Infrastructure is broadly the framework (nodes, linkages, and interactions) that supports the operation of a system as it seeks to achieve a goal or fulfill a task. In the development literature infrastructure often refers to the fixed assets and facilities of a country or region, including the interconnected asset management systems that regulate and ensure the operation of the system and its components, and which are directed towards the goal of improving society and/or the economy. Traditionally, such infrastructure can include transportation, energy distribution, and communications networks; but also the interaction and interconnectedness of such subsystems with other networks and systems. These include agriculture, manufacturing, international and domestic trade, tourism, national security, etc. The complexity makes understanding such systems very challenging to those supporting development.
Intersect Insight is experienced with infrastructure analysis, particularly with respect to understanding and improving the efficiency of nodes, networks, and their interactions; and with respect to identifying and addressing vulnerabilities and risks to these systems. Our team has specific expertise with methods of analysis and metrics in the fields of nuclear R&D management, the operation of biological laboratory networks, and the telecommunications industry (in the latter case with compliance to national and international standards), identification of critical infrastructure, and in using economic-mathematical models to understand and improve these networks.