Home // International Journal On Advances in Systems and Measurements, volume 10, numbers 1 and 2, 2017 // View article

Constraint-Based Graphical Modelling of On-Site and Factory-Based Construction Production Systems

Authors:
Ian Flood

Keywords: discrete-event simulation; Foresight modeling; interactive modeling; process modeling; visualization.

Abstract:
Planning and control of a construction project requires the development of an appropriate model of the project’s processes. The Critical Path Method (CPM) is the most widely used process modelling method in construction since it is simple to use and reasonably versatile. Discrete-event simulation is the most versatile of existing modelling methods in terms of the type of work and detailed logic that can be represented, but it is not easy to use compared to CPM and for this reason has not been widely adopted in practice. Foresight is a new modelling method designed to combine the simplicity of CPM and versatility of simulation. Earlier work has demonstrated the modelling simplicity and versatility of Foresight relative to other project planning tools for a range of on-site based processes. This paper continues this investigation, focussing on the relative performance of Foresight and discrete-event simulation in terms of modelling both on-site and factory-based (manufactured) process logic. The principles and relative performances of the two approaches are demonstrated in application to three example problems. The study demonstrates the advantages of Foresight over simulation hold for both on-site and manufacturing type processes.

Pages: 1 to 10

Copyright: Copyright (c) to authors, 2017. Used with permission.

Publication date: June 30, 2017

Published in: journal

ISSN: 1942-261x