Assessing Perceived Critical Success Factors for Construction 3D Printing Adoption Readiness in Egypt Through Structural Equation Modelling

The implementation of construction 3D printing (3DP) offers a viable approach to enhancing productivity, optimizing material use, and advancing sustainability in infrastructure development, particularly in developing construction markets where economic constraints, labour reliance, and environmental challenges persist. This study proposes and empirically tests a theory-based framework to evaluate the perceived critical success factors (CSFs) shaping readiness for the adoption of 3DP within the Egyptian construction sector. The proposed framework is fundamentally grounded in the Technology–Organization–Environment (TOE) perspective, wherein Resource and Technology Optimization (RTO) and Innovation and Creativity in Design (ICD) constitute the technological dimension, Strategic Project Management (SPM) and Organizational Support (OS) represent the organizational dimension, and Stakeholder and Client Engagement (SCE), Sustainability and Environmental Initiatives (SEI), and Policy and Regulatory Considerations (PRC) define the environmental dimension. A total of 157 valid responses collected from construction professionals were analyzed using the Relative Importance Index (RII) and partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM). Because construction 3DP remains at an early, pre-commercial stage of diffusion in Egypt, the survey captures professionals’ perceptions of adoption readiness rather than verified implementation performance. This sample exceeds the requirements of a priori statistical power analysis (n = 103 to detect medium effects with seven predictors at a power of 0.80 and α = 0.05) and the inverse-square-root criterion (n = 137), thereby providing adequate statistical power for the structural estimates. However, generalizability remains bounded by the purposive, single-country sample. The RII findings indicate that inaccurate budgeting and scheduling, limited managerial competence, shortages of skilled labour, cultural resistance, and inadequate awareness constitute the most significant barriers to adoption. The structural model accounted for 81.6% of the variance in 3DP adoption. Furthermore, all hypothesized relationships were positive and statistically significant, with 95% confidence intervals excluding zero; SPM (β = 0.4851), RTO (β = 0.4195), and SCE (β = 0.3343) were identified as the most influential determinants, followed by OS, ICD, SEI, and PRC. Discriminant validity was supported by both the Fornell–Larcker and heterotrait–monotrait (HTMT) criteria, and full collinearity diagnostics indicated no substantial common-method bias. The results reveal that successful 3DP adoption is determined not solely by technological preparedness, but also by effective alignment of managerial capabilities, resource optimization, stakeholder trust, sustainability orientation, and regulatory support. Beyond prior TOE- and SEM-based 3DP studies, which have largely examined technology acceptance in developed markets or tested aggregate constructs, this study advances the field by disaggregating the three TOE contexts into seven empirically tested CSF constructs, quantifying their relative influence, and providing the first empirically tested adoption framework of this kind for the Egyptian construction sector, grounded in perception survey data. The resulting framework can support the prospective implementation of sustainable construction technologies in infrastructure sectors in developing countries.