Requirements engineering in innovative systems developments for the construction industry

Arayici, Y

Abstract

Collaborative working using innovative integrated VR based IT systems in
construction has become a reality as many activities are performed in a
distributed manner with the construction stakeholders situated in discrete
geographical locations. Computer Integrated Construction (CIC) is the type
of innovative integrated information system that helps to reduce the
fragmentation and enables the construction stakeholders to collaborate
together in the construction projects. Researchers have raised that the
concept of CIC has been the subject of research for many years but the
uptake of this technology has been very limited because of the development
of the technology and its effective implementation.
Furthermore, the industrialist and researchers conveyed that the networking,
collaboration, information sharing and communication will be popular issues
in the future, which can be managed through CIC systems. In order for
successful development of the technology, successful delivery and effective
implementation of the user and industry-oriented CIC systems, the
requirements engineering seems a key parameter.
Requirements engineering is the branch of systems engineering and it is
related to the issues of the development of the technology and its effective
implementation. That is to say, it helps what to develop, how to develop and
when to implement. Requirements engineering is concerned with the goals,
desired properties and constraints of complex systems such as the CIC
systems that involve software systems, organisations and people.
Furthermore, it covers all activities related to the acquisition, specification
and maintenance of requirements throughout the lifecycle. It also covers
how requirements relate to business processes, work redesign, system and
software architecture and testing and validation.
Therefore, this thesis is about the development of a requirements
engineering process through case study research. The case study of the
research is the DIVERCITY project, which is the latest CIC development in
the area of Construction IT. DIVERCITY was a large EU funded project in the
area of construction IT undertaken by a European consortium of researchers
and practitioners from the construction industry. DIVERCITY is the acronym
for Distributed Virtual Workspace for enhancing Communication within the
Construction Industry. The DIVERCITY system presents the mechanism to
smoothly and collaboratively conduct the construction projects from early
briefing stage to the detailed design stage and even further by the end of the
construction phase in construction project lifecycle over an integrated
environment.
The requirements engineering process that has been developed in the
research is targeted at the computer integrated construction (CIC) systems.
The key features of the requirements engineering process are the following:
(1) ready-to-use, (2) simple, (3) domain specific, (4) adaptable and (5)
systematic, (6) integration with the legacy systems. The method has three
key constructs: techniques for requirements development, which includes the
requirement elicitation, requirements analysis/modelling and requirements
validation, requirements documentation and facilitating the requirements
management.
In short, this thesis focuses on the system development methodologies for
the user and industry driven VR based integrated systems development for
the construction industry and its theoretical contribution to the fields of
Construction IT and Requirements Engineering.

Citation

Arayici, Y. Requirements engineering in innovative systems developments for the construction industry. (Thesis). Salford : University of Salford

• Thesis Type: Thesis
• Deposit Date: Oct 3, 2012
• Award Date: Jan 1, 2004