How to Assess Sustainable Planning Processes of Buildings? A Maturity Assessment Model Approach for Designers

Marco Scherz, Bernd Markus Zunk, Christian Steinmann and Helmuth Kreiner
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Marco Scherz: Working Group Sustainable Construction, Institute of Structural Design, Graz University of Technology, Waagner-Biro-Straße 100/XI, 8020 Graz, Austria
Bernd Markus Zunk: Working Group Industrial Marketing, Purchasing and Supply Management, Institute of Business Economics and Industrial Sociology, Graz University of Technology, Kopernikusgasse 24/II, 8010 Graz, Austria
Christian Steinmann: HM&S IT-Consulting GmbH, Rotmoosweg 52, 8045 Graz, Austria
Helmuth Kreiner: Working Group Sustainable Construction, Institute of Structural Design, Graz University of Technology, Waagner-Biro-Straße 100/XI, 8020 Graz, Austria

Sustainability, 2022, vol. 14, issue 5, 1-24

Abstract: Over the past decades, it has become apparent that increasing demands in the construction industry have repeatedly led to project delays and increased project costs in practice. These demands have increased as a result of international and national action plans that have been developed to achieve the climate target paths and, therefore, the necessary reduction of CO 2 emissions in the construction industry. We address this problem by developing a sustainable construction maturity model (SCOMM) to answer the following research question: “What is a holistic quality assurance tool for the early design phase of buildings to monitor (sustainable) planning practices in order to achieve better certification results?”. The model includes a self-assessment procedure for the building design process, based on Software Process Improvement and Capability dEtermination (SPiCE) and the German Sustainable Building Council (DGNB) building certification system. The results show that systemic interactions between sustainability criteria can be identified in the early design phase, allowing the quality of planning practices to be evaluated and early project management to be implemented to achieve the best certification results. Our findings will enable clients and users of the construction industry to better manage the complexity of the sustainable design process and avoid undesirable developments in building projects.

Keywords: maturity assessment; maturity model; building certification; design process; sustainable construction management (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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