Legacy Infrastructure Research Articles

Delivering social value via the construction of legacy infrastructure assets: the case of the level crossing Removal program of projects

Legacy is a significant factor contributing to an infrastructure mega-project's success, but limited knowledge exists about how it is planned and enacted. Our paper aims to address the following research questions: (1) How can an infrastructure asset deliver a legacy of social value? and (2) How can social legacy ambitions be identified and operationalised? In answering these questions, we use an exploratory case study approach to make sense of the experiences of Melbourne’s $19.8 billion Level Crossing Removal Project (LXRP) being delivered over 15 years using a program of alliances. We show that the LXRP’s growth mindset was core to establishing its social legacy by influencing its vision, which shaped its strategy and triggered the design of its project delivery model, enabling the actions needed to generate social value to be realised. With limited examples of mega-projects demonstrating ‘how’ social value and legacy are created, the experiences of the LXRP offer a learning opportunity for policymakers seeking to construct transformative infrastructure assets.

The Role of Middleware in Integrating Legacy Systems with Modern Policy Administration

This comprehensive article examines the critical role of middleware integration in modernizing insurance industry legacy systems. The article reveals that approximately 75% of insurers rely on systems that are 20-40 years old, consuming up to 70% of IT budgets in maintenance. Through a detailed examination of implementation strategies, benefits, and challenges, the research demonstrates how middleware solutions serve as a crucial bridge between legacy infrastructure and modern Policy Administration Systems (PAS). The article covers key aspects, including protocol translation capabilities, service orchestration frameworks, and data transformation excellence, while providing quantitative metrics on cost reduction (20-30%), operational efficiency improvements (40-50%), and system performance enhancements (99.9% reliability). The article also presents a structured framework for implementing best practices, incorporating assessment, architecture design, security considerations, and testing strategies validated through industry case studies and expert analysis.

Empowering Indigenous-Led Contaminant Monitoring through Collaborative Partnerships and Two-Way Capacity Sharing

Climate-driven landscape change, legacy waste and ongoing infrastructural investment are leading to concerns about contaminant release in Arctic Indigenous and Local communities. Sustainable development that considers threats posed by accelerating environmental change requires accessible, appropriate, and sustained environmental data to inform strategic decision-making. Collaborative partnerships and capacity sharing are necessary to promote resilient and sustainable environmental monitoring approaches, however effective collaboration has been hindered by mismatches in priorities and timelines between communities and research programs. We outline the development and later evolution of a community-based environmental research program focused on monitoring contamination threats posed by legacy infrastructure sourced from industry, transportation and domestic waste sites. Capacities and insights from diverse knowledge systems guided each stage of our research approach. Reflections provided by an Indigenous and non-Indigenous Early Career Researcher (ECR) share insights into different aspects of the research process. We highlight how cross-cultural partnerships and capacity sharing have enabled evolving and reflexive community-based contaminant monitoring. Our approach facilitates a structural shift from collaborative monitoring with external analysis to autonomous monitoring that supports equity in research outcomes. Appropriately considered and resourced co-development at regular points of the research process has been critical to developing a complete and effective Indigenous-led research project.

A nutrient circular economy framework for wastewater treatment plants

Given the criticality of phosphorous and the harm eutrophication causes, wastewater treatment plants (WWTP) are undergoing circular economy (CE) conversions into becoming centres for resource recovery. This framework paper identifies the environmental, societal, political, commercial, economic, consumer, regulatory, legal, infrastructural, technological, international compliance, academic, agricultural, and plant-operator factors affecting the micro, macro and meso success and failure of nutrient CE WWTP across scope classifications. From this, nutrient CE framework is not as simplistic as it looks, given the multitude of impingers that need to be considered. The lack of technological readiness and vast selection methodologies for some nutrient recovery technologies, low private-sector investment, divisive consumer perceptions, unique economic situations, localised regulatory specifications, threats of inefficient technology lock-ins, poor acceptance among farmers and WWTP operators due to infrastructural incompatibilities, lack of efficient CE supply chains, legacy infrastructure, poor digitised solutions for nutrient CE management, low training and awareness, and integration of nutrient CE WWTPs with broader society are barriers. On the contrary, nutrient CE WWTP will mainly be driven by regulations, subsidies and consumer-WWTP-farmer nutrient CE acceptances. This framework aims to tie in and provide solutions to overcoming barriers to nutrient CE WWTPs that is universally applicable. Consequently, the framework provides a holistic structure for policy, legislative, academic, agricultural, plant operators, commercial and consumer stakeholders a roadmap for the success and difficulties of nutrient CE WWTP adoption.

