Courses:

• Introduction of two new courses in Architectural Engineering and in Building Surveying.

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• Approval of Masters course in Project Management for delivery in Vietnam. 

Research

• ARC Discovery - Project: A/Prof Yi-Min (Mike) Xie (VUT)
  Title: Efficient and Robust Bi-directional Evolutionary Structural Optimisation Method for Large-scale Three-dimensional Topological Design 2002: $53,000 2003:  $55,000 2004:  $57,000

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• Linkages - Project A/Prof Yi-Min (Mike) M Xie
  Title: Development of Topological Optimisation Techniques for the Conceptual Design of Multi-storey Buildings 2002:  $22,545 2003:  $22,545 2004:  $22,545 

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• Discovery - Project: Prof Rhys Jones (Monash University) A/Prof YM Xie (VUT)
  Prof S Atluri.  Title: Designing for Safe and Durable Structures  2002:  $56,000 2003:  $56,000 2004:  $58,000

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• On 10 April 2001 HAC Technologies have confirmed the funding of approximately $250,000 for the next eight months to undertake Stage 2 of the Hydrogen Assisted Combustion Project
  Chadwick Geotechnical Research Facility agreement has been signed
  14 staff within the School have declared that their research is associated with one or more University Strategic Research Areas.The School has 15 research active academic staff.
  Value of projects conducted by staff under the auspices of ERCC is almost $500,000.

Conferences

• SBE organized the International Symposium on Thermal Anemometry in January.

Papers were presented at the following conferences:

• 19th International Modal Analysis Conference, Orlando

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• 5th International Symposium on Moisture and Creep Effects on Paper, Board
  and Containers, Marysville

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• 12th  IAPRI World Conference on Packaging, Warsaw.

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• Society for Modelling and Simulation Conference, Orlando.

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• 8th International Conference on Civil and Structural Engineering Computing, Einsenstadt, Austria.

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• Water Pollution 2001 and Water Resources Management 2001 organised by Wessex Institute of Technology, Greece.

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• The 8th International Conference of Enhancement and Promotion of Computer for Engineering and Science, Shanghai.

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• International Conference on Engineering for Ocean and Offshore Structures, Singapore.

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• 14th Australasian Fluid Mechanics Conference, Adelaide.

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• 12th Annual Australasian Association for Engineering Education, Brisbane.

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• 1st Asian-Pacific Congress on Computational Mechanics, Sydney. 

Student achievements

• Eight PG research students graduated in the June ceremony.

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• First year Building Surveying student Mick Bockish won the Paddle Pop 2001 Bridge National Competition in Sydney on 8 September, ahead of the last year winner, University of Sydney.  School's thirteen-member team has won seven out of ten cash prizes, all ten coming ahead of UNSW, UoQ and LaTrobe. The Competition was organized by the IEAust, RTA NSW, State Forests of NSW and Timber Development Association (NSW).

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• Seven-student team comprising Civil and Environmental Engineering students came first, ahead of 12 other teams, in the VU Employability Skills Fest at the Australian Institute of Management on 19 September. 

Other activity

• VU Equity and Social Justice awarded $5,000 for continuation of the project assisting NESB Students' Writing Skills Development conducted within the School with assistance of CEDS staff.