the Case of Novel Concrete at Loughborough University

Modern methods of construction, such as advanced methods of concrete deployment, increase the capital intensity of production to either accommodate new technologies or overcome skilled labour scarcity. While technocratic solutions dominate discourse, necessary multi-actor movement to transform the production system is poorly understood.

The behaviour, attitudes and motivators of actors across the production system must be conceptualised as a sociotechnical system. Each impacted actor must consider the value proposition of adopting or facilitating novel concrete deployment worthwhile.  Specifically, Mazzucato’s (2023) and Hess and Ostorm’s (2003) conceptualisations of “common goods” alongside “club goods” can help construction actors understand which elements of the new concrete technologies production system must be shared, and which can be retained for commercial gain.

This study will model the numerous bi-directional, cross-tier, and concurrent value propositions that frame diffusion of novel concrete technologies. The study will reveal what actors across the production system concurrently require from each other, what they can share, and what they must retain to collectively reform. Value propositions will be critically examined through the lens of sociotechnical innovation to identify the technical, structural, and attitudinal prerequisites to novel concrete deployment at a sector level. Analysis will reveal innovation pathways.

The work will contribute a transferable method of reconciling perceptions of the technical, structural, and attitudinal dimensions of value across a production system. It will classify elements of that production system as common, club, or private goods. This will enable the diffusion of novel technologies such as forms of concrete deployment.

This project is one of five PhDs in Digital Transformation. The successful candidate will be part of a growing community of doctoral and post-doctoral researchers and academics who are extending the boundaries of knowledge and delivering transformative solutions to real-world problems. The other projects in Digital Transformation are:

• Automated productivity and performance monitoring for construction processes
• Automating the circularity potential assessment in building retrofitting
• Automating asset management: AI-driven approaches for enhanced efficiency
• The sociotechnical interface with data in construction: aesthetics, emotion, and social discourse

Tuition fees cover the cost of your teaching, assessment and operating University facilities such as the library, IT equipment and other support services. University fees and charges can be paid in advance and there are several methods of payment, including online payments and payment by instalment. Fees are reviewed annually and are likely to increase to take into account inflationary pressures.

The School of Architecture, Building and Civil Engineering’s studentship competition offers the chance for UK and International applicants who are interested in undertaking a PhD to have their full-time studies paid for.

The studentship is for 3 years and provides a tax-free stipend of £18,622 per annum (2023/24 rate) for the duration of the studentship plus university tuition fees.

Studentships will be awarded on a competitive basis to applicants who have applied to advertised projects starting with the reference ‘ABCE24’.