By Patrick Manu, Professor of Innovative Construction and Project Management
The UK International Science Partnerships Fund (ISPF) is designed to enable UK researchers and innovators to collaborate with international partners (in academia and industry) to tackle some of the pressing societal challenges. Since its inception, members of the Centre for Advanced Built Environment Research (CABER) at UWE Bristol have jointly secured this funding with collaborators in UK and several countries including Japan, Canada, South Korea, Vietnam, Indonesia, and Malaysia to undertake exciting and innovative projects. These projects cover topics such as occupational safety and health, energy, immersive technology, robotics, artificial intelligence, and Industry 4.0. The projects include:
- Developing a BIM-based Immersive Learning Environment for enhanced Construction Management Education and Training using VR technology (DOMINEERING)
[Participating CABER members and visiting scholar: Abhinesh Prabhakaran, Patrick Manu, and Abdul Majeed-Mahamadu| Collaborating with partners in Vietnam].
This project develops a BIM-based immersive learning platform for construction training and education in Vietnam, with a focus on safety and quality management. The platform gives training and education providers a disruptive learning solution, which can also be adopted by businesses for upskilling their human resource.
- Improving Design for Occupational Safety and Health in Malaysia via Tripartite Academic-Industry-Government Engagement, Capacity Strengthening and Knowledge Exchange
[Participating CABER members & visiting scholar: Pablo Perez, Abhinesh Prabhakaran, Patrick Manu, Abdul Majeed-Mahamadu, and Che Khairil Izam Che Ibrahim | Collaborating with partners in UK, and Malaysia].
The project brings together (through a series of engagement and capacity building workshops) key stakeholders from academia, industry and government agencies to explore and co-create solutions to address the challenges affecting effective implementation of design for occupational safety and health (DfOSH) in Malaysia.
- UK-Japan-Switzerland-Germany-Netherlands Transnational Network for Safer and Healthier Human-Robot Collaboration (HRC) in Construction
[Participating CABER member: Patrick Manu | Collaborating with partners in UK, Japan, Switzerland, Germany, and Netherlands].
This project establishes an international interdisciplinary network of experts, including industry professionals, researchers, policymakers, and technology providers from the UK, Japan, Switzerland, Germany, and the Netherlands to assess the current state of HRC in construction, develop roadmaps, and create a long-term interdisciplinary partnership to ensure continuous improvement in safe HRC. - UK-Indonesia-Malaysia Alliance for Occupational Safety and Health Advancement in Construction (OSH-Advance)
[Participating CABER member & visiting scholar: Patrick Manu, and Che Khairil Izam Che Ibrahim | Collaborating with partners in UK, Malaysia and Indonesia].
This project establishes a transnational network of stakeholders from academia, industry and government in UK, Malaysia, and Indonesia to identify the opportunities, challenges, and potential solutions for improving OSH management in Malaysia and Indonesia.
- Pathways to Sustainability: Transforming Battery Wastes into High-Performance Carbon materials for Cleaner Energy Generation
[Participating CABER member: Patrick Manu | Collaborating with partners in UK and Vietnam].
This project aligns with circular economy principles by developing, implementing, and testing a framework for converting battery waste into low-cost energy storage systems in Vietnam.
- Improving Construction Safety through AI-enabled Visual Attention Monitoring: An Immersive Approach
[Participating CABER members & visiting scholar: Abhinesh Prabhakaran, Colin Booth, Patrick Manu, and Abdul Majeed-Mahamadu | Collaborating with partners in Japan].
This project aims to develop a novel virtual reality (VR) based application that integrates artificial intelligence (AI) for assessing visual behaviour of construction workers, thereby providing pathways for enhanced worker safety training. - Digital Occupational Safety and Health (D-OSH) Network: Connecting Research, Policy and Practice in Construction Across Continents
[Participating CABER member: Patrick Manu | Collaborating with partners in UK, Canada and South Korea]
This project establishes a network with the objective of identifying the opportunities, challenges, and potential solutions to the implementation of digital technologies for occupational safety and health (OSH) management in construction. Through knowledge sharing and industry engagement, the network aspires to make contributions towards lowering the prevalence of construction-related injuries and illnesses.
If you would like to partner with our members in tackling some of society’s biggest challenges in the built environment via the ISPF or other funding schemes, do reach out to us.
Visit our CABER website for more information about our research themes, members, and their areas of expertise.
Collaborate with us to transform our built environment!