Farook Hamzeh | University of Alberta (original) (raw)

Papers by Farook Hamzeh

IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering, 2022

There is unanimous agreement that the complex and dynamic nature of construction jobsites is coup... more There is unanimous agreement that the complex and dynamic nature of construction jobsites is coupled with inherent risks. Global occupational and health agencies revealed that the construction industry leads with the number of fatal injuries incurred every year. Lebanon, a developing country in the Middle East, is no exception. Studies on construction safety in the country showed that the industry has failed to implement safety regulations, while also witnessing a lack of safety incentives, training, and education. The situation worsens with the absence of a national experience multiplier that could reflect on contractors’ safety statuses and hold them accountable for their safety performance. This study addresses the problem by proposing a cost model that evaluates construction injuries. An analysis was performed on more than 3,000 accident claims collected from insurance companies to understand the events and exposures that construction labour face. Results showed that there are 1...

Buildings

The Last Planner System (LPS) aims to enhance planning reliability by reducing variability in con... more The Last Planner System (LPS) aims to enhance planning reliability by reducing variability in construction processes. While LPS applications have been explored in construction and detailed design, its application in architectural design remains underrepresented due to its abstract nature. This study addresses this gap by proposing an LPS framework tailored for architectural design, utilizing LPS metrics to assess planning reliability. Key issues hindering formal planning methods’ implementation are identified, and relevant LPS principles are aligned with these challenges, culminating in a conceptual LPS model designed for architectural projects. Building upon the conceptual model, an implementation model was developed and put into practice within an architectural design company in the United States, resulting in measured improvements in planning reliability and responsiveness. Additionally, it unveils hidden challenges associated with emerging tasks, guiding future design process en...

Annual Conference of the International Group for Lean Construction, Jul 27, 2022

The supply chain in the Architecture, Engineering, and Construction industry is often perceived a... more The supply chain in the Architecture, Engineering, and Construction industry is often perceived as inefficient due to a lack of data and traceability links. This study investigates the practitioners' understanding and acceptance of blockchain to address this inefficiency. A survey is conducted to glean expert opinions concerning implementing blockchain technology in the Construction Supply Chain Management (CSCM) domain. The research hypothesizes that professionals are open to blockchain technology adoption and that this adoption positively impacts four variables that represent the primary factors that can be implemented using blockchain technology. The One-Sample Test of Means is then used to evaluate the four identified variables against the hypotheses. Survey findings reveal that CSCM experts are knowledgeable about innovative technologies such as blockchain and believe that all characteristics of blockchain should be considered during implementation. Findings also show that most experts acknowledge that their current CSCM systems disregard blockchain entirely.

Proc. 30th Annual Conference of the International Group for Lean Construction (IGLC)

The supply chain in the Architecture, Engineering, and Construction industry is often perceived a... more The supply chain in the Architecture, Engineering, and Construction industry is often perceived as inefficient due to a lack of data and traceability links. This study investigates the practitioners' understanding and acceptance of blockchain to address this inefficiency. A survey is conducted to glean expert opinions concerning implementing blockchain technology in the Construction Supply Chain Management (CSCM) domain. The research hypothesizes that professionals are open to blockchain technology adoption and that this adoption positively impacts four variables that represent the primary factors that can be implemented using blockchain technology. The One-Sample Test of Means is then used to evaluate the four identified variables against the hypotheses. Survey findings reveal that CSCM experts are knowledgeable about innovative technologies such as blockchain and believe that all characteristics of blockchain should be considered during implementation. Findings also show that most experts acknowledge that their current CSCM systems disregard blockchain entirely.

