Application of integrated fuzzy FCM-BIM-IoT for sustainable material selection and energy management of metro rail station box project in western India

Fuzzy Factor Comparison Method is a paired comparison-based Multi-Criteria Decision-Making method which can be effectively applied for selection of the best feasible alternative among a set of available alternatives. This paper aims at developing a methodology by application of fuzzy Factor Comparison Method for selection of most feasible, sustainable material for the design of floor, ceiling, walls, cladding, openings and fenestrations for an infrastructure transportation facility like metro rail station box of Ahmedabad, India. Results of fuzzy Factor Comparison Method reveal that polished Kota stone tiles, toughened fibreglass ceiling, Kota stone wall tiles and insulated fibreglass door appear to be the most feasible sustainable materials. Evaluation of the alternative building materials and design strategies was carried out through Building Information Modelling, and the observed results show 73% of average embodied energy savings achieved by the suggested alternative materials instead of the existing ones. Furthermore, this study also proposes a framework for real-time automated Building Information Modelling-enabled energy management system for the elevated metro rail station by the Internet of Things sensors. It has been observed that more than 25% of the operational cooling load can be reduced by the proposed integrated Building Information Modelling-Internet of Things framework. This novel approach plays a key role in the sustainable future of infrastructure projects.