Advancing Off-Site Construction: Assessing Organizational Maturity and Capabilities in the Canadian Construction Industry

The construction industry, despite being a vital sector for societal growth, has struggled to match the accelerated growth seen in other peer industries. Over the past two decades, productivity within construction has remained stagnant, posing challenges to meeting societal demands and sustainability targets. Recognizing the potential of digitalization to revolutionize construction processes, this research addresses the critical need to assess and benchmark organizational maturity and capabilities in the Canadian construction industry, particularly in the context of off-site construction methodologies. This research project aims to establish a comprehensive method for assessing organizational capabilities related to off-site construction, thereby providing insights into current capacities and offering guidance for industry stakeholders to embrace advanced technologies and practices. Building upon an established international framework, the project evaluates organizational maturity across dimensions of people, process, and technology. By focusing on phases of design, manufacturing, and construction, the project will provide a nuanced understanding of the construction industry\u27s readiness for off-site construction adoption. The project provides a conceptual framework to enable construction companies to evaluate their maturity levels relative to industry peers, considering factors such as geography, size, and organizational type. By facilitating this benchmarking process, the research fosters a culture of continuous improvement and innovation within the Canadian construction industry. Ultimately, the findings of this research will contribute to the advancement of off-site construction practices, enhancing productivity, sustainability, and overall industry performance

Theoretical Framework for Risk Identification and Assessment in Infrastructure Projects Through AI-Knowledge Retrieval

Robust risk identification and assessment strategies are required to reduce the likelihood of failures, delays, and cost overruns in today\u27s complex infrastructure projects. The inability to respond to changing risks and the delay in identifying and assessing risks are both caused by the reliance on static methods commonly used in traditional methods of knowledge retrieval and risk identification and assessment. This study lays out a theoretical framework for better risk identification and assessment through the use of an AI-powered knowledge retrieval. A variety of unstructured data sources, such as contract documents, risk logs, site inspection reports, and emails, are automatically analysed by the framework using AI algorithms. By enhancing efficiency and providing project team members with anticipated knowledge, this framework promotes robustness in infrastructure projects and allows for preventive decision-making. This framework also improves infrastructure projects\u27 ability to handle risk by laying the groundwork for AI integration into risk identification and assessment, filling in holes in current techniques

Implementing Lean Construction for Sustainable Project Delivery: Enhancing Efficiency to Meet the UN SDGs

The construction industry is under increasing pressure to deliver cost-effective, environmentally sustainable projects. Lean Construction (LC) provides a framework for improving efficiency by minimizing waste and optimizing resource use, making it well-aligned with global sustainability goals such as the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs). This paper explores the strategic application of LC principles to promote sustainable practices throughout the construction lifecycle. By reviewing LC\u27s alignment with the SDGs, we propose a framework for integrating Lean practices to enhance environmental, social, and economic outcomes. The paper highlights how LC contributes to goals such as climate action, resource efficiency, and sustainable cities. Additionally, case studies and best practices are analyzed to demonstrate successful implementations, offering valuable insights for construction professionals seeking to balance efficiency with sustainability

System Dynamic Framework for Integrating Building Information Modelling with Construction Productivity Measurement in Hong Kong

Relatively high construction cost in Hong Kong requires the industry to improve construction productivity substantially in order to stay competitive. An appropriate construction productivity measurement (CPM) method is crucial to improving construction productivity. While previous studies have highlighted the benefits of integrating building information modelling (BIM) with CPM, BIM is not yet fully utilized in CPM practices due to various constraints. Therefore, this paper aims to overcome the constraints by developing a system dynamic (SD) framework for integrating BIM with CPM. First, a systematic literature review is carried out to identify the wide-ranging constraints and strategies for integrating BIM with the construction industry. Second, the literature findings are validated as applicable to the CPM context through semi-structured interviews with academic researchers and experts in the Hong Kong construction industry. Finally, the constraints and strategies are modelled using the SD approach, which reveals complicated interrelations between them. Constraints and strategies are grouped into six categories, namely, financial, technological and technical, legal and contractual, organizational and managerial, behavioral and cultural, and informational. The SD framework contributes to an in-depth study of the many influencing constraints and strategies and the inter-linked relations. The proposed framework will help practitioners overcome the constraints and embrace BIM utilization for CPM by referring to the strategies proposed