Journal of the Construction Division and Management, 2023

The advancement and increasing complexity of design requirements result in the rapid proliferatio... more The advancement and increasing complexity of design requirements result in the rapid proliferation of information that needs to be properly integrated and coordinated among multidisciplinary parties. Inefficient planning, the ill-defined and iterative design nature, and poor communication disrupt design workflow, consequently creating waste such as increased cycle times, cost, rework, and errors. Sub-optimal design workflow has captured researchers' interests who have developed frameworks tackling design task structuring, measuring flow, or understanding the organizational network involved. However, a formerly unexplored perspective is one that integrates both the process, i.e., flow of design information, and the social network, i.e., interactions among design teams. This integration and communication between teams enables the design intent to properly flow and be transformed into value adding output. Accordingly, this study approaches workflow at the intersection of the social and process aspects of design to understand, measure, and analyze information flow within communication networks. Agent-based modeling and social network analysis are used to dynamically capture the impacts of lean practices and Building Information Modeling (BIM) on communication. This novel design management strategy focuses, simultaneously, on interaction dynamics and information diffusion to assist design teams in enhancing design flow, knowledge transformation, and value generation while reducing wastes.

Proceedings of the 31st Annual Conference of the International Group for Lean Construction (IGLC31)

Lean construction is an approach that prioritizes enhancing quality and value while minimizing wa... more Lean construction is an approach that prioritizes enhancing quality and value while minimizing waste. Lean management comprises of principles and concepts that must be observed to effectively implement Lean management and leverage its benefits. In line with Lean concepts and principles, appropriate behavior and culture must be properly implemented to achieve successful Lean management, hence necessitating the use of an established health check assessment to evaluate the level of Lean maturity. This study aims to introduce a health check assessment to ascertain the level of maturity of Lean behavior and culture in the construction industry. The health check assessment was formulated by identifying Lean success factors, which were further validated by Lean experts. The methodology employed to achieve the study objectives follows a Design Science Research (DSR) approach, which involves creating a health check framework and evaluating it through an expert panel interview among project parties in a real case study project. In addition to the Lean expert panel interview, other performance metrics, such as percent planned complete (PPC) and constraint information, were collected. The proposed framework was validated, and the results indicate that there may be a correlation between effective team communication and project performance.

Journal of Cleaner Production

Routledge eBooks, Nov 25, 2022

Annual Conference of the International Group for Lean Construction, Jul 27, 2022

The Last Planner System (LPS) has long been used in construction projects to promote reliable pla... more The Last Planner System (LPS) has long been used in construction projects to promote reliable planning and enhance productivity. However, despite various attempts to evaluate LPS implementation efforts, the human aspect of the evaluation attempts has not been given enough attention. This issue may be tackled through Fuzzy Inference Systems (FIS) to capture more information regarding the gradual and intricate changes in scoring systems. Therefore, this paper aims to offer a standardized diagnosis model for LPS performance in construction projects. This model employs an FIS that analyzes the results of an LPS implementation for a more accurate investigation of the implementation. First, a thorough literature review is conducted to select the most prominent factors influencing the LPS implementation process, followed by expert panel questionnaire development and distribution among LPS experts to rank the selected factors. The obtained questionnaire results are then used to develop the FIS. The objective of this paper is hereby twofold: (1) to allow assessing expected LPS benefits through the qualitative assessment of the performance in the four LPS phases, and (2) to facilitate comparing past, current, and future performances throughout the organization's LPS implementation process to ensure continuous improvement.

Annual Conference of the International Group for Lean Construction, Jul 27, 2022

Lean education can refer to teaching Lean principles or applying Lean thinking to improve educati... more Lean education can refer to teaching Lean principles or applying Lean thinking to improve educational content delivery. Applying Lean in education can enhance supportive services such as admissions and program selections. In this paper, we developed a simulation study to examine course offerings in the third and fourth years of civil engineering at the University of Alberta, given an anticipated number of students registered in different subdisciplines. This study uses Monte Carlo simulation to model student enrolment in the curriculum aiming to reduce curriculum planning time and incorporate the end users' (i.e., the students) preferences into the course offerings by evaluating various what-if scenarios. The study investigates the effect of course selection flexibility on curriculum delivery and estimates the seating capacity to accommodate all enrolled students. In one scenario, all variables were simulated using random numbers and predefined statistical distributions. In a second scenario, we introduced restrictions where one subdiscipline offers limited courses, and graduate course offerings are restricted. In a third scenario, an additional restriction was added by raising the GPA eligibility threshold for graduate courses. The results show that simulation is an effective tool to test and incorporate Lean ideas into curriculum planning and management.

