Using non-destructive testing to monitor concrete infrastructure

Between the moments when concrete starts to degrade and when the degradation becomes visible, the cost of repairs increases enormously. Our researchers, led by Dr Massoud Sofi, a research fellow at the Department of Infrastructure Engineering at The University of Melbourne, have developed a diagnostic testing method capable of determining the state and rate of degradation in […]

Using fibre optic sensors to monitor potential infrastructure failure

Dr Leslie Wong of Monash University explains his Australia-Indonesia Centre Infrastructure research. The AIC team, led by Professor Jayantha Kodikara of Monash University, with the support of Dr Hera Widyastuti of Institut Teknologi Sepuluh Nopember, is using fibre optic sensors to more efficiently monitor various potential failures in large-scale infrastructure such as bridges, tunnels, dams, […]

Monitoring bridges, roads and pipelines with fibre optics

A new fibre optic sensor prototype will help to monitor the structural health of billions of dollars’ worth of infrastructure, reducing repair bills and minimising potentially catastrophic failures. Road, bridge and pipeline infrastructure is vulnerable to flooding, soil erosion, and even ground shifts due to earthquakes. Some water and gas pipelines in Australia are over […]

Ports workshop dinner brings countries, sectors together

The Port Competitiveness and Financing Workshop was held in Melbourne from 4 to 6 April, 2018, as part of the Australia-Indonesia Centre’s Infrastructure research project ‘Efficient Facilitation of Major Infrastructure Projects’. Dr Felix Hui and Professor Colin Duffield of The Department of Infrastructure Engineering at The University of Melbourne coordinated the workshop, which included a […]

Addressing the ‘macet’ problem of Jakarta

There are several words and phrases a visitor to Indonesia should learn. These include – Apa kabar? How are you? and Terima kasih Thank you. In Jakarta, the visitor will also quickly learn the word macet – traffic jam. I have yet to find a clear calculation of the cost of macet to the economy […]

Improving rail safety in Indonesia and Australia: The sweet spot for rail repair vs efficiency

Computer models to predict how railcars will respond to different track conditions are being developed by Indonesian and Australian researchers, to improve rail safety and efficiency in both countries. They’ve already created a successful model for passenger carriages, which has been validated against the performance of trains in Indonesia. Now the researchers are working on […]

Earthquake-proofing ports

Researchers from The University of Melbourne are learning how to modify existing Indonesian and Australian ports so earthquakes don’t do such devastating damage to sea trade. “What we currently have is a recipe for disaster. Some port infrastructure is over 100 years old and was not designed to cope with the loads they are currently […]

Radar-in-a-suitcase makes bridges safer

Assessing ageing bridges just got safer and easier, thanks to a high-tech radar device that fits inside a suitcase. Developed by Dr Lihai Zhang of The University of Melbourne as part of a collaborative research project supported by The Australia-Indonesia Centre, the IBIS-S radar technology can scan a bridge in 15 minutes from a kilometre […]