Editor’s Note

Ashwin Mahalingam recently joined the faculty in the Building Technology and Construction Management division of the Civil Engineering Department at IIT Madras. Ashwin received his B.Tech in civil engineering from IIT Madras and then proceeded to Stanford University for a master’s degree in construction engineering and management. He then helped start an Internet-based company in the United States called All Star Fleet, aimed at providing asset management services for construction companies. He then returned to Stanford University to pursue a Ph.D. in the area of infrastructure project management under the guidance of Raymond E. Levitt. His doctoral thesis work was on understanding and mitigating unintended costs attributable to cultural differences in the design and construction phases of infrastructure projects that involve international participation. Ashwin’s current research interests are in the areas of infrastructure planning and management, risk assessment and allocation, mechanisms for shaping successful infrastructure projects, visualization and automation of construction processes, and cross-cultural issues on global infrastructure projects; he also does some work in the areas of sustainability and social entrepreneurship. In his spare time, Ashwin is a keen reader and an avid tennis player.

The Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT Madras) is a leading institution of national importance in higher technological education and basic and applied research. It was founded in 1959 with financial assistance from the German government. With nearly 460 faculty, 4,500 students and 1,250 administrative and supporting staff, it is surrounded by a beautiful wooded campus of about $250\mathrm{ha}$ . The institute is located in the city of Chennai, previously known as Madras, the capital of the State of Tamilnadu in southern India.

The Department of Civil Engineering was founded at the inception of IIT Madras in 1959 and has grown to include specializations in planning, design, and construction. The department includes is a division of Building Technology and Construction Management. B.Tech., M.Tech., MS, and Ph.D., programs are offered, and many faculty members have advanced degrees and training from leading institutions in India, Germany, U.K., United States, Canada, Japan, and The Netherlands. Alumni hold prestigious positions in academia, industry, and governments worldwide.