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With the ongoing evolution in technology, there is an increasing need to address participation in lifelong learning in Singapore's construction industry. It is necessary for employees and workers in the construction sector to acquire skillsets and knowledge to adapt to the ever-changing world. This study attempts to identify ways to increase participation in lifelong learning in the construction industry in Singapore by examining motivational theories for drivers and barriers. With the establishment of the conceptual framework, this study adopts a quantitative approach, using a questionnaire survey, the results of which are analysed using the SPSS and SmartPLS 3.0 software. The result of the analysis strongly supports the use of self-determination theory (SDT) and the fulfilment of three basic psychological needs -- competence, autonomy, and relatedness of individuals -- will produce a significant effect on the participation of lifelong learning within the construction industry. This means that the practical use of this theory in the construction industry will gradually increase individuals' participation in lifelong learning. This study examined theories of amotivation and barriers, and both were demonstrated to be insignificant affecting participation rates. This study also identified institutional barriers as a key factor within the barrier domain, suggesting that changes in the institutional situation may help individuals to fulfil their lifelong learning dream.

The concept of lean originated with the Toyota Production System, but the idea of applying lean to renovation is relatively unknown. Previous studies have predominately focused on waste elimination or on achieving efficiency by applying particular lean practices in renovation projects; however, there is a lack of a framework that would address the lean implementation, and this is a clear gap in the research. This study aims to examine the applicability of the 14 lean management principles (LMPs) to renovation projects. To achieve this aim, we adopted a quantitative approach using a survey, which focuses on linking LMPs to the operation and management of renovation processes. This study sampled 67 renovation professionals in Singapore's renovation sector. The research findings revealed that the renovation contractors perceived manpower challenges as more significant than iron-triangle metrics. The findings also revealed isolated practice of LMPs by survey respondents, although with minimal knowledge and awareness of lean. The findings showed that the renovation companies have adopted those LMPs related to people and problem-solving lean management principles and regard them as important principles. In contrast, respondents perceived several process-oriented LMPs, such as pull and level-out workload, as less important. This isolated implementation suggests the relevance of LMPs to the renovation sector because some principles were already practiced, which would imply that the potential benefits of lean seen in other industries could be fully realized through the broader implementation of the 14 LMPs. The study contributes to the research in renovation by emphasizing the importance of lean thinking in the delivery of renovation projects, and it also contributes to the existing body of knowledge on lean in renovation by introducing the LMP as a holistic framework, rather than focusing on the lean toolbox. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to investigate the effects of the activity-based workspace (ABW) on employee belonging. Place attachment theory (PAT) is used as a proxy to understand and measure the belongingness of employees to their physical workplaces. Design/methodology/approach: A case study of a bank's newly retrofitted ABW office is conducted, providing fresh perspectives on the effect of ABW on employee belonging. A questionnaire survey was used to understand employee belongingness. Surveys are conducted with employees of the bank (n = 100) who experienced the transition from the conventional open-plan office with designated seats to an ABW, to understand and compare the change in employee belonging after the transition, by studying the level of belonging achieved in the space before and after. Findings: The results showed that there was a positive sense of belongingness amongst employees working in the ABW space, as per the PAT framework and an increased sense of belongingness compared with the previous conventional open-plan office. However, ABWs were found to also have a negative effect on employees' sense of control and security. Originality/value: Maslow's hierarchy of needs indicates that a feeling of belonging is fundamental to humans. The need for belonging is also applicable in the workplaces of today's progressive corporate organisations, where there is increased pressure and incentive to appeal to and retain talent. This research was conducted in response to the huge growth in interest in activity-based working across the corporate real estate community. As there has been no prior research done in the area of the emotional need for belongingness in ABW. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Sluggish performance in construction productivity (CP) is a common occurrence worldwide. This phenomenon is also observed in Singapore. In this context, the role of trade unions (TUs) has also been mentioned but appears to be little understood. Hence, this study evaluates the role of TUs in contributing to CP. The key issue is to determine whether TUs have a role to play in contemporary society in improving CP. Design/methodology/approach: This study takes on multiple research methodologies; more specifically, the mixed-method of survey questionnaires and interviews is used. Firstly, a survey questionnaire was employed to obtain broad viewpoints on the general understanding of the target groups towards the CP issues in Singapore. The survey questionnaire also attempts to study the TUs in greater depth by examining their existing strategies of and hindrances to improving CP. Once findings were gathered from the survey questionnaire, the interviews were carried out to probe deeper into the phenomena in the results. Findings: The research findings showed there is a generally positive outlook that TUs have the ability to contribute to CP. The study finds that the TU respondents possess strong attributes within the normative pillar, but weak attributes in the regulative and cultural–cognitive pillars. Originality/value: This study uses the Institutional Theory as a general framework, which identifies a union's functions and activities in three pillars that underpin the institutional