DOI: 10.1680/jmapl.26.00082 ISSN: 1751-4304

Integrated risk management framework for international civil engineering projects

Tadeh Zirakian

International civil engineering projects are exposed to political, financial, technical, environmental, and organisational risks that frequently interact and evolve throughout the project lifecycle. Existing risk-management approaches, including the Integrated Project Risk Assessment (IPRA) tool, fuzzy logic, structural equation modelling (SEM), and resilience engineering, are typically applied independently, limiting their ability to support integrated decision making. This study develops an integrated conceptual framework that combines these complementary approaches within a unified risk-management process. A structured literature review guided by PRISMA 2020 covered publications from January 2000 to March 2024, supplemented by a targeted literature update through August 2026. The review identified and synthesised studies addressing structured risk identification, uncertainty modelling, risk interdependencies, and resilience-based management. Within the evidence identified through these searches, no publication explicitly integrated IPRA, fuzzy logic, SEM, and resilience engineering within a single framework for international civil engineering projects. The proposed framework links structured risk identification, uncertainty-aware risk evaluation, interdependency analysis, and adaptive management through iterative information flows and feedback mechanisms. The framework provides a structured basis for supporting risk-informed decision making and establishes a foundation for future empirical validation and implementation in the management of complex international civil engineering projects.

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