Feasibility of the Implementation of Soft Landings in Sweden

Abstract

Title: Feasibility of the Implementation of Soft Landings in Sweden

Authors: Sebastian Eddin & Nadja Pilav

Supervisor: Stefan Olander

Examiner: Rikard Sundling

Close to 40 percent of global energy use is associated with the construction industry and building-related activities. Although several initiatives are underway both on national and international level from both the Swedish government and the European Union regarding energy efficiency, the construction industry is lagging behind, especially with regards to building performance. The difference between projected energy usage and actual energy usage in completed buildings is substantial, with handovers and poor commissioning having been identified as among the main underlying causes.

The purpose of this thesis is to examine how Swedish handovers affect building performance in practice today, to review the Soft Landings framework and its efficacy, as well as analyse its potential as an addition to the Swedish procurement process.

The thesis aims to answer these through a literature review and case studies to understand its uses and potential implementations, with an additional interview study conducted with industry actors to explore whether it can be implemented in Swedish procurement processes and tackle the performance gaps in the construction industry.

The results from the literature review and case studies show that the Soft Landings framework can be effective in tackling the performance gap if it is implemented early in the procurement process along with incentives encouraging use or enforcing it. The interview study revealed that there is a fragmentation of contracts used to handle handovers today in the Swedish construction industry, causing confusion and a general lack of awareness concerning best practises of the handover process, with the participants suggesting that a standardised handover process could benefit the industry. In conclusion, the studies show that the Soft Landings does have the potential to deal with the performance gap in Sweden, but that it needs to either evolve, utilising contractual obligations or liabilities, or be implemented through regulatory means as has been the case in the UK.

Abstract (Swedish)

Titel: Möjligheten av implementering av Soft Landings i Sverige

Författare: Sebastian Eddin & Nadja Pilav

Handledare: Stefan Olander

Examinator: Rikard Sundling

Närmare 40 procent av den globala energianvändningen är kopplad till byggbranschen och byggrelaterade verksamheter. Trots att flera initiativ pågår både på nationell och internationell nivå från både den svenska regeringen och EU när det gäller energieffektivitet har det visat sig att byggbranschen släpar efter, särskilt när det gäller byggnadsprestanda. Skillnaden mellan beräknad energianvändning och faktisk energianvändning i färdiga byggnader är betydande, med överlämningar och dålig idrifttagning som två utav de främsta bakomliggande orsakerna.

Syftet med avhandlingen är att undersöka hur svenska överlämningar påverkar byggnadsprestanda i praktiken idag, att se över Soft Landings ramverket och utvärdera dess effektivitet samt analysera om det har potential som ett tillägg till svensk bygg- /upphandlingsprocess.

Avhandlingen syftar till att besvara dessa frågor dels genom en litteraturgenomgång och fallstudier för att förstå dess användningsområden och effektivitet gällande byggnadsprestanda och prestanda-gap, med en kompletterande intervjustudie utförd med branschaktörer med målet att undersöka om den kan implementeras i svenska bygg-/upphandlingsprocesser och tackla problemen kopplade till prestanda-gapen.

Resultaten från litteraturgenomgången och fallstudierna visar att Soft Landings-ramverket kan vara effektivt för att hantera prestanda-gap om det etableras tidigt i upphandlingsprocessen tillsammans med incitament som uppmuntrar till användning eller tillämpning av det. Intervjustudien visade att det finns en fragmentering av kontrakt som används för att hantera överlämningar idag i den svenska byggbranschen, vilket orsakar förvirring och en allmän brist på medvetenhet om bästa praxis i överlämningsprocessen. Deltagarna föreslår att en standardiserad överlämningsprocess skulle kunna gynna industrin. Sammanfattningsvis visar studierna att Soft Landings har potential att hantera prestationsgap i Sverige, men att ramverket behöver utvecklas, där det utnyttjar avtalsförpliktelser eller skyldighet, alternativt implementeras genom reglering, vilket har varit fallet i Storbritannien.

Popular Abstract

Should Soft Landings be implemented in the procurement process in Swedish construction?

The purpose of this thesis is to examine how Swedish handovers affect building performance in practice today, to review the Soft Landings framework and its efficacy, as well as analyse its potential as an addition to the Swedish procurement process. The thesis aims to answer research questions through a literature review and a multi-case study to understand its uses and potential implementations, with an additional interview study conducted with industry actors to explore whether it can be implemented in Swedish procurement processes and tackle the problems with discrepancies in delivered building performance in the construction industry.

Several initiatives are underway both on national and international level from both the Swedish government and the European Union regarding energy efficiency, the construction industry is lagging behind, especially with regards to building performance. The difference between projected energy usage and actual energy usage in completed buildings is substantial, with handovers and poor commissioning having been identified as among the main underlying causes.

The results from the literature review show that it is essential that frameworks such as Soft Landings be implemented early in the procurement process along with incentives encouraging use or enforcing it, in order for the involved actors to comply with the guidance provided. The interview study revealed that there is a fragmentation of contracts used to handle handovers today in the Swedish construction industry, causing confusion and a general lack of awareness concerning best practices of the handover process. The participants suggested that it could be beneficial for the construction industry to settle on a standardised approach to handovers, potentially through legislative means, in order to combat poor handovers and the performance gaps. The Soft Landings framework has achieved success in certain areas, however, the framework is unlikely to be applied voluntarily by the construction industry as long as low cost is the traditional procurement method considered during tendering. Additional costs associated with Soft Landings, although small, make it unattractive for clients to factor it into a procurement, and unattractive for entrepreneurs to include it in their tenders. Soft Landings does have the potential to deal with the performance gap in Sweden, but it needs to either evolve, involving contractual obligations or liabilities, or be implemented through regulatory means as has been the case in the UK through the Government Construction Strategy of 2016. If Soft Landings is to be implemented early in the Swedish procurement process, it needs to be complemented with regulatory liabilities or contractual obligations.

• author: Pilav, Nadja and Eddin, Sebastian
• supervisor: Stefan Olander
• organization: Construction Management
• alternative title: Möjligheten av implementering av Soft Landings i Sverige
• course: VBEM01 20212
• year: 2022
• type: H3 - Professional qualifications (4 Years - )
• subject: Technology and Engineering
• keywords: Soft Landings, delivery process, handover process, building performance
• report number: 22/5660
• other publication id: LUTVDG/TVBP-22/5660-SE
• language: English
• additional info: Handledare: Stefan Olander; Examinator: Rikard Sundling
• id: 9087039
• date added to LUP: 2022-06-27 13:37:59
• date last changed: 2022-06-27 13:37:59