Qian Chen

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Chen

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Qian

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0000-0002-5899-9342

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Publications 1 - 10 of 12

Identifying enablers for coordination across construction supply chain processes: a systematic literature review
Chen, Qian; Hall, Daniel; Adey, Bryan T.; et al. (2021)
Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management
Purpose Managing stakeholders' reciprocal interdependencies is always a challenging issue. Stakeholders need to find out different ways to communicate information and coordinate material flows during the supply chain processes. Many recent studies have advanced construction supply chain coordination from multiple perspectives. However, the field still lacks a comprehensive analysis to summarize existing research, to explicitly identify all the possible enablers for coordination and to investigate how the enablers can be carried out at the supply chain interfaces. To fill the gap, this study aims to conduct a systematic review in order to examine the relevant literature. Design/methodology/approach A systematic literature review process was conducted to identify and synthesize relevant publications (published in the past 20 years) concerning the coordination of construction supply chain functions. These publications were coded to link main research findings with specific enabler categories. In addition, how these enablers can be used at the interfaces across supply chain processes was reviewed with an in-depth analysis of reciprocal communications between stakeholders at design-to-production, production-to-logistics and production-to-site-assembly phases. Findings The coordination enablers were classified into three categories: (1) contractual enablers (including subtopics on relational contracts and incentive models), (2) procedural enablers (including subtopics on multiagent knowledge sharing systems and the last planner system) and (3) technological enablers (including subtopics on linked databases for design coordination, design for manufacturing software platforms and automated monitoring technologies). It was found that interfacing different functions requires a certain level of integration of stakeholders for quick response and feedback processes. The integration of novel contractual forms with digital technologies, such as smart contracts, however, was not adequately addressed in the state of the art. Research limitations/implications The scope of the systematic review is limited to the static analysis of selected publications. Longitudinal studies should be further included to sharpen the inductions of enablers considering organizational changes and process dynamics in construction projects. Practical implications Different enablers for coordination were summarized in a concise manner, which provides researchers and project stakeholders with a reinforced understanding of various ways to manage reciprocal interdependencies at different supply chain interfaces. Originality/value This study constitutes an important input for research on the construction supply chain by illuminating the thematic topic of coordination from inductively developed review processes, which included a holistic framing of the emerging coordination enablers and their use across supply chain functions. Consequently, it closes some identified knowledge gaps and offers additional insights to improve the supply chain performance of construction projects.
A preliminary investigation of the potential benefits of using the ASTRA Bridge for short-span bridge deck refurbishment projects in Switzerland
Zumstein, Marco; Chen, Qian; Adey, Bryan T.; et al. (2024)
Structure and Infrastructure Engineering
How bridge refurbishment projects are performed requires a trade-off between the speed and cost of the project and the amount of traffic disturbances during the project. A possible way to help reach a better balance between these two extremes is the ASTRA Bridge developed in Switzerland. The ASTRA Bridge is a 236-meter long steel ramp system on wheels, which is placed on top of the bridge deck undergoing refurbishment to enable vehicles to continue to pass over the bridge while construction work progresses underneath. This study illustrates new refurbishment processes by using the ASTRA Bridge and presents the first quantitative analysis of the effects of using the ASTRA Bridge on the time, costs and traffic disturbances associated with bridge refurbishment. The bridge investigated is a short-span (50 m long) highway bridge requiring refurbishment of its superstructure. The analysis indicates that the use of the ASTRA Bridge resulted in reductions in duration and costs (14% and 3% for the example), and a substantial reduction in user costs (51% for the example). Although more analysis is required for different types of refurbishment projects, the initial results indicate that the ASTRA Bridge may become an integral part of future highway bridge refurbishment projects.
Transshipment approach to coordinate materials for a contractor’s project portfolio
Chen, Qian; García de Soto Lastra, Borja; Adey, Bryan T. (2022)
International Journal of Construction Management
The challenges to coordinate material supply and dynamically changing demand always lead to construction interruptions or a considerable waste of materials on-site. Mainstream research has provided various advanced digital solutions to solve these problems; however, they have not addressed how to make reliable decisions with digital models to manage the demand fluctuations of construction materials. This study proposes a transshipment approach to enable the lateral sharing of perishable materials and optimize material allocation for a contractor’s project portfolio. The transshipment approach includes two main steps. First, the daily material supply and demand data are collected from a continuously updated schedule and three-dimensional models as input for calculating unused material quantities. Second, an evolutionary optimization algorithm is used for optimizing the transshipment quantities with minimal cost. As proof of concept, the proposed transshipment approach is demonstrated by looking at a portfolio of seven building projects managed by the same contractor. The demonstration shows that the allocation of the unused materials helps to avoid waste and reduce costs from over-ordered materials by around 52%. As a result, this also leads to improved coordination between contractors and suppliers and better material flow in construction projects.
