Plenary Keynote Presenter Biographies and Abstracts (In order of appearance) Dr Martin Fischer
Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering Director, Center for Integrated Facility Engineering (CIFE)
Stanford University (USA) BIOGRAPHY Martin Fischer is Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Stanford University. He also serves as the Director of the Center for Integrated Facility Engineering (CIFE). CIFE is the world-leading, industry-sponsored, academic research centre on virtual design and construction. Dr Fischer is known globally for his work and leadership in developing virtual 4D modelling (time plus 3D) methods to improve project planning, enhance facility life-cycle performance, increase the productivity of project teams, and further the sustainability of the built environment. His research results have been used by many small and large industrial and government organisations around the world. He has lived and worked in Europe, South America, North America and Asia. Dr Fischer holds a PhD in Civil and Environmental Engineering and a MS in Industrial Engineering from Stanford University, and a Diploma in Civil Engineering from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne, Switzerland. ABSTRACT What comes after IDM, VDC, IPD, BOT? Changing demands in the marketplace, new project delivery models, and advancing technologies continue to shape the competitive landscape of the construction industry and define new benchmarks for cutting edge performance. Today, leading facility owners, designers, builders, and facility managers derive competitive advantage from new delivery methods like Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT), collaboration methods like Integrated Project Delivery (IPD) and Virtual Design and Construction (VDC), and technologies like Integrated Digital Modeling (IDM). Tomorrow, such methods and practices will likely be commonplace. This keynote presentation describes how the construction industry might work – including the fundamental mechanisms that enable breakthrough performance – when today’s pioneering methods are common practice. The talk also suggests that to maintain their competitive advantage individuals and firms will need to formally define and manage: - medium and long term development strategy and plans;
- goals and performance metrics;
- work processes;
- innovation processes;
- participation in networks and partnerships;
- human resource development approaches to support the above strategy.
These building blocks for competitive advantage will be illustrated through examples from CIFE member firms from around the world. Dr Mike Williams
Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer
PB Americas, Inc (USA) BIOGRAPHY Mike Williams is Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer for Parsons Brinckerhoff (PB) responsible for the oversight of the firm's information systems and technologies worldwide. PB (www.pbworld.com) is a global leader in developing and operating infrastructure around the world, with over 10,000 employees dedicated to meeting the needs of clients and communities in the Americas, Europe, Africa, the Middle East, Asia and Australia-Pacific regions. Mike has extensive experience in the delivery of information technology (IT) services within the engineering and construction industries both in the United States and in Latin America. He has over 20 years of broad-based experience in the management of IT, automation technologies, research and development programs and construction field operations. Mike earned his Doctorate and his Masters degrees in Civil Engineering at Stanford University, and his B.Sc at the University of Colorado. He was a Consulting Associate Professor of Civil Engineering at Stanford University over a period of 12 years where he taught the Construction Surveying course. He is a Registered Civil Engineer in the State of California. ABSTRACT Technological and Process Innovation at PB - The Effective Application of VDC Increased competitive pressures and complex project challenges are driving the implementation of a new generation of visualisation and simulation technologies. Taken together, these tools represent a new and innovative approach to project definition and delivery - Virtual Design and Construction, or VDC. Today's VDC tools and methodologies have their beginning in 3D CAD design systems. However, combining field as-built data with intelligent design tools and time based simulation adds new dimensions to the "3-D" model. Planners, designers, engineers and constructors all have views into the project model to help them optimise process and coordinate project activities. There are benefits at all stages of the project life cycle - from project conception and definition through field construction operations. VDC tools and approaches have been developed in university laboratories in collaborative research institutes, and the processes are being applied and refined on engineering and construction projects around the world. Mike Williams, Chief Information Officer at Parsons Brinckerhoff will describe applications of VDC on recent projects delivered by the global engineering and construction firm. Professor Peter Brandon
Director, Salford University Think Lab Director of Strategic Programmes, School of the Built Environment
University of Salford (UK)
BIOGRAPHY Professor Peter Brandon is Director of the Salford University 'Think Lab' adopting Information and Communication Technologies for problem solving across a range of industries. He was a former Pro-Vice-Chancellor for research at Salford, the only UK University to be awarded a 6 star rating in the Built Environment within the independent UK research assessment exercise. His research interests range across construction economics and management, information and knowledge based systems for construction, and more recently sustainable development. He has published widely including 18 books as author, co-author and editor, plus over 250 papers worldwide. He has managed projects worth several million pounds and several of the outputs of his research have resulted in commercial outputs. He has also provided a large number of keynote addresses across the world on subjects of his research interest.
