Journal of Construction Engineering, Management & Innovation

Saeed Raeisi Morteza Bagherpour

Effective claims management is essential in construction projects, particularly in the oil and gas sector, where disputes can lead to significant cost and schedule overruns. This study focuses on identifying and preventing claims in oil and gas piping construction projects—a critical yet underexplored area. A systematic methodology was employed, beginning with the identification of potential claims through expert consultation, followed by prioritization using a probability-impact analysis based on survey data collected from 70 industry professionals. The study then proposes practical preventive strategies derived from expert interviews and aligned with PMBOK risk response principles. Results indicate that delays in material delivery, design changes, and contractual ambiguities are among the most critical claims. The proposed strategies, including improved work breakdown structures, timely issuance of drawings, and enhanced communication protocols, can significantly reduce disputes and improve project performance. These findings provide actionable insights for project managers and contribute to the broader discourse on risk and claim management in complex industrial projects.

https://doi.org/10.31462/jcemi.2026.614

Elif Gürbüz Taştekin Umutcan Kılıç Semra Çomu

High rates of fatal and non-fatal occupational accidents worldwide have made construction safety a global concern. Despite the proven effectiveness of construction safety training in reducing these rates, current safety implementations often fail to enhance construction workers’ safety awareness and knowledge. Recently, virtual reality (VR) has been increasingly employed in safety training to enhance its effectiveness and contribute to occupational safety. While construction workers and engineers are usually the intended target audience for safety training, students are frequently used as surrogates during the development of training tools. However, the appropriateness of this practice has not been thoroughly investigated in the literature. This study utilizes the V-SAFE v.2 training tool in the experiments to investigate this phenomenon by comparing the performances of students, construction workers, and engineers. The paper-based test scores of students, construction workers, and engineers before and after receiving safety training in the virtual environment are analyzed using appropriate statistical analysis approaches, including paired T-test, Wilcoxon signed-rank test, and two-factor mixed ANOVA. Results indicate that V-SAFE v.2 has significantly improved the learning outcomes of all groups. Additionally, the study reveals that students can serve as surrogates for construction workers during the development of virtual safety training tools. However, students’ performances significantly differ from those of engineers, indicating they are not suitable surrogates for this subject group.

https://doi.org/10.31462/jcemi.2026.683

Muhammed Yusuf Kahveci Ali Sercan Kesten

The transition to electric mobility has intensified the need for effective charging infrastructure, making charging infrastructure planning and delivery a critical component of transport electrification. While technological progress and policy incentives have supported electric vehicle (EV) growth, the perceived adequacy of charging infrastructure continues to shape user confidence, purchase readiness, and the practical feasibility of EV use. This study examines how perceptions of EV charging infrastructure are associated with vehicle purchase intention, used here as an indirect proxy for EV-related adoption intention, in Türkiye, and considers the implications of these perceptions for infrastructure planning and construction strategy. The analysis is based on survey data from 94 respondents and focuses on four core dimensions of charging infrastructure perception: charging station availability, home charging availability, charging time, and battery range. A quantitative framework was employed, including descriptive statistics, reliability analysis, one-way analysis of variance, and ordered logistic regression. The results show that respondents assigned high importance to all four infrastructure dimensions, with home charging availability receiving the highest mean rating. Group-based analyses indicate that practical charging feasibility, particularly home charging availability and charging time, varies across selected socio-economic categories, whereas public charging concerns are more broadly shared. The regression results further suggest that charging station availability is the strongest positive infrastructure-related correlate of stated purchase intention, while home charging feasibility may also operate as a perceived barrier when such access is uncertain. From a construction engineering and infrastructure management perspective, the findings highlight the importance of demand-responsive planning, phased rollout, investment prioritization, residential charging integration, and risk-aware project delivery. The study contributes a user-centered perspective to charging infrastructure planning and offers practical guidance for more efficient and socially responsive infrastructure deployment in emerging EV markets.

https://doi.org/10.31462/jcemi.2026.724

Ferdinand Senam Hassan Schalk Grobbelaar

The global construction industry is under pressure to reduce its carbon emissions, and mass timber has emerged as a promising alternative to conventional building materials such as concrete and steel. While hundreds of multi-storey timber buildings have been constructed worldwide, there is limited evidence of corresponding growth in Africa. This study investigates the factors influencing design professionals' behavioural intention to adopt mass timber in the South African construction industry. A conceptual model was developed by extending the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) with three context-specific constructs: perceived environmental motivation, personal resistance, and perceived cost. Data were collected from 92 architects and structural engineers through a structured survey and analysed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM). Iterative measurement model assessment led to the removal of Social Influence due to indicator reliability and discriminant validity failures, the merger of Effort Expectancy and Facilitating Conditions into a single construct termed Execution Capability, and the reduction of the instrument from 43 to 33 indicators. The final structural model explained 66.2% of the variance in behavioural intention and demonstrated high out-of-sample predictive power. Three predictors were statistically significant: Perceived Environmental Motivation was the strongest predictor, followed by Execution Capability and Performance Expectancy. Personal Resistance and Perceived Cost were not significant. The findings suggest that environmental credentials, rather than technical performance or cost, are the primary driver of adoption intention among South African design professionals, and that professionals do not distinguish between the ease of using mass timber and the infrastructural conditions enabling its use. The study contributes to the limited empirical literature on mass timber adoption in Africa and demonstrates the need for context-specific modifications when applying UTAUT to construction material adoption.

https://doi.org/10.31462/jcemi.2026.728

İlker Baki Alkan Hasan Basri Basaga

Climate change has increased the need for effective educational approaches that can promote climate-related awareness and environmentally responsible behaviors. This study investigates the effects of a passive 360-degree virtual reality educational intervention on climate change awareness and operational water consumption in a real industrial setting. The study was conducted with 17 cafeteria workers at an operating factory in Türkiye. A VR-based educational video consisting of seven scenarios addressing climate change impacts, water scarcity, and water-saving practices was developed using Unity and experienced by the participants using an Oculus Quest 2 headset. Climate change awareness was assessed using a validated 5-point Likert scale administered one month before and one month after the VR intervention. In addition, the cafeteria’s total hot and cold water consumption was monitored for one week before and one week after the intervention. The mean climate change awareness score increased from 39.24 (SD = 4.67) before the intervention to 41.65 (SD = 3.08) after the intervention, with a statistically significant increase confirmed by both a paired-samples t-test and a non-parametric Wilcoxon Signed-Rank test (p = 0.022). Weekly operational water consumption decreased from 104.2 m³ before the intervention to 97.9 m³ after the intervention, corresponding to a reduction of 6.3 m³ (6.05%), which was confirmed to be statistically significant using a paired-samples t-test (p = 0.042). These findings indicate that passive VR-based climate change education can increase climate change awareness and is associated with reduced operational water consumption in a real industrial cafeteria setting.

https://doi.org/10.31462/jcemi.2026.745