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CIB Conferences

Abstract

Carbon emissions in the construction phase are largely determined by early project decisions, yet they are rarely incorporated as explicit criteria at the tender stage. Instead, emissions are typically assessed after method selection or treated as qualitative compliance indicators, limiting their influence on decision-making. This study proposes a data-informed approach to construction method selection that integrates carbon emissions into tender-stage evaluation using operational data commonly available in bidding documentation. Rather than relying on full life-cycle assessment models, emissions are estimated from machine power, working shifts, and operating time, and incorporated alongside cost and duration in comparing construction alternatives. The approach is illustrated through a case-based analytical study of pile installation works in a public building project in Vietnam, involving two alternative equipment configurations. The results show that while the faster alternative generates higher total emissions, its emissions are more temporally concentrated, revealing trade-offs that remain hidden when decisions are based solely on cost and schedule. Importantly, when emissions are translated into indicative carbon cost and integrated into a construction cost equivalent framework, the faster alternative remains preferable due to its superior resource efficiency. These findings demonstrate that construction-phase emissions are shaped not only by technological choices but also by organizational configurations. They further suggest that modest carbon-cost signals alone may be insufficient to alter tender-stage decisions, highlighting the need to align environmental indicators with broader economic and operational performance criteria.

Keywords

Carbon emissions, data-informed approach, tender-stage decision-making, machine usage, environmental indicators, sustainable construction

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