Stakeholder perceptions of the future application of construction robots for buildings in a dialectical system framework

Abstract

Construction robots hold much promise for buildings, but their real-world uptake is limited. Previous studies lacked in-depth explorations of stakeholder perceptions to help elaborate the development requirements and dialectics of construction robots. This paper examined stakeholder perceptions of future construction robots for buildings within the Hong Kong context theoretically based on a dialectical system framework that incorporates the technical systems, stakeholders, and contexts. The study was conducted through a questionnaire survey with wide-ranging industry stakeholders that yielded 166 effective responses and 20 follow-up interviews for generating insights. The results indicate that construction robots have minimal application but are perceived to be important, particularly in off-site production and on-site lifting. The findings reveal the multidimensional complexity of task-oriented technical systems and the influencing contexts of construction robots, and demonstrate their dialectical relationship. Recommendations are offered for promoting robot applications, which include leveraging government support, capitalizing on off-site construction, encouraging technology adaptation, and driving task-technology integrative and iterative design. This paper contributes to the literature on construction robotics by proposing a novel dialectical system framework and providing new insights for future research and development.