Proc. 30th Annual Conference of the International Group for Lean Construction (IGLC)

Successful implementation of lean philosophy in various sectors has inspired many construction ma... more Successful implementation of lean philosophy in various sectors has inspired many construction manufacturing companies to foster a lean culture and embark on open-ended lean transformation initiatives. This study presents the case of a panelized construction company that has embraced the lean philosophy over the past decade. Experiments undertaken during the process of building a digital twin of the company's production facility to verify the logic underlying the developed model reveal an increase in productivity. Using the same productivity regression models to model framing operations in two different years, the simulation of combined productive and delay times results in an underestimation compared to actual production data from 2013 but an overestimation compared to actual production data from 2017. Moreover, prominent lean changes implemented over the years that are positively correlated with productivity improvement are identified. These include standardizing the design and manufacturing processes, minimizing waste (including Mura, Muda, and material waste), ensuring a continuous flow, balancing the production line, following a just-in-time approach for the delivery of materials and implementing the 5S program. The findings underscore the long-term benefits of adopting lean thinking in construction manufacturing.

Proc. 30th Annual Conference of the International Group for Lean Construction (IGLC)

Design in nature is an iterative and interdependent process. Previous research shows that in some... more Design in nature is an iterative and interdependent process. Previous research shows that in some projects, 50% of this process contains waste. The Last Planner System (LPS) proved its efficiency in planning and controlling the execution phase. However, due to the nature of the design process, implementing LPS at this stage contains many constraints. Results show that the Integrated Project Delivery (IPD) and LPS together can significantly improve design workflow, still some issues remain that do not let the IPD project achieve the full potential of LPS in managing a design process. In this research the main constraints are studied and divided into five categories. Recently, many researchers studied the benefits of implementing LPS and how to optimize this method, especially in the execution phase, but there is no integrated framework that contains the available tools and techniques for overcoming constraints in using LPS at the design process. This study indicates that multiple strategies need to be adopted for increasing the applicability of LPS at the design process of a construction project. This paper proposes an integrated framework for addressing design constraints and optimizing the applicability of LPS in the design process on IPD projects.

Proc. 30th Annual Conference of the International Group for Lean Construction (IGLC)

Increasing efforts are being made by lean researchers and practitioners to improve value delivery... more Increasing efforts are being made by lean researchers and practitioners to improve value delivery in the built environment. However, the preliminary process to identify a substantiated list constituting the interests, desires, requirements, and design essentials of different stakeholders on projects is still vague and unorganized. Establishing the Value Attributes List (VAL) is considered fundamental for delivering value. Thus, to answer the question of how to develop the VAL, a set of guidelines and steps are provided. The process was constructed by performing action research and engaging two case studies depicting two Canadian public projects. This paper also provides a generic list of value attributes to be the starting point for the project team. The list included the major categories to be considered on projects. Findings suggested that developing a customized team-led list is particularly important and pursuing a clear direction on the subsequent steps for monitoring is required. The research concludes that an in-house advocate is needed to (1) promote the process and move it onward, and (2) to make sure the whole team and project stakeholders understand the importance of these value discussions.

Stigmergy is a mechanism comprising a sensing agent that responds to the settings of the environm... more Stigmergy is a mechanism comprising a sensing agent that responds to the settings of the environment by performing an action. Lean is defined as a philosophy that aims at eliminating waste in production processes without compromising value. The two concepts appear in the literature as independent with little attempts to study a possible relation between them. The purpose of the paper is to explore synergies between two seemingly distinct concepts. This is performed by investigating both Stigmergy and Lean separately, transforming each notion into its dynamic functional system, and comparing the functions of each against one another. Findings reveal that the natural mechanisms of Stigmergy can facilitate the operations of a Lean environment. Organizations can enhance performance by realizing and implementing some of the overlapping features between Stigmergy and Lean.

