Can Build-To-Rent Generate Affordable Housing Outcomes? A Whole-Life Costing Approach to Investment Analysis

Doubts remain among stakeholders in academia and the housing industry about the potential success of build-to-rent to generate positive outcomes for institutional investors and affordable dwellings for low- and moderate-income households. However, a systematic study on the viability of build-to-rent to deliver affordable housing in Australia is largely rare and non-existent in the literature. We fill this gap in the literature by investigating the financial viability of build-to-rent and its potential to generate affordable rental housing outcomes in Brisbane, Australia. Using rental prices from CoreLogic (Formerly RP data) and construction-related costing data from WT Partners Australia for 2019, we apply the whole-life costing approach to investment analysis and confirm that build-to-rent can be feasible in Australia under equity financing. Also, we find that under the current regulatory regimes and market structure, build-to-rent will fail to deliver affordable housing outcomes. Moreover, providing free land alone cannot help to make build-to-rent affordable. Thus, significant public subsidy and tax concessions, particularly on Goods and Services Tax (GST) on construction-related costs, may be required if build-to-rent developments are to generate affordable housing outcomes in Australia.

Whole Life/Life Cycle Costing During the Design Stage of a Construction Project

The calculations of life cycle costs (LCC) and whole life costs (WLC) are important tools in the life cycle of a project. The aim of this research is to examine life cycle costing, whole life costing, and the possible advantages and disadvantages to their introduction and use. A qualitative methodology encompassing an in-depth literature review, interviews, and qualitative analysis using mind mapping software, this research is important as it can add to the industry's understanding of the design process. It highlights reasons for the success or failure of a construction project, in terms of sustainability at the design stage. Results indicate that the researched topics had many advantages but also had inherent disadvantages. It is found that the potential advantages outweighed disadvantages, but uptake within industry is still slow and that better promotion and their benefits to sustainability, the environment, society, and the industry are required.

Economic assessment of aerated constructed treatment wetlands using whole life costing

There is increasing pressure on water treatment practitioners to demonstrate and deliver best value and sustainability for the end user. The aim of this paper is to evaluate the sustainability and economics, using whole life costing, of wastewater treatment technologies used in small community wastewater treatment works (WwTW) of <2,000 population equivalent (PE). Three comparable wastewater treatment technologies – a saturated vertical flow (SVF) aerated wetland, a submerged aerated filter (SAF) and a rotating biological contactor (RBC) – were compared using whole life cost (WLC) assessment. The study demonstrates that the CAPEX of a technology or asset is only a small proportion of the WLC throughout its operational life. For example, the CAPEX of the SVF aerated wetland scenario presented here is up to 74% (mean = 66 ± 6%) less than the cumulative WLC throughout a 40-year operational time scale, which demonstrates that when comparing technology economics, the most cost-effective solution is one that considers both CAPEX and OPEX. The WLC assessment results indicate that over 40 years, the SVF aerated wetland and RBC technologies have comparable net present value (NPV) WLCs which are significantly below those identified for submerged aerated filter systems (SAF) for treatment of wastewater from communities of <1,000PE. For systems designed to treat wastewater from communities of >1,000PE, the SVF aerated wetland was more economical over 40 years, followed by the RBC and then the SAF. The aerated wetland technology can therefore potentially deliver long-term cost benefits and reduced payback periods compared to alternative treatment technologies for treating wastewater from small communities.

SuDS & Sponge Cities: A Comparative Analysis of the Implementation of Pluvial Flood Management in the UK and China

In recent decades, rapid urbanization has resulted in a growing urban population, transformed into regions of exceptional socio-economic value. By removing vegetation and soil, grading the land surface and saturating soil air content, urban developments are more likely to be flooded, which will be further exacerbated by an anticipated increase in the number of intense rainfall events, due to climate change. To date, data collected show that urban pluvial flood events are on the rise for both the UK and China. This paper presents a critical review of existing sustainable approaches to urban flood management, by comparing UK practice with that in China and critically assessing whether lessons can be learnt from the Sponge City initiative. The authors have identified a strategic research plan to ensure that the sponge city initiative can successfully respond to extreme climatic events and tackle pluvial flooding. Hence, this review suggests that future research should focus on (1) the development of a more localized rainfall model for the Chinese climate; (2) the role of retrofit SuDS (Sustainable Drainage Systems) in challenging water environments; (3) the development of a robust SuDS selection tool, ensuring that the most effective devices are installed, based on local factors; and (4) dissemination of current information, and increased understanding of maintenance and whole life-costing, alongside monitoring the success of sponge cities to increase the confidence of decision makers (5) the community engagement and education about sponge cities.

RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN RISK IDENTIFICATION MANAGEMENT STRATEGY AND SUPPLY CHAIN PERFORMANCE AMONG MANUFACTURING COMPANIES IN KENYA

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine relationship between risk identification management strategy and supply chain performance among manufacturing companies in KenyaMethodology:The study adopted a cross-section survey of descriptive nature .The target population comprised of the 412 manufacturing companies within Nairobi County that were registered members of KAM. The fisher et al formula for calculating the sample size was used to yield a sample size of199. Data was collected using questionnaires and analyzed using statistical package of social sciences (SPSS) version 21 as a tool of analysis.Results: The study findings revealed that the constructs of risk identification management strategy combined together influenced supply chain performance as supported by a p value of 0.000.)Policy recommendation: the study recommended that manufacturing companies should put in place a risk analysis and evaluation management strategy to enhance supply chain performance. In particular, companies should consider conducting whole life costing of suppliers and also internal quality of suppliers.