Graphical Analysis on Non-Conformances of Construction Production Processes: Ongoing Research and Case Study
Jianfeng Wu1 & Lucio Soibelman2
1PhD Student and Research Assistant, Civil and Env. Engineering, Carnegie Mellon University, 5000 Forbes Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA, Phone +1 412/268-6126, [email protected]2Associate Professor, Civil and Env. Engineering., Carnegie Mellon University, 5000 Forbes Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA, Phone +1 412/268-2952, FAX +1 412/268-7813, [email protected]
Abstract
The Last Planner™ system of production control, based on lean construction principles, has been broadly and successfully implemented in several projects over the past years. Its focus on work plan realization is useful in helping project management teams identify main problems that constrain the timely completion of individual activities, and decrease possible variability. However, potential problems in designs of production processes, which also contribute to risks and variability during their implementations, have been seldom studied and could be only learned and used by human planners in a subjective and implicit manner. In this paper, a research approach is detailed to address this problem by creating a generic and concise data representation for networks of construction production processes in support of graphical analysis and pattern recognition. As a part of this ongoing research, a case study is presented with preliminary results, which were obtained by applying the research approach on a Last Planner™ database of production control from a large capital facility project. Networks of production processes were analyzed by comparing type descriptions of the original plans and their actual performance. Interesting and statistically valid patterns were recognized in this study, such as correlations between the topology of a work plan and its probability of having non-completions during implementation. Such objective and explicit patterns could help project managers better understand potential problems in original designs of construction processes, and make informed decisions to decrease corresponding variability and increase reliability in planning and control.
Keywords
Graphical analysis, production processes, pattern recognition, knowledge discovery
Files
Reference
Wu, J. & Soibelman, L. 2006. Graphical Analysis on Non-Conformances of Construction Production Processes: Ongoing Research and Case Study, 14th Annual Conference of the International Group for Lean Construction , 393-405. doi.org/
Download: BibTeX | RIS Format
Founded in 1993, the IGLC is an international network of researchers from practice and academia in architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) who feel that the practice, education, and research of the AEC industry have to be radically renewed in order to respond to the global challenges ahead.
2015 © All Rights Reserved.