Construction Research Congress 2020, 2020

Construction Research Congress 2020, 2020

26th Annual Conference of the International Group for Lean Construction, 2018

The design process is a complex and dynamic system owing to the interdependencies of tasks which ... more The design process is a complex and dynamic system owing to the interdependencies of tasks which need to be coordinated between different involved parties. As the design process continues to grow in complexity with the progress of design, and since the early stages are the most complex to manage, this paper proposes the use of the design structure matrix (DSM) to overcome the encountered challenges within the design management process. This study is based on the implementation of the DSM method to manage information flow in the preliminary design of a building project following a traditional design approach. Based on interviews with multidiscipline practitioners, tasks are identified and presented in a Base DSM. To better manage dependencies and improve performance, tasks are re-sequenced in a Partitioned DSM. Accordingly, two simulation models were developed for the Base DSM and the Partitioned DSM. Results show that the flow of tasks in traditional design leads to an increase in the design duration due to negative iterations representing rework in tasks receiving modified input from subsequent activities. Results also show the cyclic dependency between considered tasks and the effect of information change on work progress. This paper concludes by suggesting the application of an integrated design approach to manage the current planning system of the design process at early stages, where intensive coordination is required.

Lookahead planning is a fundamental process in the Last Planner system of production control, whi... more Lookahead planning is a fundamental process in the Last Planner system of production control, which encompasses four tiers of planning processes: master scheduling, phase scheduling, lookahead planning, and commitment planning. Lookahead planning means not just viewing near-term tasks from the master or phase schedule and possibly detailing them, but it is a process to make tasks ready and create a workable backlog of tasks. The purpose of this paper is to report on research dedicated to improving the Last Planner system in general and the lookahead process in particular. The paper describes the role of lookahead planning as a connector between long term planning and commitment planning. Research is presented on two projects in North America combined with preliminary results from a survey investigating the Last Planner implementation and the performance of the lookahead process. The data collected was employed to evaluate the current practice, suggest hypotheses for improvement, and...

European Journal of Operational Research, 2021

This is a PDF file of an article that has undergone enhancements after acceptance, such as the ad... more This is a PDF file of an article that has undergone enhancements after acceptance, such as the addition of a cover page and metadata, and formatting for readability, but it is not yet the definitive version of record. This version will undergo additional copyediting, typesetting and review before it is published in its final form, but we are providing this version to give early visibility of the article. Please note that, during the production process, errors may be discovered which could affect the content, and all legal disclaimers that apply to the journal pertain.

IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering, 2022

There is unanimous agreement that the complex and dynamic nature of construction jobsites is coup... more There is unanimous agreement that the complex and dynamic nature of construction jobsites is coupled with inherent risks. Global occupational and health agencies revealed that the construction industry leads with the number of fatal injuries incurred every year. Lebanon, a developing country in the Middle East, is no exception. Studies on construction safety in the country showed that the industry has failed to implement safety regulations, while also witnessing a lack of safety incentives, training, and education. The situation worsens with the absence of a national experience multiplier that could reflect on contractors’ safety statuses and hold them accountable for their safety performance. This study addresses the problem by proposing a cost model that evaluates construction injuries. An analysis was performed on more than 3,000 accident claims collected from insurance companies to understand the events and exposures that construction labour face. Results showed that there are 1...

Buildings

The Last Planner System (LPS) aims to enhance planning reliability by reducing variability in con... more The Last Planner System (LPS) aims to enhance planning reliability by reducing variability in construction processes. While LPS applications have been explored in construction and detailed design, its application in architectural design remains underrepresented due to its abstract nature. This study addresses this gap by proposing an LPS framework tailored for architectural design, utilizing LPS metrics to assess planning reliability. Key issues hindering formal planning methods’ implementation are identified, and relevant LPS principles are aligned with these challenges, culminating in a conceptual LPS model designed for architectural projects. Building upon the conceptual model, an implementation model was developed and put into practice within an architectural design company in the United States, resulting in measured improvements in planning reliability and responsiveness. Additionally, it unveils hidden challenges associated with emerging tasks, guiding future design process en...

