ABSTRACT:
As the construction industry shifts toward
industrialization, digitalization, intelligence, and low-carbon development,
prefabricated intelligent construction has emerged as a key pathway for
enhancing efficiency, quality control, resource utilization, and full
life-cycle management. Yet existing studies remain largely confined to
single-technology applications, local process optimization, or isolated
engineering cases, lacking a systematic grasp of the field’s development
trajectory, knowledge structure, research hotspots, and future challenges.
Addressing this gap, this study presents a bibliometric review aimed at
clarifying the research evolution, core knowledge domains, technological
frontiers, and application-oriented challenges in prefabricated intelligent
construction. Based on the Web of Science Core Collection, 583 journal articles
published from 2015 to 2025 were retained after standardized search and
screening. Using VOSviewer and bibliometrix, the study analyzed publication
trends, subject distribution, national and institutional collaboration, author
networks, keyword co-occurrence, thematic clustering, and research frontiers.
Compared with traditional narrative reviews, this approach integrates
quantitative bibliometric analysis with thematic content interpretation,
constructing a panoramic and dynamic analytical framework for the field. Research
shows that prefabricated intelligent construction underwent a leap from initial
exploration to rapid expansion during 2015–2025, with publications and citations
from 2023–2025 accounting for 76.16% and 84.07% of the total sample,
respectively, establishing it as an active research frontier. In the global
landscape, China contributes prominently in output volume, while Australia, the
United States, the United Kingdom, and Germany demonstrate relatively high
per-publication impact. The disciplinary structure is dominated by engineering,
construction, and building technology, supported by multidisciplinary
intersections, forming three major research hotspots: the integration of
prefabricated construction and intelligent technologies, process innovation and
intelligent equipment, and structural performance and engineering applications.
In essence, this field represents a full life-cycle construction paradigm arising
from the deep coupling of industrialization, digitalization, intelligence, and
performance control. Future breakthroughs are needed in four dimensions: full
life-cycle data standards, digital twin-driven closed-loop platforms,
equipment–process collaborative optimization, and multi-scenario engineering
validation to drive the transition toward large-scale application.
Keywords:
Prefabricated construction; Intelligent construction; Life-cycle
management; Intelligent equipment; Construction inspection and monitoring; Structural
performance; Engineering applications
