Guest editorial: Disruptive and innovative technologies for sustainable development in the built environment

Lou, Eric, The Quan, Nguyen and Park, Kenneth (2022) Guest editorial: Disruptive and innovative technologies for sustainable development in the built environment. International Journal of Building Pathology and Adaptation, 40 (3). pp. 301-304.

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Abstract

The built environment entered the digital realm over the past decades, and it is now time for a true digital revolution. Assessment of its challenges and readiness towards digital transformations, both disruptive and innovative, presents potential competitive advantage over the competition, economic and environmental benefits and strategic vision. Future growth and economic capacity rely on human resource capacity, international competitiveness and incorporating sustainable standards (Fan et al., 2021). This comes with significant risks while disruptive technology, such as 3D printing technology, continues to impact the global supply chain and logistics industry (Beltagui et al., 2020). By incorporating specifically required skill sets in disruptive technology and using modern educational practices, a new mindset where disruptive technology is approached with rigour and ambition, and both hard/soft skills can be developed as specific assets to improve organisational and individual capabilities.

The Brookings Institute has indicated that America will require 100 million jobs with significant digital skills. Two-thirds of the jobs created in the last decade require either high or moderate digital skills (Muro et al., 2017). The lack of enough qualified workers has been highlighted as a cause of limiting tech job growth in America (TechServe Alliance, 2018). A lack of “soft skills” will severely hamper the effort to reduce the digital skill gap. Other studies, mostly using developed country data, recognise that machines may transform the tasks underlying jobs, leaving 95% of jobs intact, but with a different profile (Arntz, 2016) and that automation will require a broad range of knowledge; most of which is less about computer programming and more about digital literacy (technical knowledge) and human skills (Cunningham and Pimhidzai, 2018).

Item Type:	Article
Journal / Publication Title:	International Journal of Building Pathology and Adaptation
Publisher:	Emerald
ISSN:	2398-4708
Departments:	Professional Services > Academic Quality & Development (AQD)
Additional Information:	Eric C.W. Lou leads the MSc Engineering Project Management programme and acts as an External Examiner at the University of Cumbria, UK.
Depositing User:	Anna Lupton
Date Deposited:	24 Jan 2023 15:12
Last Modified:	29 Jan 2024 10:54
URI:	https://insight.cumbria.ac.uk/id/eprint/6830

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