THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT IN BUILDING, URBANISM AND SUSTAINABLE TERRITORIAL DEVELOPMENT – URBAN-INCERC.
INSTITUTIONAL DEVELOPMENT PLAN FOR THE NEXT 4 YEARS
3.1. Scientific SWOT analysis.
The institute that resulted after merging and the newly defined and broader field of NIRD URBAN-INCERC was aimed at being more comprehensive, covering and integrating the sustainable development for the built environment at the scale of a city, county, region or country, Romania, or even of a group of countries in EU. It is not an industrial type research, dominated by search for new types of materials, devices and objects.
The research in the fields covered by NIRD URBAN-INCERC has a specific which is determined by some factors that make the diference when one has to implement the new requirements and strategies of European Union:
- the specific of constructions as a built object, as they differ of construction materials and products and the need to ensure the proper circulation and safe application of European materials in buildings;
- the need to cope with the local environment dominated by a strong seismicity on more that half of Romania and a temperate continentat climate with specific patterns, that impose locally developed solutions, and the need to work for territorial and urban development under new EU requirements in all regions of Romania, to implement local and EU results and reduce gaps;
- as URBAN-INCERC is coordinated by MDRT, there is a specific role in its involvement in supplying to MDRT and to other central institutions or local public administration with research, regulations, strategic studies and analyses.
It is a challenge, fully taken as a „mission impossible” by the management team and the researchers, in a period of crisis and recession. The past performance of institutes was very appreciated by the ministry in charge with construction and spatial development field, MDRT-Ministry of Regional Development and Tourism, as well as by the Ministry of Education, Research and Youth, and the construction industry and local authorities along decades. A considerable and unique experience was accumulated and most of the regulations, studies and developments in their field were authored by researchers in these institutes or centers. The opening towards Europe and World along of last 20 years added new ideas to our values. The crisis impact in the period after 2008, with all budgetary, market and investments constraints, caused a reduction of financial resources.
CONSTRUCTIONS – Institutional Development Plan for Branches with main fields in construction research
Considering the specific of constructions research, the quality of the results of the research activity in URBAN-INCERC is reflected by:
- a considerable number of large research projects in the period 2007-2011, in the MECTS—ANCS competitions and a large number of pre-normative research and regulations elaborated for MDRT;
- a large number of technical agrements – 1.188 AT in 2007-2011, in application of European Directive 89/106 and of REGULATION (EU) No 305/2011 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 9 March 2011 laying down harmonised conditions for the marketing of construction products and repealing Council Directive 89/106/EEC, Official Journal of the European Union., 4.4.2011. The Technical Agrements/Approvals represent a very important way of introducing European products on the local market and it requires a specific capability of evaluation, testing and research;
- a number of 9 patents, a number of 11 articles in ISI journals, 61 authored books and chapters within collective volumes and 523 relevant publications, numerous seminars for dissemination.
The SWOT analysis must take into account these realities and set adequate means to cope with challenges. According to the structure of URBAN-INCERC domains, the SWOT analysis will be made on specific fields, according to the Research and Development Strategy of NRDI URBAN-INCERC drafted in 2010 and revised in 2011.
Strong points / Weak points / Opportunities / Threats1. Existing labs with RENAR accreditation and / or ISC authorization, with new equipments, covering almost all fields of constructions science and the 60 years prestige of INCERC Brand and teritorial branches of Iasi, Cluj and Timisoara. Branches do know their region around and have steady relationships with producers and construction companies. / 1. Old equipments in some testing halls.
Stagnation or closing of some research and testing domains. / 1. The need and capacity to get financing for URBAN-INCERC from MDRT for providing strategies, public policies and technical solutions for key fields.
Integration and use of JICA donation taken over by NCSRR merging / 1. Lack of research funding caused by crisis and reduced investments; lack of own funds for research, acquisition of new equipments for large scale testing
2 Existing senior researchers with high experience, able to perform research, testing, agrementing etc. The capacity and possibility to have a research carrier for construction field and interdisciplinary applications in an institute of unique domain / 2 Retiring of some valuable researchers and lack of young staff. Reduced number of PhD in some labs.
