Introduction
Zou Jixue
Person in Charge of Engineering Management, Real Estate Development, and Management Major at the School of Human Settlements and Civil Engineering
Associate Professor, Engineer, Domestic Visiting Scholar
Expert of Comprehensive Bid Evaluation Expert Database of Shaanxi Province
Committee Member of the 5th International Conference on Civil Engineering, Architectural and Environmental Engineering (CEAEE2021)
Committee Member of the 3rd Global Conference on Ecological Environment and Civil Engineering (GCEECE 2021)
1 +X Intelligent Construction Design and Integration Application Vocational Skill Level Certificate Shaanxi Province Industry and Transport Office Director
Expert Judge of National University BIM Graduation Design Competition
He has published a number of core papers in national journals and served as the leader of several provincial and school-level research topics. He is the teacher for the recorded course of "Engineering Costing" in Beijing Zhongjian Zhengyan Company, course design leader of whole-process project management at the School of Human Settlements and Civil Engineering and the school supervisor at Xi’an Eurasia University. Meanwhile, he is responsible for and participated in the construction of courses such as "Construction Engineering Information Management Technology", "Digital Construction Comprehensive Practice Program", "Engineering Costing and Measurement (Civil Construction)" and "Application of Engineering Costing Software".
New technologies are driving the digital transformation of the traditional construction industry and mastering cutting-edge knowledge and technology represents a challenge for the entire industry. Zou Jixue, a faculty member at the School of Human Settlements and Civil Engineering, said, "The construction industry is undergoing an important change in its history. As a university, we need to impart the most cutting-edge knowledge and technology to students."
In the future, construction sites will probably no longer have humans working on them. Project managers, through new technologies such as BIM, big data, and the Internet of Things, will only need to complete designs and send instructions through computers. This is Mr. Zou's vision of the future construction industry. Both residents and construction workers will work and live in a greener, smarter, and better space.
Digital transformation of the construction industry
Q: What kind of profession is engineering management?
A: Engineering management is a major combining arts and sciences. Generally speaking, it is the "jack of all trades" for all construction majors, which will integrate a lot of professional knowledge together. For example, in the early stage of housing construction, a feasibility study plan should be developed to determine whether the project is feasible. The middle stage will involve bidding management, construction management, and cost control. In the later stage, knowledge regarding property management and project evaluation will be employed. These are the professional knowledge required by engineering management.
Q: What are the teaching characteristics of this major?
A: The development of our personnel training program and the curriculum design are determined subject to the industry development as a whole. Core courses are launched according to the training objectives, such as "Engineering Bidding and Contract Management", "Engineering Economics", "Project Management", "Construction Engineering Metrology and Pricing", as well as frontier courses in the discipline, such as "Building Information Modeling" and "Costing Software Operation". Also, in order to better assist students in quality internships and employment, the University has cooperated with a great number of practice bases on and off campus.
When students graduate, they have a lot of choices, such as design institutes, real estate development companies, government organs or business offices, construction units, supervision units, etc. They can engage in any management work in the whole construction industry chain. It is relatively easy for students who would like to seek further study since they can apply for many counterpart majors and have the opportunity to obtain a master's degree in engineering management, public administration, management science, and engineering, etc.
Q: In what ways is this profession cutting-edge?
A: The traditional construction industry is not conducive to the development of our entire industry in terms of cost consumption, energy conservation, and environmental protection as well as sustainable development. The direction of our engineering management major is more inclined to construction information management, incorporating assembly-type construction and green building into the teaching system so that students can use information technology and intelligent means to work in engineering management.
Access to Real BIM Program
Q: What kind of school-enterprise cooperation projects does the University have?
A: We cooperate with quite a lot of companies, such as cooperation with Glodon in BIM project teacher training and student competition. There are also horizontal projects with NYSE: EJ and information mapping projects of land parcels with Xi'an Tianzheng Real Estate Asset Appraisal & Consulting Co., Ltd.
In addition, cooperation with domestic and local famous enterprises such as Shaanxi Construction Engineering Group, Zhongtian Holdings, Xi'an World Union, DTZ, Hanning Globe Group, Huachun Project Management, Huadi Project Management, Northwest (Shaanxi) International Tendering Co., Ltd, etc. are carried out to meet students' requirements for internship and practical training.
Recently, we have carried out a collaborative education project with Thsware Technology on "Construction of Multi-discipline Practice Base Based on BIM Technology Platform". Through the school-enterprise practical training practice base, students can be exposed to real BIM projects and can go to enterprises for internships. Teachers can also conduct research on industry hot technologies and carry out curriculum development and construction work.
Q: What competitions have you taken your students to? What results have they achieved? What was your role in the team? Is there something really impressive?
A: I have taken students to many competitions, and our students have achieved a lot in the competitions, such as the special prize and the first prize of the "Luban Cup" National BIM Graduation Design Competition; the second prize of the 2020 National Higher Education Institutions Project Management Competition and International Project Management Championship; the first prize of the "Thsware Cup" Building Information Modeling Application Skills Competition, etc.
One thing I still remembered is the National Project Management Competition, where we competed with students from Tsinghua and Peking University. Our students won second place at that time, and they were extremely excited and proud. Now, these kids have graduated and they have all found good jobs. Some of them even enter Xi’an University of Architecture and Technology. I think it is also because of such competition experience and results that they can be more confident and excellent.
Q: In your opinion, what are the strengths of our students?
A: I think the strengths of our students are the professional practical skills based on real projects and the professional education that closely follows the information and digitalization in the construction field. In addition, our students have a certain aesthetic ability, which is nurtured by the beautiful environment of Xi’an Eurasia University, coupled with confident and outstanding communication and expression skills. I always believe that the students we train will have a good future.
Learn cutting-edge technologies to adapt to future changes
Q: What will the construction industry look like in the future?
A: I think the future of the construction industry must benefit from AI and BIM, and vice versa. Artificial intelligence and building information technology will go hand in hand. Artificial intelligence is making inroads into the construction industry, and AI will play an important role in big data analysis and application areas instead of traditional methods, enabling more accurate and faster decisions than humans, as well as learning how to improve the construction process.
We can imagine the construction site of the future: with drones acting as eyes in the sky, sensors acting as eyes on the ground, and auto-guided machines acting as arms. Artificial intelligence will turn the construction site into the ultimate autonomous entity, performing construction work with greater speed and precision.
Q: What qualities do students need to have in order to adapt to the future construction industry?
A: With the promotion of new technologies such as BIM, big data, the Internet of Things, and cloud computing, modern society has put forward higher requirements for information interconnection and interoperability between buildings. Therefore, the students we train need to be equipped with information and digital thinking and concepts in order to better adapt to future development in the construction field. Engineering management is a major that requires students to have a high level of comprehensive quality. In addition to professional knowledge, they must be good at communication, able to think and express themselves and adapt to changes in the industry through continuous learning.
Q: How do you understand "education"?
A: "The construction industry is undergoing an important change in its history. As a university, we need to impart the most cutting-edge knowledge and technology to students." This is the education we are preaching. Then on a broader level, I think education is actually a kind of heritage of human beings, where knowledge, civilization, ability, and quality need to be passed on from generation to generation. I hope to pass on all my knowledge and positive attitude toward life to my students so that they can be competent and love life when they leave campus.
