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Frontiers of Engineering Management

ISSN 2095-7513

ISSN 2096-0255(Online)

CN 10-1205/N

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Front. Eng    2020, Vol. 7 Issue (4) : 512-527    https://doi.org/10.1007/s42524-020-0128-y
RESEARCH ARTICLE
Hyperledger fabric-based consortium blockchain for construction quality information management
Botao ZHONG, Haitao WU, Lieyun DING(), Hanbin LUO, Ying LUO, Xing PAN
School of Civil Engineering and Mechanics, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430074, China
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Abstract

Lack of trust has been an ongoing issue for decades in construction quality management, hindering the improvement of quality performance. The development of mutual trust depends on immutable, traceable, and transparent construction quality information records. However, current information technologies cannot meet the requirements. To address the challenge, this study explores a blockchain-based framework for construction quality information management, which extends applications of blockchain in the domain of construction quality management. A consortium blockchain system is designed to support construction quality management in which participants’ information permissions and lifecycle are discussed. Additionally, this study presents in detail the consensus process that aims to address the problem of information fraud. The automated compliance checking based on smart contracts is presented as well, aiming to assure that construction products meet regulation requirements. Finally, an example of the consortium blockchain network is visualized to validate the feasibility of blockchain-based construction quality information management. The research shows that blockchain can facilitate mutual trust in construction quality management by providing distributed, encrypted, and secure information records and supporting automated compliance checking of construction quality.
Keywords blockchain      construction quality      smart contracts      compliance checking      information management     
Corresponding Author(s): Lieyun DING   
Just Accepted Date: 10 July 2020   Online First Date: 31 July 2020    Issue Date: 02 November 2020
 Cite this article:   
Botao ZHONG,Haitao WU,Lieyun DING, et al. Hyperledger fabric-based consortium blockchain for construction quality information management[J]. Front. Eng, 2020, 7(4): 512-527.
 URL:  
https://academic.hep.com.cn/fem/EN/10.1007/s42524-020-0128-y
https://academic.hep.com.cn/fem/EN/Y2020/V7/I4/512
Research field in construction Specific applications Reference
Supply chain management A blockchain-based framework was proposed to solve the challenges of information management in the precast supply chain, such as fragmentation, poor traceability, and lack of real-time information, and the performance of the framework was evaluated with a case study Wang et al. (2020)
The potential application of blockchain in logistics of construction materials was discussed by integrating with radio frequent identification (RFID) technology, in which an example of manufacturing and delivery of ready-mixed concrete was given Lanko et al. (2018)
Contract management Considering delays in construction payments, a blockchain framework was developed to host smart contracts related to construction payment and to automate payment actions after achieving consensus among the relevant project stakeholders Luo et al. (2019)
Integration with BIM A framework combing blockchain with BIM was proposed for sustainable building design coordination and collaboration in multiple building life cycle stages and to solve the challenge of BIM in intellectual property and legal responsibility Liu et al. (2019)
A cup of the theory was developed to represent the integration of BIM, Internet of Things (IoT), and blockchain, which can be used to design an efficient building maintenance system Ye et al. (2018)
A new conceptualized framework resulting from the integration of blockchain and BIM processes was proposed to improve the efficiency of building permit processes in post-disaster events in which the smart contract and HLF were discussed Nawari and Ravindran (2019)
Tab.1  Specific applications of blockchain technology in the construction industry
Fig.1  Data structure of blocks.
Fig.2  Structure of smart contracts.
Fig.3  Merits of blockchain technology in construction quality information management.
Fig.4  Blockchain-based framework for construction quality information management.
Type Decentralized degree Access mechanism Transaction cost Transaction speed Application scenarios Example
Public Complete decentralization Anyone High Low Digital currency Bitcoin, Ethereum (ETH)
Consortium Partial decentralization Authorized organizations or groups Medium Medium Business cooperation Hyperledger, R3 Corda
Private Centralized Specific individuals or entities Low High Financial and auditing institutions Arcblock
Tab.2  Comparison of three types of blockchain
Fig.5  Consortium blockchain network based on HLF.
Participants Permissions Lifecycle on the chain
Government Query Always on the chain
Contractor Query
Upload		 Contractors would be always on the chain; Subcontractors would exit the chain when the contract tasks are finished
Supervisor Query
Compliance checking		 Always on the chain
Owner Query
Confirm		 Always on the chain
Tab.3  Participants’ permissions and lifecycle on the consortium blockchain
Fig.6  Transaction flow in the consortium blockchain network based on the consensus process.
Fig.7  Construction quality compliance checking in the blockchain system.
Fig.8  Pseudocode of the chaincode for quality compliance checking of reinforcing cage.
Fig.9  Screenshots of information of the (a) blocks and (b) transactions in the consortium blockchain network based on Hyperledger Explorer.
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