THE AUSTRALIAN JOURNAL OF


 

The Australian Journal of Construction Economics & Building Page (i) 

EDITORIAL 
 

 
It is rare in a professional career that one gets the opportunity to play a part in bringing a 
new journal to life. This first edition of the AJCEB is a result of a joint initiative from the 
Australian Institutes of Quantity Surveying and of Building. In part it is a successor to the 
Australian Institute of Building Papers and the Australian Institute of Quantity Surveyors’ 
Refereed Journal, but is intended to encompass a much wider scope. The journal is 
intended as a medium for international exposure of research results to interested peer 
groups. As such the standard has been set at a high level, with the refereeing panel drawn 
from three continents. 
 
It is very satisfying that the balance of the first edition, whilst having a preponderance of 
papers from Australia, also includes authors from four other countries, with Australia’s 
neighbours being particularly active. 
 
We start with an outstanding paper by Peter Smith, in which the uptake of information 
technology is considered from the point of view of a QS practice. The author’s research is 
germane to the entire industry and is considered from a well-balanced point of view. I 
commend this paper to you, not only for the well-researched study and the implications for 
our future development, but also for the interesting sidelights on the psychology of our 
professions. A case in point is the observation that there exist non-functional lift close 
buttons so as to “placate those who measure their time in seconds”. 
 
Not only do we have studies of overall conditions in different markets, we also present to the 
reader some other interesting aspects of our professions. The study of the influence of the 
media in South Africa on Health and Safety records, brings to mind the heady days of the 
80’s in Hong Kong when adverts about construction site safety regularly appeared on prime 
time television, and yet the safety record was very poor.  
 
As befits our international remit, there are papers in this issue, that consider the construction 
industries, or aspects of them, in Australia, South Africa, Hong Kong, Sri Lanka and Papua 
New Guinea. These papers bring a breathtaking international view to this issue of the 
Journal from which we hope to build in future editions. 
 
In our many different ways we influence our professions. In particular a major influence is the 
education process, and we round off this edition with a sometimes-tongue-in-cheek review of 
the education process affecting our industry. In this the author considers many aspects of 
education for our professions based on several different models including the infamous 
BOFO methodology. It should be pointed out to non-native English speakers that the 
description of this by the euphemism “Go away, find out” avoids a classical profanity.  
 
I trust that the reader of this issue will not only be better informed and brought up-to-date 
with developing trends, but will also find that this tome presents them with a good and 
interesting read. 
 
 
Alan Jeary 
Editor-in-Chief 
August 2001 
 
 

The Australian Journal of Construction Economics and Building 
ISSN 1445-2634 

First issued August 2001