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Digital Transformation in Construction: Advancing Leadership, Safety, Human–Machine Collaboration, and...
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Digital Transformation in Construction: Advancing Leadership, Safety, Human–Machine Collaboration, and Sustainable Innovation

A special issue of Buildings (ISSN 2075-5309). This special issue belongs to the section "Construction Management, and Computers & Digitization".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 October 2026 | Viewed by 3538

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Sainan Lyu

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
1. School of Economics and Management, Anhui Jianzhu University, Hefei 230022, China
2. Department of Structural Engineering, College of Civil Engineering, Hefei University of Technology, Hefei 230009, China
Interests: construction safety and health; generative AI; human-machine collaboration
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Xiaoyan Jiang

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Structural Engineering, College of Civil Engineering, Hefei University of Technology, Hefei 230009, China
Interests: low-carbon management; intelligent construction technology; BIPV solutions in urban renewal
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Beibei Zhang

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Economics and Management, Anhui Jianzhu University, Hefei 230022, China
Interests: urban resilience; urban renewal digital transformation
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Peng Cui

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Civil Engineering, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing 210037, China
Interests: urban resilience; emergency management; carbon emissions
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The construction industry is entering a transformative era through the adoption of AI, IoT, robotics, digital twins, and immersive AR/VR technologies. Collectively, these advances are revolutionizing project planning and management while transforming leadership practices, safety management systems, and human–machine collaboration.

This Special Issue aims to provide a comprehensive platform for cutting-edge research and practical insights into how digital transformation is driving organizational change, improving safety performance, and reshaping human–technology interactions in the construction sector. We seek to advance both theoretical understanding and practical applications, contributing to a sustainable, resilient, and intelligent future for the construction industry.

We invite original research articles, systematic reviews, case studies, conceptual papers, and perspectives that explore the integration of digital technologies in construction, with a particular focus on leadership strategies, safety management, and human–machine synergy. Contributions leveraging emerging approaches powered by LLMs and generative AI, bridging theory and practice, highlighting interdisciplinary perspectives, or offering policy and industry implications are especially encouraged.

Submissions may address, but are not limited to, the following themes:

  • Digital leadership strategies, organizational transformation, and cultural change in the era of Industry 4.0 and beyond.
  • Change management, workforce upskilling, and digital competence development for construction professionals.
  • AI, machine learning, LLMs, and generative AI for safety intelligence, risk detection, and predictive analytics.
  • IoT-enabled real-time monitoring systems for enhancing construction site safety, productivity, and operational efficiency.
  • Robotics, drones, autonomous equipment, wearables, and human–AI collaboration in construction operations.
  • Human factors, psychological, ergonomic, and organizational implications of collaborative robotics and automation.
  • BIM, digital twins, and integrated platforms for planning, execution, lifecycle management, and sustainability assessment.
  • AR/VR and mixed reality for immersive training, design visualization, stakeholder collaboration, and decision support.
  • Big data analytics, cloud computing, and edge intelligence for project optimization and predictive modeling.
  • Ethical, legal, and social implications of digital transformation and AI-driven human–machine interaction.
  • Case studies showcasing best practices, lessons learned, and barriers in digital transformation initiatives.
  • Education and training innovation to prepare the next-generation digital construction workforce.
  • Sustainability and resilience through digital transformation: carbon reduction, resource efficiency, and green construction practices.
  • Cross-disciplinary approaches linking digital construction with urban development, smart cities, and infrastructure resilience.

Dr. Sainan Lyu
Dr. Xiaoyan Jiang
Dr. Beibei Zhang
Dr. Peng Cui
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Buildings is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • digital transformation
  • construction industry
  • digital leadership
  • large language model
  • construction safety
  • smart construction
  • data-driven
  • artificial intelligence (AI)
  • generative AI
  • digital twins
  • human–machine collaboration

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Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

