Francis. Luff, P. (2008). Construction Matters: Ninth Report of Session 2007-08, Vol. 2: Oral and Written Evidence. London: The Stationery Office. Mapp, C., Nobe, M. and Dunbar, B. (2011) The Cost of LEED – An analysis of the Construction Costs of LEED and Non-LEED Banks. JOSRE, Vol. 3, No. 1, pp.254-273 Morris, P. and Pinto, J. (2010). The Wiley Guide to Project Technology, Supply Chain, and Procurement Management. Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons. Myers, D. (2013). Construction Economics: A New Approach. London: Routledge. Thompson, W. and Sorvig, K. (2007). Sustainable Landscape Construction: A Guide to Green Building Outdoors. Washington: Island Press. Vogt, K., Patel-Weynand, T., Shelton, M., Vogt, D., Gordon, J., Mukumoto, C., Suntana, A. and Roads, P. (2012). Sustainability Unpacked: Food, Energy and Water for Resilient Appendix Figure 1 – Sustainable development of buildings. Barriers – drivers and opportunities (source: Dangana, Pan and Goodhew 2012, p.1460) Figure 2 – Total costs, indicative, of LEED, as a tool used in a construction project (source: Mapp, Nope and Dunbar 2011, p.265) Read More