theory and defines its impact on construction productivity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Due to the fragmented and complex nature of the construction industry, many countries, including Singapore, have progressively encouraged greater collaboration amongst major stakeholders in the industry. It is hoped that doing so will result in an increase in the quality of construction projects. Given the long duration of typical construction projects, it is plausible for collaborating parties to develop close and personal relationships. In recent years, corruption cases arising from familiar collaboration have caught the public's attention. This study seeks to better understand familiar collaboration and its adverse impacts on the quality of construction projects. Design/methodology/approach: A mixed research method was adopted, with a questionnaire survey distributed to 32 respondents representing client and contractors. This was followed by interviews to validate the survey findings. Findings: The findings suggest that, when there is a lack of surveillance, familiar collaboration is likely to lead to favouritism and dishonesty, which can have an adverse impact on the quality of construction projects. The findings additionally suggest that value for money, conformance to specifications and fitness for purpose are the main aspects of quality that are likely to be adversely affected by corrupt practices bought about by familiar collaboration. Originality/value: In this paper, these relationships are described using the term familiar collaboration. Strong and intimate relationships of this type may lead to a danger of parties committing corrupt practices. This study is one of the very attempts seek to better understand familiar collaboration and its adverse impacts on the quality of construction projects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Lean has been adopted in various industries (i.e. construction, health care and service) over the years; the level of lean adoption in facility management is relatively unknown. The purpose of this study is to analyze the 14 lean management principles (LMPs) and seek to develop an understanding as to whether LMPs, which are most commonly used by the manufacturing companies, are relevant to the facility personnel's scope of work. The research scope focuses on international schools located in Singapore. Design/methodology/approach: For the purpose of this study, a conceptual framework that focuses on connecting the 14 lean production principles to facility management has been developed. Questionnaire survey and interviews were used. A total of 30 facilities professionals from eight international schools participated in the survey. Six interviews were followed up to gain deeper insights into the extent of lean importance and implementation in the work of facility personnel in a school environment. Findings: The survey findings revealed that P8 "use of reliable technology", P9 and P10 relating to leadership and people development, P12 "go and see for yourself" and P14 "continuous improvement" are generally perceived more important than the other LMPs and are also well implemented. On the contrary, P3 "use the 'pull' system" is considered the least important principle. The interview findings also offer insights into modifications of some LMPs for the facilities management (FM) sector. Research limitations/implications: There are several limitations affecting this study. First, the research sample size was small. Only 30 respondents participated in this study. Second, as this study is one of the first to explore the applicability of lean in FM, there is no consensus on how to define lean, which means that the LMPs could be interpreted in many ways. Originality/value: The adoption of lean in FM can potentially optimize the value of the school organization. It is recommended that more research be conducted, resulting in a more holistic and representative study of the applicability of lean FM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The workplace accidents in Singapore's construction sector continue to dominate among occupational fatalities. In order to improve the overall safety performance of firms, it is critical to evaluate and eliminate the root causes of such incidents. This study aims to identify and assess the systemic lapses as the main causes of accidents in the construction industry. The study introduces a framework of Policy, Process, People, and Incentive factors, coupled with the Systems Theoretic Accident Model and Processes (STAMP) model to demonstrate a more comprehensive understanding of the contributing factors that escalate to construction accidents. A survey questionnaire with 31 respondent firms was conducted regarding the perceived importance of, and level of adoption of, factors that were associated with the framework. The findings revealed that, with regards to the safety-related practices, there is an overall lower adoption rate in comparison to their perceived level of importance. In particular, people and incentive factors are highlighted as having a significant difference in terms of the extent of adoption and level of importance. However, the people and incentive factors should not be isolated from the policy and process factors, as a comprehensive approach is needed to improve the overall safety performance of firms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While marketing is a known element of successful practice, architects are yet to be convinced of its full potential. Little was known about the marketing practice in architectural firms in Singapore. Attempts were made to determine the realities of formalized marketing approaches and their importance to architectural firms in Singapore through a questionnaire survey (where 95 architectural firms participated) and follow-up interviews. A total of 34 usable responses were collected. This was investigated using the ‘Architecture Business Development Process’ as a framework, which found evidence to suggest that marketing has been recognized as an important component of architectural practice in Singapore. The results show that the adoption of the ‘marketing concept’ in the architecture profession is still in its formative stages. Architectural firms – and small and medium ones in particular – need to fully capitalize on this area of business knowledge in order to influence, command and understand the market for them to remain financially viable as a practice. Despite little attention being paid to measuring the performance of marketing outcomes, almost all the respondents and interviewees acknowledged its increasing importance. With greater corporate governance, these firms are beginning to realize the significance of marketing, and are evaluating their practices to ride the market for success. This move indicates a positive step in bridging the disparities between architecture practice and design. