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The construction materials industry has been acclaimed as an enormous economy and is expected to continue to rise in future. Over the past few years, India's urban built environment has been expanding rapidly to accommodate the increasing urban population and to meet the rising aspirations of upscaling standards of living. In addition to new projects, redevelopment works are also prominent amongst the construction activities being undertaken all across our urban areas. The large-scale construction and demolition waste (C&D waste) is generated inadvertently from on-going construction activities with no major sustainable interventions or practices in place ever since. The state of art overview of C&D waste management practices and related legislation in India and select countries abroad provides sufficient opportunity for introducing and promoting circular economy (CE) in C&D waste management. This can be done through direct reuse or by recycling/ repair /refurbishment in different stages of construction projects. Reports on key infrastructure projects suggest project delays and cost over-run due to shortage of fresh stocks of primary construction materials. Promoting design of products or components remanufactured using dismantled or recycled C&D waste would no longer let the C&D waste remain as a threat to sustainable environment. Instead, the industry would get geared up to produce high-quality secondary raw materials that can be fed back into production processes. This will not just reduce the reliance on primary resources for construction materials like stone, sand, etc. but also promote the new business models which will focus on waste prevention and 'turning waste into resources' by effectively and efficiently utilizing C&D waste in a sustainable manner. This will embed circular economy in the system and also make the process more sustainable. Present models for sustainability assessment are primarily based on statistical records of C&D waste quantities and they rarely include all three aspects of sustainability (economic, environmental and social). This paper proposes a conceptual model of efficient C&D waste management strategies considering all the three aspects of sustainability. A conceptual model has been developed using the barriers and motivating factors obtained from literature review for implementation of effective C&D waste management for circular economy. Using existing knowledge of the components of C&D waste management system and the positive or negative relationships between them the proposed conceptual model focuses on strategies, institutional arrangement and economic circularity for managing the C&D waste. The paper highlights the need for an institutional framework and suitable strategies for efficient handling of C&D Waste. The paper concludes with possible future directions and potential policy recommendations for optimizing C&D waste management in India. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The construction materials industry has been acclaimed as an enormous economy and is expected to continue to rise in future. Over the past few years, India's urban built environment has been expanding rapidly to accommodate the increasing urban population and to meet the rising aspirations of upscaling standards of living. In addition to new projects, redevelopment works are also prominent amongst the construction activities being undertaken all across our urban areas. The large-scale construction and demolition waste (C&D waste) is generated inadvertently from on-going construction activities with no major sustainable interventions or practices in place ever since. The state of art overview of C&D waste management practices and related legislation in India and select countries abroad provides sufficient opportunity for introducing and promoting circular economy (CE) in C&D waste management. This can be done through direct reuse or by recycling/ repair /refurbishment in different stages of construction projects. Reports on key infrastructure projects suggest project delays and cost over-run due to shortage of fresh stocks of primary construction materials. Promoting design of products or components remanufactured using dismantled or recycled C&D waste would no longer let the C&D waste remain as a threat to sustainable environment. Instead, the industry would get geared up to produce high-quality secondary raw materials that can be fed back into production processes. This will not just reduce the reliance on primary resources for construction materials like stone, sand, etc. but also promote the new business models which will focus on waste prevention and 'turning waste into resources' by effectively and efficiently utilizing C&D waste in a sustainable manner. This will embed circular economy in the system and also make the process more sustainable. Present models for sustainability assessment are primarily based on statistical records of C&D waste quantities and they rarely include all three aspects of sustainability (economic, environmental and social). This paper proposes a conceptual model of efficient C&D waste management strategies considering all the three aspects of sustainability. A conceptual model has been developed using the barriers and motivating factors obtained from literature review for implementation of effective C&D waste management for circular economy. Using existing knowledge of the components of C&D waste management system and the positive or negative relationships between them the proposed conceptual model focuses on strategies, institutional arrangement and economic circularity for managing the C&D waste. The paper highlights the need for an institutional framework and suitable strategies for efficient handling of C&D Waste. The paper concludes with possible future directions and potential policy recommendations for optimizing C&D waste management in India. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Existing concepts of housing are currently being re-evaluated, often prompted by unfavourable projections on population ageing, issues related to the sustainability of social systems, or challenges related to respect for human rights, which are a frequent impetus for housing research. When considering the design of housing for different users, we have to take into account different life situations, e.g. changes in family life, changes in housing users, but also ageing users or deteriorating health conditions. Housing must also be prepared for the provision of care services or personal assistance. Adaptable forms of housing that take into account the needs of different users are expected to be of undisputed benefit to all. This paper discloses a method for exploring new adaptive housing concepts to enable necessary changes in buildings for housing without difficult structural modifications. In particular, the research is oriented towards tracking changes in family life and the possible need for social services in the home environment. In order to ensure as much independence as possible for older adults or users with a disability, the emphasis in the design of new housing concepts is on adhering to universal design principles, on integrating artificial intelligence technology solutions, or on tightening security features. The adaptability of buildings for housing