Annual Conference of the International Group for Lean Construction, Jul 27, 2022

The supply chain in the Architecture, Engineering, and Construction industry is often perceived a... more The supply chain in the Architecture, Engineering, and Construction industry is often perceived as inefficient due to a lack of data and traceability links. This study investigates the practitioners' understanding and acceptance of blockchain to address this inefficiency. A survey is conducted to glean expert opinions concerning implementing blockchain technology in the Construction Supply Chain Management (CSCM) domain. The research hypothesizes that professionals are open to blockchain technology adoption and that this adoption positively impacts four variables that represent the primary factors that can be implemented using blockchain technology. The One-Sample Test of Means is then used to evaluate the four identified variables against the hypotheses. Survey findings reveal that CSCM experts are knowledgeable about innovative technologies such as blockchain and believe that all characteristics of blockchain should be considered during implementation. Findings also show that most experts acknowledge that their current CSCM systems disregard blockchain entirely.

Proc. 30th Annual Conference of the International Group for Lean Construction (IGLC)

The supply chain in the Architecture, Engineering, and Construction industry is often perceived a... more The supply chain in the Architecture, Engineering, and Construction industry is often perceived as inefficient due to a lack of data and traceability links. This study investigates the practitioners' understanding and acceptance of blockchain to address this inefficiency. A survey is conducted to glean expert opinions concerning implementing blockchain technology in the Construction Supply Chain Management (CSCM) domain. The research hypothesizes that professionals are open to blockchain technology adoption and that this adoption positively impacts four variables that represent the primary factors that can be implemented using blockchain technology. The One-Sample Test of Means is then used to evaluate the four identified variables against the hypotheses. Survey findings reveal that CSCM experts are knowledgeable about innovative technologies such as blockchain and believe that all characteristics of blockchain should be considered during implementation. Findings also show that most experts acknowledge that their current CSCM systems disregard blockchain entirely.

Journal of the Construction Division and Management, 2023

The advancement and increasing complexity of design requirements result in the rapid proliferatio... more The advancement and increasing complexity of design requirements result in the rapid proliferation of information that needs to be properly integrated and coordinated among multidisciplinary parties. Inefficient planning, the ill-defined and iterative design nature, and poor communication disrupt design workflow, consequently creating waste such as increased cycle times, cost, rework, and errors. Sub-optimal design workflow has captured researchers' interests who have developed frameworks tackling design task structuring, measuring flow, or understanding the organizational network involved. However, a formerly unexplored perspective is one that integrates both the process, i.e., flow of design information, and the social network, i.e., interactions among design teams. This integration and communication between teams enables the design intent to properly flow and be transformed into value adding output. Accordingly, this study approaches workflow at the intersection of the social and process aspects of design to understand, measure, and analyze information flow within communication networks. Agent-based modeling and social network analysis are used to dynamically capture the impacts of lean practices and Building Information Modeling (BIM) on communication. This novel design management strategy focuses, simultaneously, on interaction dynamics and information diffusion to assist design teams in enhancing design flow, knowledge transformation, and value generation while reducing wastes.

Proceedings of the 31st Annual Conference of the International Group for Lean Construction (IGLC31)

Lean construction is an approach that prioritizes enhancing quality and value while minimizing wa... more Lean construction is an approach that prioritizes enhancing quality and value while minimizing waste. Lean management comprises of principles and concepts that must be observed to effectively implement Lean management and leverage its benefits. In line with Lean concepts and principles, appropriate behavior and culture must be properly implemented to achieve successful Lean management, hence necessitating the use of an established health check assessment to evaluate the level of Lean maturity. This study aims to introduce a health check assessment to ascertain the level of maturity of Lean behavior and culture in the construction industry. The health check assessment was formulated by identifying Lean success factors, which were further validated by Lean experts. The methodology employed to achieve the study objectives follows a Design Science Research (DSR) approach, which involves creating a health check framework and evaluating it through an expert panel interview among project parties in a real case study project. In addition to the Lean expert panel interview, other performance metrics, such as percent planned complete (PPC) and constraint information, were collected. The proposed framework was validated, and the results indicate that there may be a correlation between effective team communication and project performance.

