Implementing solar photovoltaic systems in the built environment (BEPV) is critical for the construction sector’s contribution to mitigating climate change. While previous studies give various insights into innovation implementation, the challenges to value co-creation by construction actors remain underexplored. By studying the alignment of business ecosystems implementing BEPV in the Swedish built environment, we address this need. Drawing on the cumulative experience of construction actors, this study demonstrates how knowledge mislocation, knowledge deficits, cultural discrepancies, insufficient building codes, frequently changing regulations, and implementing a highly embedded innovation can disturb ecosystem alignment. The study contributes to the ecosystem literature, scholarly discussions of innovation implementation in complex construction projects, and the PV diffusion literature by offering insights into the realignment of ecosystems involving value co-creation by actors from previously unconnected industries. The study links PV diffusion research to the construction management literature by exploring the cumulative experience of implementation at the micro level. We highlight the significant industry reconfigurations required to accommodate a deeply embedded technological innovation, reconfigurations going beyond the challenges of implementing systemic innovations encumbered by fewer material dependencies. We also emphasize the critical importance of industrial interaction, coordination, and learning to accelerate the sustainability transition. © 2023 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.

Denna rapport redovisar det fortsättningsprojekt som bygger på pilotprojektet ”Utveckling av helhetslösning för solel i bebyggelsen”, som genomfördes vid Eksta Bostads AB med delfinansiering av Energimyndigheten under åren 2016–2019. Syftet med fortsättningsprojektet har varit att utvärdera alternativa och metoder för att öka lönsamhet i solcellsanläggningar i bebyggd miljö. Metod fördetta har varit installation av mikronät, baserat på likströmsteknik liksom upprättande av en modell för involvering av brukare. Modellen bygger på Blockchain-konceptet och är utvecklad för området för mikronätet liksom Ekstashantering av eldistribution och brukarhantering. Eksta ser stort värde i genomförandet av detta utvecklingsprojekt. Projektet harskapat kunskap kring hantering av delning av el, både gällande strategiskplanering av energidistribuering liksom tekniska lösningar. Under installation och idrifttagande av mikronätet har utmaningar kopplat till hård- och mjukvaror påverkat installationen och driften av mikronätet i Fjärås. Felaktiga funktioner var vid detta projekts avslut ännu inte lösta. Av dessa anledningar har den tekniska utvärderingen av mikronätet begränsats. Resultaten visar dock att egenanvändningsgraden för producerad solel inom mikronätet är 87 % för tre månader. Detta är något lägre än det teoretiskt beräknade värdet för samma månader, som visade 98 %. Anledningen till detta resultat härleds till de bristerna av systemets komponenter. Utvärderingen visar dock att det finns en potential för ökning av detta värde. Detta projekt har även bidragit till fler resultat, där kunskap kring processen för utvecklingsprojekt har byggts. Lärdomar har varit att det är av stor vikt att samordna samtliga projektpartner inför uppstart av ett utvecklingsprojekt, så att det finns en samsyn kring projektets mål och en etablerad samverkan. Inom projektet har även potentialen för att utöka befintligt mikronät med flersolcellsanläggningar samt möjligheten att inkorporera fler byggnader och laddstationer för elfordon utvärderats. Resultat visar att det finns potential för att installera mer solcellseffekt med fortsatt hög egenanvändning och därmed bibehållen lönsamhet.