Peter has played a significant role in UK Construction Research Policy including Chairman of the UK Science and Engineering Research Council Panel for construction, Chairman of the UK Research Assessment Exercise Panel for the Built Environment (1996 and 2001), Chairman of the RICS Research Committee, Member of the first UK Foresight Panel for construction, Member of the UK Construction Research and Innovation Strategy Panel, and Chairman of the leading Research Universities Policy Panel. He is a Trustee and Vice Chairman of the RICS Research Foundation. ABSTRACT Seeking Innovation - The Construction Enlightenment This paper will explore the areas where we might expect innovation to occur in the medium term future. It will argue that there comes a time when faith in tradition is no longer tenable and a new approach to construction based on the harnessing of new knowledge and understanding is an imperative. The subject will be explored within three domains for potential innovation, namely construction management, information technology and sustainable development. Within construction management, the focus will be on dissolving the interfaces which create the overhead in management activity. In information technology, the paper will explore the growing dependence on the machine - not only to manufacture, but to support and enhance decision making. And in sustainable development, the paper will look at the movement towards a more sustainable future and the contribution of construction manufacturing. Finally, the paper will attempt to bring these concepts together as a new mandate for construction activity and explore the manner in which such a drive for innovation might take place and the role of the client in making change happen. Mr Brendan Crotty
Former Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer
Australand Holdings Ltd (Australia) BIOGRAPHY Brendan Crotty retired in June 2007 after 17 years as the Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of Australand and its predecessor, Australian Housing & Land. Prior to 1990, he held a number of senior positions in Hooker Corporation and a smaller listed Queensland property company.
Brendan has tertiary qualifications in Surveying, Town Planning and Business Administration and maintains an ongoing interest in the provision of economically sound solutions to the challenges of providing affordable housing, minimising the ecological footprint of property development and ownership as well as workplace safety.
He is a non-executive director of a number of Australian property companies involved in property development, property investment and funds management. ABSTRACT Building an End-to-End Safety Culture Tomorrow’s buildings must be safe. “Safe” takes into account the following -
Safe design which requires us to think about the risks to which tradesmen such as scaffolders, riggers, form-workers and curtain-wall installers might be exposed in the course of delivering particular architectural features.
Safe construction methodology which has been the focus of some very harsh legislative provisions during the last 6 years that have produced good outcomes in terms of awareness and enforcement on a project-by-project basis, but there is still much to be done in relation to the attitudes and mindsets of the under 21 years age group.
Operational safety, which is especially relevant to the day-to-day users of commercial and industrial buildings, has become a higher priority. The owner or the occupiers of buildings need to be certain that reliability and safety are pre-eminent design assumptions irrespective of whether the issue is a gantry crane that carries live loads uncomfortably close to its design capacity, or an unreliable lift and building system.
Safe maintenance issues continue to generate concern. Sometimes these issues only hit us when we are sitting inside an office building and see a window cleaner rappelling down a curtain wall, because for one reason or another, a Building Maintenance Unit can't be installed or operated. From another perspective, should property investors and trusts accept a large industrial buildings or shopping centres which don't have enough "hook-up" points for the inertia reels and harnesses that need to be worn by maintenance crew such as roof plumbers and air conditioning mechanics?
Summary
Even though rates of serious injury associated with property construction and maintenance have declined during the last 10 years, there are still cultural issues, especially within some of the younger age groups and design professions, which will only be effectively addressed via better technology and an even greater emphasis on education and training. This presentation will highlight a number of issues and propose some initiatives to address them. Dr Benedict (Ben) Schwegler, Jnr
Vice President and Chief Scientist
Walt Disney Imagineering (US) BIOGRAPHY Dr Ben Schwegler is Chief Scientist of Walt Disney Imagineering R&D and a consulting professor at Stanford University. From hydrological modelling to 4D software, from integrated infrastructure design to next generation entertainment effects, Ben's mission is to invent, simulate and deliver new technologies to improve the quality of the built environment. He has been a key executive for theme park and resort developments for the Walt Disney Company in the US, Europe, Japan and Hong Kong. Ben is a member of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory's Technical Divisions Advisory Board, a winner of the Henry R Michel Award from the American Society of Civil Engineers, and a juror for the Sloan Prize for the best portrayal of science in a feature film at the Sundance Film Festival. ABSTRACT Design and Construction for Sustainable Development - An Owner's Perspective Sustainable development is now and will continue to be one of the great challenges for all design and construction professionals of the 21st century. More specifically, engineers, planners and architects need a conceptual framework and a realistic set of standards by which to evaluate the numerous design proposals for improving efficiency, reducing the environmental footprint and increasing the useful service lifetime of the built environment. Private sector owners, even of relatively small projects, are uniquely situated to provide clear sets of goals, tailored to specific business objectives, all of which can support the larger goals of sustainable communities and improved quality of life in those communities. These drivers, in addition to the normal hurdles of capital investment and operational efficiency, have already incentivized private developers to adopt the tools, processes and contracting innovations to enable the rather lofty goals of sustainable development. Acting within the wider boundaries of enlightened corporate self interest, sustainability is seen to be both affordable and practical. Dr Calvin Kam
Consulting Assistant Professor, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
