Evaluation of the Circular Economy Potential in Improving Sustainability in the Construction Industry in the UAE

The civil engineering and construction industry is usually highlighted as primary contributing factors for resource consumption and scarcity. Many researchers perceive that as a normal event with the respect to the high demand for construction that comes concerning the growing world population. As a consequence of this demand, a need for resources and energy efficiency becomes extremely critical and vital. The circular economy could be presented as one of the potential factors to regulate the construction industry with a circular business model. The reason that the professionals highly suggest this mechanism is due to its suitability with the vibrant and dynamic nature of the construction industry that usually causes a communication gap between the main stakeholders. The literature shows that this could be a result of a lack of collaboration and creating unnecessary complex steps that affect the productivity and durability of the business. Hence, a need for a holistic and integrated framework is necessary to regulate and manage the flow work of resources and energy efficiency process. In this study, the Sustainability Development Goals (SDGs) will be highlighted as major key performance indicators to ensure the accuracy and feasibility of the circular economy. Through this study, the survey and the interviews showed that three areas could be considered as challenging to be applied to circular economy in construction in The United Arab Emirates (UAE): regulatory factors, economic factors, and technological factors.