All guides: Building, Construction and Project Management: Key resources

Recommended databases

Databases are collections of resources, primarily scholarly journal articles, but they can also contain conference papers, videos, e-books, reports, images and more. Many databases specialise in a specific subject area, so when you are searching in a database you will find material relevant to your studies.

Search using the main keywords that describe your topic. For example: “sustainable building” practice

Try the advanced search options for combining keywords and refining your search to find the most relevant results

Building and construction, project management, other topics

Useful for researching a wide range of topics on the building and construction of buildings / properties, project management, and any other topics relating to building and construction.

For recommended databases on people management / leadership, please see the Management and Human Resource Management library subject guide.

BUILD: Australian Building Construction and Engineering Database (Informit)
Produced by the Building Information Resource Centre of CSIRO, this bibliographic database indexes articles from global material in the building, construction and engineering fields. Covers all aspects of building, construction and engineering; building research; building materials; building services; structural engineering; building regulations; urban and regional planning; and fire technology. Aspects of economics, information technology, administration and management that relate to building and construction are also covered.
SafetyLaw
SafetyLaw is a work, health and safety legal obligations (WHS) or occupational health and safety (OHS) directory, designed to provide users with clear, comprehensive and easy-to-understand summaries of their legal obligations in Victoria
Business Source Complete (EBSCO)
A significant scholarly business database worldwide, it provides a large collection of bibliographic and full text content dating back to 1886. Includes peer-reviewed scholarly journals, trade journals, general business magazines, e-books, industry reports, and company reports/profiles covering all disciplines of business, such as marketing, management, Management Information Systems (MIS), Production & Operations Management (POM), accounting, finance and economics.
ProQuest Central
Including over 90,000 authoritative sources, ProQuest is one of the world's most comprehensive multidisciplinary collections of digital information. Millions of full-text articles are available online covering more than 160 subject areas. Included are also reports and trade journals on building and construction, and journals on materials science, which can be useful for materials in the building industry.
Scopus (Elsevier)
A comprehensive, peer-reviewed and multidisciplinary database containing scientific, medical, technical and social science scholarly literature, including journals on building and construction. Bibliographic or indexing-only database, so access the full-text via the FindIt button.
ScienceDirect (Elsevier)
A multidisciplinary, full text database of peer-reviewed scholarly literature in the areas of physical sciences and engineering, life sciences, health sciences, and social sciences and humanities. Building and construction is included.
Emerald Insight
Includes worldwide research material in the areas of business, society, public policy and education. Contains e-books, case studies, teaching cases, as well as over 35,000 full-text journal articles from Emerald's international management portfolio dating back to 1994. Subject coverage spans a spectrum of management disciplines, such as strategy; leadership; marketing and human resource management; and a substantial number of engineering, applied science and technology titles.
Web of Science (Clarivate Analytics)
A thorough, peer-reviewed and multidisciplinary database containing over 21,000 prestigious and high-impact scholarly research journals in the world. Subject coverage spans over 250 science, social sciences and humanities disciplines. Bibliographic or indexing-only database, so access the full-text via the FindIt button. Building and construction is covered.

Sustainable buildings and the environment

Useful for researching how to minimise carbon footprint and build sustainable, green buildings.

GreenFILE (EBSCO)
Provides scholarly, government and general-interest titles covering all aspects of human impact on the environment. Covers the effect that individuals, corporations and local/national governments have on the environment, and what can be done on each level to minimize the negative impact. Topic coverage includes global warming, green buildings, pollution, sustainable agriculture, renewable energy, recycling, and more.

Materials and chemicals

Useful for researching materials and chemicals that may be used in the construction of buildings and structures.

Ecospecifier
Produced and maintained by Centre for Design at RMIT University, Ecospecifier is a knowledge base of over 1000 environmentally-friendly products and materials to guide builders and the construction industry in the use of more sustainable, greener items. The aim is to promote eco-preferable items that lead to improved indoor air quality and wellbeing, and the saving of energy and water.

Material Safety Data Sheets
Search from over 3.5 million MSDSs on MSDS.com. You can perform unlimited searches, and view/download 5 MSDSs free of charge.

Technology Collection (ProQuest)
Indexes world literature on technology and applied science. Also searches across the Materials Science & Engineering Collection database, which covers materials science, materials engineering, metallurgy, polymers, ceramics, composite materials. This can be useful for materials in the building industry. Includes journal articles, conference proceedings, technical reports, trade journal/newsletter items, patents, books and press releases.

PMBOK® Guide

A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide) – Seventh Edition and The Standard for Project Management, 7th ed (2021)
Project Management Institute (PMI)'s flagship publication. The PMBOK® Guide is the go-to resource for project management practitioners.
A user's manual to the PMBOK guide
A guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge, 5th ed. (2013)

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Building, Construction and Project Management

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