Over the decades, the construction industry has been experiencing disputes in different project contexts. For example, disputes are more prevalent in traditionally procured projects and in projects with a complex nature of design. Further, certain large-scale government projects have had disputes due to budget and payment issues. Disputes adversely affect the project budget, the schedule, and the quality, thereby affecting the project performance at large. Therefore, this study examines the causes of disputes from the perspective of project characteristics. Following a review of causes of disputes, a total of 44 building projects were surveyed, and the required data were collected by referring to relevant project documents and through semistructured interviewes among project participants. The results revealed that payment delays, ambiguities in documents, and scope changes are a few of the critical causes that can be attributed to the type of client, cost and size of projects, degree of design complexity, procurement method, and source of funding. Therefore, this study recommends that, as a matter of importance, the potential causes of disputes should be addressed as per the project contexts at an early stage in order to avoid the disputes, and to mitigate the resultant effects in the construction industry.

Purpose: In Sri Lanka, a limited number of buildings have been certified for incorporation of green features and the reasons are attributed to green building investors who continue to perceive that green buildings are expensive. Further, the green building investors fail to appreciate the subsequent benefits received by those buildings during the operational phase. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to compare the life cycle cost (LCC) of green certified industrial manufacturing buildings with a similar form of the conventional buildings to establish the economic sustainability of green buildings. Design/methodology/approach: The study involved a comparative case study analysis of two green buildings and a similar natured conventional building. The data required to perform the LCC analysis were extracted through documentary analysis. Findings: The comparative analysis shows that the construction cost of a green industrial manufacturing building is 37 per cent higher than that of a similar natured conventional building while operation, maintenance and the end life cost of green buildings result in 28, 22 and 11 per cent savings, respectively. This results in an overall cost saving of 21 per cent in green buildings. Originality/value: The current study provides an assessment of the total LCC of green industrial manufacturing buildings. In Sri Lanka, green industrial manufacturing buildings offer LCC saving of 21 per cent over its lifetime compared to similar natured conventional buildings. Thus, comparative analyses would enable green investors to make informed decisions before commissioning their investment in green facilities and thereby promote sustainable construction in Sri Lanka.

Demand for energy and resources is increasing day by day. The construction industry plays a major role in the consumption of energy and resources. Buildings that were built before energy-efficient sustainable practices became popular consume a larger portion of energy as compared to the new buildings. As a result, enhancing energy performance through retrofitting of those old buildings is a major concern in the construction industry. In the modern built environment, there are many technologies available in the market to enhance the energy performance of such buildings. However, the body of knowledge regarding energy retrofitting technologies is still scattered. Therefore, in this study, a review-based assessment was undertaken to identify energy retrofitting technologies that could enhance energy performance in existing buildings. The Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) protocol was followed during the article screening and selection for this study. Following a systematic filtering process, a total of 149 out of 643 research contributions have been considered for in-depth analysis of energy retrofitting classification and respective energy retrofitting technologies. According to the review, energy retrofitting technologies are categorized into three main aspects; building envelope retrofitting, building system retrofitting, and renewable energy. The study found thirty-seven (37) energy-related retrofitting technologies in the current context. Further, 25 possible energy retrofitting technologies were identified under the six main subcategories, including façade, roof floor, window, door, and orientation. In terms of building system retrofitting, 10 possible energy retrofitting technologies were identified under the HVAC system and lighting system. The remaining two technologies identified under the renewable energy category were solar and wind technology. The review further confirms that the application of energy-related retrofitting technologies has the highest contribution in terms of energy and cost saving of existing buildings. It is expected that this outcome would better guide stakeholders in decision-making with regard to the selection of energy retrofitting technologies in a given context.

Payment delays and losses persist in the construction industry and continue to be a key concern to industry practitioners. Therefore an exploration of the key causes of payment delays and losses is undertaken in this study with the ultimate objective of seeking mitigating solutions. The study adopted a survey approach using an online questionnaire, administered to practitioners from the New Zealand construction industry, comprising consultants, head contractors and subcontractors. The data obtained was analysed using inferential statistical techniques, including comparing means and factor analysis. Factor analysis enabled clustering of the inter-related causes of payment delays and losses in order to find reduced number of causes. Accordingly, the study found that payment problems mainly relate to contractual issues, financial strength of industry players, disputes, short-comings of payment processes and ‘domino effects’. Among them, the financial strength of critical industry players was considered central to payment problems. The study concludes that any solution to these problems must address these primary causes, as a rational starting point. Thus procuring a feasible form of financial security at the outset of a project, and the pre-qualification of the financial status of critical project participants, were found to be significant in the mitigation of construction payment risks.Paper Type: Research article