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Managing information flow and design processes to reduce design risks in offsite construction projects© 2019, Emerald Publishing Limited. Purpose: Following the increasing need for faster construction, improved quality and evidence value propositions, offsite construction is increasingly being proffered as a viable contender to “traditional” construction approaches. However, whilst evidence supports the move towards offsite, its uptake has been lower than expected. Whilst the precise reasons for this seem to be influenced by a number of issues, including contextual drivers and market maturity; some project stakeholders also view offsite as carrying greater risks. The purpose of this paper is to report on the quality of information flow, in particular, the impact and influence of this on design risks in offsite construction projects. Design/methodology/approach: An existing design risk framework is used as the point of departure for this research. This is further expanded into a specific model for evaluating offsite construction projects design risks, the rubrics of which were informed by two case studies of offsite construction projects in Australia and the UK analysed with a process-tracing technique. Whilst these cases were geographically separated, the constructs were aligned to uncover fundamental design information requirements and concomitant risks associated with offsite. Findings: The findings of the research reported in this paper include the crucial information feeding into the design process emanating from the lifecycle of offsite construction projects, namely, design, offsite (manufacturing), handling and transporting, site works and installation and also occupancy. These are contextualised within the four categories, namely, client requirements, project requirements, regulation aspects and social aspects and the final outcomes were summarised into a holistic diagram. Originality/value: Given that the offsite construction has shifted the working paradigm into assigning a significant level of efforts and emphasis at the front end of the construction projects, the importance of its design process and hence design risks management has gone up significantly in construction projects delivered using this technique. This research and paper contributes significantly to the built environment domain by identifying the crucial aspects along the project lifecycle to be considered to minimise the potential occurrence of design risks and hence increasing the confidence of project stakeholders in adopting offsite construction techniques in their projects.
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Working with experts with experience: Charting co-production and co-design in the development of HCI based design ideasThis chapter outlines the co-design process for ‘Let’s meet up!’, a hybrid electronic system, which combines traditional board games and digital features, created to facilitate and maintain social engagement for people living with dementia. It allows people with dementia to stay in touch with their loved ones and to remain socially and physically active by arranging joint activities for themselves through a simple, user-friendly tangible interface. Let’s meet up! is one of four solutions developed by a multidisciplinary team of researchers and people living with dementia as part of the European MinD project. The aim of MinD was to research and co-develop mindful design solutions to support people with dementia and their caregivers with self-empowerment and social engagement. Co-design with groups of experts with experience (GEE), including people with dementia, caregivers and care professionals, was used throughout the research and development process, comprising data collection, design idea development, decision-making, design concept and prototype development, to ensure the relevance and appropriateness of those ideas, concepts and prototypes for people with dementia. Co-production was increasingly used to enable GEE to co-host and co-curate the co-design sessions, and to take ownership of the process. The chapter explains the process of research and the activities undertaken and provides recommendations for this symbiotic approach, taking into account both the benefits and the limitations.
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Design for occupational safety and health: an integrated model for designers’ knowledge assessmentOne of the approaches to mitigate occupational safety and health (OSH) risk on construction projects is the design for occupational safety and health (DfOSH) initiative. The DfOSH initiative places a duty on designers to originate designs that are inherently safe for construction, maintenance, occupation and demolition. To achieve this goal, designers must possess appropriate knowledge of OSH risks as they relate to construction products. However, what constitutes DfOSH knowledge of designers is still not clear in the extant literature as well as in practice. Hence, this study systematically reviews literature of prior conceptualisations of the knowledge construct, undertakes contents analyses and provides a robust conceptualisation as a basis for its meaningful operationalisation with regards to DfOSH. The robust conceptualisation of the knowledge construct underpinned the development of a nomological network to operationalise the DfOSH knowledge of designers. The study presents knowledge regarding DfOSH as a multi-dimensional construct that can be measured at various levels of specificity. The integrated model can serve as a guide for clients to clarify the DfOSH knowledge of prospective designers in the procurement process. Respectively, designers intending to improve on their DfOSH knowledge can similarly be guided by this model to identify their DfOSH knowledge gaps and subsequently take steps to overcome such knowledge deficiencies. Additionally, the model invokes further studies, both theoretically and empirically, into how designers’ DfOSH knowledge can be effectively harnessed and enhanced for managing OSH risk.
