Policy Analysis and Optimization for Infrastructure Renewal

在过去五年中，申请人在建筑和资产管理方面的研究活动对该领域做出了重大贡献，表现在：(1)与学生和同事一起发表了大量论文；(2)两项专利；(3)博士研究生8名，硕士研究生7名；(4)通过私人咨询、研讨会和供教育工作者和专业人员使用的计算机程序，向工业界广泛转让技术。建议在未来五年进行的研究是申请人工作的延续，旨在从策略和运作层面介绍基础设施更新经济方面的新进展。该研究将在四个主要领域寻求创新：(1)开发一个模拟模型，以检查政策（如预算水平、公私伙伴关系和绩效要求）对积压积累、绩效和可持续性的长期影响；(2)制定多年生命周期优化框架，以最大限度地利用有限的续订费用；(3)开发新的基于微观经济学的技术来测试资金分配决策的质量，并建立一种可视化的假设分析方法来量化变化对基础设施经济的影响；(4)在考虑截止日期和预算限制的情况下，开发先进的进度和项目控制模型，以支持更新计划的有效执行。该研究的直接成果是一个通用的基础设施资产管理框架，具有适合医疗机构的计算机化原型，并且可以适应其他基础设施资产。战略和运营维度的整合在本研究中是独一无二的，将支持决定何时、何时以及如何更新设施，以最大限度地提高更新支出的回报。拟议的基础研究支持制定更好的基础设施管理政策和实施工具，从而最终减少积压，提高可持续性，并提高加拿大基础设施管理公司的竞争优势

In the past five years, the applicant's research activities in construction and asset management have resulted in significant contributions to the field as shown by: (1) a large number of refereed publications with students and co-workers; (2) two patents; (3) graduation of 8 Ph.D. and 7 Master's students; and (4) extensive technology transfer to industry through private consultation, workshops, and computer programs for use by educators and professionals. The research proposed for the next five years is a continuation of the applicant's work and aims to introduce new advancements with respect to the economics of infrastructure renewal at both the strategic and the operational levels. The research will seek innovations in four main areas: (1) Developing a simulation model to examine the long-term influences of policies (e.g., budget levels, Public Private Partnerships, and performance requirements) on backlog accumulation, performance, and sustainability; (2) Developing a framework for multi-year life cycle optimization to maximize the value gained from the limited renewal dollars; (3) Developing new microeconomic-based techniques to test the quality of fund-allocation decisions and establish a visual what-if analysis approach to quantify the impact of changes on the economics of the infrastructure; and (4) Developing an advanced scheduling and project control model to support effective execution of renewal programs considering deadlines and budget constraints. The direct outcome of the research is a generic infrastructure asset management framework with a computerized prototype that suits healthcare facilities and can be adapted to other infrastructure assets. The integration of strategic and operational dimensions is unique in this research and will support decisions of which, when, and how to renew facilities to maximize the return on renewal spending. The proposed fundamental research supports developing better infrastructure management policies and implementation tools, thus ultimately leading to backlog reduction, improved sustainability, and higher competitive advantage of Canadian infrastructure management companies.**