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New Normal Remote Communication for Collaboration

  • Conference paper
  • First Online:
12th International Conference on Structural Engineering and Construction Management

Part of the book series: Lecture Notes in Civil Engineering ((LNCE,volume 266))

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Abstract

Remote communication is not new for the architecture, engineering and construction (AEC) industry and academia. Organisations started using what was common, called “conference rooms” with sophisticated technological equipment prepared for “conference calls” when face-to-face meetings were not possible, and the industries culture and work practices were rooted in face-to-face meetings. This was current practice until the beginning of 2020, with the emergence of the global COVID-19 pandemic. The pandemic forced people to have safe distances between them, to be isolated for long periods of time, and several restrictions to travel not being possible to meet face-to-face. This situation rapidly created a new need to find ways to communicate as alternatives to traditional face-to-face meetings, for “conference call rooms” anywhere and accessible at any time by everyone. The extended duration of the pandemic made organisations adapt to that new normal and remarkable new opportunities arose in a new way. This article explores recent situations in academia and industry that can highlight potential guidance towards the new normal in remote communication for learning–teaching and the AEC industry sectors. In conclusion, appropriate use of these electronic processes provides opportunities to significantly improve remote communication in future. It is expected that the number of opportunities to develop international relationships and partnerships can be boosted to another level of accessibility.

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thanks Professor Ranjith Dissanayake, Conference Co-Chair, Department of Civil Engineering, University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka, for the invitation to submit manuscripts. The authors would also like to thank Mr. Shyanaka Rathnayaka Mudiyanselage, Tutor and Ph.D. candidate, Department of Infrastructure Engineering, Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology, The University of Melbourne, for his help in compiling the data for Table 1.

Declaration of Competing Interest

The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this article.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Architecture, Building and Planning, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC, 3010, Australia

    P. Vaz-Serra

  2. Engineering Management Group, Department of Infrastructure Engineering, Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC, 3010, Australia

    F. Hui & C. Duffield

  3. ARC Centre for Advanced Manufacturing of Prefabricated Housing, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC, 3010, Australia

    P. Mendis

  4. Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Group, Department of Infrastructure Engineering, Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC, 3010, Australia

    L. Aye

Authors
  1. P. Vaz-Serra
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  2. F. Hui
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  3. C. Duffield
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  4. P. Mendis
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  5. L. Aye
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to L. Aye .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Civil Engineering, University of Peradeniya, Kandy, Sri Lanka

    Ranjith Dissanayake

  2. Department of Infrastructure Engineering, University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC, Australia

    Priyan Mendis

  3. Department of Civil Engineering, The Open University of Sri Lanka, Nugegoda, Sri Lanka

    Kolita Weerasekera

  4. Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Ruhuna, Galle, Sri Lanka

    Sudhira De Silva

  5. Civil and Structural Engineering Consultants (Pvt) Ltd., Rajagiriya, Colombo, Sri Lanka

    Shiromal Fernando

  6. Department of Civil Engineering, University of Sri Jayawardanepura, Jayawardanepura, Sri Lanka

    Chaminda Konthesingha

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Vaz-Serra, P., Hui, F., Duffield, C., Mendis, P., Aye, L. (2023). New Normal Remote Communication for Collaboration. In: Dissanayake, R., Mendis, P., Weerasekera, K., De Silva, S., Fernando, S., Konthesingha, C. (eds) 12th International Conference on Structural Engineering and Construction Management. Lecture Notes in Civil Engineering, vol 266. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-2886-4_32

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-2886-4_32

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Singapore

  • Print ISBN: 978-981-19-2885-7

  • Online ISBN: 978-981-19-2886-4

  • eBook Packages: EngineeringEngineering (R0)

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