A new pressure on construction: faster, more cost-efficient and greener

Mr. Vu Linh Quang, MSc., Architect - Managing Director of ARDOR Green - served as moderator for the afternoon session on 14 May.

The construction sector is now being asked to solve three major challenges at the same time: schedule, cost and sustainability.

Against a backdrop of labour shortages, volatile material prices and increasingly stringent ESG requirements from international investors, technology is becoming a business-critical capability rather than simply an additional competitive advantage.

Importantly, this pressure is not coming only from the domestic market.

Mechanisms such as the EU Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), emissions auditing and carbon markets are turning CO₂ emissions into a tangible financial cost. In the coming years, high-emitting companies may face not only environmental pressure, but also direct consequences for their competitiveness and export costs.

This is particularly significant for energy-intensive sectors such as steel, cement and construction materials - industries that form the foundation of Vietnam’s construction sector.

“The biggest gap today is not a lack of innovation. What the industry needs is a large-scale demonstration proving that green transition and zero-carbon manufacturing are entirely feasible in the building materials sector.” - Mr. Le Huu Sang, Global Operations Support Director, Fiber Cement

AI is changing how construction companies operate

One of the key themes highlighted at the seminar was the growing role of artificial intelligence in construction business operations.

AI is no longer limited to simple support tools. It is increasingly being applied to:

• Analysing tender documentation and evaluating company capabilities
• Managing cash flow and project performance
• Consolidating technical and regulatory information
• Optimising site operations and management
• Analysing customer behaviour and demand

In an industry that has traditionally depended heavily on labour and experience-based manual processes, AI can help businesses save time, reduce errors and accelerate decision-making.

However, technology only creates meaningful value when it is integrated into a broader operational strategy.

What the market needs today is not simply an understanding of AI, but the ability to apply AI in ways that generate measurable operational improvements and long-term profitability.

Zero Carbon is no longer a distant concept

One encouraging signal is that a growing number of building-material manufacturers in Vietnam have already begun implementing low-carbon and zero-carbon operating models at a practical scale.

Solutions currently being adopted include:

• Replacing fossil fuels with biomass such as rice husks and wood chips
• Using renewable electricity backed by internationally recognised I-REC certificates
• Electrifying internal operational vehicles
• Increasing the use of recycled materials and alternative raw materials

The significance lies not in the novelty of the technologies themselves, but in demonstrating that green transition can be implemented in practice even in heavy industry - traditionally considered one of the most difficult sectors to decarbonise.

Green materials and prefab are becoming inevitable trends

Alongside changes in operational technology, building materials are also evolving rapidly.

Traditional materials such as fired bricks and conventional concrete are increasingly revealing limitations related to emissions, energy consumption and construction-site waste.

In response, the market is shifting toward solutions with more sustainable life cycles, including:

• Lightweight insulated panels
• Pre-engineered steel buildings
• Recycled materials
• Prefabricated and precast systems

In particular, precast and prefabricated construction is emerging as a highly practical solution for the Vietnamese market.

Manufacturing building components in controlled factory environments can reduce construction time by approximately 20–40%, while also lowering dependence on weather conditions, optimising labour use and improving consistency in construction quality.

In a market facing shortages of skilled workers and increasingly demanding project schedules, this approach could become one of the construction industry’s strategic directions over the next five to ten years.

ESG will only scale when it delivers economic value

One important reality repeatedly emphasised by industry experts is that sustainability will be difficult to scale if it remains only an environmental message.

Businesses can only implement green transition at scale when ESG creates clear economic value - whether through lower operating costs, improved energy efficiency, better access to capital or stronger access to international customers.

In other words, the future of the construction industry will not belong to companies that simply “go green for communication purposes.”

It will belong to companies that can transform sustainability into a genuine competitive capability.

Strategic cooperation signing ceremony between SACA and the Australian Chamber of Commerce in Vietnam.

The strategic cooperation agreements between the Ho Chi Minh City Construction and Building Materials Association (SACA) and international organisations such as the Australian Chamber of Commerce in Vietnam and the French Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Vietnam also point to a broader trend.

Vietnam’s construction sector is becoming increasingly connected to the global business ecosystem - one in which sustainability standards are rapidly becoming a common language for the market.