Structuring systems and related research challenges

Structuring systems are the infrastructures that provide services to customers and end-users during a very long period of time, often several generations. They include water supply, telecommunication, transport and energy, highly interdependent and intertwined. This paper aims at giving the main characteristics of these systems. We give a precise definition of these systems, suggest a threefold process of their lifecycle, extract some of their principles and propose a general framework for their study. Finally, we discuss the niche research areas where the existing methods and tools still fail to attack.