Search

BIM is continuously changing the way construction can be approached, from design, scheduling, costing to facilities management. However, even though construction safety is a worldwide issue, and though previous, yet limited, studies have proven its great potential, BIM has not been extended to include automated construction safety management functions, i.e., hazard identification, assessment and control for construction works. In fact, as many as 71% of safety incidents can be prevented by safety considerations at design stage. Automation via BIM is the key to enhance effectiveness and efficiency of safety management, but development of Safety Information Modelling (SIM) is the key pre-requisite. This paper aims to outline a research project for developing both information and technical requirements for SIM via questionnaire survey, focus group, and real case studies. The project results, to be validated by real projects, will act as solid platform for developing:- i) Practical guidance to construction and safety professionals on the types of safety management a SIM can conduct, and the ways of utilizing the safety information in a SIM model [based on the systematic SIM information requirements (e.g., object identification, geometry attributes, safety rules)]; and ii) Overall guidance to software developers to develop appropriate SIM tools for different scenarios [based on the systematic SIM technical requirements (e.g., model information exchange, visualization, conflict analysis process for risk assessment, reliability)].

Automation technology has experienced explosive growth in recent decades. However, the construction industry, let alone the field of construction safety, is still among the least digitized globally. Although many types of automation have proven effective in enhancing productivity and accuracy, adoption and acceptance by construction professionals are still limited. Human factors are essential for the success of automation. Therefore, this study investigated the effects of different levels of system automation and transparency, and their interactions, on human states (trust, mental workload, situational awareness) and perceived performance (explainability, satisfaction, usability). An experiment was conducted using a tool to assess scaffolding design safety with varying automation and transparency levels. A between-group design was adopted in which participants were assigned to four groups (a 2×2 matrix of automation and transparency). In a multi-methods approach, human states were measured through questionnaires and electroencephalography, and system performance was measured through a questionnaire. The results indicated that (1) automation level does not have significant impact on human states or perceived system performance, (2) a highly transparent automation system is associated with significantly higher trust and better perceived system performance, and (3) the positive impacts of transparency tend to be more obvious in low-automation systems. Due to perceived complexity, one might think that transparency would be emphasized more in highly automated systems. However, the results of this study shed light on the importance of providing a highly transparent interface for explaining system logic in all automated systems for design safety assessment in construction, particularly those with low automation levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to the inherent limitations of underground spaces, such as the lack of natural ventilation and sunlight, underground space users tend to face more health risks compared with their aboveground counterparts. However, little is known about how the underground environment, users' health, and their associations were impacted by the outbreak of the pandemic. In this study, we investigated and compared the impacts of the general underground environment on regular users' physical and psychological health before and after the pandemic. To achieve this aim, the data from 525 surveys were collected from eleven underground sites, followed by an objective field measurement study conducted at five underground sites in Hong Kong pre- and post-outbreak of the pandemic. The multigroup structural equation modelling results indicated that: (i) surprisingly, the users' satisfaction towards almost all underground environment factors, including greenery, connectivity with the aboveground environment, thermal comfort, ventilation, indoor air quality, acoustic comfort, and lighting, excluding wayfinding, were significantly higher in the post-outbreak period; (ii) the users' health, both physical and psychological, was significantly better in the post-outbreak period; (iii) the impacts of visual comfort on the users' physical and psychological health were significantly greater in the post-outbreak period (critical difference ratio (|CDR|) > 1.96); (iv) the impacts of wayfinding, greenery, and acoustic and thermal comfort on the users' physical or psychological health were significant only in the pre-outbreak period (|CDR| > 1.96); (v) the impacts of connectivity on the users' physical and psychological health were significant in both the pre- and post-outbreak periods (|CDR| < 1.96). The findings were further cross-validated using the objective measurement results. With an increasing need to develop healthy underground spaces, the study contributes to the development, design, and management of the underground environment to enhance the users' health in the post-outbreak era. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Innovation can create value for an organization and its stakeholders. In developing an innovation blueprint in complex contexts, such as construction, previous studies have alleged that transformational leadership is an important determinant of innovation. This study aims to investigate the role of innovation climate and learning transfer climate on the relationships between leadership and innovation in the construction sector. A questionnaire survey was conducted with 158 returns from 500 respondents (client developers, construction consultants, and contractors in China). The findings reveal that (1) support for innovation (innovation climate factor) moderates the effects of intellectual stimulation, individualized consideration (transformational leadership factor), and contingent rewards (transactional leadership factor) on innovation, and (2) performance self-efficacy (learning transfer climate factor) moderates the effects of intellectual stimulation (transformational leadership factor) and contingent rewards (transactional leadership factor) on innovation. This study reveals the intertwining relationships between leadership, climates, and innovation and lays a platform for further longitudinal, qualitative studies. Managerial implications are discussed; different leadership and management climates need to be strategically adopted and nurtured in dynamic organizational environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Because learning is a key antecedent to innovative activities, more attention needs to be paid to the climate, within the organization or project settings, that supports learning. The objectives of this paper are (1) to empirically examine the influences of the learning