Abstract:

The construction industry is undergoing a paradigm shift towards industrialization, moving from traditional on-site craftsmanship to off-site manufacturing, a transition often referred to as Construction 4.0. This transformation demands the incorporation of new professional profiles beyond the traditional roles of Architects and Quantity Surveyors, who have historically dominated the built environment sector. Specifically, it requires a deep synergy between Industrial Engineers (focused on process optimization, plant layout, systems engineering, and quality control) and Industrial Designers (focused on product definition, modularity, user interface, and design for manufacture and assembly).

This paper presents the results of a teaching innovation project carried out at the University of Cádiz, using the expansion of the School of Engineering as a real-world "Living Lab". This complex scenario served as a constraint-driven environment where students had to propose a modular, industrialized extension to the existing building. Crucially, sustainability was established as a transversal core value throughout the project. Students were required to address the "triple bottom line": economic viability (optimizing manufacturing costs), environmental impact (minimizing waste through precise prefabrication), and social inclusion (ensuring accessible and user-centric design).

The study analyzes the longitudinal evolution of the teaching methodology over two academic cycles, involving students from the Master in Industrial Engineering and the Degree in Industrial Design and Product Development. In the first cycle, the project was conducted with a multidisciplinary but disconnected approach ("siloed" learning). Design students focused on defining the building envelope, while Engineering students planned the industrialization process independently. Results showed that, although the proposals were valid in isolation, the lack of digital interoperability led to low technology readiness levels. A significant gap was identified: design proposals were often incompatible with scalable manufacturing logic, compromising the project's economic and environmental efficiency.

In the second cycle, an integrated methodology was implemented using digitalization as the connecting backbone to bridge this gap. The workflow began with a "Scan-to-BIM" process: 3D scanning of the existing infrastructure generated a precise point cloud, which served as a rigid boundary condition for both groups. This parametric modeling approach allowed both disciplines to work within a common data environment. Consequently, the role of prototyping evolved significantly. It shifted from mere aesthetic/volumetric representation to a technical tool for validating assembly logic, connection nodes, and process feasibility. These non-functional but geometrically critical prototypes allowed students to physically test the "fit and finish" of their industrialized components.

The results demonstrate that when Industrial Engineering (process vision) and Product Design (product vision) work concurrently, students successfully conceptualize the building not as a unique project, but as a sustainable industrialized system. This approach significantly enhances their competencies in digitalization and industrialization, validating that the integration of these profiles is essential to achieve a built environment that is economically efficient, environmentally responsible, and socially inclusive.

Keywords:

Construction 4.0, Collaborative Project-Based Learning, Digitalization, Prototyping, Sustainability, Industrial Engineering, Product Design.