Grant: Strategic Projects - Group

Designing and constructing buildings where people live and work is a complex process that depends on specialized professionals (architects, engineers, and construction experts) being able to effectively manage and share information. The design and construction process is currently inefficient because information is scattered across physical locations, the process leading to decisions can be difficult to remember, and professionals have substantial knowledge that is not written down for easy access by others. The proposed research will examine how future collaborative computer systems can be designed to make it easier for construction professionals to share information across both time and space. The research project will involve developing and evaluating a series of prototypes that will integrate the diverse sources of data involved in a construction project, make the data easily accessible to users through a visual interface, and allow users to easily share and work collaboratively with information. Prototype development will be intertwined with field studies that will examine collaborative work in practice for the design and construction of a unique infrastructure project, the Center for Interactive Research on Sustainability. The results of this research will be used to develop collaborative technology of benefit to many applications, but the construction industry in particular. This technology will enable construction professionals to utilize time in meetings more effectively and make better-informed decisions, leading to building designs that are more constructable, maintainable, sustainable, and cost-effective.