This is the final report for the project, "Optimization of solar energy through smart microgrids and users", that has been carried out by the municipal housing company Eksta Bostads AB (hereafter referred to as Eksta) between 2020 and 2022. The project has been partially financed by the Energy Agency and is a continuation of a pilot project which was completed in 2019 (Penttilä et al., 2019). The background to the project is Eksta's interest in investigating opportunities to develop energy concepts for its building stock. The purpose of this project has been to evaluate alternatives and methods to increase profitability in solar photovoltaic systems in the built environment. To do so, an expansion of an existing microgrid has been installed and a model for user involvement has been created. The model is based on the Blockchain concept and is developed for the area of the microgrid and Eksta's management of electricity distribution and user management. Eksta sees great value in the implementation of this project. Knowledge has been built in the management of sharing of electricity, both regarding strategic planning of energy distribution and technical solutions. During the installation and commissioning of the microgrid, challenges linked to hardware and software have affected the installation and operation of the microgrid in Fjärås. Incorrect functions were at the end of this project not yet resolved. For these reasons, the technical evaluation of the microgrid has been limited. However, the results show that the self-use rate for produced solar electricity within the microgrid is 87 % for a period of three months. This is slightly lower than the theoretically calculated value for the same months, which was 98 %. The reason for this result is the shortcomings of the system's components. However, the evaluation shows that there is a potential for increasing this value. This project has also contributed to more results, where knowledge about the process for development projects has been built. Lessons learned have been that it is of great importance to coordinate all project partners before the start of a development project so that there is a consensus around the project's goals and an established collaboration. Within the project, the potential to expand the existing microgrid with more solar photovoltaic systems and the possibility of incorporating more buildings and charging stations for electric vehicles has been evaluated. Results show that there is potential to install more solar power with continued high self-use and thus maintained profitability.

This study aims to identify barriers to the alignment of temporary business ecosystems for solar photovoltaic systems in the built environment (BEPV) in the Swedish construction sector and explain these barriers in terms of how they impact ecosystem alignment. We identify three barriers; the high degree of radicalness of BEPV innovation, the lack of BEPV related knowledge among actors and inapt conventions for BEPV. The study contributes to the business ecosystems literature through insights from a novel sector that reveals how challenges related to temporality, incumbency and actor diversity impact ecosystem alignment. The study also highlights the critical role of formal conventions for ecosystem dynamics. We further provide new insights to the study of construction management, as the business ecosystem lens offers a systematic explication of the complexity of construction projects and highlights the need to pay attention to the alignment of ecosystem elements in order to successfully implement innovations. The study highlights implications for policy and business concerned with the diffusion and implementation of BEPV.

Resurshushållning i kombination med småskalig, egen- och närproducerad el i direkt anslutning till där behoven finns har stor potential för att kraftigt reducera användandet av fossila energikällor. För att säkerställa detta krävs en snabbare ökning av implementering av solelanläggningar liksom andra innovationer i den byggda miljön. Tekniska egenskaper så som exempelvis verkningsgrad och eller teknisk utveckling för att möjliggöra montage eller installation är inte längre hinder för implementering. Tekniken är mogen, finns tillgänglig på marknaden och solcellsprojekt är lönsamma över tid. Ökningen i installerad effekt de senaste åren härrör dock till största del till en ökning av solcellsparker. Den stora potentialen för utbyggnation i den bebyggda miljön kvarstår.

Det övergripande målet med projektet var att identifiera, analysera och finna samband mellan hinder som står i vägen för ökad implementeringstakt av solcellsanläggningar i svenska flerbostadshus och lokaler. Projektet har genomförts i tre arbetspaket; (1) workshopar och intervjuer för att få en grundläggande förståelse för vilka hinder som finns för en generell implementering av solcellsanläggningar i den byggda miljön, (2) verifikationsworkshop och (3) analys av den data som samlats in i de två försa stegen.

Givet antalet aktörer som påverkar implementeringen samt antalet aspekter som måste hanteras, framstår implementeringen av solcellsanläggningar som komplex, vilket är en utmaning. Det är många aspekteter som ska hanteras av flera aktörer och som förändrar deras vedertagna processer eller medför helt nya uppgifter. En annan utmaning som tydligt framkommit är bristen på kunskap, både hos sig själva och hos andra och i alla faser av projekten. Det är dock beställarens kompetens som ses som mest kritisk, framför allt kopplat till förståelsen av hur implementering av solceller påverkar projektprocessen. Kopplat till utmaningarna kring komplexitet och brist på kunskap framkommer ytterligare upplevda utmaningar gällande både byggprocessens genomförande och externa regelverk, som tydligt påverkar implementeringen. Eftersom solceller fortfarande är förhållandevis nytt har kompetensen inte etablerats, vilket i sin tur leder till osäkerhet kring ansvar. Detta blir extra tydligt i den komplexa processen, där många aktörer är involverade.

