Rational
The construction industry is a major sector of the economy that impacts heavily on the livelihoods of many people. UAE is a region that has witnessed tremendous growth in the construction industry. This industry employees many immigrants and make use of resources from different parts of the world (Weber, 2005).
As a result, several challenges crop up as growth in the industry is sustained. The most important challenges that need to be tackled are cost effectiveness and sustainable practices (Bliss, 2006). The demand for construction resources has driven up the prices of construction materials and as a result, we need to come up with means of tackling costs.
Sustainability involves analyzing several factors in the process of managing construction projects (Sassi, 2006). Sustainability involves the protection of the environment through the use of different strategies that ensure the environment is protected to a great extent.
The pollution of the water, air and the soil should be minimized and every project should involve a sustainability manager. Sustainability will enable the minimization of costs from different aspects such as reduced cost of energy, water use and other forms of cost savings (VanDerZanden, 2011).
The process of ensuring cost effectiveness in relation to environment sustainability looks into minimizing costs associated with construction. One of the best methods of minimizing costs is to ensure all the major construction activities occur at site (Gorgenländer, 2010).
One of the examples in the minimizing of costs was the construction of the high rise Burj Al Khalifa and Burj Al Arabi projects. Most of the construction activities were conducted on site and this minimized costs associated with transportation, labour costs since there was a lot of time savings (Cavanaubh, 2010).
Huge projects such as the Burj Al Khalifa minimize costs by ensuring that all infrastructural requirements are centred within the project site. The Burj Al Khalifa is an example of a cost effective project and from this project we learn on how to plan on cost savings (Halliday, 2008).
Moreover, in the process of saving costs, construction project make use of technology to minimize workforce and wasted man hour that would be used if human resources were deployed. The Burj Al Khalifa made use of numerous technologies that meant the project finished on time and saved on a lot of costs (Uqaili, 2011).
Sustainability is a task that ensures minimal destruction is meted on the environment while at the same time a task/project will eventually lead to cost savings. The newest trend in construction is to ensure buildings make use of minimal energy and save a lot on waste production (Edgerton, 2008).
Water is a scarce resource in the UAE and therefore this resource has to be used effectively. Projects such as the Burj Al Khalifa have put in place measures whereby electricity consumption is minimized through use of solar panels that reduce energy consumption (Uqaili, 2011).
Renewable energy and use of creative architecture has ensured new buildings minimize waste production. For instance, buildings such as the Burj Khalifa and the Burj Al Arabi have their own water treatment plants for the re-use of water.
Moreover, these buildings are designed to make use of little air conditioning as a result a lot of energy is saved. Making use of enough lightening in buildings ensures that less energy is spent on lighting and in the end it ensures environmental sustainability (Curwell, 2008).
Aim
The main aim of the project is to find out cost effective means and ways of minimizing costs and ensuring sustainable development in the UAE.
Objectives
The objectives of the task could be divided into general and specific objectives as shown below:
General Objectives
- Clarify what sustainability is and its relevance and importance in the UAE construction industry.
- Find out what sustainable measures and practices that are adopted by the UAE construction and their effectiveness in projects.
- Judge the cost-benefit-analysis of sustainable construction and the efficiency of how such projects are run.
Specific Objectives
- Come up with policies that ensure environmental sustainability markers are met within the construction industry in UAE.
- Develop and maintain standards and strategies that ensure regulation of cost in the construction industry in UAE.
- Develop environmental sustainability markers that ensure the environment is protected and hence costs of construction are minimized.
Hypothesis
The attainment of sustainable practice in the construction companies and that the efficiency and cost effectiveness of sustainability in the construction field is possible only with the adoption of the current sustainable construction practices.
Research methodology
Literature Review
Literature review will be from books, journals, reports, presentations, and websites in order to:
- Describe the importance of sustainability
- Discuss the environmental impacts by the current construction industry.
- Discuss the current practices with construction in the UAE and its impact to the environment.
- Explore cost effective and sustainable practices with construction in the UAE.
- Establish the relation between Sustainability and Cost benefits with construction.
Data Collection
Data for the writing of the dissertation is majorly collected from the secondary sources. In addition, the information is majorly found online through the internet apart from just a few pieces which are collected through interviews and questionnaires.
Data Analysis
After collecting all the data, it is necessary to ensure that they are analyzed using the relevant analytical tools. The quantitative data will be analyzed using online software called the SPSS. Qualitative data will be examined as well, and interpretations will be given.
Writing the research report
A conclusive report, conclusions and recommendations in line with the report will be compiled. The report can aid several departments and sectors make decisions that are likely to register improvements in the construction sector.
Dissertation structure
Introduction
This chapter includes the rationale, aim and objectives of the research study and the hypothesis is presented. In addition outline research methodology and the outline structure of this dissertation is also displayed in this chapter.
Sustainability and Built Environment
This chapter describes the importance of sustainability in the built environment in terms of various impacts due to increasing level of CO2 emissions by the current trend, and the necessity to reduce the CO2 emissions in the UAE.
This chapter further discusses the relationship between sustainability and competitive advantage in business and guidelines to implement sustainability in the construction industry. An overview of sustainable constructions and its benefits upon implementation within the construction industry is also discussed in this chapter.
Construction Industry and Its Impact on the Environment
This chapter details how the construction industry contributes towards the impact on the environment and presents the current strategy with UAE construction industry and its impact to the environment.
Sustainable Practices for Construction in the UAE
This chapter explores the regional geology of UAE and current practices with construction. The chapter also discusses various sustainable practices for constructions in the UAE to achieve cost-effectiveness and CO2 emission reductions. Benefits of sustainable construction practices and barriers to implement these practices with constructions in the UAE are also described in this chapter.
Research design and methods
This chapter describes research strategies and details the chosen methods for data collection and analysis.
Research results and analysis
This chapter presents the research results obtained from various sources and compares the analysis with the literature review.
Conclusions and recommendation
This chapter presents the conclusions based on the findings from the research. The limitations of this study and further recommendations also form part of this chapter.
References
This chapter lists the references used throughout this research study.
References
Bliss, S., 2006. Best practices guide to residential construction, materials, finishes, and details. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons.
Cavanaubh, W.J. Tocci, G. and Wilkes, J., 2010. Architectural acoustics, principles and practice (2nd Ed.). Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons.
Curwell, S. Cooper, I. and Deakin, M., 2008. Sustainable urban development. New York, NY: Jones & Bartlett Learning.
Edgerton, W., 2008. Recommended contract practices for underground construction. Littleton: Society for Mining Metallurgy, and Exploration.
Gorgenländer, V., 2010. A strategic analysis of the construction industry in the United Arab Emirates opportunities and threats in the construction business. Hamburg: Diplomica-Verl.
Halliday, S., 2008. Sustainable construction. Chicago, IL: Edward Elgar Publishing.
Sassi, P., 2006. Strategies for sustainable architecture. London: Cengage.
Uqaili, M. and Khanji, H., 2011. Energy, Environment and Sustainable Development. Tokyo: Palgrave.
VanDerZanden, A. and Cook, T., 2010. Sustainable Landscape Management: Design, Construction, and Environmental Protection. London: Routledge Falmer.
Weber, S., 2005. Scheduling construction projects, principles and practices. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall.