Purpose: This study intends to review studies on the success criteria and critical success factors (CSFs) for mega infrastructure construction projects (MICPs) from journal articles between 2000 and 2018 to (1) identify the publication trend of success criteria and CSFs for MICPs; (2) explore distributions of selected papers, including the distribution of journals, authors’ origin/country and publications by country or region focus; and (3) summarize the findings of success criteria and CSFs studies of MICPs.Design/methodology/approach: A methodical and systematic analysis of 38 selected journal articles was conducted using descriptive analysis to obtain the annual trend of publications, distributions of publication sources, contributors’ origin/country, regions/countries of research focus, methods involved in publications and thematic analysis to identify and categorize success criteria and CSFs for MICPs.Findings: Australia, the USA, UK, China and Hong Kong had been the leading contributors for publications on success criteria and CSFs for MICPs; meanwhile, China, Australia and the UK have been the countries of focus for most studies on this specific topic. This review identified 20 success criteria grouped into 5 constructs and 36 CSFs grouped into 5 categories and, respectively, integrated them into two conceptual frameworks. The top five CSFs were adequate resource availability, partnering/relationships with key stakeholders, adequate communication and coordination among related parties, public support or acceptance and clear strategic vision. Three implications, namely, evaluation indicators, relationships between CSFs and the success of MICPs and human-related factors, are highlighted in future research.Originality/value: The identified success criteria and CSFs provide a basis for evaluating the success possibility of MICPs and serve to identify areas for further improvement. Additionally, the CSFs checklist and framework have been established, which could help to conduct further empirical studies. Finally, the holistic analysis identifies gaps in the body of knowledge, revealing avenues for future research.

Great efforts have been exerted in reducing carbon emissions in design, construction and operation stages. However, little attention is paid to the quantification of carbon emissions in construction waste recycling at the end-of-life stage. This study aims to quantitatively analyze the carbon emission of construction waste in Shanghai City, PR China. A grey model is used to forecast the generation amount of construction waste, and a life cycle assessment is performed to estimate the carbon emission of construction waste. In this study, both the carbon emission of recycling activities (environmental costs), and the equivalent amount of carbon generated from alternative materials (environmental benefit) are considered. Here, recycling 1 ton (t) of construction waste in Shanghai can save 100.4 kg CO₂−e. The total carbon-emission-saving potential can be increased from 0.31 million t CO₂−e (2022) to 0.35 million t CO₂−e (2031). The carbon emission of recycling concrete, brick, steel, wood and mortar, identified as the key components of construction waste, is investigated. This research can help to reduce carbon emissions and further achieve carbon neutrality for Shanghai City. The proposed methods can also be applied to other regions, especially when the data for construction waste are insufficient.

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to review the existing literature on project success in academic journals, specifically within the context of construction engineering and management (CEM). It also aims to provide a holistic picture of existing research and to identify research implications in this specific area.Design/methodology/approach: The paper is an extensive literature review of a total of 164 peer-reviewed journal papers between 2007 and 2017, using a mixed bibliographic and bibliometric method that considers annual circulation, institutional and regional contributions, author contributions, citations, categories of research methods and keywords networking.Findings: There has been an increasing research interest in CEM project success. The largest number of published studies targets the developed regions, especially in Hong Kong, whereas the papers related to the developing economies remain weak. Questionnaire, interview and case study have comprised the main data collection methods, and descriptive data analysis was performed in most of the case/field studies. The subtopic related to the critical success factors (CSFs) is considered as the most popular in the keywords network in the targeted research area. Four implications, namely, megaproject success, project success in developing countries, relationships between CSFs and success outcomes, and the influence of human factors are highlighted in future research.Originality/value: This paper departs from earlier research by using a mixed bibliographic and bibliometric method, especially facilitating to analyze and illustrate the interlinkages between keywords effectively. Additionally, it provides a clear picture of the existing literature on CEM project success, which contributes to insights for successful construction project management. Finally, the holistic analysis identifies gaps in the body of knowledge, revealing avenues for future research.

The worldwide growth of megaprojects has triggered an increasing number of academic publications in the past few decades. However, there are few studies drawing the whole picture of construction megaproject management. This study aims to investigate the status and identify research implications of construction megaproject management by conducting a systematic review. A total of 155 journal articles in 2007-2018 were identified and analysed, mainly using a bibliographic analysis on annual circulation, major journals, research origins, and categories of research interests. Results indicated that IJPM, JME, PMJ, FEM, JCEM, Sustainability, PICE-MPL and ECAM are the major journals, and developed regions/countries such as the United Kingdom rather than developing regions/countries such as mainland China are the dominant contributors in this field. Ten categories of research interests on megaproject management were also displayed and respectively discussed in depth. Moreover, three implications for future research, namely, ‘construction megaproject research in developing areas’, ‘human factors in construction megaproject research’ and ‘external complexity in construction megaproject research’, were proposed. The clear picture of existing literature might provide insights for academic research into megaproject management. Besides, the frontiers of megaproject research could equip practitioners with updated problem-solving strategies and then facilitate faster development in megaproject management.

This study empirically examines the success determinants that instigate or contribute to project success and empirically evaluates the levels of importance at which the ascertained determinants contribute to project success in China. Based on a literature review and interviews, a questionnaire survey used to gather a total of 129 valid responses was gathered from megaproject experts who have worked on at least a billion RMB (approximately USD 0.14 billion) worth of projects in different provinces. Moreover, factor analysis was adopted to explore and identify the underlying relationships among the identified critical success factors. The top three success factors were adequate communication and coordination among related parties, cooperation and strong support from local governments and partnering/relationships with key stakeholders. Six constructs were developed from thirty-five success variables using the Factor Analysis tool, with the topmost-ranked construct being organisational-related factors. This paper can provide valuable insights and a holistic critical success factor framework concerning construction megaproject management. Particularly, it contributes to a deepened understanding of the megaproject’s success factors and helps project stakeholders to manage megaprojects more effectively. Additionally, this study could serve as the premise for further empirical research on determining factors of megaproject success in different contexts.