Not for all: Barriers to universal accessibility in nature-based tourism and recreation spaces across British Columbia, Canada

The health and well-being benefits of nature contact are inequitably distributed. Among other communities, persons with a disability have fewer opportunities to engage in nature contact in a self-determining way due to the presence of interlocking physical, informational, service, policy, and attitudinal barriers. The purpose of this project was to utilize accepted accessibility standards to document the state of accessibility in nature based tourism and recreation spaces across British Columbia. Following community-based research practices, a team of academic researchers and experts working in accessibility practice collected over 6,700 unique measurements documenting potential barriers across 124 outdoor tourism and recreation sites. Of the 974 infrastructure elements and features assessed, fewer than five percent met all required standards. This paper shares evidence about the categories of infrastructure that are most problematic from an access and inclusion perspective, as well as those that are comparable brightspots. Results demonstrate a considerable gap between Canada's policy goal to become barrier free by 2040 and the present state of accessibility in outdoor spaces across the nature continuum. Management ImplicationsOrganizations managing outdoor tourism and recreation spaces across the nature continuum in British Columbia, Canada are not meeting interrelated moral, legislative, and social demands for equitable access to nature. Management agencies should invest in data collection completed in partnership with the disability community to reveal the full suite of barriers that prevent access across the province. New capital investment programs are required to upgrade legacy infrastructure and realize new features and amenities that provide meaningful opportunities to all. To ensure accessibility does not diminish over time, changes in management practices like incorporating accessibility requirements into operational contracting, hiring for lived experience, and building accessibility monitoring into maintenance planning and operations are needed.

Deterrents to the IoT for smart buildings and infrastructure development: A partial least square modeling approach

Implementing Internet of things (IoT) technology in the context of intelligent buildings and infrastructure development has garnered significant attention within the construction sector. Nonetheless, the implementation of IoT could be improved by assessing various barriers. The purpose of this study was to examine the obstacles related to the adaptation of IoT techniques within the construction sector, as well as the effects on the advancement of intelligent building and infrastructure systems. The study employed a mixed-method approach involving exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and structural equation modeling (SEM) to determine six types of barriers: knowledge, technical, standardization, creativity, complexity, and economics. The study revealed that the implementation of IoT for developing smart construction and infrastructure in the construction sector was significantly influenced by all six constructs. The results of this study offer significant ramifications for the field. The study underscores the necessity for heightened consciousness and instruction regarding the advantages of implementing IoT. The study posits that the technical barriers, including interoperability, modernization of legacy infrastructure, and coordination and collaboration difficulties, require attention from the industry. The study highlights the significance of establishing industry-wide standards and protocols for implementing IoT and regulatory and legal frameworks. Finally, the study underscores the necessity for augmented funding and financing options for IoT endeavors. Subsequent study endeavors may expand upon the present findings by delving into the barriers encountered by alternative sectors and nations and assessing the efficacy of the suggested measures in this investigation.

Jump-Starting Global Grid Decarbonization: US-Dutch Partnerships Energize Utility-Scale Battery Deployment

The United States and the Netherlands heavily invest in renewable energy as part of their individual commitments to net zero emissions by 2050. Weather-dependent fluctuations in wind and solar power, along with limitations in legacy infrastructure and systems, restrict the on-demand use of these renewables and pose substantial bottlenecks to the energy transition. Integration of dynamic energy storage technologies into modernized electrical systems will provide crucial solutions to overcome these challenges. Herein, we profile stakeholder perspectives on the energy transition and present our recommendations for US-Dutch collaboration on utility-scale electrochemical battery solutions to update power grids with robust, accessible, and sustainable carbon-free flexible energy capacity.

