LibGuides: UoRM Construction management & engineering / Quantity surveying: Websites

Key websites

ARCOM CM Abstracts and Indexes
Association of Researchers in Construction Management. Covers some construction journals, ARCOM proceedings and PhD theses

Guides and tutorials

ARCOM Resources
Links to resources on research methods and design, writing up, and research skills.
Mathcentre
This site provides quick reference, tutorials, exercises, revision booklets and video demonstrations of the mathematical topics which you need for your course, but have forgotten or never covered in A level maths.
Construction management and economics - writing papers
Lots of advice about writing and publishing on the journal's blog

Construction and engineering: general sites and gateways

Building Research Establishment (BRE)
Information on sustainability including BREAM and an online green guide and information on research projects and services. It has news and case studies.
Civil engineering database (CEDB)
Searchable database of all American Society of Civil Engineers publications from 1970 onwards. Includes journal papers, conference proceedings, technical notes, standards, manuals and reports.
Galaxy: Engineering and Technology
Galaxy is a subject based searchable Internet directory compiled by human Internet Librarians. The engineering and technology page contains an organised list of links divided into categories such as materials science and engineering ethics.
iCrank.com
Designed by mechanical engineers this portal provides access to engineering resources covering technical aspects, design and ergonomics with some potentially useful apps.
Institute of civil engineers
Gives access to information on awards and scholarships and to information resources via its library and virtual library. Membership is free for students.
Offshore Renewable Energy (ORE) Catapult
A UK innovation and research centre for offshore wind, wave and tidal energy, working in partnership with academia, industry and government department. Its activities cover Drive Trains, Foundations & Substructures, Operation & Maintenance, Installation & Decommissioning.
ScienceResearch.com
A portal allowing cross-searching of numerous scientific journals and public science databases.
The Engineer Online
Providing news and information about the engineering industry, as well as content from its magazine The Engineer. It has sections on skills, jobs, policy and business.

Architecture

RIBA (Royal Institute of British Architects)
Information and articles about architects, architecture and projects. Includes links to their Library and bookshop.
Sustainable Architecture Compendium
Describes resources (including extensive bibliographies and several papers) in the Sustainable Architecture Compendium from the University of Michigan's Centre for Sustainable Systems. These can all be downloaded and printed for educational, non-commercial use. Modules include sustainable design, sustainable building materials, recycling and reuse.

Government departments

Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
This is the main government department offering tools and guidance for construction and engineering industries.
Department for Communities and Local Government
DCLG is responsible for policy on community and society and equality, housing, planning, building, regional and local government and the fire service. The DCLG is responsible for Building Regulations and includes information on determinations. Its website features consultation papers and approved documents as well as directives.
Health and Safety Executive
This web site has a specific section for construction and provides information on regulations, case studies and breaches as well as health and safety information and responsibilities when working on or managing construction sites.
UK in figures: official statistics for the United Kingdom
A summary of official government statistics. Includes statistics on economic and financial trends, environment, housing and the output of selected industries.

Tips on evaluating websites

Before believing the information given on a web site, or quoting it in your essay or project, think about the following:

Authority

Who is responsible for the page/site?
Is it a reliable organisation (eg a well known university) or a subject expert?
Can you trust them?

Accuracy and reliability

Is the information correct?
Is the grammar and spelling correct?
Is it complete, or are they just giving one point of view?
Do they have their own agenda eg political organisations?
Is the information fact or opinion?

Currency

Can you tell how up-to-date it is?
Is it regularly updated?
You don't want to quote out-of-date information

Audience / relevance

Is the information of the right level to be quoted in your project? If it is aimed at the general public or school children it might not be!

Feel!

Is the site well structured and easy to navigate?
Are the links from the page up-to-date and valid?
If it is well designed and maintained then you can feel more confident about the information it provides

Standards, patents and trademarks

BSI Education
Explains what a British Standard is, how they are developed, and how to find information about relevant standards.
Espacenet
The Espacenet database contains the bibliographic data and images of more than 80 million patent documents worldwide. It incorporates the former The Great Britain esp@cenet database, which covers GB patent applications published by the UK Intellectual Property Office since 4 January 1979.
US Patent and Trademark Office
This database gives access to the full text of US patents from 1790 onwards
Department of Standards Malaysia
National Standards Body and the National Accreditation Body of Malaysia

Organizations, professional bodies and institutions

AIAC
Asian International Arbitration Centre (Malaysia)
Association for Project Management
Chartered Institute of Building
The world's largest professional body for construction management and leadership whose role is to promote the science and practice of building and construction for the benefit of society.
Chartered Institute of Housing
Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers (CIBSE)
CIB
The International Council for Research and Innovation in Building and Construction publishes all of their thousands of conference papers in full text, free of charge on this site.
CIRIA
The Construction Industry Research and Information Association provides best practice guidelines for a range of construction professionals covering building design and materials, management and productivity, and environmental issues. Newsletters, conferences and events are there and it has useful links to resources such as government agencies, research councils, private sector, major projects and universities
Engineering Council UK (ECUK)
UK regulatory body for the engineering profession
Institute of historic building conservation (IHBC)
Site includes events, blogs and news
PAM
Pertubuhan Akitek Malaysia
Malaysian Institute of Architects
Project Management Institute
RICS (Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors)
RICS Malaysia
Royal Academy of Engineering
It seeks to promote excellence within engineering and has a particular interest in education and public policy.
Royal Institiution of Surveyors Malaysia
Society of construction law
Since its foundation in 1983, the Society of Construction Law has worked to promote for the public benefit education, study and research in the field of construction law and related subjects (including adr, arbitration and adjudication), both in the UK and overseas.
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Includes a large repository of papers on construction law issues, which are free to download for student who register in the website and declare themselves to be students. It has useful links to government sites, housing grants and other organizations.