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose The building sector is one of the main contributors to carbon dioxide emissions in Singapore. Over 90 per cent of life-cycle carbon emissions are due to the operations phase of buildings, and 90 to 98 per cent of the building cost is associated with operation, maintenance and personnel costs. Hence, occupants have a major role in achieving environmental sustainability objectives. This study aims to understand the awareness level of potential homeowners and real estate agents concerning environmental sustainability issues in the built environment, to identify the types of green features required by potential homeowners and to understand real estate agents’ perceptions of the types of green features required by the homeowners in a green condominium.Design/methodology/approach The features of the Green Mark (GM)-awarded buildings, as well as the benefits derived by homeowners were identified from the literature. A survey of a group of potential homeowners and real estate agents was carried out in Singapore to analyse the gap, if any, between the potential homeowners’ needs and expectations and real estate agents’ perceptions of these needs and expectations with respect to the green features in the homes.Findings The results indicate that potential homeowners are more aware of environmental sustainability issues in the built environment than are real estate agents; potential homeowners seem to be more supportive of environmentally sustainable development than the real estate agents are aware of, despite the fact that the price of the apartment remains an important deciding factor; and potential homeowners are more concerned about the ease of maintaining green homes and paying greater attention to green features in the areas most heavily promoted by the government. However, green features do not constitute the main considerations of potential homeowners when making the decision to buy a green home.Research limitations/implications To close the gaps identified in the analysis, recommendations are suggested, including having public education and awareness campaigns to emphasize the long-term energy savings of green homes, conducting GM courses for real estate agents and involving real estate agents in the developers’ project consultancy team.Originality/value As there has been no prior research in this area, this study serves to provide fresh perspectives on how developers can better select the types of green features to be included in the green homes, so as to meet the potential homeowners’ needs and expectations and, at the same time, balance mandatory GM requirements with such demands. Choosing the right type of green features to incorporate in a residential development for homeowners to utilize increases the owners’ satisfaction level and allows them to reap the intended benefits of green features. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lean principles have been studied in the concreting supply chain and the quantification of waste has been made. This study focuses on waste performance in the concreting supply chain in Singapore and examines the relationship between the Lean practices adopted and waste reduction. Exploratory and pilot studies were used to formulate the questionnaire. Survey questionnaires were sent to 180 construction firms in Singapore. 42 sets of data were collected. A one-way t-test was conducted to study respondents' perceptions of the effectiveness of adopting Lean principles to reduce waste. Correlation analysis was further carried out to explore relationships between Lean practices and the reduction of time and material wastes. Based on the findings, key wastes in the concreting supply chain were identified, and the relationship between Lean principles and waste performance, and general perceptions on Lean practices and waste reduction were determined. Finally, a case study was undertaken to gain further insights into the identified wastes and Lean principles. Appropriate recommendations for waste reduction were made based on the findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – As with many other procurement management concepts, the early contractor involvement (ECI) strategy provides an opportunity to tap on contractors’ specialist knowledge in the design stage, in order to address and forestall problems before moving onto the construction stage. Such practices have been shown to be quite successful, and are also advocated in the lean construction practice. Following this benefit, the purpose of this paper is to examine the relationships between the operations of ECI and the principles of lean construction for productivity enhancement. Design/methodology/approach – Based on the literature review of 11 principles of lean construction and ECI, various relationships were proposed seeking to integrate the two domains. A questionnaire survey was conducted with different stakeholders in Singapore’s construction industry to measure the strength of the relationships. Interviews were also conducted to gain an understanding of the constraints, reluctance, and possible methods for implementing ECI in Singapore with a convergence with lean construction principles. Findings – The results revealed that, when employing lean construction principles as a yardstick, ECI does contribute to elevating the productivity outcomes of some lean construction principles – in particular, for reducing variability, reducing cycle time, minimizing steps, and increasing output flexibility. Research limitations/implications – It is promising to marry ECI with lean construction, and that the former does appear indeed able to aid in the productivity improvements of a construction project by embracing the latter. However, it requires the building professionals to raise their awareness of both lean and ECI, so that the implementation of ECI can be carried out in a more effective manner. Originality/value – In the context of the Singapore construction industry’s push for improvements in productivity, this study posits that productivity benefits in particular can be realized through establishing the linkage between ECI and lean construction principles. The lessons from this study can likewise be adopted by other countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose -- With pressing issues of climate change, greening buildings have emerged as a viable solution for meeting the increasing demand for buildings with minimal