The Integration of Fintech into the banking sector

The banking sector has undergone significant transformations with the integration of financial technology (fintech), reshaping traditional banking operations and customer experiences. This research paper explores the evolution of fintech integration into the banking sector, assesses its current landscape and explores its future prospects, opportunities, potential and emerging technologies. The paper begins by providing an overview of the fintech revolution and its impact on banking, highlighting key drivers such as digitalization, consumer demand for convenience, regulatory changes, and technological advancements. It examines how fintech solutions have revolutionized banking operations, including digital banking platforms, payment solutions, data analytics, AI-driven insights, blockchain applications and robotic process automation (RPA). Through an analysis of current trends and empirical studies, the paper delves into the future prospects of fintech in banking, emphasizing its role in expanding financial inclusion, enhancing customer experiences, improving regulatory compliance and fostering collaboration between banks and fintech startups. It explores the role of open banking frameworks, cloud computing, Internet of Things (IoT), biometric authentication and regulatory technology (regtech) in shaping the future of banking. Furthermore, the paper examines the challenges and barriers hindering the widespread adoption of fintech in banking, such as regulatory uncertainty, cybersecurity risks, legacy infrastructure constraints, data privacy concerns and talent shortages. It identifies untapped areas and opportunities for fintech innovation, including small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) lending, wealth management, insurance, trade finance and rural banking. Through a comprehensive analysis of industry trends, regulatory developments and technological innovations, this research paper provides insights into the transformative potential of fintech in the banking sector. It concludes with recommendations for banks, policymakers and stakeholders to capitalize on the opportunities presented by fintech integration, navigate regulatory challenges and leverage emerging technologies to drive innovation, growth and competitiveness in the digital banking era.

Introduction to this special section: Orphaned and abandoned wells

There is little to argue about the deep and pervasive impact hydrocarbon exploration has had in modernization and industrial development since the late 1800s. With applications ranging from transportation fuels, industrial chemicals, and plastics, it is indeed difficult to faithfully deny that much of our current way of life is not touched, ultimately, by hydrocarbon exploration. And while the benefits of this activity have been bountiful, so too are the emergent challenges in responsible management of legacy infrastructure from 170 years of oil and gas production.

Endpoint security reinforcement via integrated zero-trust systems: A collaborative approach

In the rapidly evolving field of information technology, network security, especially enterprise endpoint security, has emerged as a major challenge. This paper presents a comprehensive and interactive method for network access and user authentication utilizing a zero-trust framework. This method integrates key elements, including the Network Access (NA) Agent, Identity and Access Management (IAM) Agent, Policy Enforcement Point (PEP) Agent, and Situational Awareness (SA) Agent, to mitigate security risks associated with critical business information exposure and unauthorized network access. Leveraging a zero-trust approach, the method dynamically controls user permissions, thereby enhancing endpoint security. It also introduces an efficient solution that coexists with legacy infrastructures, balancing security necessities with user accessibility, and offering a unified solution for both internal corporate networks and the Internet. We present a thorough analysis of potential risks associated with this method and propose preventative measures to minimize these threats. We conclude that our method provides a more secure and efficient approach to enterprise network security compared to traditional static rule-based systems, offering a promising direction for future research and implementation.

Networking effects of innovations: evidence from the Global South

PurposeThis paper aims to investigate the short- and long-run influence of core banking solutions (CBSs) on productive efficiency and identify the presence of potential network externalities arising from CBS adoption. This paper further examines the differential behaviour of long-term effects across the banking structure.Design/methodology/approachThis study uses a panel data set of Indian commercial banks from 2005 to 2021. Economic efficiency is quantified using VRS-based DEA programming algorithms. Productivity changes are measured through an input-oriented, DEA-based Malmquist productivity index. Short- and long-run effects are examined through a finite autoregressive distributed lag model, estimated through a pooled mean-group estimator.FindingsFindings suggest that CBS adoption negatively correlates with cost structure until the first year of adoption. Nevertheless, significant benefits are visible from the third year. Furthermore, such associations are highly susceptible to the industry structure. CBS results in higher incremental benefits for private banks vis-à-vis state-owned banks. Large banks receive significant and quicker productivity improvements from CBS vis-à-vis small banks. Bank age guides CBS–performance associations, highlighting that mature banks may face the issue of legacy infrastructure in CBS adoption. The resultant networking externalities are significant as they enhance the attractiveness of the network, which subsequently augments inter-branch and inter-bank communications.Originality/valueTo the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first to recognise the stickiness of one of the most homogeneously adopted technological innovations in the Indian banking sector. The presence of a conjoint technological network has the potential to enhance the service delivery process and ensure superior returns for Indian banks.

Implications of Green Technologies for Environmental Justice

There are large disparities in access to green technologies between countries and among different demographic groups within countries. Unless carefully managed, the energy transition risks exacerbating some of these inequalities, for example, by burdening those who are excluded from efficient new technologies with the costs of maintaining legacy infrastructure. The energy transition will create new interdependencies between sectors—for example, between buildings, the power sector, and transportation—requiring integrated design of policies and infrastructure in different sectors. The equitable adoption of new technologies is contingent on broadening access to enabling technologies such as the Internet and payment systems. Decisionmakers must focus on new technologies that remove disparities in access to services but do not replicate current inefficiencies in providing those services (e.g., equitable access to mobility—not only to motorized personal vehicles). Data at higher resolutions and with broader coverage are needed to design equitable technology deployment strategies and evaluate their success.

