Infrastructure Engineering - Research Publications

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    Spatial Data Integration Challenges: Australian Case Studies
    MOHAMMADI, H ; RAJABIFARD, A ; BINNS, A ; WILLIAMSON, I (Spatial Sciences Institute, 2007)
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    What will motivate local governments to share spatial information
    McDougall, K. ; Rajabifard, A. ; Williamson, I. P. ( 2005)
    Local government is a rich source of accurate and detailed spatial information which is utilised not only at the local level but increasingly at other levels of government. To build the spatial data infrastructure (SDI) at a state and national level, the role of local governments and their motivation to participate in the sharing of spatial information must be better understood. Although institutional problems still present some of the greatest challenges in building multi-jurisdictional SDIs, the technical and physical capacity of the smaller jurisdictions can impact on their ability to participate with larger and usually better resourced jurisdictions.In recent years partnerships have emerged as a useful mechanism for establishing a framework and environment conducive to data sharing. However, unless the partnership arrangements are carefully designed and managed to meet the business objectives of each partner, then it is unlikely that they will be sustainable in the longer term. This paper outlines research being conducted on the factors that contribute to the success of local-state government partnerships initiatives in Australia. The research methodology, which consists of mixed method approach utilising case studies and a qualitative survey of local government experiences in partnerships arrangements will be discussed. The case studies based in Queensland, Victoria and Tasmania focus on the arrangements to share property related information and reflect a variety of collaborative approaches. Some initial findings of the research will be presented and their possible implication to future partnership initiatives will be discussed.
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    What Will Motivate Local Governments to Share Spatial Information?
    MCDOUGALL, K ; Rajabifard, A ; WILLIAMSON, IP (Spatial Sciences Institute, 2005)
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    Land administration and Spatial Data Infrastructures
    Williamson, I. P. ; Grant, D. ; Rajabifard, A. ( 2005)
    Internationally the spatial data infrastructure (SDI) concept has focussed on national SDIs.However SDIs are increasingly focussing on large scale people relevant data (land parcelbased data or build environmental data) with the result that today it is suggested most SDIactivity worldwide is at this level. A central aspect in understanding these developments isthe evolution of mapping, and the growth of land administration systems and nationalmapping initiatives in different countries.The objective of this paper is to discuss the evolving nature of SDIs away from a simplenational concept to a complex hierarchy where large scale SDIs are the major influence. Thepaper concludes with a discussion of policy development and the impact of institutionalarrangements in managing spatial information.
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    Making the SDI concept relevant to Asia-Pacific countries: the PCGIAP experience
    HOLLAND, PETER ; WILLIAMSON, IAN ; RAJABIFARD, ABBAS ; Manning, John ( 2005)
    Development of regional spatial data infrastructures (SDI) is one of the distinctive features ofthe last decade. This is mainly due to the need for seamless consistent spatial data beyondnational boundaries to support decision-making at a multi-national level. The development ofthese regional initiatives began with the creation of regional SDI coordination groups such asthe Permanent Committee for GIS Infrastructure for Asia and the Pacific (PCGIAP), formedin 1995 under the auspices of the United Nations Regional Cartographic Conference for Asiaand the Pacific (UNRCC-AP).The aims of the PCGIAP are to maximise the economic, social and environmental benefits ofgeographic information in accordance with Agenda 21 by providing a forum for nations fromthe Asia and Pacific region (the largest region in the world) to:Share experiences and cooperate in the development of a regional SDI;Contribute to the development of the global SDI; and,Participate in any other form of activity such as education, training, and technologytransfer at different jurisdictional levels.Over the past ten years, the PCGIAP has confronted a number of issues associated withbuilding a regional SDI. The group has also assisted member nations in their national SDIinitiatives.This paper describes some of the experiences of the PCGIAP, in particular:The establishment of a new geodetic datum for the region;The benchmarking of cadastral systems;The conceptualization of a framework for marine zone administration in the future; and,The strategic issues confronting the PCGIAP at the start of its 2nd decade of operation.
