Laser scanning 3D technology is gaining prominence in Architecture, Engineering and Construction, aiming to organize space and shape the human environment. Main advantages of laser scanning, such as efficiency, high accuracy and precision, low time consumption, safety, and non-invasiveness, provide technological support for sustainable development goals. Obtaining a point cloud using laser scanning and creating 3D models allows producing a highly detailed computer image of a measuring facility. The resulting spatial model of the building makes it possible to prepare inventory documentation, conduct construction analyses, and widely support technical facility management. The use of detailed data about a single building is becoming possible to enrich BIM (Building Information Modelling) or GEOBIM (geospatial environment with BIM). The present paper discusses the measurement and modelling of buildings using both terrestrial laser scanning. As an auxiliary method, close-range photogrammetry was carried out from an unmanned aerial vehicle. For this purpose, models were created of three facilities located in Poland. Particular attention was drawn to analysing potential errors in mapping. Direct geometry measurements were performed, and statistical analyses, deviations of actual lengths were specified. The results obtained have indicated that the measurement accuracy of existing buildings and its digital model is better than ±1 cm.

BIM (building information modeling) is a kind of technology that has great potential to enhance the level of automation in architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) projects. The created virtual model of the facility allows coordinating all industries during the entire life cycle of the building. The possibility to save the data related to the given facility in one place, namely in the BIM model, enables control and management of the AEC projects at every stage. During the design and implementation phase, BIM models facilitate the optimization of time, costs, and quality, and in the operational phase, they support effective management of the facility. The use of BIM for building energy modeling (BEM) is the next step of evolution in architecture and engineering design practice. The benefits of using the BIM approach are widely discussed in the literature; however, they may be hard to achieve if appropriate attention is not directed to minimizing the barriers to the implementation of this technology. Observing Europe, one can notice that western and northern countries successfully use BIM for their needs, while the countries of the Eastern Bloc, including Poland, introduce it at a slower pace. In the present paper, the authors conducted a cause-and-effect analysis of the identified barriers to the implementation of BIM technology in the construction process. For this purpose, the authors applied the Ishikawa diagram, which is a tool that helps to recognize the actual or potential causes of failure. The analysis conducted showed that one of the weakest links in the successful BIM implementation is people and, in particular, their lack of knowledge and reluctance to change. The authors indicated the need to introduce and strengthen preventive actions, mainly through education: training, courses, and studies focused on BIM technology.

Landslides and rock falls are among the many phenomena that have an impact on sustainable construction and infrastructure safety. The main causes of landslides are natural meteorological and hydrological phenomena. In building design and construction, environmental monitoring by identifying geotechnical hazards must be taken into account, as appropriate hazard assessment contributes to ensuring future construction safety. The Carpathian region in southern Poland is particularly predisposed to landslide formation. This may be favored by the nature of the shapes associated with the high and steep slopes of the region’s valleys. Another reason for concern is the flysch geological structure, which is characterized by alternating layers of water-permeable sandstones and poorly permeable shales, clays, and marls. Furthermore, the presence of a quaternary weathering cover makes the geological structure more susceptible to landslide processes and tectonic formations. The paper presents the results of a study whose aim was to elaborate a detailed landslide hazard map for a selected area in the Polish Carpathians, using statistical methods. The approach is based on the Hellwig method, which seems particularly useful in the assessment of susceptibility and landslide hazards on a local scale for a relatively small area. A two-stage study was conducted. The first stage of the research involved the creation of a database associated with environmental parameters and triggering factors, whereas the second stage consisted of the adoption of weights for seven thematic sections and their special features on the basis of expert knowledge. The hazard map developed as a result was compared to the mapping made using the weight-of-evidence method. The proposed data normalization method allows the use and analysis of both qualitative and quantitative data collected from various sources. The advantage of this method is the simple calculation procedure. A large-scale (1:2000) map might be used to assess the landslide hazard for specific cadastral units. Such a map becomes the basis for municipal spatial planning and may be able to influence investment decisions. Detailed landslide hazard maps are crucial for more precise risk evaluation for specific cadastral units. This, in turn, allows one to reduce serious economic and social losses, which might be the future results of landslides.