Stanford University (US) BIOGRAPHY Calvin Kam, Ph.D., LEED AP, is the Vice President of Strategic Innovation with Optima - an award winning developer with real estate, design and construction expertise integrated under one company. Dr Kam is also a Consulting Assistant Professor at Stanford University’s Center for Integrated Facility Engineering. Since 1996, Calvin has implemented strategic and innovative technologies on a number of commercial, residential, university, museum, biotechnology, hospital, and government projects. From 2003-05, Calvin became the first Stanford University Visiting Fellow to the United States General Services Administration, where he contributed to a GSA pilot program in Building Information Modelling (BIM). Between 2006 and 2008, Calvin served as GSA’s first ever National 3D-4D-BIM Program Manager. Under his management, GSA has required BIM submission on all capital projects; published the GSA BIM Guide Series; successfully influenced multiple BIM vendors to incorporate open standard according to GSA business rules; formalised international partnerships with public owners; and earned a number of national and international awards. Calvin received his M.S., Engineer Degree and Ph.D from Stanford University. He is the first and the youngest to complete dual bachelor degrees in Architecture and Civil Engineering from the University of Southern California. ABSTRACT Managing Strategic and Sustainable Client-Driven Innovations Public and private owners—regardless of size, location, or business—have to manage the promises, hypes and realities of innovation. In this keynote presentation, Dr Calvin Kam will share insights from his first-hand experience in establishing and sustaining strategic innovation programs for a number of client organisations and industry members of Stanford University’s Center for Integrated Facility Engineering. The presentation will share an impartial analysis of the promises and reality of the BIM movement in the United States, while identifying the keys to successful adoption of strategic innovation. Taking one of the world’s largest public owners as a case study, this presentation will appraise innovation visions with implementation barriers. Calvin will explore the new business conditions envisioned and currently being cultivated by client organisations, and how different architectural firms, engineering consultants, construction managers, general contractors, and software vendors have already leveraged the emerging business opportunities to integrate innovative solutions in ongoing projects. Insights into the best practices and emerging standards of Building Information Modeling and BIM-enabled decision making will be drawn from a pool of over 75 examples across a wide spectrum of capital projects (e.g., early project programming, trade-off decisions during schematic design, life-cycle performance assessment). The presentation will allow the audience to discuss how these technology and process changes are established and sustained from the client’s perspective—in terms of value proposition, practice management, business models, contracts and deliverables in this emerging and technology-enabled evolution. Dr Dennis Shelden.jpg)
Chief Technology Officer
Gehry Technologies (US) BIOGRAPHY Dennis R Shelden is a founder and Chief Technology Officer of Gehry Technologies, a building industry technology company formed in 2001 by the research and development team of Frank Gehry Partners. He joined Gehry Partners in 1997 and became director of the firm's computation efforts in 2000, where he was responsible for the management and strategic direction of the firm's technology efforts. Prior to joining Gehry Partners, he performed structural engineering, energy systems and technology development work at firms including Ove Arup & Partners, Consultants' Computation Bureau and Cyra Systems. Dr Shelden lectures and conducts research in building industry process advancement and in design computation and cognition, and has been a visiting faculty member at the Southern California Institute of Architecture and MIT. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Architectural Design, a Master of Science in Civil and Environmental Engineering, and a PhD in Computation and Architectural Design from MIT. ABSTRACT Digitally Integrated Practice Information technology is having a broad impact in the building professions, in the ways professional practice is conducted in general, and specifically in ways in which the conduct of projects is structured through professional instruments of service and other digital project descriptions. This paper considers contemporary trends of integrated practice, focusing on the descriptive and collaborative aspects of practice and associated technologies. These trends toward integrated practice will be considered in terms of design and other value creating aspects of information in project execution, with a view toward the underlying geometric and other information structures and how these structures facilitate interoperability. Models of interdisciplinary and collaborative practice will be considered in light of digital technologies' capacities for supporting and structuring collaborative networks of design professionals and their digital tools. Examples from contemporary projects will be presented to illustrate key aspects of these issues in practice. Dr Keith Futcher
Chief Executive Officer
ISS Facility Services Pty Ltd (Hong Kong) BIOGRAPHY Keith Futcher is the Chief Executive Officer of ISS Facility Services, now the largest provider of fully integrated property and facility services in Hong Kong with over 10,000 personnel employed in FM, IFS and multi-service delivery across a range of services for a comprehensive range of property sectors. Keith has more than 25 years of both public and private sector experience across all aspects of infrastructure and the urban environment. He is a Chartered Engineer by profession, is a technologist, and has a PhD in management. His professional affiliations are many, and he has published extensively on a variety of management-related topics. ABSTRACT Globalisation Forces a Paradigm Shift in Facility Management The acquisition of Tempo Services Ltd in 2006 was the second largest acquisition in the history of ISS A/S, but was merely 1 of over 104 completed globally in 2006. Such acquisitive growth is typical of previous years. Rapid expansion by M&A is part of an aggressive strategy to re-position ISS, in the short term, as the world's largest integrated facilities services company. Other prominent companies are doing similar. A paradigm shift has occurred in the industry whereby procurement of infrastructure is determined by life cycle considerations and where the outsourcing of operational management and services by risk averse clients is driving the adoption of an integration of skills and services. Management approaches are changing, and the need for regional and global oversight of local operations increases, creating the need for skills enhancement and IT systems support at the operational levels of facilities management. |