Less publicity was done in universities before 2007 as to attract young graduates. / 2 Using senior researchers as tutors for freshmen in research. Attracting new generations of civil engineers coming as student trainees in institute under a dedicated recruiting policy since 2007 and support for making a PhD thesis and research capability / 2 Retirement of senoir researchers. Reduced salaries when funding is uncertain or in comparison with other industries. Economic recovery after crisis may attract young engineers in other fields, with higher salaries, including brain-drain abroad
3. Experience gained in ANCS Research Projects won by competition since 2007, to be used in next competitions. Many proposals already submitted in 2011 ANCS call Partnerships. / 3. Nucleus program funding was reduced in 2011. Limited number of entries in recent competitions, due to restrictive standards based only on ISI and patents / 3. Finding niche domains and partnerships for interdisciplinary projects, partnership with universities to create centers of excellence around our branches. Providing coniuous education for constructors. / 3. Lack of specific criteria to meet the specific of construction research in ANCS competitions
4. Regulation stock is mainly covered by INCERC and barnches for many fileds. Existance of a data base with research results that may interest MDRT, construction companies and universities / 4. In some fields results are not enough disseminated to all potential clients. Our results does not influence enough public policies as to provide progress. MDRT has not yet launched competitions for pre-normative research and regulations in 2011. / 4. Proposals to MDRT Sectorial Plan is an asset. Publications in own journal, organization and participation in fairs, seminars and promotion events. / 4. Lack of investment risk funds due to crisis impact.
Time spent in paperworks instead of research activities
5. A potential capacity and results to create a number of patents and provide implementation with financial benefit / 5. Research results are not formatted as to became patents. Very reduced number of patents recorded for granting / 5. Increasing experimental research oriented towards patenting, attending courses for invention procedures, spin-off and start-up implementation. The need of retehnologization of large-scale infrastructure. / 5. Money and long time required to obtain patents, especially EU patents
6. Good contacts with many companies that agremented and tested their products and materials in our labs / 6. Lack of larger topics projects, less information on construction industry needs / 6. The need to meet EU requirements and national regulations, increasing marketing in all regions where our branches exist / 6 Unfair competition of small laboratories working on dumping prices without technical care
7. Scientific knowledge and ability to answer to EU Directives on Building Materials, Energy Performance and Security and to aplly to local conditions / 7. Lack of experience for large and interdisciplinary projects. Use of structural funds, partnership in UE Programs and FP 7 Projects was reduced to date, lack of staff able to write successful projects / 7. Using new EU Strategy and Horizon 2020 Program, 2014-2020 and recruiting new staff for development of new research projects to attract funds / 7. Lack of funds for overhead costs and for financing before money are paid
8. Existing Laboratory of Seismic Risk Assessment and The Strong Motion Network for Constructions, knowledge and data base on local seismic conditions that are different of other countries / 8. Difficulties in geting financing for maintenance and extending the labs and national strong motion network that is a must for national codes / 8. The EU Security Strategy requirements that requires mapping of risks and evaluation based on multi-hazard scenarios and MDRT is a public partner in charge. There is a need to make european solutions valid under local seismic conditions. / 8. Lack of capacity to survey damage and gather data after next big earthquake. A disaster may happen before evaluation and risk mapping for intervention could be done.
9. Membership of ENBRI, UEATc, EOTA, WFTAO, etc ensures a prestige among competitors. / 9. Some information about new approcahes and technologies is missing. The contacts with other institutes of research that are similar to URBAN-INCERC Branches are not so frequent. / 9. Increasing attendance to ENBRI meetings and visits to R-D institutes of Europe and World / 9. Lack of funds for international cooperation
10. Participation and publications in Romanian, EU and especially in the Proceedings of European and World Conferences of Earthquake Engineering since decades, writing many books, as well as many seminars of dissemination / 10. ISI papers are not numerous but we have others. But ANCS does not recognize other papers and books as scientific results, if they are not in ISI system, although they are valuable for construction field. Thus, researchers may be discouraged to publish or to attend, because ANCS does not count them for evaluations. / 10. Successive publication in national journals, proceedings and ISI cited journals, training researchers to write papers is highly cited journals, increasing number of dissemination and new forms of visibility. Access to scientific publications by INCERC Library and ANCS ANELISE System. / 10. Losing the contact with important audience in national and international conferences.
Lack of visibility in a very important group of earthquake advanced countries.
