Information technology support to improved construction processes : inter-disciplinarity in research and practice

Research and innovation in the built environment is increasingly taking on an inter-disciplinary nature. The built environment industry and professional practice have long adopted multi and inter-disciplinary practices. The application of IT in Construction is moving beyond the automation and replication of discrete mono and multi-disciplinary tasks to replicate and model the improved inter-disciplinary processes of modern design and construction practice. A major long-term research project underway at the University of Salford seeks to develop IT modelling capability to support the design of buildings and facilities that are buildable, maintainable, operable, sustainable, accessible, and have properties of acoustic, thermal and business support performance that are of a high standard. Such an IT modelling tool has been the dream of the research community for a long time. Recent advances in technology are beginning to make such a modelling tool feasible.----- Some of the key problems with its further research and development, and with its ultimate implementation, will be the challenges of multiple research and built environment stakeholders sharing a common vision, language and sense of trust. This paper explores these challenges as a set of research issues that underpin the development of appropriate technology to support realisable advances in construction process improvements.

The effect of consumer risk perceptions and information search on willingness to buy GM food products: A cross cultural analysis

This paper seeks to address the widespread call in the literature for the cross-cultural examination ( and validation) of accepted concepts within consumer behaviour, such as consumer risk perceptions and information search. The findings of the study provide support for a number of accepted relationships, whilst identifying distinct cross cultural differences in external information search and willingness to buy genetically modified (GM) food products by consumers.

Creative Industries come to China (MATE)

This paper introduces the special issue “China: Internationalizing the Creative Industries”, describing the Australian Research Council funded “MATE” project which provides the conceptual background for the questions the issue explores. The MATE project began with the expectation that as China evolves from its status as a developing country with an emphasis on primary industries and manufacturing, to a mature, market-driven economy benefiting from high levels of international investment, it will become more actively engaged with the global “knowledge economy” and “information society”. In this context, developments in the “creative industries”, which are playing such an important role in developed economies, might reasonably be expected in China. Although China continues to be characterised by strong central-policy settings, as the domestic consumer market matures there is greater scope for consumer-led creative business development. The “MATE” project aimed to capture some of these changes as they began to gain momentum across a range of services: Media, Advertising, Tourism and Education. This special issue continues this theme with papers that explore the theoretical challenges, economic questions and implications, and practical instantiations of creative industries growth in China. All papers contained in this special issue have been peer-reviewed.

Competing in the new economy through large scale collaborative ventures (LSCV): a strategic marketing approach based on a study of the multifunction polis.

This paper draws on a study of government initiat ives aimed at facilitating economic development, specifically the Multifunction Polis Feasibility Study involving the governments and business enterprises of Australia and Japan (1987-1991). Large scale projects that involve collaboration between gove rnment and business (termed: large scale collaborative venture LSCV)are identified as one aspect of competing in the new economy . The study pursued the research propos ition that a LSCV can be effectively facilitated by following a theory based process similar to those in corporate practice. An approach to managing such ventures is outlined, based on strategic marketing theory that may enhance their success and thereby help countries part icipate more successfully in global competition through such ventures.

Privacy invasive geo-mashups : privacy 2.0 and the limits of first generation information privacy laws

Online technological advances are pioneering the wider distribution of geospatial information for general mapping purposes. The use of popular web-based applications, such as Google Maps, is ensuring that mapping based applications are becoming commonplace amongst Internet users which has facilitated the rapid growth of geo-mashups. These user generated creations enable Internet users to aggregate and publish information over specific geographical points. This article identifies privacy invasive geo-mashups that involve the unauthorized use of personal information, the inadvertent disclosure of personal information and invasion of privacy issues. Building on Zittrain’s Privacy 2.0, the author contends that first generation information privacy laws, founded on the notions of fair information practices or information privacy principles, may have a limited impact regarding the resolution of privacy problems arising from privacy invasive geo-mashups. Principally because geo-mashups have different patterns of personal information provision, collection, storage and use that reflect fundamental changes in the Web 2.0 environment. The author concludes by recommending embedded technical and social solutions to minimize the risks arising from privacy invasive geo-mashups that could lead to the establishment of guidelines for the general protection of privacy in geo-mashups.

