The aim of this research was to develop and validate a conceptual design management
model for international, collaborative remote site projects. In the last decade or so
there has been an increasing number of remotely located and often environmentally
sensitive sites becoming the focus for development work involving potential
investors/entrepreneurs/stakeholders or government and non-government agencies.
There were no previously documented empirical examples, nor theoretical models, for
remote site design management. Projects on remote sites are frequently government
funded, making the approval processes, and timelines for example, subject to political
influence, which means that the projects are potentially more difficult to manage, at
all levels of involvement. The conceptual model was developed in association with
the development of a typology for remote sites, and an investigation of three
previously completed eco-resort and Antarctic science projects located on
environmentally sensitive world heritage sites. The model responded to and reflected
the perceived need for a well-integrated management approach to remote site projects.
The research aimed to also demonstrate the potential portability of the model, in terms
of offering a basis for a relevant management framework for built environment
projects, international scientific drilling projects and international humanitarian aid
projects. Grounded theory and case-study methodology were adopted when
developing the typology, the conceptual model and when validating the design
management model, as it involved empirical enquiry that afforded investigation of the
remote site design management phenomenon within a real-life contexts. Two main
case studies were undertaken to test the model, one being an historical Antarctic
Science Drilling Project and the other, a current UN Humanitarian Project in Sudan.
The findings to date support the conceptual design management model as being
relevant for not only non-profit and/or Humanitarian Aid projects in the Post-disaster
Reconstruction context, but also for commercially based Antarctic Science projects.
Subsequently, the model has also been applied to a Post-disaster Reconstruction
project in Aceh managed by the Jesuit Refugee Services (JRS)