Avslutningsvis, det finns fortfarande mycket som behöver göras för att förenkla implementering av solcellsanläggningar i byggd miljö. Detta till trots implementeras allt fler solcellsanläggningar i byggd miljö och det går även mot att vara en naturlig del i byggandet.

Resource management in combination with small-scale, self-produced and locally produced electricity in direct connection to where the needs are has great potential for greatly reducing the use of fossil energy sources. To ensure this, an increase in the implementation of solar photovoltaic (PV) systems as well as other innovations in the built environment is required. Technical features such as efficiency and / or technical development to enable assembly or installation are no longer obstacles to implementation. The technology is mature, is available on the market and PV projects are profitable over time. However, the increase in installed capacity in recent years is largely due to an increase in photovoltaic parks. The potential for expansion in the built environment remains.

The overall goal of the project was to identify, analyze and find connections between obstacles that stand in the way of an increased pace of implementation of photovoltaic systems in the Swedish built environment. The project has been done through three work packages (1) workshops and interviews to gain a basic understanding of the obstacles that exist for a general implementation of photovoltaic systems in the built environment, (2) verification workshop and (3) analysis of the data collected in the two preceding steps.

Given the number of actors that affect the implementation and the number of aspects that must be managed, the implementation of solar photovoltaic systems appears as complex, which is a challenge. There are many aspects that must be handled by several actors and that change their accepted processes or entail completely new tasks. Another challenge that clearly emerges was the lack of knowledge, both among themselves and among others and in all phases of the projects. However, it is the client's competence that is seen as most critical, mainly linked to the understanding of how the implementation of solar cells affects the project process. Linked to the challenges of complexity and lack of knowledge, further perceived challenges emerge regarding both the construction process and external regulations, which clearly affect implementation. As PV is still relatively new, the competence has not been established, which in turn leads to uncertainty about responsibility. This becomes extra clear in that it is such a complex process with many actors involved.

In conclusion, there is still much that can be done to simplify the implementation of solar photovoltaic systems in built environments. Despite this, an increasing volume of PV systems are being implemented in the built environment and is about to become a natural part of construction.

Prefabricated housing is a disruptive innovation struggling to take hold in a traditional complex product system (CoPS). It is quicker to produce and has improved environmental performance compared to traditional housing. CoPS have more dense and complex network connections than commodity industries, making disruptive innovation more difficult. Effective relational capabilities can achieve the coordination necessary to address this challenge. The prefabricated housing industry needs to develop a structure that drives these capabilities. Using a case study methodology, the structure of the industry is examined in two contrasting countries, namely Australia and Sweden, as they represent an early and late stage of industry emergence, respectively. A new framework is proposed for this purpose, enabling a repeatable, orderly and comprehensive disaggregation of industry structure to examine the latent drivers of relational capability. The main empirical contribution is to (1) describe an industry that is yet to be formally recognized by national statistical agencies and (2) show how the adoption of prefabricated housing can be accelerated. The study found that younger industries need a focused industry association with diverse membership to act as an effective system integrator. © 2019 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to examine product innovation as a means of addressing infrastructure shortages in developed economies and to improve the sustainability of infrastructure. The obstacles to product innovation in the road industry are compared between different types of participants in the supply chain to provide guidelines for interventions to improve innovation rates.

Design/methodology/approach

This exploratory study uses descriptive data from a large scale survey of the Australian road industry. The three top-rated product innovation obstacles for the following four types of participants are examined: contractors, consultants, suppliers and clients.

Findings

The four groups were found to disagree about the relative importance of the obstacles. Contractors and suppliers ranked “restrictive price-only tender assessment” used by clients as their number one obstacle, while consultants thought there was too much emphasis by the clients on direct costs compared with whole-of-life costs. On the other hand, clients felt suppliers do not do enough thorough testing prior to proposing a new product and disagreed with suppliers about who should carry the risk of new product failure.