environmental impacts. Hence, the purpose of this paper is to establish the possibility of achieving this goal by investigating the drivers, challenges, and critical success factors (CSFs) involved in greening existing buildings. Since most of the relevant literature focuses on only acknowledging CSFs for new building projects in general, this study seeks to distinguish CSFs that are particularly related to the greening of existing buildings. Design/methodology/approach -- Based on a review of past literature, 28 selected factors were identified and were categorised into five main groups, namely pre-project-related factors, project management-related factors, client-related factors, project team-related factors, and external factors. Because older buildings have more constraints than new buildings, a comparison of the CSFs for greening new and existing buildings was also made. Surveys and interviews were conducted to validate the CSFs identified. Findings -- The top CSFs in each building category (new vs existing) were then further examined and analysed. These are "top management support", "effective planning and control", "building owner's involvement", "cost management", "responsiveness of building owners", "clear scope and priorities of stakeholders", and "legislation". Furthermore, there was a strong consensus on the rankings of most factors between new and existing buildings. Research limitations/implications -- By understanding the factors that are crucial for managing and delivering successful green projects in the Singaporean context, these CSFs can be used to direct an organisation's efforts in identifying critical issues and tackling them to achieve high performance. Originality/value -- An ambitious goal of greening 80 per cent of Singapore's building stocks has been set by the government in the Second Green Building Master Plan. To help achieve this goal, this study contributes to the knowledge of project management issues that would determine the success of managing new green building projects and retrofitting existing ones. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The immense consumption of energy and quantities of carbon emissions produced by the built environment have garnered considerable attention globally. As concrete currently dominates the materials used in building construction, it has become an ever-pressing issue if the emissions of the construction industry are to be reduced. One approach to minimizing the environmental impact of construction is to use building materials whose production and implementation have smaller environmental footprints. One example of such a material is mass-engineered timber. To enhance the comprehension of the market potential of wood-based materials in Singapore, this study focuses on identifying the barriers to and drivers of the adoption of innovative wood-based construction materials in the Singapore construction industry. This overall objective is achieved by developing an institutional framework that provides a linking mechanism between the barriers, drivers, and mass-engineered timber. This was done through a questionnaire survey followed by case studies that further justify the findings in this study. The results of the survey for construction and engineering companies shows that cost is one of the central factors influencing the adoption and usage of MET. Most top-ranked drivers and most bottom-ranked barriers fall under the normative pillar of the Institutional framework which is used to underpin the study. It is also interesting to note that the cultural and cognitive pillars consist of the majority of bottom-ranked drivers and highly ranked barriers. As with the rational pillar, this is where the cost-related factors appear. The discoveries of this study will provide insightful information to assist and enable these different stakeholders to accelerate the adoption of mass-engineered timber through publishing success stories, reducing costs, and designing education programs. • This study developed an institutional framework that provides a linking mechanism between the barriers, drivers, and mass-engineered timber. • Cost is one of the central factors influencing the adoption and usage of Mass-engineered timber (MET). • Most top-ranked drivers and most bottom-ranked barriers fall under the normative pillar of the Institutional framework which is used to underpin the study. • This study also found the cultural and cognitive pillar of the Institution framework contains most bottom-ranked drivers and top-ranked barriers. • The results of this study provide pertinent information that can enable interested stakeholders in the construction industry to learn more about the MET market before entering it. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The issue of sustainability in the construction industry is very prominent, as the industry often causes adverse impacts on the environment through its use of large amounts of natural resources and by clearing large areas of their natural habitats. After the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro proposed the use of eco-labels to attain sustainable development, the growth and use of eco-labelling schemes have increased significantly. This study focuses on eco-labelling schemes, particularly the Singapore Green Labelling Scheme (SGLS) and the Singapore Green Building Product Certification Scheme (SGBPCS), and their contributions to the Singapore construction industry. The effectiveness of the schemes and of their drivers is determined through the analysis of survey results from two groups of samples (suppliers and architects) and interviews with some of the key stakeholders involved. It can be observed that the both the supplier and architect groups have some knowledge and awareness of eco-labelling schemes in the Singapore context. However, in terms of implementation, both schemes are only moderately effective in advocating the use and production of eco-labelled building products. It was also found that, out of several factors, "environmental rating" appears to be the only one that significantly influences the decision to use eco-labelled schemes. Furthermore, the results show that SGBPCS was not as heavily promoted in the architect group as in the supplier group. The architects perceived the SGBC advertisements to be less convincing than did the suppliers, and therefore they considered the SGBC's measures to promote the use of eco-labelled materials to be less effective. From the empirical results, strategies and measures are proposed for industry stakeholders to enhance the effectiveness of the eco-labelling schemes in the construction industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]