Research article summary (published 8 Jul 2007):

Architects' perspectives on construction waste reduction by design.

Full Abstract

The construction, demolition and excavation waste arising in England was estimated at 91 million tonnes in 2003. The current thinking on construction waste minimisation is heavily focussed on several issues relating to physical construction waste and recycling guides. Indeed, much had been published on ways to improve on-site waste management and recycling activities but very few attempts made to address the effect of design practices on waste generation. However, there is a consensus in the literature that the architect has a decisive role to play in helping to reduce waste by focussing on designing out waste. This paper examines previous studies on architects' approach towards construction waste minimisation; and by means of a postal questionnaire, investigates: the origins of waste; waste minimisation design practices in the UK; and responsibilities and barriers within the UK architectural profession. The findings reveal that waste management is not a priority in the design process. Additionally, the architects seemed to take the view that waste is mainly produced during site operations and rarely generated during the design stages; however, about one-third of construction waste could essentially arise from design decisions. Results also indicate that a number of constraints, namely: lack of interest from clients; attitudes towards waste minimisation; and training all act as disincentives to a proactive and sustainable implementation of waste reduction strategies during the design process.

Author information

Author/s: Osmani, M (M); Glass, J (J); Price, A D F (AD);

Affiliation: Department of Civil and Building Engineering, Loughborough University, Loughborough, Leicestershire LE11 3TU, United Kingdom. M.Osmani(-atsign-)lboro.ac.uk

Journal and publication information

Publication Type: Journal Article

Journal: Waste management (New York, N.Y.) (Waste Manag), published in United States. (Language: eng)

Reference: 2008-; vol 28 (issue 7) : pp 1147-58

Dates: Created 2008/04/21; Completed 2008/09/22;

PMID: 17624757, status: MEDLINE (last retrieval date: 2/18/2009, IMS Date: )

Sourced from the National Library of Medicine. Abstract text and other information may be subject to copyright.

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MeSH headings (categories)

This article was linked to the MESH Headings shown below.

Architecture as Topic Conservation of Natural Resources Construction Materials Facility Design and Construction Great Britain

Great Britain Humans Refuse Disposal - instrumentation; methods Waste Management - methods Waste Products

Associated Chemicals: Waste Products (0)

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