Exploiting digitalization for the coordination of required changes to improve engineer-to-order materials flow management
Chen, Qian; Adey, Bryan T.; Haas, Carl T.; et al. (2022)
Construction Innovation
Purpose: The dynamic nature and complexity of construction projects make it challenging to ensure that the engineer-to-order (ETO) materials supplied onsite match changing needs. The quick and efficient communication of required changes in material fabrication, delivery and use, due to changes in the design and construction schedules, is needed to address the challenges. This study aims to provide a novel integrated management framework with its embedded informatics to help major stakeholders efficiently absorb agility during communication to deal with required changes and improve workflows. Design/methodology/approach: An integrated management framework is developed that integrates the milestones in look-ahead plans and structured iterative processes for major supply chain stakeholders to quickly disseminate information emanating from changes in design, schedules, production and transportation. A prototype system is devised including the informatics to support the framework, which consists of BIM-RFID functional modules and a central database and uses a client-server architecture. The usefulness of the prototype is illustrated using a construction of part of a fictive but realistic high-rise building. Findings: The integrated management framework with the informatics provides major stakeholders with the ability to coordinate their activities efficiently and stimulate their agility (measured by process time) in planning and controlling material information. Although only a fictive example was used, it is shown that the use of the system is likely to result in a substantial reduction in the time required to deal with required changes when delivering ETO materials onsite (by 18% in the example). Research limitations/implications: The functionalities of the prototype system can be easily scaled up to coordinate changes in the design and scheduling of other types of materials. More functional developments are needed to show the extent of the possible improvement for entire construction projects. Future work should focus on investigating the possible improvements for other types and sizes of construction projects, and eventually in real-world construction projects. Practical implications: By fitting the look-ahead plans into structured iterative processes through digital data sharing, stakeholders increased their capability to quickly capture required change information and resolve associated problems. This is particularly useful for the management of ETO supply chain processes, where prefabricated elements such as ductwork, plumbing, and mechanical systems typically have to be modified because of last-minute design and schedule changes. Originality/value: Unlike traditional information technology (IT) based supply chain management practices, this research is characterized by a process-centered management framework that provides explicit decision points over iterative planning processes for major stakeholders to manage material information. The iterations through digital data sharing allow stakeholders to quickly respond to last-minute changes on site, which fundamentally achieves workflow agility in the construction supply chain context.
Formative scenario analysis of the factors influencing the adoption of industrialised construction in countries with high housing demand – the cases of Ethiopia, Kenya, and South Africa
Kedir, Firehiwot; Chen, Qian; Hall, Daniel; et al. (2022)
Construction Management and Economics
The use of industrialised construction can help meet the growing housing demand for developing economies in Africa. In order to understand future scenarios for accelerated adoption of industrialised construction, it is necessary to identify the influencing factors. To do so, this paper conducts a formative scenario analysis which is a literature- and expert-based method, focussing on three countries that have high housing demands, i.e. Ethiopia, Kenya, and South Africa. The resulting analysis consists of three parts. The first is the identification of nineteen internal and external influencing factors. These factors range from product performance to policies and regulations. The second is the illustration of the importance of each factor as a function of its relationship with the other factors. The third is the description of three possible scenarios the adoption of industrialised construction may take in the three investigated countries. The findings show that the most important accelerators for the adoption of industrialised construction come from governments’ commitment to invest in future construction and incentivize companies to adopt industrial construction methods and for these companies to produce competitive products. The specific adoption policies to be implemented, however, depend greatly on the specific situation.
