An Engineering Philosophy for the Next Wave of Infrastructure Renewal.

This paper examines engineering philosophy in relation to the renewal of aging or outdated infrastructure. The authors test hypotheses concerning standardisation, obsolescence and operational risk using option-pricing models. The results of our study indicates engineering for infrastructure renewal that: • is standardised, • remains relevant for the longest period and • has the lowest operational risk profile when implemented, has a higher inherent value than engineering that does not follow such principles when all other factors remain the same. We conclude that infrastructure renewal guided by the principles of standardisation, obsolescence reduction and operational risk mitigation has a higher value than that without such guidance. We also demonstrate evidence of synergy between the three guiding principles through some examples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]