Making Construction Projects More Sustainable Through Materials Choice

Abstract

Globally, the construction industry is responsible for the use of vast quantities of natural resources. These resources are often procured on the basis of their economic value, the cheaper the material, the more likely it is to be chosen to construct with. It is widely recognised that there are limits to the amount of raw resources available on Earth and that those that remain must be subject to careful management. It is becoming increasingly important for companies to show greater awareness of the growing issues of sustainability- concerning social, environmental and economic equities. One way of doing this is to incorporate 'sustainable' thinking into the early design phase of projects where opportunities exist for many environmental and social impacts to be addressed and minimised. The aim of this project was to provide designers, engineers and architects with a materials selection tool to enable them to facilitate more enlightened design. Through more informed choice of materials, the projects and programmes of construction can be made less unsustainable and result in working to preserve the amount of natural resources available whilst simultaneously promoting social equity and economic viability. The project aimed to address how a material selection tool could be utilised in real life construction projects. This aim was realised through working with MWH (Montgomery Watson Harza), a global engineering and environmental consultancy firm, who provided an ideal opportunity for the tool to be developed and used in a pilot study. The research looked at current environmental methods of selecting materials for building/construction purposes and sought to develop them into a more sustainable materials selection tool called the Materials Matrix (M2). The M2 was developed for use by engineers, designers and architects within MWH and their operations in connection with the particular construction programme Trident West Agreement'. The findings of this research suggest that there is a case and perceived need for a tool of this type that actually provides company employees with a choice of construction materials based on factors other than cost. Secondly there is a major lack of information regarding specific materials' social and environmental properties, particularly in relation to the information made available by material suppliers. However it is clear that the Materials Matrix has potential to provide a broader context of information for designers and engineers to achieve more sustainable solutions.