Title: A decision support framework to evaluate the main factors affecting the selection of sustainable materials in construction projects

Authors: Ebrahim Aghazadeh; Hasan Yildirim

Addresses: Department of Civil Engineering, Istanbul Technical University, 34469, Sarıyer/İstanbul, Turkey ' Department of Civil Engineering, Istanbul Technical University, 34469, Sarıyer/İstanbul, Turkey

Abstract: In the present paper, a decision support framework is proposed to solve the problem of sustainable material selection in the construction industry. The developed framework is configured based on statistical analysis methods and a hybrid fuzzy MCDM method. By combining fuzzy AHP and fuzzy TOPSIS methods, the proposed framework was created and implemented for a case study in a mass-house building project in Iran. The purpose of the decision-making process was to choose a new optimal construction system considering criteria affecting the sustainable materials. The results of the ranking criteria showed that the most significant sub-criteria for the selection of sustainable materials were minimising the environmental impacts (ozone depletion, etc.), life-cycle cost, capability to optimise energy consumption, compatibility with sustainable development regulations (LCA, LEED, etc.), material investment long-term cost, respectively. The results also showed that the LSF, ICF, and 3DP systems have more priorities than others, respectively.

Keywords: decision support framework; affecting factors; sustainable material selection; factor analysis; hybrid fuzzy MCDM methods.

DOI: 10.1504/IJSOM.2024.137992

International Journal of Services and Operations Management, 2024 Vol.47 No.4, pp.449 - 495

Received: 06 Jun 2021
Accepted: 13 Nov 2021
Published online: 16 Apr 2024 *

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