Integrated governance arrangements of airport-region urban infrastructure development : gaining insights from urban infrastructure development in the Brisbane airport region

Polarising the issue of governance is the increasingly acknowledged role of airports in regional economic development, both as significant sources of direct employment and as attractants of commerce through enhanced mobility (Vickerman, Spiekermann & Wegener 1999; Hakfoort, Poot & Rietveld 2001). Most airports were once considered spatially removed from their cities, but as cities have expanded their airports no longer sit distinct of the urban environment. This newfound spatial proximity means that decisions for land use and development on either city or airport land are likely to have impacts that affect one another in either or both the short- or long-term (Stevens, Baker and Freestone 2007). These impacts increase the demand for decision making to find ways of integrating strategies for future development to ensure that airport developments do not impede the sustainable growth of its city, and likewise that city developments do not impede the sustainable growth of its airport (Gillen 2006). However questions of how, under what conditions, and to what extent decision making integration might be suitable for “airport regions” are yet to be explored let alone answered.

Critical success factors of project management for Brunei construction projects : improving project performance

The problem of delays in the construction industry is a global phenomenon and the construction industry in Brunei Darussalam is no exception. The goal of all parties involved in construction projects – owners, contractors, engineers and consultants in either the public or private sector is to successfully complete the project on schedule, within planned budget, with the highest quality and in the safest manner. Construction projects are frequently influenced by either success factors that help project parties reach their goal as planned, or delay factors that stifle or postpone project completion. The purpose of this research is to identify success and delay factors which can help project parties reach their intended goals with greater efficiency. This research extracted seven of the most important success factors according to the literature and seven of the most important delay factors identified by project parties, and then examined correlations between them to determine which were the most influential in preventing project delays. This research uses a comprehensive literature review to design and conduct a survey to investigate success and delay factors and then obtain a consensus of expert opinion using the Delphi methodology to rank the most needed critical success factors for Brunei construction projects. A specific survey was distributed to owners, contractors and engineers to examine the most critical delay factors. A general survey was distributed to examine the correlation between the identified delay factors and the seven most important critical success factors selected. A consensus of expert opinion using the Delphi methodology was used to rank the most needed critical success factors for Brunei building construction. Data was collected and evaluated by statistical methods to identify the most significant causes of delay and to measure the strength and direction of the relationship between critical success factors and delay factors in order to examine project parties’ evaluation of projects’ critical success and delay factors, and to evaluate the influence of critical success factors on critical delay factors. A relative importance index has been used to determine the relative importance of the various causes of delays. A one and two-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) has been used to examine how the group or groups evaluated the influence of the critical success factors in avoiding or preventing each of the delay factors, and which success factors were perceived as most influential in avoiding or preventing critical delay factors. Finally the Delphi method, using consensus from an expert panel, was employed to identify the seven most critical success factors used to avoid the delay factors, and thereby improve project performance.

Sustainable transport infrastructure : perspectives for sustainable urban and transport development

Many economic, social and environmental sustainability problems associated with typical urban transportation systems have revealed the importance of three domains of action: vehicle, infrastructure and user. These domains need to be carefully reconsidered in search of a sustainable urban development path. Although intelligent transportation systems have contributed substantially to enhancing efficiency, safety and comfort of travel, questions related to users’ behaviours and preferences, which stimulate considerable environmental effects, still needed to be further examined. In this chapter, options for smart urban transportation infrastructure development and the technological means for achieving broader goals of sustainable communities and urban development are explored.

Sustainable urban infrastructure development in south east Asia : evidence from Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur and Singapore

Many South East Asian cities have experienced substantial physical, economic and social transformations during the past several decades. The rapid pace of globalisation and economic restructuring has resulted in these cities receiving the full impact of urbanisation pressures. In an attempt to ease these pressures, cities such as Singapore, Hong Kong and Kuala Lumpur have advocated growth management approaches focussing especially on urban infrastructure sustainability. These approaches aim to achieve triple bottom line sustainability by balancing economic and social development, and environmental protection. This chapter evaluates three Asia-Pacific city cases, Singapore, Hong Kong and Kuala Lumpur, and assesses their experiences in managing their urban forms and infrastructure whilst promoting sustainable patterns of urban development.

Towards a unified method for the knowledge based urban development framework

Purpose–The growing debate in the literature indicates that the initiative to implement Knowledge Based Urban Development (KBUD) approaches in urban development process is neither simple nor quick. Many research efforts has therefore, been put forward to the development of appropriate KBUD framework and KBUD practical approaches. But this has lead to a fragmented and incoherent methodological approach. This paper outlines and compares a few most popular KBUD frameworks selected from the literature. It aims to identify some key and common features in the effort to achieve a unified method of KBUD framework. Design/methodology/approach–This paper reviews, examines and identifies various popular KBUD frameworks discussed in the literature from urban planners’ viewpoint. It employs a content analysis technique i.e. a research tool used to determine the presence of certain words or concepts within texts or sets of texts. Originality/value–The paper reports on the key and common features of a few selected most popular KBUD frameworks. The synthesis of the results is based from a perspective of urban planners. The findings which encompass a new KBUD framework incorporating the key and common features will be valuable in setting a platform to achieve a unified method of KBUD. Practical implications –The discussion and results presented in this paper should be significant to researchers and practitioners and to any cities and countries that are aiming for KBUD. Keywords – Knowledge based urban development, Knowledge based urban development framework, Urban development and knowledge economy

