Vision:

We aim to revolutionize urban built environments by developing innovative and actionable research solutions. We will do so by incorporate multi-disciplinary expertise and research fields including civil engineering, construction engineering, transportation, rail infrastructure engineering, asset operation and maintenance, resilience and sustainability, digitalization, BIM simulations, reliability, resilience, sustainability, risk and safety engineering, economics, strategy, systems and urbanisation. Our research vision is to provide a step change in industry approach and the industrial adoption towards safer, smarter and greener urban systems.

Research Topics:

·        Safety and risk engineering

·        Sustainable urbanization

·        Infrastructures of the future

·        Resilient built environment

·        Digital twins, digitization, virtual and augmented reality

·        Artificial intelligence and machine learning

·        Civil and construction engineering

·        Transportation and transit systems

·        Sustainability and net zero innovations

Current Research Projects:

·        CircularB Project (2022 – 2026): i-SURF researchers participate in Implementation of Circular Economy in the Built Environment (CircularB). The CircularB Action aims to develop a common international framework of a circularity rating tool with Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) based on current best practices of CE construction, state-of-the-art and ECEAP. Furthermore, construction, assembly, adaptability, deconstruction and business model guidelines will be identified for new and existing buildings to enhance CE in buildings and promote stakeholder knowledge. The rating tool will also be integrated into the Open BIM workflow for better-informed design decisions, automated assessment, efficient value chain management, and circular feedback using central BIM models. This Action has been financially supported by EU COST (European Cooperation in Science and Technology). URL: https://circularb.eu/

·        ECO4ALL Project (2023-2027): i-SURF researchers participate in EU Circular Economy Network for All: Consumer Protection through reducing, reusing, repairing (ECO4ALL). The main aim of the ECO4ALL Action is to contribute to the information, reflection and dissemination activities for youth at large, academics, young researchers, staff of the public administration, business environment and for civil society as a whole regarding the circular economy that works for consumers; therefore ECO4ALL aims at promoting the understanding of sustainable consumption, the conservation of resources and the prevention of waste, as well as the responsibility of manufacturers in the design and marketing phases, as one of the most important prerequisites towards consumer protection through reducing, reusing, repairing. This Action has been financially supported by EU COST (European Cooperation in Science and Technology). URL: https://www.cost.eu/actions/CA22124/

·    FABER Project (2024-2028): i-SURF researchers participate in EU Fatigue Benchmark Repository (FABER): The project focuses on preparing a database of experimental fatigue data, which will be easily accessible for creating benchmark sets. Users from academia and from engineering sectors will be able to adopt the data quickly for testing various prediction hypotheses and various computational tools. An open-source fatigue software will be prepared. Only such joint action can restore a responsible attitude for the computational results presented by fatigue solvers. This Action has been financially supported by EU COST (European Cooperation in Science and Technology). URL https://www.cost.eu/actions/CA23109/

·        AI @ SURF (2024 – present): AI and digital twin-based automated technology for railway systems. This project aims to establish AI-powered digital twins for railway infrastructures and their components. In collaboration with China Academy of Railway Sciences, University of Birmingham and Chulalongkorn University, Dr Li at SIT is currently pioneering the AI applications for lifetime assessments of railway concrete sleepers and bearers.

·        Drone Applications (2024 – present). SIT researchers are working on the applications of drone and remote sensing for built environments. Some work involves the fusion of drones and InSAR data to help improve safety and resilience of construction, infrastructure management, bridge and building systems.