Using look-ahead plans to improve material flow processes on construction projects when using BIM and RFID technologies
Chen, Qian; Adey, Bryan T.; Haas, Carl T.; et al. (2020)
Construction Innovation
Purpose Building information modelling (BIM) and radio frequency identification (RFID) technologies have been extensively explored to improve supply chain visibility and coordination of material flow processes, particularly in the pursuit of Industry 4.0. It remains challenging, however, to effectively use these technologies to enable the precise and reliable coordination of material flow processes. This paper aims to propose a new workflow designed to include the use of detailed look-ahead plans when using BIM and RFID technologies, which can accurately track and match both the dynamic site needs and supply status of materials. Design/methodology/approach The new workflow is designed according to lean theory and is modeled using business process modeling notation. To digitally support the workflow, an integrated BIM-RFID database system is constructed that links information on material demands with look-ahead plans. The new workflow is then used to manage material flows in the erection of an office building with prefabricated columns. The performance of the new workflow is compared with that of a traditional workflow, using discrete event simulations. The input for the simulations was derived from expert opinion in semi-structured interviews. Findings The new workflow enables contractors to better observe on-site status and differences between the actual and planned material requirements, as well as to alert suppliers if necessary. The simulation results indicate that the new workflow has the potential to reduce the duration of the material flow processes by 16.1% compared with the traditional workflow. Research limitations/implications The new workflow is illustrated using a real-world-like situation with input data based on expert opinion. Although the workflow shows potential, it should be tested on a real-world site. Practical implications The new workflow allows project participants to combine detailed near-term look-ahead plans with BIM and RFID technologies to better manage material flow processes. It is particularly useful for the management of engineer-to-order components considering the dynamic site progress. Originality/value The research improves on existing research focused on using BIM and RFID technologies to improve material flow processes by showing how the workflow can be adapted to use detailed look-ahead plans. It reinforces data-driven construction material management practices through improved visibility and reliability in planning and control of material flow processes. (© Emerald Publishing Limited 2020,).
Systematic investigation of non-conformance root cause in prefabrication: a nuclear case study
Chuo, Steven; Chen, Qian; Sharif, Mohammad Mahdi; et al. (2021)
ISARC Proceedings ~ Proceedings of the 38th International Symposium on Automation and Robotics in Construction
A systematic approach to enabling digital supply chain coordination in construction projects
Chen, Qian (2020)
Supply chain management plays a fundamental role in running a successful construction project to ensure cost-efficient, accurate, and on-time material delivery to construction sites. Supply chain management has been favored by researchers and construction practitioners over traditional material management practices that focus on a single logistic perspective. It can be used to manage interdependent project phases and improve stakeholder relationships. Although supply chain management helps stakeholders complete construction projects, the problems associated with material flow processes, such as material delays, rework, and incorrect deliveries remain frequent due to a lack of efficient supply chain integration and coordination. As a result, projects often face schedule delays and cost overruns. To keep construction projects on time and on budget, novel methodologies are needed for the management of material flow processes. Good management of material flow processes requires efficient coordination of material and associated information flows, which leads to reduced misalignment in deliveries. Responses to this need often focus on the use of advanced management principles, technologies, and intelligent algorithms to manage the supply chains. Lean management principles and Industry 4.0 technologies combined with various optimization algorithms have dominated manufacturing supply chains in the past decade and have the potential to enhance stakeholder collaboration and workflow efficiency. The supply chain processes in construction projects are normally dynamic in nature and are subjected to open-air environmental conditions. This adds considerable uncertainties to the management of material flows from the planning phase to the installation phase, in contrast to the manufacturing processes that happen in a closed and consistent work environment. Data silos further limit the capabilities of construction stakeholders to collaborate and inhibit the reliability of their decisions on material supplies and demands. To overcome the challenges and limitations, prevailing principles and methods in manufacturing industry are required to address the needs of construction supply chains. In pursuit of this, the dissertation aims to \textit{develop a systematic approach and the corresponding techniques to improve the coordination of material and information flows in construction projects, considering the integration of lean workflows, digital technologies, and optimization algorithms, with a special focus on stakeholders’ collaborative decision-making processes}. The first part of the dissertation focuses on the comprehensive review of contemporary supply chain management in construction projects. Various methods that facilitate construction supply chain coordination are identified through different review processes. One review is conducted to develop an objective and data-driven assessment of the use of automation and digital technologies to provide a better understanding of their potential benefits and limitations. The other review summarizes useful enablers to facilitate the coordination activities and to link different construction supply chain stages (i.e., design-to-production, production-to-logistics, and production-to-site-assembly). Results from both reviews suggest that a holistic integration of the supply chains and stakeholders’ collaborative decision making through digitalization (e.g., integrated BIM-IoT technologies) together with and lean workflows are essential to improve supply chain coordination but are missing from current practices. This part lays the knowledge foundation for the second and third parts of the dissertation. The second part of the dissertation explores the combination of lean principles and digital technologies; namely, lean workflows with integrated management systems. The lean workflow is designed to link digital information on material