Infrastructure Engineering - Research Publications
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ItemImproving design performance by alliance between contractors and designers in international hydropower EPC projects from the perspective of Chinese construction companies(MDPI AG, 2018-04-13)© 2018 by the authors. Extant literature lacks a systematic framework addressing the mechanisms of the alliance functional process and its impacts on management activities together with performance in delivering Engineering-procurement-construction (EPC) projects. This study quantitatively investigates the cause-effect relationships among these themes by building and validating a conceptual model of contractor-designer alliance in international hydropower EPC projects. With the support of data collected from an industry survey, the results reveal the key design problems, application of contractor-designer alliance, design management level and performance, which form a sound basis for design management emphasis in EPC activities, e.g., sufficiently considering sustainability of hydropower projects by incorporating environmental, social, and economic factors into designs. The path analysis indicates that the contractor-designer alliance can not only improve design performance by enhancing design management, but also directly promote design performance. This research has significant contributions to the body of knowledge by building interdisciplinary linkages between the areas of alliance, design management, and performance, theoretically demonstrating the mechanism of how interfirm cooperation functions to achieve superior design outcomes of hydropower EPC projects. Understanding these causal relationships will be crucial for contractors and designers to optimally allocate their complementary resources for seeking better design solutions in dealing with both technical issues and sustainability factors.
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ItemTransforming Maritime Logistics with The Power of Information Technology(Indonesian Strategic Management Society, 2018-10-22)
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ItemQualitative Analysis of the Occupational Health and Safety Performance of Chinese International Construction Projects(MDPI AG, 2018-11-22)Chinese contractors undertaking international projects are frequently criticized for their poor Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) performance. It is noticed that people with different occupations may perceive OHS differently. From a qualitative perspective, this study investigates the perceived OHS performances of design managers and construction managers engaged in Chinese overseas construction projects, considering a range of subgroups classified by people’s overseas experience, project size, project industry, project location, and firm size. The analysis was based on an e-questionnaire survey that sampled responses from 52 design managers and 160 construction managers involved in 110 international projects, and face-to-face interviews with 26 managers. The findings indicate that the assessment variation of OHS performance between design managers and construction managers is not only related to their different mental ways, but also can be mediated by their in-progress communication and affected by project and organizational conditions. The varying OHS performance in projects with different sizes or from different regions also suggests that Chinese contractors should be more proactive in OHS management instead of passively responding to external requirements.
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ItemEducation & training for zero energy and lean manufacturing & construction of housing in Australia(Curtin University, 2018-09-27)For zero energy and efficient production of mass customised housing, good outcomes are possible only when it is supportedby a good education curriculum and infrastructure. This paper reports on the status of education for zero energy and lean manufacturing and construction of houses in Australia by investigating offerings of Victorian schools, vocational training and highereducation sectors in these respects. The courses currently offered within Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF) were assessed. It was found that there are still gaps in the education infrastructure that do not provide fully for opportunities to educate the workforce in these areas. Although the main knowledge areas of zero energy are sufficiently covered by courses involving sustainability, renewable energy, energy efficiency in buildings and infrastructure construction, the teaching of lean concepts are not widespread in all these education sectors in Australia.
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ItemOccupational stress and workplace design(MDPI AG, 2018-09-23)The World Green Building Council (WGBC) advocates improvements in employee health, wellbeing, and productivity in buildings as people are about 90% of an organisation’s expense and well exceed building costs and energy costs. It was reported that earlier research on workplace design primarily focused on physical arrangement of employees’ immediate work area, and ambient environmental qualities of the work area. Building organisation, exterior amenities, and site-planning have been given less attention. Therefore, we examine more closely the health relevance of both proximal and remote aspects of workplace design. Occupational stress is a complex phenomenon that is dynamic and evolving over time. This investigation reviews the existing fundamental conceptual models of occupational stress, workplace design, and connection to nature. It aims to develop an improved model relevant to work place design and occupational stress linked with connection to nature. The proposed improved model is presented with an appropriate causal loop diagram to assist in visualizing how different variables in a system are interrelated. The developed model highlights how connection to nature in workspaces can function as a work resource with a dual effect of improving physical wellbeing and psychological wellbeing.
