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This paper aims to investigate the variations in the flow fields induced by transition regions in the windbreak structures between the flat ground and the cutting along a railway and to propose mitigation measures to improve the windproof ability of the windbreak.

The improved delayed detached eddy simulation method was used to simulate the impact of the windbreak transition on flow structures of the high-speed railway under different wind angles, and also the accuracy of the numerical results was validated with those of the wind tunnel test.

The results showed that the original windbreak transition region resulted in a dimensionless peak wind velocity of 0.62 and 0.82 for railway line-1 at wind angles of 90° and 75°, respectively, and the corresponding values were 0.81 and 0.97 for railway line-2. The flow structure analysis revealed the reason for the mismatched height in the transition region, and the right-angle structures of the windbreaks resulted in ineffective protection and sudden changes in the wind speed and direction. Two mitigation measures – oblique structure (OS) and circular curve structure (CCS) transition walls – were developed to reduce the peak wind speed. The OS provided superior protection. The peak value of dimensionless wind velocity was all less than 0.2 for OS and CCS.

The flow field deterioration mechanism induced by the inappropriate form of a windbreak transition at different wind angles was examined, and effective mitigation and improvement measures were proposed and compared with the original transition.

Many of the Chinese military theorists are famous for their military operations in ancient China and their thoughts and philosophies have been repeatedly translated, investigated and discussed throughout the world. Researches with thoughts that were originated from these philosophies were published, advocating enterprises, their businesses and management strategies. T’ai Kung’s Six Secret Teachings or The Six Strategies for War in Chinese Liu Tao was written by the brilliant strategist who helped establish the western Zhou dynasty about eleventh century BC. The three strategies of Huang Shik Kung or three strategies for war of Huang Shi Gong in Chinese Shan Lue was used as a standard reference for military officials in China. It deals with the three strategies, Superior Strategy, Middle Strategy and Inferior Strategy. This paper examines the philosophies of Liu Tao and Shan Lue for the purposes of development of management philosophies of the Powerhouse of Hong Kong Productivity Council, “Three strategies and six focuses”.

Managing and maintaining infrastructure assets are one of the indispensible tasks for many government agencies to preserve the nations' economic viability and social welfare. To reduce the expenditures over the life‐cycle of an infrastructure asset and extend the period for which the asset performs effectively, proper repair and maintenance are essential. While repair, maintenance, minor alteration and addition (RMAA) sector is expanding in many developed cities, occurrences of fatalities and injuries in this sector are also soaring. The purposes of this paper are to identify and then evaluate the various strategies for improving the safety performance of RMAA works.

Semi‐structured interviews and two rounds of Delphi survey were conducted for data collection.

Raising safety awareness of RMAA workers and selecting contractors with a good record of safety performance are the two most important strategies to improve the safety performance in this sector. Technology innovations and a pay‐for‐safety scheme are regarded as the two least important strategies.

The paper highlights possible ways to enhance safety of the rather under‐explored RMAA sector in the construction industry.