Cost–benefit analysis of construction waste source reduction: a system dynamics approach

Construction waste (CW) source reduction is a crucial strategy to address the sustainability issue of the construction industry. The economic benefit is a key factor affecting project decision-makers on whether to implement this strategy. However, limited studies analysed the cost–benefit of CW source reduction from a system dynamic perspective. Therefore, by considering the design and construction phase as a whole, this study constructed a system dynamics (SD) model based on the identification of the factors affecting the cost–benefit of CW source reduction to analyse the cost–benefit of CW source reduction. A residential building project in China’s Chengdu was used for the study case. The results show that the net benefit of CW source reduction is positive, and BIM implementation, design for standard material size, and building material storage are the three strategies to effectively improve the economic benefits of CW source reduction. Furthermore, the best investment level of CW source reduction was also determined. This study provides a model which can be used to simulate the cost–benefit under different implementation levels of reduction strategies and different investment levels in advance, thereby providing a reference for project decision-makers to plan CW source reduction.