Industrial network design by improving construction logistics

• Published in: Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers. Waste and resource management 2014-05, Vol.167 (2), p.82-94
• Main Authors: Tischer, Andre, Boer, Emilia den, Williams, Ian, Curran, Tony
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Construction costs; Construction industry; Construction materials; Logistics; Management; Networks; Project engineering; Streams; Waste management; Wastes
• ISSN: 1747-6526; 1747-6534
• DOI: 10.1680/warm.13.00025

Implementing an industrial network in the construction industry can be achieved by changing construction management activities directly on the construction site within the design and operation phase. Construction logistics plays a crucial role here, in particular on the downstream side where waste has to be efficiently collected, separated, sorted and, finally, transported from site to different waste management options. The objective of this paper is to introduce an approach for efficient construction logistics that can ensure successful implementation of an industrial network in the construction industry from the point of view of on-site materials management within the logistics of disposal. Two construction projects in Germany were investigated and it was found that the total number of material streams separated directly on site in each project could be increased from 1 to 7 and from 1 to 19 different fractions. The study also revealed that the reuse and recycling rate could be increased to over 75% in both projects and the total costs of construction logistics could also be reduced. It was thus possible to increase material resource efficiency on the downstream side for both construction projects - by 43% in project I and by 68% in project II.