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19 pages, 3852 KB  
Article
Evaluating Dynamic Reaction Forces at Anchorages to Enhance the Safety of Mast Climbing Work Platforms
by Xueyan S. Xu, Christopher M. Warren, Robert S. White, John Z. Wu, Francois Villeneuve, Ren G. Dong and Christopher S. Pan
Buildings 2026, 16(4), 878; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings16040878 - 22 Feb 2026
Viewed by 512
Abstract
Mast climbing work platforms (MCWPs) are designed to vertically access building facades and other structures to perform various construction tasks. The mast in an MCWP system is structurally considered “slender”, its anchorages to the building play an important role in maintaining its stability. [...] Read more.
Mast climbing work platforms (MCWPs) are designed to vertically access building facades and other structures to perform various construction tasks. The mast in an MCWP system is structurally considered “slender”, its anchorages to the building play an important role in maintaining its stability. Failure of anchorages can affect overall structural stability, potentially increasing the risk of the mast collapsing. The anchorages and their attachments to a construction structure are likely among the most critical components for the MCWPs. This study developed an instrumented anchorage using strain gauges to measure and understand the anchorage reaction forces and to identify the major factors for the measurement of those forces. In the experiment, a single mast work platform was used at a simulated work site. Besides the anchoring reaction forces, the vibration motions on the platform were also measured. The study found that the amount of the load on the platform, the position of the load on the platform, and the platform’s vertical position on the mast may all affect the reaction forces on the anchorages. Such effects varied with the specific anchorages installed at different heights of the mast. The dynamic forces on the anchorages were correlated to the platform vibrations. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Digital Transformation in Construction: Advancing Leadership, Safety, Human–Machine Collaboration, and Sustainable Innovation)
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22 pages, 1774 KB  
Article
Investigating the Factors Contributing to the Stakeholder Conflict in Urban Renewal Projects: A Case Study of China
by Beibei Zhang, Xuehong Shen, Sainan Lyu, Yan Liu, Peng Cui and Guifen Ding
Buildings 2025, 15(22), 4181; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings15224181 - 19 Nov 2025
Viewed by 1383
Abstract
With urbanization slowing, the world has entered a new phase focused on stock-based development, where urban renewal plays a key role in advancing sustainable urbanization. These projects involve multiple stakeholders—governments, enterprises, and residents—whose conflicting interests often hinder progress and affect policy outcomes, equity, [...] Read more.
With urbanization slowing, the world has entered a new phase focused on stock-based development, where urban renewal plays a key role in advancing sustainable urbanization. These projects involve multiple stakeholders—governments, enterprises, and residents—whose conflicting interests often hinder progress and affect policy outcomes, equity, and long-term sustainability. This study is conducted to address existing gaps in understanding the dynamic mechanisms and multi-dimensional relationships underlying stakeholder conflicts in urban renewal projects (URPs). A total of 28 key influencing factors are identified and categorized. Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) is then applied to reduce data dimensionality, resulting in five core dimensions: economic, legal, implementation, managerial, and social factors. Building on these findings, a system dynamics (SD)-based model is developed to simulate the interactions and evolutionary pathways of these factors within urban renewal projects. Results show that all five factors contribute to conflict to varying degrees, with economic factors being the primary driver. Drawing on empirical data from Chinese URPs, this study provides both theoretical insights and practical implications for policy formulation and governance strategies aimed at promoting more harmonious and sustainable urban renewal processes. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Digital Transformation in Construction: Advancing Leadership, Safety, Human–Machine Collaboration, and Sustainable Innovation)
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Other

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24 pages, 2540 KB  
Systematic Review
A Science Mapping-Based Review of Digital Leadership: Evolution and Future Research Directions
by Beibei Zhang, Zhenni Zhou, Xiaopeng Deng, Sainan Lyu, Martin Skitmore and Peng Cui
Buildings 2026, 16(1), 95; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings16010095 - 25 Dec 2025
Viewed by 968
Abstract
Digital leadership has emerged as a critical determinant of organizational success in an era characterized by rapid technological advancement, yet the field suffers from significant theoretical fragmentation and lacks a systematic integration of its evolving knowledge base, presenting substantial challenges for both practitioners [...] Read more.
Digital leadership has emerged as a critical determinant of organizational success in an era characterized by rapid technological advancement, yet the field suffers from significant theoretical fragmentation and lacks a systematic integration of its evolving knowledge base, presenting substantial challenges for both practitioners and scholars seeking to advance theoretical understanding. This study aims to provide a more comprehensive perspective on the evolution and future research directions of digital leadership. A science mapping-based review is conducted to systematically examine and visualize 960 rigorously selected papers from the Web of Science (WOS), with no time constraints, covering all relevant publications from 1991 to 2024. The methods employed include regional co-occurrence, document co-citation, keywords clustering, and keywords burst to uncover the underlying structure and development of the field. The findings of this study reveal the development of foundational research in digital leadership, demonstrating the integration of methodologies and theories from other disciplines. Furthermore, the study identifies three research trends: green sustainable development, human-centered leadership and cross-cultural leadership. The contribution of this study is the construction of a knowledge map of digital leadership, providing a comprehensive understanding of digital leadership. To further illustrate the application of this map, the construction industry is used as a case study. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Digital Transformation in Construction: Advancing Leadership, Safety, Human–Machine Collaboration, and Sustainable Innovation)
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