Sustainability Driven Adoption of Digital Twin Technology in the Malaysian Construction Industry

The Malaysian construction industry is facing increasing pressure to embrace digital technologies that enhance efficiency and sustainability. Innovative tools have transformed the industry across various aspects in this era of cutting-edge technology; Digital Twin (DT) technology has emerged as a transformative solution, enabling real-time monitoring, predictive analytics, and sustainable resource management. Despite its potential, DT adoption in construction remains limited, particularly in developing economies. A structure survey was conducted, and 132 industrial professionals were included after screening the data. The study highlights the influencing factors for Digital Twin (DT) adoption in the Malaysian construction industry and its contribution to sustainability outcomes. To address a gap in developing-economy contexts, the data were analysed using Machine Learning models. The findings reveal that enablers (β = 0.369, p < 0.001), adoption intention (β = 0.377, p < 0.001), and sustainability constructs (β = 0.531, p < 0.03) significantly drove DT adoption, while barriers (β = -0.135, p < 0.042) hurt adoption intention and sustainability outcome. Moreover, DT has positive effects on economic (β = 0.367, p < 0.01), environmental (β = 0.295, p < 0.05), and social (β = 0.282, p < 0.05) sustainability dimensions. The results highlight the central role of the relative advantages of technology, organizational leadership, and preparedness in enabling Digital Twin (DT) adoption. On the other hand factors such as lack of standards and cost concerns are major factors ranked as major barriers to DT adoption. The study provides practical insights for policymakers and firms to uplift DT-driven sustainability in construction and also contributes to advancing the Sustainable Development Goals SDGs 9,11, and 12 of the United Nations.