Rethinking construction project management using the VP-based manufacturing management model

Abstract

Manufacturing companies have made many significant improvements in both productivity and management efficiency over the last century. This progress, however, has not been matched in the construction industry, which is still beset with a variety of long standing problems including time and schedule overruns, poor health and safety conditions as well as low quality and productivity. Learning from the manufacturing industry is a useful approach to improving the productivity of the construction industry and to solving problems arising from construction processes. Construction industry researchers and practitioners are increasingly seeking to apply the experience accumulated in the manufacturing industry and, to-date, some new management concepts have been adopted in the construction industry. In this research, through the use of Virtual Prototyping (VP) technology, the IKEA model as a representative of the manufacturing industry is studied and implemented in construction project management (CPMa). The IKEA model is first analysed and then it is proposed how the IKEA model is applied to optimize design and construction processes and simplify management activities. A case study is also presented to demonstrate the improvement of construction project management through using the VP-based IKEA approach. The details of these are described as follows. A literature review clarifies the definition of construction project management, analyses the limitations of traditional CPMa methods, and introduces and comments on some innovative CPMa methods. Additionally, as an important information technology (IT) support tool to this research, VP technology arising from the manufacturing industry is reviewed. This makes the focus of this research clear and provides a great deal of experience for this study. As a typical representative of the manufacturing industry, the IKEA Group is selected and analysed and the IKEA model is proposed. The model's feasibility for the construction industry is discussed using the questionnaire method and comparison analysis method. The key technique for using the IKEA model in the construction industry, i.e. VP technology, is customized. The VP-based IKEA model, then, is applied to construction project management (i.e. cast-in-situ construction and precast construction). Cast-in-situ construction is a traditional construction method is widely used. However, time and cost overruns and quality problems often occur, to the extent that these problems have been regarded as normal features for all construction projects. This leads to the low productivity of the construction industry. The aim of using the VP-based IKEA model to cast-in-situ construction projects is to change this situation in two ways, i.e. the optimization of construction processes and the simplification of management activities. Precast construction, on the other hand, is different from conventional cast-in-situ construction. In theory it has many advantages (e.g. rapid construction, high quality), however these are seldom achieved in real-life construction projects. In order to make precast construction more effective, the IKEA model is applied to precast construction management via the combination of VP technology. The application of the VP-based IKEA model to precast construction mainly focuses on design-production-transportation optimization and assembly optimization. Based on the application of the VP-based IKEA model in construction project management, two real-life construction projects in Hong Kong are studied to demonstrate the feasibility and effectiveness of the IKEA model in, respectively, cast-in-situ construction and precast construction. It is shown that the VP-based IKEA model can improve construction project management by reducing construction time and cost, improving construction safety and quality, especially for precast construction. Finally, the conclusions of this research are drawn and some suggestions for future research are presented.