is also a suitable approach in terms of sustainable architecture, as it saves resources, construction waste and emissions, thereby reducing the environmental impact of the construction industry. The research is carried out in accordance with the current process of transformation of the social services system in Slovakia and in this context it was necessary to focus the research both on the state of the existing housing stock, whether it is ready to provide care in the home environment, as well as on new models of housing that would be able to take into account the individual needs of service users related to disability, illness or ageing. The basis for research were the results of a number of surveys carried out in social service buildings across Slovakia, such as a survey of the capabilities of social service users, an assessment of the risks and shortcomings of existing social service buildings, and a survey of the desires and wishes of recipients of year-round residential services about their own housing. Namely deinstitutionalisation envisages the return of users of large-scale residential facilities to their home environment or their relocation to new housing, so-called 'small group houses'. The final part of the article summarises the results of the research, which have shown that the diversity of service users requires specific approaches in the design of new housing concepts. The findings are illustrated by means of the authors' own concepts and schematic designs of model adaptive housing projects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Existing concepts of housing are currently being re-evaluated, often prompted by unfavourable projections on population ageing, issues related to the sustainability of social systems, or challenges related to respect for human rights, which are a frequent impetus for housing research. When considering the design of housing for different users, we have to take into account different life situations, e.g. changes in family life, changes in housing users, but also ageing users or deteriorating health conditions. Housing must also be prepared for the provision of care services or personal assistance. Adaptable forms of housing that take into account the needs of different users are expected to be of undisputed benefit to all. This paper discloses a method for exploring new adaptive housing concepts to enable necessary changes in buildings for housing without difficult structural modifications. In particular, the research is oriented towards tracking changes in family life and the possible need for social services in the home environment. In order to ensure as much independence as possible for older adults or users with a disability, the emphasis in the design of new housing concepts is on adhering to universal design principles, on integrating artificial intelligence technology solutions, or on tightening security features. The adaptability of buildings for housing is also a suitable approach in terms of sustainable architecture, as it saves resources, construction waste and emissions, thereby reducing the environmental impact of the construction industry. The research is carried out in accordance with the current process of transformation of the social services system in Slovakia and in this context it was necessary to focus the research both on the state of the existing housing stock, whether it is ready to provide care in the home environment, as well as on new models of housing that would be able to take into account the individual needs of service users related to disability, illness or ageing. The basis for research were the results of a number of surveys carried out in social service buildings across Slovakia, such as a survey of the capabilities of social service users, an assessment of the risks and shortcomings of existing social service buildings, and a survey of the desires and wishes of recipients of year-round residential services about their own housing. Namely deinstitutionalisation envisages the return of users of large-scale residential facilities to their home environment or their relocation to new housing, so-called 'small group houses'. The final part of the article summarises the results of the research, which have shown that the diversity of service users requires specific approaches in the design of new housing concepts. The findings are illustrated by means of the authors' own concepts and schematic designs of model adaptive housing projects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

C&DW is among the most common types of trash collected around the world, and it's utilized to create recycled aggregates. Around the world, between 12 and 22 tonnes of construction trash are collected. C&DW includes a diverse spectrum of materials resulting from a variety of operations, including construction, restoration, demolition, land clearing, and even natural disasters. Flakiness index, elongation index, and water absorption are all parameters of recycled aggregate. Recycled Concrete Aggregate (RCA) is a building material that can also be used for pavements and walkways. The debris gathered from building and demolition sites is pulverized into small pieces and used for a number of purposes. Most important problem that is to be considered is the growing demand for the natural aggregate as the population increases. In this paper, research on recycled concrete aggregate is conducted to address the shortage of raw materials and to analyze the performance of the RAC and natural aggregate. In the production of concrete RA are been used nowadays. The life cycle assessment (LCA) of Recycle Aggregate and the natural aggregate is studies to know the sustainability of the material. LCA is a tool that is used for evaluating, comparing and improving the environmental impacts of the product within their life cycle. The recycled aggregates were collected from the construction wastes from the nearby sites. LCA for treated recycled aggregate and non-treated recycled aggregate were performed to know their performance. The use of LCA can improve the development of product and explore the properties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The construction industry plays a major role in the infrastructural sustainability of many nations of the world including Nigeria. However, some construction professionals still execute project without a proper Standard of Procedure (SOP) which results into waste of construction materials, delayed delivery dates and environmental hazard. Lean construction practice is the best panacea for this incessant challenge in the Nigerian construction industry. Lean construction is very beneficial to the construction industry because of the advantage of effective management and utilization of resources, timely delivery of projects and environmental sustainability amongst many others. This paper studied the level of adoption of lean construction in Nigeria and the return value to the end-users, communities and the contractors. It was discovered from scholarly reports and publications that only few practicing professionals majorly in Lagos, Abuja, Port-Harcourt etc. have properly adopted the lean construction practices. Limitations were observed from the level of awareness, educational background and exposure of construction workers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]