Integrated practices in the Architecture, Engineering, and Construction industry: Current scope and pathway towards Industry 5.0

Integrated practices (IPs) entail holistic and inclusive approaches geared toward synergizing building project participants, processes, technology, information, and contract arrangements along the project delivery lifecycle. The application of integrated approaches is gaining mo-mentum in the architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) industry. Over the last decades, building construction research has been fueled by the quest to develop integrated procedures, tools, standards, and systems to aid project implementation. Yet, research that offers a holistic view of emerging concepts is currently lacking. This study presents a bibliometric review of 573 works on IPs in the AEC industry, which were published in 258 academic sources and authored by 1415 scholars. Three major IPs were examined, namely: integrated design process (IDP), modular integrated construction (MIC), and integrated project delivery (IPD), alongside other concepts. The Bibliometrix function in R tool (Biblioshiny) was used to analyze bibliographic data collected from Scopus. The research networks were presented in terms of annual contributions, scientific productivity, geographical distribution, and global relevance. Bibliographic factorial analysis uncovered six underlying research clusters/elements, which were categorized into the critical elements of IPs and the enablers of IPs. The critical elements of IPs include (1) design element, (2) construction management element, (3) delivery method and supply chain element, while the enablers of IPs consist of (1) technological enablers, (2) BIM enablers, and (3) training and ed-ucation enablers. Based on these clusters, the gaps in current knowledge are noted. The need to expand the current research domain on IPs in alignment with the core values of Industry 5.0 is discussed.