Infrastructure and the cognitive ecosystem: an irrevocable transformation

Disruption of legacy infrastructure systems by novel digital and connected technologies represents not simply the rise of cyberphysical systems as hybrid physical and digital assets but, ultimately, the integration of legacy systems into a new cognitive ecosystem. This cognitive ecosystem, an ecology of massive data flows, artificial intelligence, institutional and intellectual structures, and connected technologies, is poised to alter how humans and artificial intelligence understand and control our world. Infrastructure managers need to be ready for this paradigm shift, recognizing their systems are increasingly being absorbed into an emerging suite of data, analytical tools, and decisionmaking technologies that will fundamentally restructure how legacy systems behave and are controlled, how decisions are made, and most importantly how workers interact with the systems. Infrastructure managers must restructure their organizations and engage in cross-organizational sensemaking if they are to be capable of navigating the complexity of the cognitive ecosystem. The cognitive ecosystem is fundamentally poised to change what infrastructures are, necessitating the need for managers to take a close look at the functions and actions of their own systems. The continuing evolution of the Anthropocene and the cognitive ecosystem has profound implications for infrastructure education. A sustained commitment to change is necessary that restructures and reorients infrastructure organizations within the cognitive ecosystem, where knowledge is generated, and control of services is wielded by myriad stakeholders.

Enhancing Security in Legacy Systems: Implementing Zero Trust Architecture and Advanced Encryption

As cyber threats evolve, securing legacy systems becomes increasingly challenging. Legacy infrastructures often lack the sophisticated security features required to meet modern threats, creating vulnerabilities within organizations. This article explores the integration of Zero Trust Architecture (ZTA) and advanced encryption techniques to enhance the security of legacy systems. By discussing the foundational principles of Zero Trust, practical encryption methods, and specific steps for implementation, this article provides a comprehensive guide for organizations aiming to secure legacy systems in today’s dynamic threat landscape.

A Novel Strategy to Achieve Video Transcoding Using Cloud Computing

One of the fundamental challenges faced in deploying multimedia systems is delivering smooth and uninterrupted audio-visual information anywhere and anytime. In such systems, multimedia content is compressed within a certain format, this requires format conversion for various devices. Thus, a transcoding mechanism is required to make the content adaptive for various devices in the network. Video transcoding converts one digitally encoded format into another, this involves translating any file format containing video and audio at the same time. This is an essential feature for devices that do not support a specific format of media or have limited storage that requires a reduced file size. Through this paper, we provide a novel way of transcoding the block-based video coding schemes using cloud architecture by establishing a video pipelining architecture. The solution discussed in this paper would enable the end users to extract videos in any format and resolution seamlessly, combined with the scalability, reliability, and cost-effectiveness of the cloud. The proposed idea would be lucrative for all the video streaming applications that are currently relying on their legacy infrastructure for video transcoding.

COSIBAS Platform—Cognitive Services for IoT-Based Scenarios: Application in P2P Networks for Energy Exchange

The revolution generated by the Internet of Things (IoT) has radically changed the world; countless objects with remote sensing, actuation, analysis and sharing capabilities are interconnected over heterogeneous communication networks. Consequently, all of today's devices can connect to the internet and can provide valuable information for decision making. However, the data collected by different devices are in different formats, which makes it necessary to develop a solution that integrates comprehensive semantic tools to represent, integrate and acquire knowledge, which is a major challenge for IoT environments. The proposed solution addresses this challenge by using IoT semantic data to reason about actionable knowledge, combining next-generation semantic technologies and artificial intelligence through a set of cognitive components that enables easy interoperability and integration for both legacy systems and emerging technologies, such as IoT, to generate business value in terms of faster analytics and improved decision making. Thus, combining IoT environments with cognitive artificial intelligence services, COSIBAS builds an abstraction layer between existing platforms for IoT and AI technologies to enable cognitive solutions and increase interoperability across multiple domains. The resulting low-cost cross platform supports scalability and the evolution of large-scale heterogeneous systems and allows the modernization of legacy infrastructures with cognitive tools and communication mechanisms while reusing assets.

