A Comprehensive Guide to Managing Municipal Infrastructure Assets

Dr. Abusamra is a distinguished senior leader with over 15 years of experience spearheading innovative initiatives and executing major infrastructure projects. Currently, he serves as the Director of Commercial and Contracts at VIA-HFR, Canada's largest infrastructure undertaking, where he is responsible for overseeing contract management and commercial structuring. His dedication to advancing resilient and sustainable infrastructure reflects his commitment to supporting future generations. Prior to his role at VIA-HFR, Dr. Abusamra held key positions as a Senior Project Manager and Contract Manager at VIA Rail Canada, managing capital infrastructure and rolling stock projects with a combined value exceeding $1 billion. His global experience includes significant contributions to high-profile transportation projects, such as the Riyadh Metro Project in Saudi Arabia—a design-build rapid transit system featuring 6 lines, 176 kilometers, and 85 stations, with a budget of $22.5 billion—and the REM project in Montreal. Dr. Abusamra’s career also includes a role as a Manager in KPMG's Global Infrastructure Advisory Team, where he supported municipalities and clients in developing strategic and tactical asset management plans. Academically, Dr. Abusamra earned his Ph.D. in Civil Engineering with a focus on Asset Management from Concordia University. He has authored several books, journal articles, and conference papers on municipal infrastructure asset management. His thought leadership is further demonstrated through speaking engagements at notable conferences, including TED Talks, and other media appearances. He has participated in industry forums such as the IAM and has served as a lecturer at Toronto Metropolitan University. Dr. Abusamra is also an editorial member and reviewer for prestigious journals like ASCE and CSCE. His active involvement extends to CNAM's board of directors and the Building Transformations’ Asset Management and Lifecycle Think Tank. Ayman H. El Hakea is an Construction Engineering graduate of the American University in Cairo (AUC), 2007. He has 17 years of experience in various fields of construction. Moreover, he worked with several multi-national companies in Egypt, Morocco, GCC and the UK, such as Bechtel, Groupe Bouygues, Al-Futtaim Carillion and Mace. He is currently taking the role of Systems Development Manager at CRC, the construction arm of Dorra Group, the leading construction and real estate conglomerate in Egypt and the Middle East. He completed his MSc degree in Construction Engineering at the AUC in 2015, and he is currently a Construction and Building Engineering PhD candidate at the Arab Academy for Science, Technology and Maritime Transport (AASTMT) in Cairo, Egypt. He published numerous papers in infrastructure asset management, contracts management, building performance simulation, machine learning, life-cycle cost optimization, and computer vision applications in construction. Mr. El Hakea is a student member of the ASCE (US) and a former graduate member of the ICE (UK). He is also a certified IRCA ISO9001:2015 QMS Lead Auditor.