Creative urban regions : harnessing urban technologies to support knowledge city initiatives

In the rapidly growing knowledge economy, the talent and creativity of those around us will be increasingly decisive in shaping economic opportunity. Creativity can be described as the ability to produce new and original ideas and things. In other words, it is any act, idea, or product that changes an existing domain or transforms an existing domain into a new one. From an economic perspective, creativity can be considered as the generation of new ideas that is the major source of innovation and new economic activities. As urban regions have become the localities of key knowledge precincts and knowledge clusters across the globe, the link between a range of new technologies and the development of ‘creative urban regions’ (CURs) has come to the fore. In this sense, creativity has become a buzz concept in knowledge-economy research and policy circles. It has spawned ‘creative milieus,’ ‘creative industries,’ ‘creative cities,’ ‘creative class,’ and ‘creative capital.’ Hence, creativity has become a key concept on the agenda of city managers, development agents, and planners as they search for new forms of urban and economic development. CURs provide vast opportunities for knowledge production and spillover, which lead to the formation of knowledge cities. Urban information and communication technology (ICT) developments support the transformation of cities into knowledge cities. This book, which is a companion volume to Knowledge-Based Urban Development: Planning and Applications in the Information Era (also published by IGI Global) focuses on some of these developments. The Forward and Afterword are written by senior respected academic researchers Robert Stimson of the University of Queensland, Australia, and Zorica Nedovic-Budic of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, USA. The book is divided into four sections, each one dealing with selected aspects of information and communication technologies and creative urban regions.

The Figmentum Project: appropriating information and communication technologies to animate our urban fabric

This paper explores how we may design located information and communication technologies (ICTs) to foster community sentiment. It focuses explicitly on possibilities for ICTs to create new modalities of place through exploring key factors such as shared experiences, shared knowledge and shared authorship. To contextualise this discussion in a real world setting, this paper presents FIGMENTUM, a situated generative art application that was developed for and installed in a new urban development. FIGMENTUM is a non-authoritative, non-service based application that aims to trigger emotional and representational place-based communities. Out of this practice-led research comes a theory and a process for designing creative place-based ICT’s to animate our urban communities.

Queensland's Smart State Initiative : a successful knowledge based urban development strategy

The chapter will set out to explain the KBUD and urban policy making processes in Queensland, Australia. This chapter will draw on providing a clear understanding on policy frameworks and relevant ICT applications of the Queensland ‘Smart State’ experience. The chapter is consisted of six sections. The first section following the introduction provides background information. The second section focuses on the KBUD processes in Queensland. The third section offers a comprehensive analysis of the ‘Queensland Smart State’ initiative, and it also identifies actors and goals of the agenda of Smart State experience. The fourth section reviews knowledge based development and ICT applications and policies of the Queensland Smart State and Brisbane Smart City experiences, and their impacts on Brisbane’s successful KBUD. The fifth section discusses knowledge hubs and ICT developments within the Brisbane metropolitan area. Then the chapter concludes with future trends and conclusion sections.

Towards ubiquitous city : concept, planning, and experiences in the Republic of Korea

Information and communication technologies (ICTs) had occupied their position on knowledge management and are now evolving towards the era of self-intelligence (Klosterman, 2001). In the 21st century ICTs for urban development and planning are imperative to improve the quality of life and place. This includes the management of traffic, waste, electricity, sewerage and water quality, monitoring fire and crime, conserving renewable resources, and coordinating urban policies and programs for urban planners, civil engineers, and government officers and administrators. The handling of tasks in the field of urban management often requires complex, interdisciplinary knowledge as well as profound technical information. Most of the information has been compiled during the last few years in the form of manuals, reports, databases, and programs. However frequently, the existence of these information and services are either not known or they are not readily available to the people who need them. To provide urban administrators and the public with comprehensive information and services, various ICTs are being developed. In early 1990s Mark Weiser (1993) proposed Ubiquitous Computing project at the Xerox Palo Alto Research Centre in the US. He provides a vision of a built environment which digital networks link individual residents not only to other people but also to goods and services whenever and wherever they need (Mitchell, 1999). Since then the Republic of Korea (ROK) has been continuously developed national strategies for knowledge based urban development (KBUD) through the agenda of Cyber Korea, E-Korea and U-Korea. Among abovementioned agendas particularly the U-Korea agenda aims the convergence of ICTs and urban space for a prosperous urban and economic development. U-Korea strategies create a series of U-cities based on ubiquitous computing and ICTs by a means of providing ubiquitous city (U-city) infrastructure and services in urban space. The goals of U-city development is not only boosting the national economy but also creating value in knowledge based communities. It provides opportunity for both the central and local governments collaborate to U-city project, optimize information utilization, and minimize regional disparities. This chapter introduces the Korean-led U-city concept, planning, design schemes and management policies and discusses the implications of U-city concept in planning for KBUD.

An online urban information system initiative for the Shibuya city, Tokyo

The computing tools and technologies with urban information systems are designed to enhance planners’ capability to deal with complex urban environments and to plan for prosperous and liveable communities. This paper examines the role of Online Urban Information Systems or in another words Internet based Geographic Information Systems as spatial decision support systems to aid local planning process. This paper introduces a prototype Internet GIS model that aims to integrate a public oriented interactive decision support system for urban planning process. This model, referred as a ‘Community based Internet GIS’, incorporates advanced information technologies and community involvement in decision making processes on the web environment. This innovative model has been recently applied to a pilot case in Tokyo and this paper concludes with the preliminary results of this project.