No abstract

No abstract

No abstract

No abstract

No abstract

No abstract

PurposeGreen walls (GWs), comprising living walls and green facades, have been touted as environmentally friendly products in architectural design. GWs can be viable in every aspect of sustainability; they provide residents of buildings with a wide range of economic, social and environmental benefits. Despite this, the adoption rate of GW is still in its infancy stage, and the existing literature concerning the hindrances inhibiting GW adoption is very limited. To address these gaps, the aim of this paper is to identify and prioritize the hindrances to GW adoption in Hong Kong.Design/methodology/approachAfter identifying 17 hindrances through an in-depth review of literature, the fuzzy Delphi method (FDM) is employed to refine the hindrances based on the local context with the help of 21 qualified experts in the field. Subsequently, Fuzzy Parsimonious Analytic Hierarchy Process (FPAHP) is exploited as a recently developed technique to prioritize the identified hindrances.FindingsResults reveal that the most significant hindrances to the adoption of GW are maintenance cost, high installation cost, difficulties in maintenance, sophisticated implementation and inducement to fire. Findings call for scholars to address ways to improve GW installation practices and methods in order to eradicate the hindrances and provide lessons for policymakers, assisting them in facilitating the larger-scale adoption of GW.Originality/valueConsidering the dearth of studies on hindrances to the adoption of GWs, this paper provides a comprehensive outlook of the issue, providing knowledge that can be used as a building block for future scholars within the field. It also provides valuable insights for stakeholders within the construction industry about the hindrances to the adoption of GWs which could direct their efforts toward better implementation of it.

The utilization of Internet-of-Things (IoT)-based technologies in the construction industry has recently grabbed the attention of numerous researchers and practitioners. Despite the improvements made to automate this industry using IoT-based technologies, there are several barriers to the further utilization of these leading-edge technologies. A review of the literature revealed that it lacks research focusing on the obstacles to the application of these technologies in Construction Site Safety Management (CSSM). Accordingly, the aim of this research was to identify and analyze the barriers impeding the use of such technologies in the CSSM context. To this end, initially, the extant literature was reviewed extensively and nine experts were interviewed, which led to the identification of 18 barriers. Then, the fuzzy Delphi method (FDM) was used to calculate the importance weights of the identified barriers and prioritize them through the lenses of competent experts in Hong Kong. Following this, the findings were validated using semi-structured interviews. The findings showed that the barriers related to “productivity reduction due to wearable sensors”, “the need for technical training”, and “the need for continuous monitoring” were the most significant, while “limitations on hardware and software and lack of standardization in efforts,” “the need for proper light for smooth functionality”, and “safety hazards” were the least important barriers. The obtained findings not only give new insight to academics, but also provide practical guidelines for the stakeholders at the forefront by enabling them to focus on the key barriers to the implementation of IoT-based technologies in CSSM.