Fifteenth International Conference on The Constructed Environment

Co-living spaces or shared living arrangements have gained significant traction in recent years as a viable housing model in urban settings. The concept promises not only to address the growing housing crisis but also to promote sustainable living by enhancing resource efficiency. This study evaluates the role of co-living spaces in enhancing resource efficiency by examining key metrics related to energy and water consumption, waste management, and environmental sustainability. This study employed descriptive-correlational research design to measure and correlate resource efficiency in co-living spaces and traditional housing units. Data were collected from 10 co-living spaces and 10 traditional housing units located in major cities across the Philippines. The findings of this study highlight the potential of co-living spaces to enhance resource efficiency in urban environments. The significant reductions in energy and water consumption, as well as waste generation, demonstrate the viability of co-living as a sustainable housing model. The findings indicate that co-living spaces offer significant potential for enhancing resource efficiency in sustainable urban fabrics. The reduction in energy and water consumption, coupled with high occupancy rates and prevalent resource-sharing behaviors, underscores the viability of co-living as a sustainable housing model. Future research should continue to explore the long-term impacts of co-living spaces on urban sustainability and investigate ways to optimize these living arrangements for even greater resource efficiency. The results suggest that co-living spaces offer significant advantages in terms of resource efficiency, supporting the shift toward more sustainable urban development practices.

Contradictory Investment in the Production of Urban Space - a Harveyan-Lefebvrian Understanding of Auckland’s Housing Affordability Issue

Maqsood Rezayee
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session

In Auckland, the dream of owning a house may now be entirely out of reach for some people as housing prices continue to be severely unaffordable. One of the key factors to which Auckland’s housing unaffordability is often attributed is the housing shortage. Through abductive/retroductive reasoning, I contend that rather than attributing Auckland's housing unaffordability solely to housing shortages, other factors that have not been adequately explored contribute to housing unaffordability. This research found that after shift toward neoliberalism, the housing price significantly increased in New Zealand; therefore, the alternative factor could be traced to the shift from Keynesian welfare economic policies to neoliberal planning policies. From the neo-Marxist point of view, the profound impact of changes in planning policies under neoliberalism is the main inherent contradiction of capitalism: exchange value versus use value. Harvey as neo- Marxist urban philosopher suggested that the main aim of housing provision in capitalist societies is to obtain exchange value rather than use value. Due to the dominant role of exchange value in the housing provision, access to affordable housing for an increasing segment of the population has become more difficult. I set this theory as the hypothesis of this research, and the main objective of this research is to test the validity of this hypothesis in the case of Auckland. To provide a complementary theoretical framework for analysing the contradiction between housing use value and exchange value, this research integrates Harvey’s theory of triad circuits of capital accumulation and Lefebvre's spatial triad theory.

Systematic Review of Technical and Process Frameworks Integrating Building Information Modelling (BIM) for Building Deconstruction

Chukwumaobi Ibe, Md Mohataz Hossain, Andreea Serbescu
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session

This study evaluates the integration of Building Information Modelling (BIM) into building deconstruction processes to improve planning, execution, and material recovery, ultimately contributing to sustainable construction. A systematic review was conducted by examining academic databases, including Web of Science, Scopus, IEEE Xplore, and Google Scholar. A comprehensive set of keywords and Boolean operators were used to identify frameworks that incorporate BIM in deconstruction processes. Data were extracted and analysed thematically, supported by a quality assessment using a modified Critical Appraisal Skills Programme (CASP) checklist. The review identified 48 frameworks that demonstrated BIM’s potential to optimize various aspects of deconstruction. Four key themes emerged: Materials Passports, Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) Integration, Reverse Logistics, and Automated Deconstruction. BIM was found to significantly improve material recovery efficiency, reduce environmental impacts, and enhance planning and coordination among project stakeholders. However, challenges related to the complexity of BIM implementation, as well as the need for comprehensive data integration, were noted. From a practical perspective, this study suggests that while BIM offers considerable benefits, its adoption in deconstruction requires overcoming challenges such as complexity, adequate training, and effective data management. The insights gained can help practitioners and industry stakeholders to implement BIM-based deconstruction strategies more efficiently. This review also contributes to the broader knowledge on BIM and deconstruction by providing a critical evaluation of existing frameworks, offering recommendations for both future research and practical applications.

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