1. Introduction
In recent years, remarkable efforts have been made toward sustainability in every sector. One of the key areas that have been in focus is the area of carbon IV oxide emissions. Several strategies have been implemented to minimize the rate of carbon emissions today. Some of these include reducing the use of personal vehicles in transportation and the use of renewable sources of energy, among others. One of the key areas well known for the massive rate of carbon emissions is households. Energy is used in various aspects of the household, such as cooking, lighting, heating, and many others, producing the highest carbon emission rate. This blue ocean strategy is for creating zero-carbon residential construction fully powered by solar energy, one of the growing renewable and sustainable energy sources.
2. Definitions and justification of elements of CSFs
According to Hokianto (2023), the blue ocean strategy ensures that the cost is as low as possible. Yet, the product is of high quality to meet the ever-increasing demand in a way different from that currently available. The use of solar energy to provide energy for homesteads is popular and hence can be embraced by many as many are conversant with it. This section focuses on defining critical success factors (CSF) elements.
2.1 Focus
One of the key elements of the CSFs is what is known as focus. By definition, as highlighted by Chua, Wang, and Yuen (2023), it is the aspect of putting more concentration in the area that could make the business stand out against other competitors in the same marketplace. In this project, the focus would be the materials used for building and solar energy for energy preservation in the newly constructed building.
2.2 Divergence
Another vital aspect of CSFs is divergence. Rafeh et al. (2023) define divergence in the context of blue ocean strategy as breaking from what is known and common practice in the market to come up with a unique product in a way that no one can compete in the market. In the context of this project, building materials such as blocks are a common practice and are interchanged with the use of recycled content materials to create the building materials.
2.3 Tagline
Tagline is another element of the CSFs, which can be the essence of the value position, mission, or positioning in the marketplace that makes the business unique to others (Rafeh et al., 2023). Considering this blue ocean strategy, the tagline is “Reduced cost, high efficiency, and the highest level of care to the earth.”
3. 4-Action Framework Identification and Justification – CSF’s
Critical Success factors with the main focus of driving the blue ocean strategy use the 4-action framework approach. The four actions can be summarised as reduce, eliminate, raise, and create. In this project, the reduction is aimed at minimizing waste through prefabrication. According to research by Yu et al. (2021), prefabrication leads to a significant reduction of waste in that it helps streamline construction wastes and the optimization of material used. Another reduction is based on carbon emissions. Research by Chandra Voumik et al. (2023) has also shown that using solar energy is vital in decreasing carbon emissions. In summary reduction in the project focuses on reducing waste by using waste for construction materials and prefabrication, reducing carbon emissions by using solar panels, and reducing energy lost by using materials that conserve energy from the waste. Another aspect of the action framework is eliminated. Using cement blocks for construction is common, with over 90% of buildings made that way. Therefore, the project focuses on eliminating such buildings by developing a sustainable building. Another elimination is the removal of the traditional dependency on the HVAC system by adopting passive heating and cooling systems. This is justified as the traditional systems are well known for massive energy consumption.
The next part of the action is raising awareness of the new product’s existence in the market. According to Gong et al. (2023), customers focus more on sustainability and energy consumption, hence the market. Another aspect is to raise energy efficiency standards in building codes as it align well with long-term sustainability goals. The last aspect is cre3at, which in this project is to create Smart Home Designs with integrated energy management systems. It is evidenced, as shown by the study by Furszyfer Del Rio, Sovacool, and Griffiths (2021), that smart homes are in demand since the issue of climate change and sustainability took center stage. Lastly, the project creates new eco-friendly materials for construction from waste. The materials will have high insulation to minimize energy losses, as illustrated by Godin, Sapinski, and Dupuis (2021)
4. Strategy Canvas
5. Define and justify three non-consumer groups.
The first non-consumer groups for this project are the local government and municipalities. This is because the two are keen on sustainability practices and ensuring that the waste is minimized, and the project would fit them. The second non-consumer group is real estate developers, whose main focus is eco-friendliness. This group can, therefore, be engaged for the sake of collaboration. The last noncustomer group is educational institutions and research centers. This is because there is intensive research in sustainability; hence, it could be pivotal.