Asset identification : addressing the climate change in public asset management process

Climate change is becoming increasingly apparent that is largely caused by human activities such as asset management processes, from planning to disposal, of property and infrastructure. One essential component of asset management process is asset identification. The aims of the study are to identify the information needed in asset identification and inventory as one of public asset management process in addressing the climate change issue; and to examine its deliverability in developing countries’ local governments. In order to achieve its aims, this study employs a case study in Indonesia. This study only discusses one medium size provincial government in Indonesia. The information is gathered through interviews of the local government representatives in South Sulawesi Province, Indonesia and document analysis provided by interview participants. The study found that for local government, improving the system in managing their assets is one of emerging biggest challenge. Having the right information in the right place and at the right time are critical factors in response to this challenge. Therefore, asset identification as the frontline step in public asset management system is holding an important and critical role. Furthermore, an asset identification system should be developed to support the mainstream of adaptation to climate change vulnerability and to help local government officers to be environmentally sensitive. Finally, findings from this study provide useful input for the policy makers, scholars and asset management practitioners to develop an asset inventory system as a part of public asset management process in addressing the climate change.

The application of public asset management in Indonesian local government : a case study in South Sulawesi Province

Purpose To identify the challenges faced by local government in Indonesia when adopting a Public Asset Management Framework. Design A Case Study in South Sulawesi Provincial Government was used as the approach to achieving the research objective. The case study involved two data collection techniques - interviews and document analysis. Findings The result of the study indicates there are significant challenges that the Indonesian local government need to manage when adopting a public asset management framework. Those challenges are: absence of an institutional and legal framework to support the asset management application; non-profit principle of public assets; multiple jurisdictions involved in the public asset management processes; the complexity of local government objectives; unavailability of data for managing public property; and limited human resources. Research Limitation This research is limited to one case study. It is a preliminary study from larger research that uses multiple case studies. The main research also investigates opportunities for local government by adopting and implementing public asset management. Originality/Value Findings from this study provide useful input for the policy makers, academics and asset management practitioners in Indonesia to establish a public asset management framework resulting in efficient and effective organizations, as well as an increase of public services quality. This study has a potential application for other developing countries.

Investigating challenges and opportunities of water sensitive urban design for knowledge based development of Australian cities

A new approach that is slowly replacing neoclassical models of economic growth and commodity based industrial activities, knowledge based urban development (KBUD) aims to provide opportunities for citiesw to foster knowledge creation, exchange and innovation, and is based on the concepts of both sustainable urban development and economic prosperity; sustainable uses and protection of natural resources are therefore integral parts of KBUD. As such, stormwater, which has been recognised as one of the main culprits of aquatic ecosystem pollution and as therefore a significant threat to the goal of sustainable urban development, needs to be managed in a manner that produces ecologically sound outcomes. Water sensitive urban design (WSUD) is one of the key responses to the need to better management urban stormwater runoff and supports KBUD by providing an alternative, innovative and effective strategy to traditional stormwater management.

Effect of group formation on performance, task management and social loafing

Engineering graduates of today are required to adapt to a rapidly changing work environment. In particular, they are expected to demonstrate enhanced capabilities in both mono-disciplinary and multi-disciplinary teamwork environments. Engineering education needs, as a result, to further focus on developing group work capabilities amongst engineering graduates. Over the last two years, the authors trialed various group work strategies across two engineering disciplines. In particular, the effect of group formation on students' performance, task management, and social loafing was analyzed. A recently developed online teamwork management tool, Teamworker, was used to collect students' experience of the group work. Analysis showed that students who were allowed to freely allocate to any group were less likely to report loafing from other team members, than students who were pre-allocated to a group. It also showed that performance was more affected by the presence or absence of a leader in pre-allocated rather than free-allocated groups.

The key to successful implementation : project management of sustainable infrastructure provision

Delivering infrastructure projects involves many stakeholders. Their responsibilities and authorities vary over the course of the project lifecycle - from establishing the project parameters and performance requirements, to operating and maintaining the completed infrastructure. To ensure the successful delivery of infrastructure projects, it is important for the project management team to identify and manage the stakeholders and their requirements. This chapter discusses the management of stakeholders in delivering infrastructure projects, from their conception to completion. It includes managing the stakeholders for project selection and involving them to improve project constructability, operability and maintainability.

An examination of factors influencing effective and continuous improvement of Indonesian contractors' quality management systems

This paper presents the results of a pilot study examining the factors that impact most on the effective implementation of, and improvement to, Quality Mangement Sytems (QMSs) amongst Indonesian construction companies. Nine critical factors were identified from an extensive literature review, and a survey was conducted of 23 respondents from three specific groups (Quality Managers, Project Managers, and Site Engineers) undertaking work in the Indonesian infrastructure construction sector. The data has been analyzed initially using simple descriptive techniques. This study reveals that different groups within the sector have different opinions of the factors regardless of the degree of importance of each factor. However, the evaluation of construction project success and the incentive schemes for high performance staff, are the two factors that were considered very important by most of the respondents in all three groups. In terms of their assessment of tools for measuring contractor’s performance, additional QMS guidelines, techniques related to QMS practice provided by the Government, and benchmarking, a clear majority in each group regarded their usefulness as ‘of some importance’.

