Abstract
The main purpose of this study is to investigate the advantages of digital fabrication pertaining to construction project management, in particular, in terms of different project management factors, using case studies of irregular‐shaped buildings in which digital fabrication has versatile applications. This study collected secondary data corresponding to 27 construction projects of irregular‐shaped buildings that implemented digital fabrication. Success criteria were developed based on the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK) to assess the benefits of implementing digital fabrication for management of the considered construction projects of irregular‐shaped buildings. Content analysis was performed to investigate the degree of satisfaction for the success criteria of each project. With this approach, it is possible to see which success criterion appears more times as a positive factor and which ones appear as challenges or problems. Among the positive benefits of digital fabrication on construction project management, quality increase and control appeared in the highest number of projects (17 out of 27 projects) at the highest frequency (26 instances). However, among the negative benefits that were mentioned as challenging or causing difficulties of digital fabrication on construction project management, cost reduction and control appeared in the highest number of projects (14 out of 27 projects) at the highest frequency (21 instances). But it does not mean that the use of digital fabrication was overall negative.
Highlights
In order to attend to problems that occur while constructing irregular-shaped buildings, various digital technologies are used including building information modeling (BIM) [18], reverse engineering with 3D laser scanning [19], computer-aided manufacturing (CAM) and computer-aided engineering (CAE) [4], and computerized numerical control (CNC) [20]
Studies that quantitatively analyze the types of positive and negative effects that digital fabrication has on construction project management are hard to find. us, this study aims at constructing theoretical evidence concerning the effect of digital fabrication on construction projects through preliminary analyses of changes in the manufacturing paradigm and effects of digital fabrication on sustainability
A performance indicator for construction project management, which can be used by construction firms trying out the new manufacturing paradigm of digital fabrication, is not yet available. erefore, this study aims at suggesting key performance indicators (KPIs) for assessing the benefits of digital fabrication for construction projects and verifying them through case studies
Summary
Digital fabrication is implemented through particular projects such as irregular-shaped buildings It is through these particular construction projects that manufacturing processes superior to conventional manufacturing methods are developed from design aspirations and technological innovations [30]. Irregular-shaped building segments are typically achieved by combining materials of additional manufacturing processes (e.g., assembly, lamination, extrusion, and other forms of 3D printing) using industrial robots [31] Using this digital fabrication, technology has allowed the construction of customized complex buildings [32]. Digital fabrication is a very important technological element in attaining the quality of irregularshaped buildings, it cannot replace the entire system necessary for constructing buildings To this day, real construction projects typically adopt the conventional manufacturing method and apply digital fabrication only to specific segments. It is uncertain whether a new manufacturing technology will be able to overcome the operational problems that arise from the disjointed nature of the construction industry [51]. us, this study aims at evaluating the benefits of using digital fabrication for construction project management through data collection of irregular-shaped buildings. e research method for this task is explained
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