6. Creative application
It is evident from past studies that the issue of sustainability in terms of building materials and energy sources has been the center of focus for the last decade. According to Godin, Sapinski, and Dupuis (2021), sustainable buildings and energy have increased from an initial zeo to about 2500 worldwide. This shows that there is a massive demand for this aspect. This section illustrates the blue strategy compared to the red strategy.
The Red Ocean strategy focused on getting the houses done without effort on sustainability, as shown above. Therefore, the walls could absorb energy, hence massive wastage. In this project, the room maintains its warmth as no energy is lost by conduction. This means the low power is used to heat the room during winter. This will impact climate change massively as energy is conserved. The system is automated, as when the temperature is lower than the input temperature, the heater autostarts
Another aspect that leads to massive energy losses is the old system where the user was the one to switch on to increase temperature and off to lower the temperature. This means that the rooms could be on heat for even longer hours unnecessarily in case where one forgets. The blue strategy imposes an automated system where the user sets the temperature they believe is okay for them, automatically switching it on and off.
Lastly, the existing houses are powered by electricity, which is more expensive. The new system uses solar panels to automate and power the house, resulting in massive cost reductions.
7. Conclusion
The analysis clearly shows that the blue ocean strategy targets improving the ecosystem, which is now the center of focus in today’s world. Instead of using the traditional strategy of construction and energy supply, it is necessary to use recycled materials to create building materials that will meet the growing demand for sustainability and eco-friendliness. With the CSFs, it’s clear that the project can lead to massive success. This is because the area is considered a new area in the market. At the same time, the existing building can be summed up as a red ocean strategy that focuses more on investment but no effort on the impacts. As outlined, the four action frameworks have highlighted what to reduce, eliminate, raise, and create from the project.
Reference List
Chandra Voumik, L. et al. (2023) “An investigation into the primary causes of carbon dioxide releases in Kenya: Does renewable energy matter to reduce carbon emission?,” Renewable energy focus, 47(100491), p. 100491. doi: 10.1016/j.ref.2023.100491.
Chua, J. Y., Wang, X. and Yuen, K. F. (2023) “Sustainable shipping management: Definitions, critical success factors, drivers and performance,” Transport Policy, 141, pp. 72–82. doi: 10.1016/j.tranpol.2023.07.012.
Furszyfer Del Rio, D. D., Sovacool, B. K. and Griffiths, S. (2021) “Culture, energy and climate sustainability, and smart home technologies: A mixed methods comparison of four countries,” Energy and climate change, 2(100035), p. 100035. doi: 10.1016/j.egycc.2021.100035.
Godin, K., Sapinski, J. P. and Dupuis, S. (2021) “The transition to net zero energy (NZE) housing: An integrated approach to market, state, and other barriers,” Cleaner and Responsible Consumption, 3(100043), p. 100043. doi: 10.1016/j.clrc.2021.100043.
Gong, Y. et al. (2023) “How sustainable marketing influences the customer engagement and sustainable purchase intention? The moderating role of corporate social responsibility,” Frontiers in psychology, 14. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1128686.
Hokianto, H. F. (2023) “Implementation of Blue Ocean Strategy: Review of previous cases,” Sinergi International Journal of Management and Business, 1(2), pp. 116–125. doi: 10.61194/ijmb.v1i2.64.
Rafeh, A. et al. (2023) “Ranking and grouping of critical success factors for stakeholder management in construction projects,” Journal of Asian Architecture and Building Engineering, 22(6), pp. 3569–3582. doi: 10.1080/13467581.2023.2193609.
Yu, A. T. W. et al. (2021) “Strategies for effective waste reduction and management of building construction projects in highly urbanized cities—A case study of Hong Kong,” Buildings, 11(5), p. 214. doi: 10.3390/buildings11050214.