Our department had a strong presence at the CIB World Building Congress (WBC2025), one of the largest international conferences in the building and construction fields. Four faculty members and five Ph.D. students from our department participated, contributing to over a dozen papers and engaging in meaningful exchange with global peers. Their contributions underscore our commitment to advancing scholarship and promoting academic excellence on the international stage.
Category: Research
Professor Chris Lee Delivers Special Lecture on US Construction Technology Trends to GS Engineering & Construction
On November 15, Professor Hyun Woo “Chris” Lee delivered a special lecture to a delegation of 25 directors and senior managers from GS Engineering & Construction, one of Korea’s largest contractors. The lecture, titled Technology Trends in US Construction, was part of the group’s Innovation Training Program during their visit to the United States. Professor Lee highlighted cutting-edge advancements in construction technology, including smart PPE, AI, and laser scanning. This knowledge-sharing session reflects the department’s commitment to global knowledge exchange and industry collaboration.
Prof. Chris Lee Presents Insights on Public-Private Partnerships (P3) for Electric Bus Base Conversion to Washington State Transportation Commission
On October 15, 2024, Prof. Hyun Woo “Chris” Lee presented findings of his research project to the Washington State Transportation Commission, focusing on the application of public-private partnerships (P3) for converting electric bus bases to support a zero-emission fleet. Funded by King County Metro through the UW Mobility Innovation Center, the project aimed to assess policy barriers that may hinder agencies from entering P3 agreements and to identify industry best practices for project and contract development.
CEI awards Collaborative Seed Grants to boost AI data centers, EV charging infrastructure – Clean Energy Institute
Transportation is responsible for 39% of Washington’s total greenhouse gas emissions. Strategically expanding electric vehicle charging infrastructure (EVCI) is crucial to support the electrification of this sector, as existing research consistently demonstrates a strong correlation between public EVCI availability and EV ownership at both national and municipal levels. However, reports have revealed that EVCI planning often neglects the specific needs and challenges of historically underserved communities, especially tribal communities, while electrifying both work fleets and personal vehicles in these communities may have the greatest potential for impact….
Mix Masters: At a UW lab, students are testing ways to give concrete a solid future.
Nestled in a former airplane hangar in the sprawling former Navy base at Magnuson Park, construction and engineering students from the University of Washington stress-test recipes for concrete—one of the world’s most used substances. Made with a combination of cement, water and aggregates, some type of concrete has been produced by every civilization since the Babylonians. Now, university students are joining in the centuries-long quest to refine and perfect this essential material at the University of Washington Center for Education…
Prof. Chris Lee on Public/Private Partnerships: Charging toward a zero-emission transit fleet
Conversion of bus base facilities, the heart of transit operations, for electric vehicle charging is a large-scale project with many players and complex needs. One option for transit agencies working to shift to a zero-emission fleet is a public-private partnership model (P3), which defers upfront capital construction costs and has the potential to help agencies meet long-term sustainability and resiliency goals. New research out of the Mobility Innovation Center at the University of Washington (UW), led by professor Hyun Woo “Chris” Lee and senior research…
CM Welcomes Dr. Amos Darko
In pursuit of our vision for a more just and beautiful world, the College of Built Environments continues to implement an important part of our strategic framework: growing our capacity for collaborative interdisciplinary work with the goal of advancing climate solutions. We are excited to announce that Dr. Amos Darko has joined the Construction Management faculty as part of our interdisciplinary faculty cohort. Dr. Darko brings with him a wealth of expertise and experience in sustainability, sustainable built environment, sustainable…
Emergent Subcontracting Models in the US Construction Industry
Abstract: Prime contracting models for engineering and construction projects are described extensively in the literature, but models between prime contractors and subcontractors are less well known. This study examined the established and evolving subcontracting models in the US construction industry to not only document their utilization but also investigate their advantages and disadvantages when employed. There search followed a two-phase/two-step approach. During Phase 1, the authors completed a regionally based study to identify subcontracting practices in the Pacific Northwest. As…
Prevention though Design (PtD) for MEP Worker Safety
The Prevention through Design (PtD) concept will improve worker safety, as applicable to Mechanical/Electrical/Plumbing (MEP) design and construction.
ACT2: Time–Cost Tradeoffs from Alternative Contracting Methods
ACT2: Time–Cost Tradeoffs from Alternative Contracting Methods Incentive/disincentive (I/D) and cost-plus-time (A+B) are two of the most widely used alternative contracting methods (ACMs) for accelerating the construction of highway infrastructure improvement projects. However, little is known about the effects of trade-offs in terms of project schedule and cost performance. This study addresses this problem by creating and testing a stochastic decision support model called accelerated alternative contracting cost-time trade-off (ACT2). This model was developed by a second-order polynomial regression analysis…