Research limitations/implications

The conceptual framework was found to yield novel insights with significant policy implications. The construction-specific contextual determinants that were integrated by the authors into a broad innovation diffusion process proved useful in categorising road product innovation obstacles across the four surveyed supply chain groups – without overlap or omission. The new framework also proved useful in ordering the key obstacles across groups for interpretation and discussion. In disaggregating product obstacles according to groups, these contextual determinants were proven to be mutually exclusive and to represent important focal points in promoting the uptake of product innovation in construction. Although the current study has usefully provided quantitative data concerning construction innovation obstacles, there are limitations due to its reliance on descriptive statistics. Future work by the authors is proposed to analyse the relationships between innovation obstacles and supply chain partners using inferential statistics to further develop and validate these early findings. The current study is an interim step in this work and an important contribution in identifying and addressing firm-level barriers seen to be constraining construction product innovation.

Practical implications

Results suggest there is a need for government clients to carefully consider the differing perspectives across the supply chain when developing strategies to encourage the adoption of mutually-beneficial innovative products on their construction projects. Inclusive focus groups examining the drivers, configuration and benefits of collaborative procurement systems are recommended to reduce innovation obstacles.

Social implications

Society relies on urban infrastructure for daily living and the current study contributes to stretching infrastructure investment dollars and reducing the environmental impact of infrastructure provision.

Originality/value

No previous study has compared the perception of product innovation obstacles across different road industry supply chain partners. This is a significant gap, as differences in opinions across the supply chain need to be understood to develop the shared expectations and the improved relationships required to improve product innovation rates. Product innovation is important because it has been shown to improve efficiency (potentially addressing the road investment gap) and reduce deleterious environmental impacts.

Purpose – This study aims to focus on a reinforcement supplier’s efforts to diffuse solutions, more or less innovative, in the construction sector to gain understanding of what facilitates and complicates innovation diffusion from a supplier perspective.

Design/Methodology/Approach – The interpretative research presented builds on 28 semi-structured interviews with the supplier and its customers and document studies. The research emphasizes dynamics in the diffusion process and rests on the assumption that the innovation content, innovation context and the innovation process interacts in the diffusion process.

Findings – The findings and the contribution from the study provide significant details concerning how the dimensions interact and how the diffusion process may unfold over time, but also that different solutions interact to push diffusion forward.

Research Limitations/Implications – The study relates to one supplier’s work and the interplay implies uniqueness in different cases. Studies in other contexts could, therefore, also be suitable to develop findings and their transferability.

Practical Implications – The study provides understanding for suppliers diffusing innovations in construction on how to act.

Originality/Value – A major contribution from the study is that it puts emphasis on how the diffusion process proceeds in interaction with its content and context and problematizes this dimension. Furthermore, the importance of nuancing sub-contexts to display decisive factors in the diffusion process is emphasized. © John Lindgren and Kristian Widén.

Purpose - The aim of this research is to study knowledge integration (KI) when diffusing a systemic innovation. The objectives are to understand what mechanisms are used, and when and what their effects are in terms of knowledge development.

Design/Methodology/Approach - The method comprised a longitudinal case study which followed a firm’s attempts to develop and diffuse a timber multi-storey building system (the systemic innovation) over a number of projects.

Findings - The findings emphasize actual projects as the most crucial activity for KI and when and why soft personalization mechanisms and codified knowledge should be mixed.  Furthermore, it shows how different types of knowledge is built up including construction process effects over a series of projects.

Research limitations/implications -  The research contributes with knowledge about mechanisms for the diffusion of a specific systemic innovation type and provides input regarding mechanisms to use. The introduction of the concepts ‘domain-specific’, ‘procedural’ and ‘general knowledge’ into construction has increased understanding of innovation diffusion and knowledge flows and where and how they are integrated.

Practical Implications – The research shows how knowledge develops and through which mechanisms, and where problems occur. Construction organisations can learn from this to avoid mistakes and potentially better understand how to manage knowledge to diffuse a systemic innovation.

Originality/value - The research provides insight into systemic innovation diffusion over a series of projects and focuses on both projects and the construction process. © 2018, Emerald Publishing Limited.