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This paper aims to assess the factors favoring the adoption of the challenges faced and support mechanism, which will lead to the proliferation of glass fiber-reinforced gypsum (GFRG) technology in India.

Semi-structured interviews with 35 experts, including construction developers, architects, contractors, government officials and design consultants, were conducted. This qualitative data was analyzed using thematic analysis and matrix analysis.

GFRG-based buildings produce much less carbon footprints as compared to traditional ones and can be safely recommended as a promising, environmentally sensitive technology of the future. The major drivers in its adoption are its efficient construction capability, energy and soil conservation and significant waste reduction. Some of the challenges in implementation are long planning time, lack of skilled labor, lack of awareness about green building technologies and myopic perception of high cost incurred in green building adoption in people’s minds.

This study establishes that the construction industry has the potential to contribute toward creating a sustainable and green planet. It does so by evaluating and then positively positioning GFRG as an environmentally friendly building system.

The harmful effects of continuous environmental manipulation by humans leading to its degradation is a critical discussion agenda for most nations of the world. The issue has been taken up seriously by developing countries, and now, developing countries are also becoming sensitised to it. Several policies toward the attainment of this goal have been formulated and are being implemented by government and private bodies. Although some authors have studied the issues and challenges related to the adoption of green buildings, their attempts mostly focused on developed countries. Moreover, research that investigated the evaluation of the GFRG building system as a successful green technology of the future is inadequate.

Though alternative building technologies (ABTs) have been encouraged to address accessible and affordable issues in low-cost housing (LCH) provision, their adoption is still overwhelmed with encumbrances. The encumbrances that hinder ABT adoption require an in-depth study, especially in developing countries like Nigeria. However, studies regarding ABT and its role in improving Nigeria's LCH to achieve Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 11 are scarce. This research investigates encumbrances to ABT adoption in Nigeria's LCH provision and suggests feasible measures to prevent or reduce the encumbrances, thereby improving achieving SDG 11 (sustainable cities and communities).

This research utilised qualitative research and adopted a face-to-face interview as the primary data collection. The interviewees comprised ABT practitioners and end users in Nigeria who were chosen by a convenient sampling technique. The study's data were analysed manually through a thematic approach.

This study shows that stakeholders should embrace ABT in LCH provision to improve achieving SDG 11 in Nigeria. Also, it clustered the perceived 20 encumbrances to ABT adoption in LCH provision into government/policymaker, housing developers/building contractors, ABT users and ABT manufacturers-related issues in Nigeria's context. This study suggested mechanisms to mitigate encumbrances to ABT adoption in LCH provision, thereby improving achieving SDG 11.

This research adds to the limited literature by analysing ABT adoption encumbrances in Nigeria's LCH provision, which could assist policy formulation for the uptake of ABT in LCH provision and improve achieving Goal 11.

The purpose of this paper is to review the dramatic entry of robotics into the field of architecture and construction.

Discussions with worldwide researchers in the field of applying robotics to architecture applications and attendance at the 2014 Rob-Arch Conference at Ann Arbor, Michigan.

Robots are enabling many new and innovative methodologies for architecture design and implementation, as well as construction.

Readers may be very surprised at the many tasks that robots are already tackling in enabling innovation to reach out to architectural design and implementation.

A review of a wide range of the applications of robots worldwide to architectural innovation.

This paper aims to identify modern construction techniques for affordable housing, such as prefabrication and interlocking systems, that can save time and cost while also providing long-term sustainable benefits that are desperately needed in today's construction industry.

The need for housing is growing worldwide, but traditional construction cannot cater to the demand due to insufficient time. There should be some paradigm shift in the construction industry to supply housing to society. This paper presented a state-of-the-art review of modern construction techniques practiced worldwide and their advantages in affordable housing construction by conducting a systematic literature review and applying the backward snowball technique. The paper reviews modern prefabrication techniques and interlocking systems such as modular construction, formwork systems, light gauge steel/cold form steel construction and sandwich panel construction, which have been globally well practiced. It was understood from the overview that modular construction, including modular steel construction and precast concrete construction, could reduce time and costs efficiently. Further enhancement in the quality was also noticed. Besides, it was observed that light gauge steel construction is a modern phase of steel that eases construction execution efficiently. Modern formwork systems such as Mivan (Aluminium Formwork) have been reported for their minimum construction time, which leads to faster construction than traditional formwork. However, the cost is subjected to the repetitions of the formwork. An interlocking system is an innovative approach to construction that uses bricks made of sustainable materials such as earth that conserve time and cost.

The study finds that the prefabrication techniques and interlocking system have a lot of unique attributes that can enable the modern construction sector to flourish. The study summarizes modern construction techniques that can save time and cost, enhancing the sustainability of construction practices, which is the need of the Indian construction industry in particular.

This study is limited to identifying specific modern construction techniques for time and cost savings, lean concepts and sustainability which are being practiced worldwide.

Modern formwork systems such as Mivan (Aluminium Formwork) have been reported for their minimum construction time which leads to faster construction than traditional formwork.

The need for housing is growing rapidly all over the world, but traditional construction cannot cater to the need due to insufficient time. There should be some paradigm shift in the construction industry to supply housing to society.

This study is unique in identifying specific modern construction techniques for time and cost savings, lean concepts and sustainability which are being practiced worldwide.

This paper aims to understand the incorporation of sustainability methods of construction through the study of a low-cost housing Tamil Nadu Housing Board settlement in a locality in Chennai, India. Such a study helps to arrive at proper design decisions and incorporate a participatory approach involving the residents to enable the developers, here the decision-makers of the government, cater to the local interests.

First, a survey was conducted to understand the local conditions and people’s aspirations. Along with this, the parameters pertaining to a green housing were derived and compared with the needs of the locals, to arrive at the most influencing parameters by decision-making trial and evaluation laboratory model (DEMATEL) analysis.

The study finds that parameters viz. “ensuring basic services” and “social inclusivity” happen to be the causal factors that seem to influence the needs of the locals. These factors therefore can guide the future plans to redevelop the settlement or construct similar settlements in a more sustainable way.

This paper is a unique study to combine the twin pillars of low-cost housing and sustainability, which helps in developing settlements that are conducive to the city’s socio-developmental requirements as well as respectful of the natural environment. Further, the analysis conducted through DEMATEL method could essentially guide the decision-maker to tackle urban challenges in the most locally suitable and sustainable approach.