Developing a knowledge-based urban development analysis framework : the case of multimedia super corridor, Malaysia

Purpose: In the global knowledge economy, investment in knowledge-intensive industries and information and communication technology (ICT) infrastructures are seen as significant factors in improving the overall socio-economic fabric of cities. Consequently knowledge-based urban development (KBUD) has become a new paradigm in urban planning and development, for increasing the welfare and competitiveness of cities and regions. The paper discusses the critical connections between KBUD strategies and knowledge-intensive industries and ICT infrastructures. In particular, it investigates the application of the knowledge-based urban development concept by discussing one of South East Asia’s large scale manifestations of KBUD; Malaysia’s Multimedia Super Corridor. ----- ----- Design/methodology/approach: The paper provides a review of the KBUD concept and develops a knowledge-based urban development assessment framework to provide a clearer understanding of development and evolution of KBUD manifestations. Subsequently the paper investigates the implementation of the KBUD concept within the Malaysian context, and particularly the Multimedia Super Corridor (MSC). ----- ----- Originality/value: The paper, with its KBUD assessment framework, scrutinises Malaysia’s experince; providing an overview of the MSC project and discussion of the case findings. The development and evolution of the MSC is viewed with regard to KBUD policy implementation, infrastructural implications, and the agencies involved in the development and management of the MSC. ----- ----- Practical implications: The emergence of the knowledge economy, together with the issues of globalisation and rapid urbanisation, have created an urgent need for urban planners to explore new ways of strategising planning and development that encompasses the needs and requirements of the knowledge economy and society. In light of the literature and MSC case findings, the paper provides generic recommendations, on the orchestration of knowledge-based urban development, for other cities and regions seeking to transform to the knowledge economy.

Urban, regional, national and global knowledge capital [Guest editorial]

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to introduce the JKM 2010 annual special issue on knowledge based development (KBD) with reference to the multi-level analysis characteristic of the field. ----- ----- Design/methodology/approach – A description of the knowledge management approach at ESOC (European Space Operations Centre of the European Space Agency) is provided first. At the core of this approach is the breakdown of knowledge in individual technical domains followed by coverage analysis and criticality assessment. Such a framework becomes the reference for best knowledge acquisition, transfer and storage locus identification and subsequent knowledge management practices and guidelines. ----- ----- Findings – KBD provides an integrated framework to account for multidisciplinary analyses and multilevel practices in knowledge capital generation, distribution and utilization. ----- ----- Originality/value – The collection of papers included in the annual special issue on KBD provides a representative, composite view of the research topics and applications concerns in the field. Involving a number of disciplines and levels of analysis, issues ranging from the technological gatekeeper to global knowledge flows show the interdependence of KBD concepts and tools.

Enhancing Water Sensitive Urban Design (WSUD) practices to mitigate urban stormwater pollution and reuse potential

Water Sensitive Urban Design (WSUD) practices such as wetlands, bioretention systems and swales are widely implemented in Australia’s urban areas for the mitigation of stormwater pollution and to enhance its reuse potential. In-depth research undertaken has confirmed that these systems do not always perform according to design expectations due to a diversity of reasons. To deliver anticipated benefits, it is critical that they are designed in conformity with catchment and rainfall characteristics and pollutant processes. This in turn entails an in-depth understanding of key pollutant processes. This paper presents the outcomes of extensive research investigations on pollutant characterisation and stormwater pollutant processes on urban catchment surfaces. Outcomes from the research studies revealed the complexities in physical and chemical characteristics of pollutants originating from urban catchments which are strongly influenced by rainfall and catchment characteristics. Based on the research outcomes, recommendations are provided to enhance stormwater treatment performance and to enhance its reuse potential.

The use of supply chain management to reduce delays : Malaysian public sector construction projects

Construction delays are a critical problem for Malaysian public sector projects. These delays have been blamed mainly on inefficient traditional construction practices that continue to dominate the current industry. This paper reports the progress to date of a Ph.D. research project aimed at developing a framework to utilize Supply Chain Management (SCM) tools to improve the time performance of Malaysian Government projects. The potential of SCM has been identified for public sector governance and its use in Malaysia is now being considered within the strategy of the Malaysian Construction Industry Master Plan (2006-2015). Encouraged by success in the UK, there is a cautious optimism concerning the successful application of SCM in Malaysia. This paper considers delay as a problem in Malaysian public sector projects, establishes the need to embrace SCM and then elucidates the need and strategies for the development of a delay reduction framework. A literature review, survey mechanism and structured interview schedule will be undertaken to achieve the research objectives. The final research outcome will be a framework that addresses root delay contributors (“pathogens”) and applies SCM tools for their mitigation.