Journal of Cleaner Production

Routledge eBooks, Nov 25, 2022

Annual Conference of the International Group for Lean Construction, Jul 27, 2022

The Last Planner System (LPS) has long been used in construction projects to promote reliable pla... more The Last Planner System (LPS) has long been used in construction projects to promote reliable planning and enhance productivity. However, despite various attempts to evaluate LPS implementation efforts, the human aspect of the evaluation attempts has not been given enough attention. This issue may be tackled through Fuzzy Inference Systems (FIS) to capture more information regarding the gradual and intricate changes in scoring systems. Therefore, this paper aims to offer a standardized diagnosis model for LPS performance in construction projects. This model employs an FIS that analyzes the results of an LPS implementation for a more accurate investigation of the implementation. First, a thorough literature review is conducted to select the most prominent factors influencing the LPS implementation process, followed by expert panel questionnaire development and distribution among LPS experts to rank the selected factors. The obtained questionnaire results are then used to develop the FIS. The objective of this paper is hereby twofold: (1) to allow assessing expected LPS benefits through the qualitative assessment of the performance in the four LPS phases, and (2) to facilitate comparing past, current, and future performances throughout the organization's LPS implementation process to ensure continuous improvement.

Annual Conference of the International Group for Lean Construction, Jul 27, 2022

Lean education can refer to teaching Lean principles or applying Lean thinking to improve educati... more Lean education can refer to teaching Lean principles or applying Lean thinking to improve educational content delivery. Applying Lean in education can enhance supportive services such as admissions and program selections. In this paper, we developed a simulation study to examine course offerings in the third and fourth years of civil engineering at the University of Alberta, given an anticipated number of students registered in different subdisciplines. This study uses Monte Carlo simulation to model student enrolment in the curriculum aiming to reduce curriculum planning time and incorporate the end users' (i.e., the students) preferences into the course offerings by evaluating various what-if scenarios. The study investigates the effect of course selection flexibility on curriculum delivery and estimates the seating capacity to accommodate all enrolled students. In one scenario, all variables were simulated using random numbers and predefined statistical distributions. In a second scenario, we introduced restrictions where one subdiscipline offers limited courses, and graduate course offerings are restricted. In a third scenario, an additional restriction was added by raising the GPA eligibility threshold for graduate courses. The results show that simulation is an effective tool to test and incorporate Lean ideas into curriculum planning and management.

Proc. 30th Annual Conference of the International Group for Lean Construction (IGLC)

Successful implementation of lean philosophy in various sectors has inspired many construction ma... more Successful implementation of lean philosophy in various sectors has inspired many construction manufacturing companies to foster a lean culture and embark on open-ended lean transformation initiatives. This study presents the case of a panelized construction company that has embraced the lean philosophy over the past decade. Experiments undertaken during the process of building a digital twin of the company's production facility to verify the logic underlying the developed model reveal an increase in productivity. Using the same productivity regression models to model framing operations in two different years, the simulation of combined productive and delay times results in an underestimation compared to actual production data from 2013 but an overestimation compared to actual production data from 2017. Moreover, prominent lean changes implemented over the years that are positively correlated with productivity improvement are identified. These include standardizing the design and manufacturing processes, minimizing waste (including Mura, Muda, and material waste), ensuring a continuous flow, balancing the production line, following a just-in-time approach for the delivery of materials and implementing the 5S program. The findings underscore the long-term benefits of adopting lean thinking in construction manufacturing.

Proc. 30th Annual Conference of the International Group for Lean Construction (IGLC)

Design in nature is an iterative and interdependent process. Previous research shows that in some... more Design in nature is an iterative and interdependent process. Previous research shows that in some projects, 50% of this process contains waste. The Last Planner System (LPS) proved its efficiency in planning and controlling the execution phase. However, due to the nature of the design process, implementing LPS at this stage contains many constraints. Results show that the Integrated Project Delivery (IPD) and LPS together can significantly improve design workflow, still some issues remain that do not let the IPD project achieve the full potential of LPS in managing a design process. In this research the main constraints are studied and divided into five categories. Recently, many researchers studied the benefits of implementing LPS and how to optimize this method, especially in the execution phase, but there is no integrated framework that contains the available tools and techniques for overcoming constraints in using LPS at the design process. This study indicates that multiple strategies need to be adopted for increasing the applicability of LPS at the design process of a construction project. This paper proposes an integrated framework for addressing design constraints and optimizing the applicability of LPS in the design process on IPD projects.

