University of Twente Student Theses
Analysing the integrity of the development and management process of technical regulations in the Netherlands
Dekker, M.B. (2022) Analysing the integrity of the development and management process of technical regulations in the Netherlands.
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Abstract: | Safety is regarded as the number one priority in the construction industry. Technical regulations are the tool to ensure safe working conditions and structural safety of buildings and infrastructure. High-quality technical regulations are therefore vital for safety in the construction industry. In the Netherlands, the development and management of technical regulations are organised in a private way. Meaning that private institutions develop and manage technical regulations. The private way of developing technical regulations means that the institutions do not have the obligation to be transparent in their processes. Resulting in that that it is unknown how the development and management process is organised. Additionally, the decision-making on which technical regulation gets developed is unknown. The private way of developing technical regulations also mean that external parties and suppliers are often the main funders and are involved in the development and management process. External parties and suppliers have commercial interests in developing new technical regulations as it creates a sales market for their products. This creates a tension field between the commercial interests of the external parties and the quality and safety of the technical regulations. The opaqueness of the process makes it that it is unknown how much influence external parties have in the process of developing and managing technical regulations. The involvement of external parties and dependence on external funding are indications that the integrity might be compromised. While there are no direct signals that the quality of the technical regulations is compromised in the Netherlands, the opaqueness of the development and management process raises questions on the integrity of the process. Integrity in the process positively benefits the quality of the end product likely resulting in high-quality technical regulations. The main problem is that it is unknown how the Dutch institutions ensure integrity in the development and management of technical regulations. The objective of this research is to understand how integrity can be ensured in the development and management of technical regulations. This is achieved by diagnostically analysing the integrity of three development and management processes by pointing out mechanisms that negatively affect the integrity. Additionally, advice is given to overcome those mechanisms. The reviewed processes are from three institutions that publish the most commonly used technical regulations in the Netherlands. |
Item Type: | Essay (Master) |
Faculty: | ET: Engineering Technology |
Subject: | 56 civil engineering |
Programme: | Civil Engineering and Management MSc (60026) |
Link to this item: | https://purl.utwente.nl/essays/89666 |
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