transfer climate on innovation and (2) to investigate how the between-group variability in the learning transfer climates of clients, contractors, and consultants affects innovation. The learning transfer climates are assessed in terms of the task-support and motivational elements adopted from the well-tested questionnaire of the Learning Transfer System Inventory. Based on the 147 survey returns collected from construction participants, factor analysis, correlation analysis, and regression analysis are conducted (the latter two using the total sample and the subsamples of client developers, contractors, and consultants). It is found from the total sample that openness to change (task-support element), performance-outcome expectations, and performance self-efficacy (motivational elements) are significant predictors of innovation. Whereas a successful construction project requires the interaction of multiple waves of innovation, contributed by various construction participants throughout the project, it is important to acknowledge the heterogeneity of these participants in considering the innovation process. The results also indicate that, with regard to their innovations, the different groups are influenced by different learning transfer climate factors: clients are affected by openness to change and performance self-efficacy; contractors are affected by openness to change; and consultants are affected by performance-outcome expectations. Analysis of these findings leads to a conceptual model of learning transfer climate and interactions between the clients, contractors, and consultants. From the theoretical perspective, the findings of this study lay ground for an interorganizational framework for further innovation-learning transfer studies. From the managerial perspective, this study provides empirical confirmation of the importance of measuring the learning transfer climate in construction organizations and of developing strategies for facilitating an innovation-conducive climate that fits each particular organization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Given the globalization of the construction industry, there are increasing numbers of expatriate construction professionals (ExCPs). The work practices and living environment are different between home and host countries, which often induce stress in ExCPs, cause underperformance, and reduce intention to stay for expatriates. This study aims to investigate the interactions among stressors, stress, performance, and intention to stay for ExCPs through the development of a stressors-stress-performance-outcome model. A questionnaire survey with purposive sampling was conducted. The research results show (1) work-home conflict, organizational centralization, and heavy workload affect ExCPs' overall performance and intention to stay indirectly through the vicious cycle between emotional and physical stress; (2) poor transportation exacerbates ExCPs' physical stress, while language fluency relieves it; (3) physical stress impairs overall performance, further reducing intention to stay; and (4) poor transportation directly reduces ExCPs' intention to stay. Recommendations, including flexible work schedules and stress management programs, are made. The study results enhance the current understanding of the complicated stress and expatriate management for ExCPs in a cross-cultural context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The construction industry makes an essential contribution to the environmental and economic development of Hong Kong. However, hindered by various factors, construction has long been recognized as an industry with low innovation. Innovation is essential to the productivity, cost effectiveness, and, more importantly, the sustainable development of any organization and industry. Following rapid globalization, technological advancement, and the trend toward partnering between the public and private sectors, the importance of innovation has increased dramatically for construction firms, particularly for large-size construction firms. However, studies investigating the association between leadership and innovation in the construction context are still rare. Using an innovation climate as a proxy for organizational innovation, this study investigates the effect of leadership on the innovation climate in construction firms. A questionnaire survey was designed and distributed to 300 construction professionals in major (Group C) contractor firms in Hong Kong. A hundred and thirteen valid returns were collected, representing a response rate of 37.7%. The data were analyzed using confirmatory factor analysis, Cronbach's alpha reliability analysis, and structural equation modeling using SPSS version 19 and Lisrel version 8.8. Three leadership factors were identified, namely transformational leadership, development exchange leadership, and corrective avoidant leadership. The results of the structural equation modeling revealed that an innovation climate is predicted positively by transformational leadership and is predicted negatively by development exchange leadership. The results of this study have implications for construction academics and practitioners regarding the importance of leadership to foster innovation in the industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The influences of indoor environment quality on occupant health have long been one of the main focuses in built environment and public health research. However, evidence to this effect has been inconsistent. Furthermore, previous urban studies have indicated the interaction between urban morphology and indoor environment. This study thus goes beyond indoor environment to investigate: i) the effects of neighborhood environment on occupant health; and ii) the mediating roles of indoor environment on the neighborhood environment and occupant health relationships. To achieve this aim, buildings located in different neighborhood environment in Hong Kong are selected. Data are collected by post-occupancy evaluation (occupant health), indoor environment assessment (thermal comfort, indoor air quality, ventilation, visual comfort, and acoustic comfort) and neighborhood environment assessment (neighborhood building density, building height, cleanliness and greenspace) through questionnaire survey. Through correlation analysis, regression modelling and Sobel test, it is found that: i) occupant health is significantly affected by neighborhood building height, building density and cleanliness; ii) the relationships between neighborhood environment and occupant health are significantly mediated by indoor environment, in terms of visual and acoustic comfort; and iii) neighborhood greenspace affects occupant health indirectly through influencing indoor air quality. To cross validate the results of the survey study, which is conducted using subjective data, objective measurements and analyses are further conducted. The objective study, echoing the survey study results, indicates that buildings with lower neighborhood building density and height, and cleaner neighborhood environment have better visual (higher illuminance level) and acoustic (lower noise level) performances., (© 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)