Analyzing Critical Factors for the Smart Construction Site Development: A DEMATEL-ISM Based Approach

The wide and in-depth adoption of advanced information technologies within the construction industry has led to its revolution of all aspects; the construction site is not an exception. Recently, the notion of a smart construction site (SCS) has drawn the attention of all stakeholders within the industry. While the practice of SCS could be witnessed in various regions and the notion is mentioned frequently, the concept of SCS is still emerging, a sound framework for SCS development is still absent. As a bottom-up phenomenon, a systematic analysis of critical factors would provide all stakeholders with a comprehensive view of SCS development. In this research, previous research and existing practices of SCS are referred to, which helps to identify 17 critical factors for SCS development from the perspective of management, technology, and organization. The DEMATEL-ISM approach is introduced to conduct the factor analysis, and a questionnaire survey is conducted among 10 experts to investigate their attitudes on these factors. Following the proposed method, the 17 factors are classified into seven hierarchies and further categorized into three layers, i.e., effect layer, operational layer, and input layer, which helps to demonstrate the interrelationship among the critical factors for SCS development. The effect layer consists of the first to the third hierarchy, which contains the factors of cost (F2), safety (F4), schedule (F5), environment (F9), and quality (F3) management; these factors belong to the management perspective and reflect the expectations during SCS development. The operational layer consists of the fourth to the sixth hierarchy, which contains seven factors, namely, processing (F8), information (F10), communication and coordination (F15), personnel (F5), material (F6), equipment (F7), and management regulation (F17); these factors are critical in processing the input resources into the final effect of SCS development. The input layer only consists of the seventh hierarchy, which contains hardware and software facility (F11), integrated platform (F12), data sharing center (F13), smart decision system (F14), and technical team (F16); these factors represent the investment of SCS development. The systematic analysis of critical factors provides new insights on SCS development, which could be adopted as references for future SCS development by all stakeholders like government and construction enterprises.