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    Development of a Virtual Australia Utilising an SDI Enabled Platform
    Rajabifard, A. ; Binns, A. ; Williamson, I. P. ( 2005)
    Spatial Data Infrastructure (SDI) which is an evolving concept and can be viewed as anenabling platform linking data producers, providers and value adders to data users. With thisin mind, many nations and jurisdictions are investing in developing such platforms andinfrastructures that enable their stakeholders to work together in a more mutual approach tocreate distributed virtual systems that support better decision-making. The success of thesesystems depend on collaboration between all parties and need to be designed to supportefficient access, retrieval and delivery of spatial information to where it is needed.Within Australia, through the Cooperative Research Centre for Spatial Information (CRC-SI),there is a vision to provide a single entry point to SI, modeling and visualization tools, makingspatial information available and useful to all - at any time and in any place. This requires theseamless integration of SDIs at different levels including state and national to form a virtualjurisdiction such as Virtual Australia, providing a foundation for identifying best practice andkey performance indicators of SDIs in terms of their policy, technology and institutionalframeworks.This paper will discuss how SDIs can be used as an enabling platform in the construction anddelivery of a Virtual Australia, based on the SDI hierarchy model where data flows withminimal impediments within and between state and federal/national levels. The benefits ofVirtual Australia will be more than just the representation of feature based structures of theworld, it will also include the administration and institutional aspects of such features,enabling both technical and institutional aspects to be incorporated into decision-making. Thisis an aspect of research identified as more challenging than complex technical issues.
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    Development of a Virtual Australia Utilising an SDI Enabled Platform
    Rajabifard, A. ; Binns, A. ; Williamson, I. P. ( 2005)
    Spatial Data Infrastructure (SDI) which is an evolving concept and can be viewed as anenabling platform linking data producers, providers and value adders to data users. With thisin mind, many nations and jurisdictions are investing in developing such platforms andinfrastructures that enable their stakeholders to work together in a more mutual approach tocreate distributed virtual systems that support better decision-making. The success of thesesystems depend on collaboration between all parties and need to be designed to supportefficient access, retrieval and delivery of spatial information to where it is needed.Within Australia, through the Cooperative Research Centre for Spatial Information (CRC-SI),there is a vision to provide a single entry point to SI, modeling and visualization tools, makingspatial information available and useful to all – at any time and in any place. This requires theseamless integration of SDIs at different levels including state and national to form a virtualjurisdiction such as Virtual Australia, providing a foundation for identifying best practice andkey performance indicators of SDIs in terms of their policy, technology and institutionalframeworks.This paper will discuss how SDIs can be used as an enabling platform in the construction anddelivery of a Virtual Australia, based on the SDI hierarchy model where data flows withminimal impediments within and between state and federal/national levels. The benefits ofVirtual Australia will be more than just the representation of feature based structures of theworld, it will also include the administration and institutional aspects of such features,enabling both technical and institutional aspects to be incorporated into decision-making. Thisis an aspect of research identified as more challenging than complex technical issues.
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    Spatial Data Integration
    MOHAMMADI, HOSSEIN ; BINNS, ANDREW ; RAJABIFARD, ABBAS ; Williamson, Ian P. ( 2006)
    Todays world relies heavily on spatial data to manage the natural and built environments. Monitoring and controlling the impact of human activities on the environment and the impact of natural environmental changes (including natural hazards) on the built environment is a major policy driver for many jurisdictions. The mitigation of natural hazards including tsunamis, earthquakes and landslides and securing citizens against them has become another priority of nations, especially after the tsunami within the Asia/Pacific region. September 11 was also a major point in history which attracts attentions towards providing more efficient counter-terrorism initiatives.
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    SDI governance bridging the gap between people and geospatial resources
    Box, Paul ; RAJABIFARD, ABBAS ( 2009)
    Organisational arrangements have long been recognised as a critical enabler and fundamental component of Spatial Data Infrastructure (SDI). More recently, the term “governance” has become increasingly used to refer to aspects of institutional frameworks that support SDI. However, given the polysemous nature of the term and the evolving nature of approaches to implementing SDI, it not clear exactly what is meant by the term “SDI governance” and thus the scope, nature and challenges of governance are not well understood. Through an exploration of concepts and model of governance in a variety of contexts, a conceptual model of SDI governance is being developed. An investigation of practical realities of governance in four Australian SDI initiatives has been used to inform the development of this model. This paper provides an overview of the concepts of governance, presents some key findings from the Australian SDI cases studies; and describes an initial conceptual model of governance.
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    Developing a seamless SDI model across the land-sea interface
    Vaez, Sheelan Sheikheslami ; RAJABIFARD, ABBAS ; BINNS, ANDREW ; Williamson, Ian Philip ( 2007)
    A more integrated and holistic approach to management of spatial information relating to coastal and marine environments is needed and this can be facilitated by the creation of a Spatial Data Infrastructure (SDI) on a seamless platform. There is a growing and urgent need to create a seamless SDI model that bridges the gap between the terrestrial and marine environments, creating a spatially enabled land-sea interface to more effectively meet sustainable development objectives. This paper discusses the principles and concepts followed by introduction to issues and challenges that must be overcome in developing an overarching architecture for a seamless SDI that allows access to and interoperability of data from marine, coastal and terrestrial environments.