Circular Renovation of Urban Infrastructures: A Multi-Project Perspective

The construction sector is a significant contributor to global waste. With growing concerns about sustainability, adopting circularity in construction projects has become increasingly important. The urban infrastructure sector has characteristics that present valuable opportunities for circularity. This research explores these opportunities by focusing on the renovation of urban infrastructure components through a multi-project perspective. This innovative approach in the field of circular economy reveals new possibilities for material reuse by integrating material flows across multiple projects. By identifying the supply and demand of secondary materials, designers can incorporate them during the redesign phase. Additionally, the synchronization of project phases can be optimized in advance, as material donors and receivers are pre-determined. This research contributes to the field of circular renovation in construction. Project planners, municipalities, designers, contractors, and other stakeholders involved in the renovation process can leverage this novel approach to enhance the circularity and sustainability of their projects. The outcomes of this research can therefore contribute to the goal 12 (responsible consumption and production) and 9 (industries, innovation and infrastructure) of sustainable development goals. This paper presents the initial results and outcomes of a PhD journey. The methods and results will be demonstrated in later studies

Assessment of Interdependency for Building Components in Facility Management

This research presents a systematic approach for assessing component interdependencies within building subsystems in relation to unplanned maintenance (UPM). Utilizing a three-step methodology—quantitative content analysis, component causal relationships, and interdependency analysis—the study leverages work order description data to identify key components and their interactions. By applying social network analysis to top keyword and term frequency data, the study examines component centrality, revealing critical interdependencies that impact maintenance needs. Findings show that specific components, such as the steel damper and supply fan, play prominent roles within the subsystem network, with significant ripple effects in case of failure. This methodology not only provides valuable insights for facility managers in prioritizing maintenance efforts but also offers a foundation for future predictive maintenance strategies

Indiana STEM Teachers’ Perceptions of the Shift from In-Person to Virtual Training during the COVID-19 Pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic brought uncertainty to Indiana teachers in 2020. School closings caused disruptions to teachers’ classroom settings, ongoing training, and social and mental well-being (Pozo-Rico et al., 2020). Indiana GEAR UP’s commitment to teacher professional development for STEM educators led to a shift from their in-person summer teacher training sessions to virtual, just months after the school shutdowns in spring 2020. Participant evaluations showed that teachers appreciated the virtual training options and were able to learn new strategies to apply to their new virtual learning spaces. The online training sessions also had drawbacks. This research brief describes recommendations to schools offering virtual training to support ongoing STEM teacher development

The Problem of Reducing the Wave Resistance of Blunt Bodies at Supersonic and Hypersonic Velocities

A new method for reducing the aerodynamic wave drag of blunt bodies in supersonic and hypersonic flows is considered. The method is based on the destruction of the detached head shock wave by placing a family of thin needle elements of a cone-shaped or cylindrical type on the blunt surface. This qualitatively changes the gas-dynamic flow pattern and leads to a new positive quantitative effect. The bow shock wave breaks up into a series of local interacting shock waves of lower intensity, which leads to a decrease in the wave drag of the streamlined body. Variants of hemispherical blunting of an axisymmetric body of revolution and a supersonic leading edge of the wing is considered. A comparative numerical simulation of a supersonic flow around an axisymmetric body of revolution with a hemispherical blunting of the head part is carried out. The calculated effect of reducing the total aerodynamic drag was obtained at a counterflow velocity M∞=3.0 and amounted to 3.7% compared to hemispherical smooth bluntness when needle elements cover 20% of the blunting area. A tendency for a decrease in the total drag with an increase in the Mach number of the counterflow compared to hemispherical smooth bluntness due to an increase in the proportion of wave resistance is noted

Informal Education Experiences: Why STEM Camps Matter

This research brief details some of the positive impacts of student participation in after-school STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) camps provided by universities and informal education centers as described in published literature. In addition, the authors reviewed 2,841 anonymous participant surveys of 1st-12th grade students involved in nineteen STEM camps held at Purdue University Fort Wayne from 2019-2024 for related findings. Findings indicate that providing an enjoyable and enriching learning environment for STEM camps can foster a mindset of curiosity and a love for learning. Students who attend STEM camps likewise often experience a range of positive impacts, both academically and personally