Grant: Discovery Grants Program - Individual

Canadian Infrastructure Report Card (2016) revealed that based on the planned reinvestment levels, the physical condition of core municipal infrastructure is expected to deteriorate. Federal and provincial strategies demand enhanced sustainability performance from infrastructure owned and operated by local governments. Proactive physical and performance management of existing municipal infrastructure is vital to ensure the public wellbeing and to optimize the use of public tax money. However, the published literature reveals that Canadian local governments lack sufficient funds as well as standardized methods for optimized infrastructure management. The primary objective of my research program in the next five years is to develop innovative and practical solutions, decision support mechanisms, and hybrid project delivery methods to ensure optimized lifecycle performance of municipal infrastructure portfolios. The proposed research primarily focuses on integrated planning and management of maintenance, repair, and rehabilitation (M/R/R) projects of key municipal civil infrastructure (i.e., buildings, drinking and wastewater systems, and roads) operated by small and medium-sized municipalities. This research program includes interconnected research deliverables to develop an integrated and performance-oriented municipal infrastructure management approach. The proposed level of service (LOS) assessment will facilitate the operational performance evaluation of municipal infrastructure, which will be used to develop the performance-oriented infrastructure management method. This knowledge would be transferred to develop an integrated multi-period maintenance planning approach for municipal infrastructure portfolios. Outcomes of this research would support M/R/R project management by life cycle thinking based project evaluation and predictive project management decision making. Furthermore, this research program proposes implementation guidelines, project delivery methods, and best management practices for performance-oriented infrastructure portfolio management. This research program will create a platform for multidisciplinary collaborations and has the potential to attract local, national, and international organizations for collaborative research projects. The proposed research program offers several unique solutions for municipal infrastructure management, including performance-oriented infrastructure portfolio management, lifecycle impact based project evaluation, predictive construction management, and innovative project delivery methods for the big data era of the construction industry. Overall, the proposed research would create and contribute to a novel paradigm in municipal infrastructure management.