A telepresence environment for concurrent life-cycle design and construction

Construction projects normally involve transient 'virtual organisations', where a multidisciplinary project team works together on the design and construction of a facility. Many of these participants often work independently while taking decisions that inevitably affect others. The research described in the thesis involved examining the adoption of concurrent engineering (CE) principles by the construction industry as a way to reduce the problems posed by the fragmentation of the industry, and to enhance its competitiveness. An important aspect of concurrent engineering in construction is the need for effective communication of design information between all members of the project team and across all stages of the constructed facility's life-cycle. The thesis describes the development of a communications infrastructure for Concurrent Life-Cycle Design and Construction. [Continues.