demands with look-ahead plans. This is illustrated in the material flow processes for the erection of an office building with prefabricated columns. The performance of the lean workflow is compared with that of a traditional workflow using discrete-event simulations. The lean workflow advances the traditional workflow as it allows project participants to combine detailed look-ahead plans with BIM and RFID technologies to better manage material flow processes. It is particularly useful for the management of engineer-to-order components considering dynamic site progress. To embed the lean workflow in a digital platform, an integrated management system is developed that focuses on the communication of design-change and schedule-change information. The system includes design-change, schedule-change, production, and transport functional modules. Project stakeholders can prevent material flows from the negative impact of late change using the system to digitally support the lean workflow. The system uses a client-server architecture, though it can be easily reconfigured to a cloud-based system architecture. The capability of the system to improve the coordination of changes over an engineer-to-order material flow process simulation of the office building project is demonstrated to be superior than that of the traditional management framework. This work represents the first instance where detailed look-ahead plans, BIM, RFID, and a common data environment are integrated in supply chain collaboration to replace otherwise ad-hoc procedures. The third part of the dissertation moves the focus to the management of bulk commodity. This part explores the combination of lean principles, digital technologies, and optimization algorithms to improve stakeholders’ decision-making processes in the coordination of material flows. This part selects ready-mix concrete as a representative type of bulk commodity to study this dynamic. Given the fluctuating demand for concrete, an approach that uses digitized information within a short-term planning window is presented to improve the ordering of concrete by minimizing waste and cost. The approach consists of two main steps that contractors should take: 1) monitoring the dynamic demand fluctuations using a 4D model that captures the as-built site progress and updated look-ahead schedules, 2) modifying original orders to accommodate the demand fluctuations where quantities of additional orders and outsourced orders are determined by a heuristic evolutionary algorithm. The proposed approach is demonstrated to be useful to provide optimal order quantities of concrete with minimal costs within a five-day planning window. The scope of implementing the approach is expanded from a single project to a group of projects in a contractor’s or owner’s broader portfolio. To optimize the allocation of materials among multiple projects, a transshipment method is developed to enable the lateral sharing of materials in a supply chain network using the same two-step approach; a streamlined coordination process comprising the extraction of digital information and the decision-making on material allocation. To accommodate the expansion of the approach to varied material demands among projects, a network model is required to simulate the material and information flows from one project to another. Either within or among projects, the implementation of the two-step approach in both cases proves the benefits of balancing the daily material supply and demand according to a continuously updated schedule. As a result, the materials can be managed with minimal waste and costs. This dissertation contributes to the field of construction management of material flow processes by providing a systematic approach and corresponding techniques to address the challenges in construction supply chain processes. More precisely, it provides a novel method for integrating lean principles, digital technologies, and optimization algorithms for construction supply chain practices. The proposed approach improves supply chain efficiency, transparency, agility, sustainability, and accuracy, paving the way for a better future of construction projects.
Determination of Optimal Rolling Planning Period for the Management of BIM-Based Construction Supply Chain Processes
Chen, Qian; García de Soto Lastra, Borja; Adey, Bryan T. (2022)
Construction Research Congress 2022: Project Management and Delivery, Contracts, and Design and Materials
Current construction projects often suffer from a lack of synchronization between on-site material requirements and supply. This is at least partially because of the use of a fixed rolling planning period and the length of material lead times. The length of the rolling planning period matters because it affects when materials are ordered. The later the materials are ordered, the higher the chance of having material shortages that will cause progress delays. The earlier the materials are ordered, the higher the chance of having them delivered too early and having to organize storage and keeping track of inventory. This study proposes a methodology to determine the optimal rolling planning period for construction projects, that is, the period that provides the lowest total cost considering unexpected delays in construction progress and the unexpected need to store materials on site. The optimal period was determined using data extracted from a regularly updated building information model (BIM) and a heuristic search algorithm. The methodology is used to plan the raw materials for site-mix concrete for an office building project to be completed in four weeks. It is shown that the methodology can reduce costs related to materials arriving too early or too late on site.
Quantitative investigation on the accuracy and precision of Scan-to-BIM under different modelling scenarios
Esnaashary Esfahani, Mansour; Rausch, Christopher; Sharif, Mohammad Mahdi; et al. (2021)
Automation in Construction
Accurate as-built information is required to operate, maintain, and adapt existing buildings. Scan-to-BIM has become a feasible approach for collecting and modelling 3D as-built information and has three phases: (1) scanning, (2) registration, and (3) modelling. This paper focuses on the modelling phase, which can currently be conducted either manually or semi-automatically. As-built conditions of a building are surveyed, and the geometry is modeled in a series of modelling scenarios. For each trial, geometric dimensions of the BIMs are compared to ground truth dimensions. This paper assesses the impact of levels of automation and modeller training on the accuracy and precision of generated BIMs. Quantitative models are developed for modelling scenarios using empirical datasets. Lastly, the impacts of degrees of accuracy are discussed. This study provides insight into the dimensional certainty of BIMs generated by Scan-to-BIM and helps decision-makers assess the risk of decisions made based on this information.

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