A Decentralized and Pull-Based Control Loop for On-Demand Delivery in Eto Construction Supply Chains

Patrick Dallasega1, Carmen Marcher2, Elisa Marengo3, Erwin Rauch4, Dominik T. Matt5 & Werner Nutt6

1Assistant Professor, Faculty of Science and Technology, Free University of Bozen-Bolzano, Bolzano, Italy, [email protected]
2Research Associate, Fraunhofer Italia Research Società consortile a responsabilità limitata, Bolzano, Italy, [email protected]
3Assistant Professor, Faculty of Computer Science, Free University of Bozen-Bolzano, Bolzano, Italy, [email protected]
4Assistant Professor, Faculty of Science and Technology, Free University of Bozen-Bolzano, Bolzano, Italy, [email protected]
5Full Professor, Faculty of Science and Technology, Free University of Bozen-Bolzano, Bolzano, Italy, [email protected] Head of Institute, Fraunhofer Italia Research Società consortile a responsabilità limitata, Bolzano, Italy, [email protected]
6Full Professor, Faculty of Computer Science, Free University of Bozen-Bolzano, Bolzano, Italy, [email protected]

Abstract

Engineer-to-Order (ETO) process chain types with a successive installation on-site are common in plant building and the construction industry. Usually, the core processes Engineering, Fabrication and Installation are disconnected, which creates high levels of Work in Progress (WIP) and long lead-times. Furthermore, up to date information about the construction progress, as prerequisite for an on-demand delivery of ETO-components is always difficult to obtain. Usually, to prevent a lack of material on-site, costly intermediate storages are used, which extend the delivery time. Well-known approaches in research, like the Last Planner System (LPS) or the Location Based Management System (LBMS), increase collaboration on-site and improve the reliability of construction schedules, but have a limited impact on synchronizing the supply chain to the construction progress. The approach presented in the paper describes how off-site and on-site production can be coupled, to reach short construction lead-times without wastefully intermediate storages. A first IT-prototype, based on “Industry 4.0” principles, was implemented and tested in an Italian medium-sized ETO construction supplier.

Keywords

Engineer-to-Order, Just-in-Time, Supply Chain Management, Control Loop, Industry 4.0

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Reference

Dallasega, P. , Marcher, C. , Marengo, E. , Rauch, E. , Matt, D. T. & Nutt, W. 2016. A Decentralized and Pull-Based Control Loop for On-Demand Delivery in Eto Construction Supply Chains, 24th Annual Conference of the International Group for Lean Construction , -. doi.org/

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