CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION
1.1 GENERAL:
Despite the wide spread utilization of network scheduling techniques such as the
Critical Path Method (CPM) and Precedence Diagram Method (PDM) in the
construction industry, they have a number of important limitations including the
inability to (1) minimize fluctuations in resource utilization levels over the project
duration (Hegazy 1999b; Hiyassat 2000; Son and Mattila 2004), as shown in
Figure 1.1(A); (2) consider the availability limits of construction resources during
various periods of the project (Brucker et al. 1998; Jiang and Shi 2005; Kim and
Ellis 2008; Zhang et al. 2006a), as shown in Figure 1.1(B); (3) analyze the impact
of utilizing multiple shifts and overtime hours on construction productivity,
duration, and cost (El-Rayes and Kandil 2005; Jaskowski and Sobotka 2006;
Xiong and Kuang 2008), as shown in Figure 1.1(C); and (4) consider the
uncertainties and risks involved in construction scheduling and cost estimating
(Kannan et al. 2001; Lee and Arditi 2006; Nasir et al. 2003), as shown in Figure
1.1(D).
In order to overcome the aforementioned limitations of traditional scheduling
techniques, a number of resource-driven scheduling models was developed that
focused on (1) resource leveling (Ahuja 1976; Akpan 2000; Burgess and Killebrew
1962; Easa 1989; Harris 1978; Hiyassat 2000; Mattila and Abraham 1998; Son and
Mattila 2004; Son and Skibniewski 1999); (2) resource allocation (Ahuja 1976;
Bell and Han 1991; Boctor 1990; Chan et al. 1996; Chen and Shahandashti 2009;
Gavish and Pirkul 1991; Leu and Yang 1999; Mingozzi et al. 1998; Zhang et al.
2006a);
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(3) the impact of utilizing multiple shifts and overtime hours on construction
productivity, duration, and cost (El-Rayes and Kandil 2005; Hegazy 1999a;
Hegazy and Ersahin 2001; Jaskowski and Sobotka 2006; Li et al. 1999;
Moussourakis and Haksever 2004; Xiong and Kuang 2008; Zhang et al. 2006b;
Zheng et al. 2004, 2005); and (4) probabilistic scheduling (Ahuja and Nandakumar
1985; Ang et al. 1975; Anklesaria and Drezner 1986; Gong and Hugsted 1993;
Guo et al. 2001; Lee 2005; Lee and Arditi 2006; Sculli 1989; Sculli and Shum
1991).
1.2 SCOPE:
The proposed research is expected to have a significant impact on (1) reducing
undesirable resource fluctuation and improving overall resource utilization
efficiency in order to improve construction productivity and reduce project
duration and cost; (2) enhancing the utilization of limited construction resources in
order to reduce construction time and cost; (3) enhancing labor utilization in
multiple shifts in order to improve construction productivity and safety; (4)
producing the most cost effective and efficient resource utilization; and (5)
increasing the reliability of project performance in order to reduce the risks of
project delays.
Impact on resource utilization efficiency: Construction scheduling techniques such
as Critical Path Method (CPM) and Precedence Diagram Method (PDM) assume
unlimited supply of resources, and thereby they often produce schedules that have
undesirable resource fluctuations. These resource fluctuations are impractical,
inefficient and costly to implement on construction sites, as they require additional
cost to hire additional workforces and/or to maintain an unproductive level of
workforce on site during low demand periods. Accordingly, the proposed study is
designed to develop innovative resource leveling metrics that circumvent the
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limitation of existing metrics and provide the capabilities of directly measuring and
minimizing only undesirable resource fluctuation to maximize resource utilization
efficiency. The proposed optimization model is expected to support construction
planners in identifying optimal schedules that maximize resource utilization
efficiency while complying with project completion constraints. This is expected to
contribute to enhance resource utilization on construction sites and significant
improvements in construction productivity and cost-effectiveness.
2. Impact on the utilization of limited construction resources: The availability of
construction resources is often limited due to seasonal shortages, labor disputes,
equipment breakdowns, and competing demands. The proposed study is designed
to develop a resource-driven scheduling model that integrates resource leveling
and allocation techniques. The proposed model is expected to support construction
planners in identifying optimal tradeoffs between resource utilization efficiency
and project time.
3. Impact on labor utilization in multiple shifts: Construction projects are often
required to be accelerated in order to achieve the benefits of early completion such
as incentive for early completion, avoidance for liquidate damage, and early
release of key resources for other projects (Clough et al. 2000). Multiple shifts are
often used in construction projects to accomplish schedule acceleration. However,
they often have negative impacts on construction productivity and safety including
worker’s fatigue, absenteeism, risk of injuries and accidents, and high turnover rate
(Helander 1981). Moreover, additional labor for the evening and/or night shifts is
often needed to supplement those working in day shifts because labor unions often
restrict laborers to work no more than one shift per day. In many projects, this
required additional skilled construction labor is often not available. Accordingly,
this study will develop robust multiple-shift scheduling models that are capable of
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(1) minimizing the negative impacts of evening and night shifts on labor
productivity, safety, and social disruption; and (2) minimizing project time and
cost while complying with resource availability constraints. This is expected to
contribute to optimizing resource utilization in multiple shifts and to improve their
productivity, cost and safety.
4. Impact on the cost effective and efficient resource utilization plan: The
generated schedules of construction projects often require significant fluctuations
in the daily resource demands on site. These fluctuations cause additional
construction costs, including resource idle costs, release and rehiring costs, and/or
mobilization costs. The proposed study is designed to develop a multi-objective
optimization model that is capable of modeling and minimizing these resource
fluctuation costs and analyzing and optimizing potential tradeoffs between
minimizing these resource fluctuation costs and minimizing the project duration.
This is expected to contribute to providing cost effective and efficient resource
utilization for construction projects.
5. Impact on reliability of project performance: The proposed study is designed to
develop an advanced project risk assessment model that has a capability of
providing fast and accurate risk assessment for large-scale construction projects.
This unique capability holds strong potential to facilitate the optimization of
resource-driven scheduling while considering the impact of relevant risks and
uncertainties. This can contribute to enhancing the reliability of project
performance.
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1.3 OBJECTIVES:
The main objectives of this project are:
To schedule a project using Microsoft Project (MSP) software for various
activities in the construction of a residential building.
To calculate the requirements of resources for the activities based on
Standard Schedule Rates.
To carryout optimization by modifying the resource requirement for various
tasks to remove any sudden variations in demand of resources
1.4 METHODOLOGY:
• Project Summary
• Preparation of Estimates
PROJECT
ATTRIBUTES • Manpower Required
• Forecasting of Resources
PROJECT • Resource Allocation
SCHEDULING
• Resource Levelling by Genetic
OPTIMIZATIO Algorithm
N OF
RESOURCES