Proc. 30th Annual Conference of the International Group for Lean Construction (IGLC)

Increasing efforts are being made by lean researchers and practitioners to improve value delivery... more Increasing efforts are being made by lean researchers and practitioners to improve value delivery in the built environment. However, the preliminary process to identify a substantiated list constituting the interests, desires, requirements, and design essentials of different stakeholders on projects is still vague and unorganized. Establishing the Value Attributes List (VAL) is considered fundamental for delivering value. Thus, to answer the question of how to develop the VAL, a set of guidelines and steps are provided. The process was constructed by performing action research and engaging two case studies depicting two Canadian public projects. This paper also provides a generic list of value attributes to be the starting point for the project team. The list included the major categories to be considered on projects. Findings suggested that developing a customized team-led list is particularly important and pursuing a clear direction on the subsequent steps for monitoring is required. The research concludes that an in-house advocate is needed to (1) promote the process and move it onward, and (2) to make sure the whole team and project stakeholders understand the importance of these value discussions.

Stigmergy is a mechanism comprising a sensing agent that responds to the settings of the environm... more Stigmergy is a mechanism comprising a sensing agent that responds to the settings of the environment by performing an action. Lean is defined as a philosophy that aims at eliminating waste in production processes without compromising value. The two concepts appear in the literature as independent with little attempts to study a possible relation between them. The purpose of the paper is to explore synergies between two seemingly distinct concepts. This is performed by investigating both Stigmergy and Lean separately, transforming each notion into its dynamic functional system, and comparing the functions of each against one another. Findings reveal that the natural mechanisms of Stigmergy can facilitate the operations of a Lean environment. Organizations can enhance performance by realizing and implementing some of the overlapping features between Stigmergy and Lean.

Construction Research Congress 2020, 2020

Construction Research Congress 2020, 2020

26th Annual Conference of the International Group for Lean Construction, 2018

The design process is a complex and dynamic system owing to the interdependencies of tasks which ... more The design process is a complex and dynamic system owing to the interdependencies of tasks which need to be coordinated between different involved parties. As the design process continues to grow in complexity with the progress of design, and since the early stages are the most complex to manage, this paper proposes the use of the design structure matrix (DSM) to overcome the encountered challenges within the design management process. This study is based on the implementation of the DSM method to manage information flow in the preliminary design of a building project following a traditional design approach. Based on interviews with multidiscipline practitioners, tasks are identified and presented in a Base DSM. To better manage dependencies and improve performance, tasks are re-sequenced in a Partitioned DSM. Accordingly, two simulation models were developed for the Base DSM and the Partitioned DSM. Results show that the flow of tasks in traditional design leads to an increase in the design duration due to negative iterations representing rework in tasks receiving modified input from subsequent activities. Results also show the cyclic dependency between considered tasks and the effect of information change on work progress. This paper concludes by suggesting the application of an integrated design approach to manage the current planning system of the design process at early stages, where intensive coordination is required.

Lookahead planning is a fundamental process in the Last Planner system of production control, whi... more Lookahead planning is a fundamental process in the Last Planner system of production control, which encompasses four tiers of planning processes: master scheduling, phase scheduling, lookahead planning, and commitment planning. Lookahead planning means not just viewing near-term tasks from the master or phase schedule and possibly detailing them, but it is a process to make tasks ready and create a workable backlog of tasks. The purpose of this paper is to report on research dedicated to improving the Last Planner system in general and the lookahead process in particular. The paper describes the role of lookahead planning as a connector between long term planning and commitment planning. Research is presented on two projects in North America combined with preliminary results from a survey investigating the Last Planner implementation and the performance of the lookahead process. The data collected was employed to evaluate the current practice, suggest hypotheses for improvement, and...

European Journal of Operational Research, 2021

This is a PDF file of an article that has undergone enhancements after acceptance, such as the ad... more This is a PDF file of an article that has undergone enhancements after acceptance, such as the addition of a cover page and metadata, and formatting for readability, but it is not yet the definitive version of record. This version will undergo additional copyediting, typesetting and review before it is published in its final form, but we are providing this version to give early visibility of the article. Please note that, during the production process, errors may be discovered which could affect the content, and all legal disclaimers that apply to the journal pertain.