3.2. Strategic scientific objectives and directions for CONSTRUCTIONS
The current institutional development plan with respect to constructions is based on the Research and Development Strategy of NRDI URBAN-INCERC drafted in 2010 and revised in 2011, in connection with the concept of sustainable development and strategic programs MDRT and MECTS-ANCS. Through the proposed strategy is intended that the research - development carried out in N.I.R.D. URBAN-INCERC to be characterized by:
- Technical and scientific performance in specific areas
- Background and forecast capacity, operational and competent response to the requirements of the construction field
- Integration as an active partner in strategic programs MDRT and MECTS-ANCS
- Increased dissemination of research results
- An adequate ratio between fundamental research, application, testing for others, certification, approval and development of regulations
- Competitiveness and visibility at national, European and international scale
Synthesis of objectives on short-term, mid-term and long-term according to the Research and Development Strategy of NRDI URBAN-INCERC drafted in 2010 and revised in 2011 /Short term
(up to 1-3 years) / Medium term
3-5 years / Long term
5-10 years /
1. Providing, by competition, the human resource for the laboratories with higher average age or being under critical mass, in the present organization chart, by attractive salaries and the efficient use of existing personnel.
2. Identification of sustainable funding resources and structuring of prospective budgets.
3. Establishing protocols of collaboration with local universities, Inspectorate of Constructions and Chambers of Commerce for mutual support, search of funding and dissemination
4. Analysis of the structure of direct and indirect costs in the new organizational and functional structure and proposal of reduction/optimization measures.
5. Equalization of the endowment with common use hardware and software for the laboratories of the institute
6. Using jointly the testing equipments of State Inspectorate for Constructions based on a Protocol
7. Improving the efficiency of the scientific verification of research reports in the Scientific Council.
8. Increasing visibility of our research results for ANCS, MDRT, EU partners and local construction industry, for key fileds
9. Ensuring the publication, the required scientific quality and the CNCSIS and ISI (Thomson Web of Science) classification of the journals and reviews issued by NRDI URBAN-INCERC, updating of websites, including the English versions. Support for the participation of specialists in scientific meetings and for the publication in scientific journals indexed by the Thomson Web of Science (ISI). Introduction in the employment fiche of the requirement to periodically publish in the journals and reviews issued by NRDI URBAN-INCERC and to participate in scientific meetings.
10. Ensuring the permanence of a prestigious scientific conference.
11. Revision of the membership of the specialists from NRDI URBAN-INCERC in the Technical Specialty Committees of MDRT
12. Renewal of contacts with European and international organizations in the field / 1. Development of the institutional capacity – human resources in research activities in civil engineering as to possibly reach a ratio of 1.2 to 1.of R-D vs. other staff
2. Stimulating the employment by competition of Master graduates and of their application for doctoral programs in all laboratories in which the average age of the employees is above the mean, according to necessities.
3. Preparation of the candidates that qualify for attestation as Scientific Researchers IIIrd, IInd and Ist degree, according to the criteria of the National Authority of Scientific Research, in the conditions stipulated by the Romanian laws.
2. Development of the institutional capacity – equipment – necessities and priorities of re-technologization of large infrastructures
3. Increasing the contribution of NRDI URBAN-INCERC in the development of public policies of MDRT for the construction sector.
4. Increasing the visibility of the research and of NRDI URBAN-INCERC in the field of civil engineering in Romania and in the EU, for strategic fields of expertise, as seismic risk and thermal rehabilitation
5. Increasing the capacity of integration in the EU and in the international research community applying strategic measures.
6. Getting closer to FP 7 criteria in scientific and financial terms, making FP 7 Projects
7. Ensuring UE standards for research
8. Working for achieving goals of 2020 EU Strategy and have EU funds for research.
9. Analysis of possible and necessary modifications to the organization chart of NRDI URBAN-INCERC, for the alignment to the EU requirements / 1. Institutional development – human resources. Formation of a new generation of researchers, consequent to the stabilized organizational structure of NRDI URBAN-INCERC and with specializations, qualifications and composition aligned to the EU requirements.
2. Institutional development - equipment re-technologization, stabilization of the structure of equipment and research infrastructure, by the replacing, reduction or closing down of some activities; the uniqueness of some laboratories in the field will be considered.
3. Significantly increasing the role and the impact of the research and development activities in NRDI URBAN-INCERC on economy sectors, aimed to sustainable development.
4. Improvement and diversification of the implementation of research results, by acquiring co-funding and public-private partnerships with local authorities, construction contractors and SMEs, for seismic and thermal rehabilitation and reduction of gas emissions.
5. Creating a Park of ecological, energy performant and earthquake resistant buildings in INCERC Branch area.
4. Increasing the capacity of international integration of NRDI URBAN-INCERC, with particular focus on the European Research Area, development of multiple forms of participation in EU research programs
Specific strategic projects of URBAN-INCERC in line with The EUROPE 2020 Strategy