Abstract
In construction management, the task of planning project schedules with consideration of labor utilization is very crucial. However, the commonly used critical path method (CPM) does not inherently take into account this issue. Consequently, the labor utilization of the project schedule derived from the CPM method often has substantial low ebbs and high peaks. This research proposes a model to obtain project schedule with the least fluctuation in labor demand while still satisfying the project deadline and maintain the project cost. The Differential Evolution (DE), a fast and efficient metaheuristic, is employed to search for the most desirable solution of project execution among numerous combinations of activities’ crew sizes and start times. Furthermore, seven DE’s mutation strategies have also been employed for solving the optimization at hand. Experiment results point out that theTarget-to-Best 1and a new hybrid mutation strategy can attain the best solution of project schedule with the least fluctuation in labor demand. Accordingly, the proposed framework can be an effective tool to assist decision-makers in the project planning phase.
Highlights
Resources in construction projects typically consist of manpower, machinery, materials, money, information, and management decisions [1]
It is observable that the DE-based Labor utilization Optimization for Construction Project (DeLOCP) with the mutation strategy of Differential Evolution (DE)/Target-to-Best/1 and Hybrid DE/Rand/1 and DE/Best/1 have produced the best solution: fitness function = 3054
Experimental result shows that the proposed method has successfully optimized the project schedule which features a smooth labor profile with insignificant peaks and ebbs
Summary
Resources in construction projects typically consist of manpower, machinery, materials, money, information, and management decisions [1]. Manpower, or labor, is the most crucial resource; planning a schedule which features a smooth labor utilization with low peaks is beneficial for the construction contractors. Needless to say, this leads to reduced costs of temporary facilities for workers and enhancement of on-site safety. Different from previous works in resource leveling [9, 32, 33], the crew sizes of activities are optimized Such framework is more realistic and can enhance the flexibility in project scheduling and potentially bring about better solutions.
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