Co-productive interrelations between business model and zero carbon building: A conceptual model
Built Environment Project and Asset Management
ISSN: 2044-124X
Article publication date: 14 September 2017
Abstract
Purpose
The zero carbon building (ZCB) approach has gained momentum in improving energy performance and reducing carbon emissions. Despite policy promotion for achieving zero carbon, innovative business models (BMs) are needed to overcome the challenges and accelerate the ZCB uptake. However, little research has examined ZCB and BM in tandem, and business strategies for ZCB delivery. The purpose of this paper is to explore the theoretical relations between BM and ZCB.
Design/methodology/approach
Drawing on a critical review of the definitions, components, and theoretical bases of BM and ZCB, this paper develops a conceptual model that maps out the multifaceted interrelations between ZCB and BM at both project and organisational levels.
Findings
The results discover co-productive interrelations between BM and ZCB in four aspects, namely, value offering, project delivery process, stakeholder network, and revenue generation logic. Innovative BMs address the socio-technical challenges to delivering ZCBs through innovating BM components, while ZCB provides a new paradigm of organisational-level systems to BM innovations as a source of corporate competitiveness.
Practical implications
The findings will be of immense benefit to the decision makers of construction organisations in enhancing their business strategies for successful ZCB deliveries, and help to de-risk business innovations and ZCB take-up for their maximised synergies.
Originality/value
The findings contribute a novel approach to disentangling the complex co-productive interrelations between BM and ZCB. This review calls for a step change in future research into the two important areas, BM and ZCB, in an interrelated manner.
Keywords
Citation
Zhao, X. and Pan, W. (2017), "Co-productive interrelations between business model and zero carbon building: A conceptual model", Built Environment Project and Asset Management, Vol. 7 No. 4, pp. 353-365. https://doi.org/10.1108/BEPAM-11-2016-0064
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2017, Emerald Publishing Limited