Today, prefabricated concrete elements are used in many construction areas, including in industrial, public, and residential construction; this was confirmed via questionnaire research. In the article, the prospects for precast concrete development are presented, and the factors determining the use of this technology are defined. Based on a review of the literature, it was shown that currently, higher-quality prefabricated elements are primarily created through the implementation of innovative materials and production technologies. For this reason, the lack of research regarding quality control in prefabricated elements based on statistical quality control is particularly noticeable. The quality control process is one of the most important distinguishing features in prefabrication due to the increasingly stringent expectations of customers; it helps to ensure that the desired durability of implemented constructions is achieved. Issues related to assessing the effectiveness of standard procedures presented in this paper were analyzed using statistical methods in the form of OC (operating characteristic) and AOQ (average outgoing quality) curves. Thus, a new approach was proposed because these methods have not been previously used in precast concrete. The shape of the curves obtained confirmed the significant dependence of the value of the acceptance probability on the defectiveness of production. In AQL control systems based on OC and AOQ curves, it is necessary to calculate the current average defectiveness, which should be treated as a basis for the decision to switch from one type of control (normal, tightened, or reduced) to another. In this respect, the standard requirements of quality control have been simplified, and it has not been considered necessary to determine the average defectiveness value in production processes. The examples included in this study, including the analysis of curb production data, clearly show the harmful effects of ignoring the actual process defectiveness. As a result of the calculations, it was found that the average actual defectiveness of the curbs produced could not be equated with batch defectiveness. The analyses carried out in this study prove that equating batch defectiveness with process defectiveness is not an appropriate approach, which was confirmed through the producer’s/customer’s risk analysis. The approach proposed in this study, the analysis of OC and AOQ curves, is an innovative solution in prefabrication and can be an effective tool for managing the quality of prefabricated products, taking into account economic boundary conditions.

At present, the requirements for thermal insulation of the external walls in buildings are being increased. There is a need to reduce energy consumption for heating rooms during the winter season. This may be achieved by increasing the thermal resistance of the outer partitions, using solutions that utilize either recuperation or solar radiation. The most popular systems include either solar collectors, or heat pump links or ground exchangers. Trombe walls (TW) are a very promising passive heating system, which requires little or no effort to operate, and may be very convenient in different climate conditions. A typical TW consists of a masonry wall painted a dark, heat absorbing paint colour and faced with a single or double layer of glass. The principle of operation is based on the photothermal conversion of solar radiation. There are various modifications of TW. They may improve the energy efficiency in relation to the climate conditions in which they operate. The hybrid solutions are also known. The efficiency of walls is related to the use of proper materials. In TW, the compromise should be sought between the thermal resistance and the ability to distribute heat from the absorbed energy of solar radiation. The paper presents an overview of the most commonly used solutions and discusses its own concept dedicated to the climate conditions of Central Europe.

Control of technical parameters obtained by ready-mixed concrete may be carried out at different stages of the development of concrete properties and by different participants involved in the construction investment process. According to the European Standard EN 206 “Concrete–Specification, performance, production and conformity”, mandatory control of concrete conformity is conducted by the producer during production. As shown by the subject literature, statistical criteria set out in the standard, including the method for concrete quality assessment based on the concept of concrete family, continue to evoke discussions and raise doubts. This justifies seeking alternative methods for concrete quality assessment. This paper presents a novel approach to quality control and classification of concrete based on combining statistical and fuzzy theories as a means of representation of two types of uncertainty: random uncertainty and information uncertainty. In concrete production, a typical situation when fuzzy uncertainty can be taken into consideration is the conformity control of concrete compressive strength, which is conducted to confirm the declared concrete class. The proposed procedure for quality assessment of a concrete batch is based on defining the membership function for the considered concrete classes and establishing the degree of belonging to the considered concrete class. It was found that concrete classification set out by the standard includes too many concrete classes of overlapping probability density distributions, and the proposed solution was to limit the scope of compressive strength to every second class so as to ensure the efficacy of conformity assessment conducted for concrete classes and concrete families. The proposed procedures can lead to two types of decisions: non-fuzzy (crisp) or fuzzy, which point out to possible solutions and their corresponding preferences. The suggested procedure for quality assessment allows to classify a concrete batch in a fuzzy way with the degree of certainty less than or equal to 1. The results obtained confirm the possibility of employing the proposed method for quality assessment in the production process of ready-mixed concrete.