Exploring the use of lean construction ambidexterity and industry 4.0 to achieve sustainable performance

Purpose The construction industry has benefited from adopting Industry 4.0 (I4.0) technologies and Lean construction (LC) practices. To better understand the effects of adopting I4.0 technologies on sustainable performance in construction projects, a model is developed to pursue this relationship and deliberate the mediating role of LC ambidexterity, which is based on paradox thinking and organizational ambidexterity theory. Design/methodology/approach This study adopts a survey design, collects data on construction projects in China and tests the hypothesized model through the partial least squares structural equation modeling method. A purposive and snowball sampling strategy was applied for recruiting research participants. Between January and February 2023, 102 construction professionals from Chinese construction companies using I4.0 technologies participated in the survey. Measures of LC ambidextrous capabilities, I4.0 technologies and sustainable performance are rated on a five-point Likert scale. Findings The results confirm that the use of I4.0 technologies has a positive effect on LC ambidexterity capability and sustainable performance. The LC exploitative capability has positive effects on sustainable performance. Even if the impact of exploration capability on sustainable performance is not well reflected in the current study, it is still worthwhile for organizations to develop LC ambidexterity of exploration and exploitation in the context of projects, as exploration’s impact on performance will probably only be realized over longer terms. Originality/value This study contributes to the body of knowledge of I4.0, LC and project sustainable performance in the construction industry and provides managerial implications on how to achieve sustainable performance from an ambidexterity perspective.