HOW CAN BLOCKCHAIN (BC) AND SMART CONTRACT (SC) TECHNOLOGIES FACILITATE THE CIRCULAR ECONOMY (CE) IN CONSTRUCTION

Abstract

This research aims at examining how blockchain and smart contract technologies can enhance the circular economy in construction. In this quantitative research, data was collected from 134 construction industry professionals from different countries with majority from the UK and Australia by an online questionnaire. The research targeted respondents who possessed certain levels of experience in the field of engineering, construction, project management, and consultation and, therefore, used purposive sampling. An analysis of the survey data indicated that there was a level of support for the application of blockchain (BC) and smart contract (SC) technologies in enhancing circular economy practises. Industry professionals provided higher consensus regarding the benefits of these technologies for promoting circular economy in construction, with mean scores in all the statements above 4.6 on a 5-point scale. The pre to posttest findings were statistically significant t (58.00) p < .000 indicating that the participants’ views shifted from being neutral about the technologies’ advantages. From these findings, the research suggests awareness creation and training, implementation partnership models, policy and incentives support, and more research on the application of BC and SC technologies in the construction sector circular economy.