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ItemProceedings of the Port Competitiveness and Financing Research Workshop(University of Melbourne, Department of Infrastructure Engineering, 2018-04-10)Preface As an initiative of The University of Melbourne and partner universities, The University of Gadja Mada and Universitas Indonesia, a workshop of port researchers and senior practitioners was convened in Melbourne from 4th April to 6th April 2018. The researchers and practitioners have been brought together as a part of the Infrastructure policy and finance research being undertaken under the auspice of the Infrastructure Cluster Agenda of the Australia Indonesia Centre. This set of proceedings collates the presentations on the research day of the workshop conducted on the 4th April 2018. The researchers have been considering infrastructure and finance associated in improving port efficiency in situations where the port directly interfaces with a major city. The researchers have collectively critically reviewed the international literature, conducted surveys in Indonesia and Australia, conducted focus group meetings in Indonesia and Australia, conducted in‐depth interviews, participated in field trips to major port establishments and explored a range of case study projects in both countries. This workshop created the opportunity for researchers to seek opportunity to syntheses their collective research.
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ItemA minimum viable product design of volumetric building modules(ZEMCH Network, 2018)This paper explores the adaptation of an IBM approach to product development emphasising user experience and critical requirements. The potential of this approach to be applied to offsite building manufacture is identified. Minimum Viable Product (MVP) has helped IBM validate key hypothesis about a product, thus increasing its probability of success, before completing its development. This paper attempts to answer the question of whether an MVP of manufactured building unit can aid cost awareness at early design phase of building and also facilitate a mass customisation. Since about 80% of a building’s cost is determined in the concept design phase and the frontend design of manufactured buildings is seemingly unaware of costs, time and processes associated with the methods, this can cause unnecessary cost increases. The investigation involves the design of a parametrically constrained building system of an MVP of space requirement to program. The Victorian apartment design standards, logistic constraints, and user customisation to room sizes are considered to define spatial limitations in the case study. The effectiveness of the system is examined through a case study analysis to identify the possibility for variation of volumetric unit in an apartment building scenario. It is expected to develop a new understanding of modular building constraints at early design stage yet still allow for a mass customized outcome without the expense of variation through lack of front end knowledge of the manufactured system. It is also expected to produce a better understanding of base building costs and time associated with a mass customisable manufactured building system, suggesting possible cost data inputs to the system. It is anticipated that an MVP approach to early building design can help determine design and cost viability of building projects to stakeholders in the early design phase.
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ItemMoving assembly line for low cost mass customised homes(ZEMCH Network, 2018)This paper explores the potential for a mass customised building volume applying lean based moving assembly line method. Past experience would suggest that the moving assembly line stems from a mass production, that reduces customisation through standardisation of processes. However, when combined with a seamless method of design to documentation up front, it is proposed that the moving assembly line could allow for mass customisation. In addition, lean practices suggest that refinements of processes are intrinsically linked to a repetitious assembly process used in producing a homogenous object. We seek to break these moulds and examine the potential for a lean moving assembly line to allow mass customisation and what is required to do so. Moving assembly line offsite building manufacture factories in Australia, Sweden and Japan were visited and observed. A comparative exercise of when, what happens where was undertaken to identify the approaches. It was found that the moving assembly line allows cost and time savings in off-site manufacture of multi storey buildings, and could enable for a mass customised outcome. Lean is the facilitator, or enabler of this process working efficiently.
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ItemBenchmarking Energy Management Schemes Among Facilities managers in Australia(Niche Digital, 2017-09-01)
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ItemThe impact of technical standards on international project performance: Chinese contractors' experience(ELSEVIER SCI LTD, 2017-11)