The Board on Infrastructure and the Constructed Environment (BICE) is an operating unit of the Division on Engineering and Physical Sciences of the National Research Council (NRC). Established in 1946 as the Building Research Advisory Board, BICE and its predecessor organizations have been the principal units of the NRC concerned with the built environment. In its work for and with units of government, private organizations, and the public at large, BICE has provided both comprehensive and specific policy and technical advice, monitored the research of others, organized conferences and symposia, stimulated research, correlated and disseminated information, and explored problems and opportunities for progress in its field. While advisory services make up the bulk of BICE activities a number of specific programs have been created and maintained over the years. Formed in 1953 as an outgrowth of an NRC study, the most significant and longest running of these activities is the Federal Facilities Council.

The Board on Infrastructure and the Constructed Environment (BICE) advises the executive and legislative branches of government and the private sector on questions of technology, science and public policy; and, the relationship between the constructed and natural environments and their interaction with human activities. The BICE brings together in an independent forum expertise from a wide range of scientific, engineering, and social science disciplines to address problems and issues in these areas. It provides a unique structure to respond to specific requests from government, or to act on its own initiative with public or private sector support. In pursuit of its goals, the BICE develops strategic plans and oversees committee activities involving studies, briefings, workshops, symposia, and a variety of information dissemination activities.
 

	Recent Reports
	Sustainable Critical Infrastructure Systems (2009)
	Evaluation of Future Strategic and Energy Efficient Options for the U.S. Capitol Power Plant (2009)
	Advancing the Competitiveness and Efficiency of the U.S. Construction Industry (2009)

 You can find more BICE reports at the National Academies Press.