TOWARDS A SUSTAINABLE FUTURE: MAKING THE CASE FOR ADVANCED DECOMMISSIONING PRACTICES IN THE U.S. OIL & GAS INDUSTRY

The U.S. Oil and gas industry stands at a critical crossroads, facing the intricate task of decommissioning legacy infrastructure while simultaneously striving to align with global sustainability goals. This comprehensive study delves into the multifaceted realm of advanced decommissioning practices, elucidating their paramount significance in promoting environmental conservation, economic resilience, and holistic stakeholder engagement. Through a meticulous analysis of both traditional and innovative decommissioning methodologies, the paper underscores the pivotal role the U.S. can play in spearheading global sustainability initiatives. As the industry grapples with the challenges and opportunities of the 21st century, the imperative to embrace transformative change becomes evident. This change encompasses technological and procedural advancements and a paradigm shift in industry ethos towards a more sustainable and inclusive future. The paper concludes with a compelling call to action, urging industry stakeholders, policymakers, and the broader community to collaboratively champion these advanced practices, ensuring that the U.S. Oil and gas sector remains at the forefront of global sustainability efforts while safeguarding environmental and socio-economic equilibria.

Embarking on a digital journey to cater for future growth

Only a third of all strategic initiatives are successfully implemented. This leaves huge untapped potential that can be unleashed by rethinking the way the organisation executes on their plans. Organisations need to adapt to a new approach to ensure their strategy works to enable better choices, higher engagement and a greater impact. However, before embarking on a strategic initiative, one must acknowledge that conducting a strategic transformation is an infinite exercise of keeping up with requirements, assessing and adapting to trends and development, whilst engaging and empowering the employees. Nordea Asset Management set out on a strategic journey with the overarching vision of being ‘Client driven, Investment led and Tech enabled’. This implied investigating how to adopt modern technology principles, reduce dependencies on legacy infrastructure and free up time with employees. This, to enable the organisation to focus on application functionality, utilise cloud-native platforms, exploit elasticity and scalability of cloud computing and make data available in a structured and non-complex manner. Making applications interoperable through a robust IT infrastructure and having data sources integrated and accessible — making the vision of ‘tech enabled’ come true. Nordea Asset Management made the strategic choice of embarking on a digital transformation to accelerate growth and strategically drive the business and the organisation forward. The choice was made after considerable investigations and market research. The key to making the strategic initiative come alive was securing the ownership of the transformation with the business, the business being the driver of customer value and thereby owners of the problem to be solved. This enabled Nordea Assets Management to ensure that the solutions being built were both fit for the customer and the growth of the business, as well as for the future digital services and data solutions. With a well-designed and resilient Technology base, companies can scale efficiently and enable the organisation to deliver even more value to customers, faster, while continuously increasing the experience for employees. Engaging the individuals and igniting the vision for the future is a key trait of an organisation adapting to disruption. And a prerequisite for a successful transformation is the ability to ‘keep the lights on’, having the legacy systems working and maintaining the strong relations, while at the same time bridging the complexity and creating an environment of trust, respect and curiosity to build the future.

Continuous integrated manufacturing for biopharmaceuticals: A new paradigm or an empty promise?

Continuous integrated bioprocessing has elicited considerable interest from the biopharma industry for the many purported benefits it promises. Today many major biopharma manufacturers around the world are engaged in the development of continuous process platforms for their products. In spite of great potential, the path toward continuous integrated bioprocessing remains unclear for the biologics industry due to legacy infrastructure, process integration challenges, vague regulatory guidelines, and a diverging focus towardnovel therapies. In this article, we present a review and perspective on this topic. We explore the status of the implementation of continuous integrated bioprocessing among biopharmaceutical manufacturers. We also present some of the key hurdles that manufacturers are likely to face during this implementation. Finally, we hypothesize that the real impact of continuous manufacturing is likely to come when the cost of manufacturing is a substantial portion of the cost of product development, such as in the case of biosimilar manufacturing and emerging economies.

Sedimentary legacy and the disturbing recurrence of the human in long-term ecological research

Even as new elements of a research infrastructure are added, older parts continue to exert persistent and consequential influence. We introduce the concept of sedimentary legacy to describe the relationship between infrastructure and research objects. Contrary to common accounts of legacy infrastructure that underscore lock-in, static, or constraining outcomes, sedimentary legacy emphasizes how researchers adapt infrastructure to support the investigation of new research objects, even while operating under constraining legacies. To illustrate the implications of sedimentary legacy, we track shifting objects of investigation across the history of the Long-Term Ecological Research (LTER) Network, focusing especially on recurrent ecological investigations of 'human disturbance' as researchers shift to study socioecological objects. We examine the relationship between scientific objects and the resources collected and preserved to render such objects tractable to scientific investigations, and show how the resources of a long-term research infrastructure support the assembly of certain objects of investigation, even while foreclosing others.