Fired clay brickwork in buildings is prone to cracks and deterioration upon exposure to long-time acidic contamination and water absorption, hence decreasing the bearing capacity of masonry walls. As its contribution toward resolving this challenge, this study assessed the durability and morphological characteristics of high-strength performance bricks produced from a mixture of PET waste (PW) and foundry sand (FS). The PET waste bricks (PWBs) were produced through different proportioning (PW: FS) of 20%, 30%, and 40% of the dry mass of FS. The PWBs produced were tested for durability and compressive and tensile strengths and compared to fired clay bricks to evaluate their load-bearing capacity under compression and tension. Furthermore, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) tests were employed to analyze the morphological structure of the bricks. The test results revealed that the PWBs recorded an appreciable strength of 1.5–2 times that of fired clay bricks, and lower water absorption whilst retaining their ultimate strengths after complete immersion in water and acidic concentrations. The morphology of PWB possessed greater intercluster bonds on the surface compared to clay bricks. The findings demonstrate a reasonable methodological approach toward the production of masonry bricks using a mixture of PET waste and spent foundry sands.

Implementing energy upgrades in buildings will bring about economic gains, while enhancing social wellbeing and engendering sustainable development. However, building energy upgrades encompass additional considerations and requirements in terms of processes, materials, and expertise, technology and health and safety practices. All these factors constitute complexities in the delivery of the project. In addressing this problem; the paper presents how stakeholders understand health and safety issues in the delivery of projects amongst South African service providers. The case-based study highlighted the health and safety issues, and solutions concerning the methodologies that are appropriate in enhancing the conditions.

PurposeThe built environment is well known for carbon emission and its impact especially as it pertains to existing buildings. This has culminated in an increasing need for a retrofit of such buildings. This study details the development of an artefact for improving the delivery of energy retrofit projects therein to curb these impacts.Design/methodology/approachThe study utilized a mixed method research design for data collection. In achieving this, data was collected in three different phases; (1) a pilot study; (2) a juxtaposition of desktop case studies, live case studies, focus group discussion forum and an expert survey; and (3) a questionnaire survey for the validation of the emergent artefact. Accordingly, the quantitative data was analysed using descriptive statistics, whereas qualitative content analysis was deployed for qualitative data.FindingsThe findings enabled an identification of the elements of a building energy retrofit project (BERP) such as project initiation, building assessment, detailed energy survey, technical analysis and implementation plans of energy measures, monitoring and verification. Also, it provided the challenges and enablers associated with successful BERP. This information was subsequently utilized in the development and validation of an artefact for delivering successful BERP. Summarily, a set of guidelines comprising of seven stages for managing successful BERPs were elucidated.Practical implicationsThe validated artefact provides an adaptive and innovative route for achieving sustainability in retrofit trade.Originality/valueThe study conceptualizes an artefact for improving the delivery of BERPs.

The purpose of this paper is to propose a framework for implementing the delivery of energy retrofit project in existing buildings. This framework is premised on the need for the attainment of a sustainable built environment through delivering building energy retrofit. A mixed design approach that is situated on pragmatic philosophical stance was adopted to unravel the complexities of retrofitting existing buildings. Structured and semi-structured interview were administered to project’s role-players in order to elicit data for the framework development. The findings give insight into various components of the framework. It suggest that a building analysis, which is geared towards evaluating the characteristics of the energy systems, a walkthrough survey, where potential energy-saving measures are identified, using energy analysis and simulation tools, which serves to establish energy use and operating conditions of the building, evaluation of energy-saving measures, and, finally, implementation of the energy efficiency measures are crucial in any implementation framework. The developed framework provides an innovative and integrated route for achieving sustainability in retrofit trade. The framework provides a comprehensive approach of delivering energy retrofit in an existing building.

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