Modular Construction as a Sustainable Eco-Friendly Building Solution

Modular Construction as a Sustainable
Eco-Friendly Building Solution

The building and construction sectors are among the leading contributors to the global carbon footprint. Construction activities contribute to nearly 37% of the total greenhouse gas emissions. Understanding these factors and investigating eco-friendly solutions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and minimize waste production and energy consumption are necessary. Modular construction (MC) has emerged as a promising method with the potential to reduce environmental impact compared to traditional construction. This study utilized a systematic literature review approach to investigate the MC as an eco-friendly sustainable building solution to achieve sustainability by reducing embodied carbon emissions, waste generation, and energy efficiency. A combination of bibliometric and qualitative methods is used to analyze the literature retrieved from the Scopus database. For this study, articles published between 2010 and 2024, written in English, and focused on relevant fields were considered, excluding non-peer-reviewed literature and conference papers. After an initial screening of 91 articles, 29 were shortlisted for a full-text analysis. To understand existing literature dynamics related to MC as an eco-friendly building solution, a quantitative analysis was conducted to highlight the countries that are actively engaged in research, as well as to identify the trends in publication frequency, leading authors, and prominent journals in this domain. The qualitative analysis was used to highlight the advantages of MC in the building industry in terms of sustainability. The study’s findings indicate that in terms of citations and research impact the UK, Malaysia, and Australia are among the leading countries investigating the importance of MC as an alternative eco-friendly building solution. The results of qualitative analysis shows that adopting MC in the building sector demonstrates superior performance throughout its life cycle. This improved performance is due to less CO2 Emissions, reduced construction waste generation, and less energy consumption. This review can benefit policymakers and industry practitioners by providing insights into MC as an eco-friendly solution to reduce the carbon footprint at the conceptualization, design, and construction stages of building and construction projects.