A Study On Supply Chain Management In Construction

CHAPTER 3: Literature Review

3.1 Roles of supply chain management in construction by Ruben Vrijhoef and

Lauri Koskela

In this paper, the author focuses on the pertinent wastes in the construction industry due to
myopic control and fragmentation. A comparison between traditional management and
supply chain management stating how supply chain management is better in inventory
management, total cost, information sharing etc. Various supply chain methodologies are
discussed including pipeline Mapping, LOGI method etc. Based on two case studies author
has identified the root causes of wastes in construction industry as myopic control,
fragmentation.

3.2 Experiencing supply chain optimizations: a serious gaming approach by

Marc van den Berg; Hans Voordijk; Arjen Adriaanse; and Timo Hartmann

In this paper, an attempt to model real world construction supply chain into a serious game.
Serious games are supposed to simplify the real world scenario into a risk free environment
so that the players can explore through trial and error with the possibility of instant feedback.
A game called “Tower of Infinity” was designed which is a one player board game. It
simulates an integrated project. Conclusion based on its application in experiential learning
was drawn.

3.3 Construction supply chain management: a portuguese case study

In this paper the supply chain is analyzed using construction supply chain(CSC) matrix. All
the possible delays in various processes involved in construction are tabularized. Using this
CSC matrix for the construction project is formed indicating the days of delay and the
frequency of occurrence of that delay against the reason for delay. Based on this the most
critical activity causing the delay is identified and the problem is resolved. The authors
perform a case study on two viaducts on a highway executed in the years 2010 and 2011.

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3.4 Supply chain management in construction: diagnosis and application issues

by Alfredo serpell and Boris

The objective of the authors of the paper was to introduce tools and techniques used in supply
chain management of manufacturing industry in construction industry. To study the kind and
extend of relationship of the clients present in the construction industry the authors decided to
conduct a survey among 50 companies that are related to the construction sector. After
carefully analysing the results obtained from the survey the authors came up with a
methodology to improve supply chains in construction sector. The methodology proposed is
based on demand cycle which has four components named plan, do, check &act.

3.5-Developing a Resource Supply Chain Planning System for Construction

Projects by H. Ping Tserng1 ; Samuel Y. L. Yin2 ; and Sherman

According to the author of this paper, the high variability of construction environments
results in high construction-cost variation, especially in material costs. Inadequate planning
may cause material shortages that delay the project schedule or, alternatively, a substantial
increase in inventory costs by producing or supplying materials earlier than they are needed
at the construction site. To solve these problems, the author has come up with an optimization
model called integrated inventory cost information system (IICIS). The supply chain taken is
the supply of re-bars from the supplier to the inventory onsite. When compared to the actual
cost of supply of reinforcement bars to the expected cost of reinforcement bars after using
inventory cost information system (IICIS) is around 25% to 60% less than the actual cost.

3.6 Supply Chain Management in the Construction Industry – A Literature

Review by Lana Lovrenčić Butković, Alica Grilec Kaurić and Josip Mikulić

In this paper the, the author studies the extent upon which implementation of supply chain
management in construction industry is researched. The methodology used is studying
research papers of various writers and comparing them with respect to the area of study they
have focused. The authors came to a conclusion that there is lack of theoretical work in this
field when compared to empirical based studies.

3.7 Just-In-Time management Of Precast Concrete Components by Low Sui

Pheng and Choong Joo Chuan

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 A Study On Supply Chain Management In Construction

In JIT philosophy, raw materials are not stockpiled. Instead, they are delivered in the right
quantities, in the right condition, to the right place, and at the right time for production.
Production operations can proceed in the JIT fashion only if the parts delivered are of good
enough quality for use. JIT concept is applicable to precast structures in construction
industries. In order for JIT to be acceptable the confidence of pre-casters and contractors in
this method should be improved. Moreover, the relation between contractors and pre-casters
should be generally needs to be improved.

3.8 Application of Critical Chain Management In Construction Projects

Schedules In a Multi-Project Environment: A Case Study by Krystyna
Araszkiewicz

The schedules are prepared at the level of individual projects, not at the portfolio level. When
determining the critical chain both logic relationships between the tasks and resources
dependencies (availability of the resources to perform the task at a given time) are considered
According to information obtained from the statistics from M.S. Project, planned duration of
implementing the entire programme including the buffers was 586 days. Planned
implementation time of a complete programme with traditional approach of estimating
duration of individual project was 794 days. The difference is 208 days. It means that
planning of the investment programme in this case with the use of critical chain method could
help to speed up the date of its completion.

3.9-Strategic Procurement Practices for the Industrial Supply Chain by Marcelo

M. Azambuja, Ph.D.; Simone Ponticelli, Ph.D.; and William J. O’Brien, Ph.D.,
M.ASCE

This study reports on how engineering-procure-construction (EPC) firms select suppliers in

the early stages of the project. Particular focus involves the decisions firms make in sourcing
process and the types and roles of supporting information. The paper reports on five case
studies with large EPC firms. EPC stands for engineering, procurement and construction.
Among the most influential research on industrial procurement practices is the Construction
Industry Institute PEPC (Strategic, Procurement, Engineering, procurement, and
Construction) model. Only EPC 1 has invested significantly in alliances through the creation

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of longstanding relationship agreements. EPC 2 has taken the view that alliances are not
worth pursuing and explores relationships on a per project basis. EPC 3 sees the value of
integrated work processes with suppliers, but they have not explored commercial agreements
more broadly. Similarly, EPCs 4 and 5 will work more closely with a few prequalified
suppliers on a per-project basis. Data mining and decision support may help collection and
processing of market data. Integration of market research with project risk management,
scheduling, and estimating tools would represent a significant advance to current practice.

3.10 Identifying and categorizing the sources of uncertainty in construction

supply chains by Jonathan Gosling, Mohamed Naim and Denis Towill

Researchers have long recognized uncertainty associated with supply chain operations as a
major obstacle to the delivery of customer value. The more process-related uncertainty, the
more waste there will be. The key research question addressed in this paper is how to
effectively identify the significant sources of uncertainty in the supply chains of construction
projects. This paper aims to develop a practical approach to the identification of uncertainty&
factoring sources from various supply chain areas. A three- stage framework is proposed to
identify and categorize the uncertainties of the supply chain, ie identify uncertainty,
categorise uncertainty & identify severity. To identify uncertainties , brainstorming sessions
are conducted with the stakeholders involved in the execution of the project. To categorise
the uncertainty, the uncertainty circle method is adopted.. The uncertainty circle classifies
supply chain uncertainty into five sources which includes process, supply, demand, control,
and external. The last step of the method is to determine the relative importance of various
uncertainties. A Likelihood-impact matrix has been developed to demonstrate the severity of
various types of uncertainties. Brainstorming was carried out and uncertainties were plotted
on a graph with impact and probability as the axes.

3.11 Improving Productivity in Construction by using Value Stream Mapping by

N.Sudhakar, Mr. K. Vishnuvardhan

The remarkable improvements in productivity in the manufacturing industry have encouraged

the development of lean thinking in the building industry. Poor management, variability of

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output, labour intense work, internal working conditions and insufficient quality are potential
problems in the construction industry that prevent lean techniques from being implemented.
In this paper, measurements of productivity for various activities such as rebar installation,
formwork installation and concrete pouring for column and slab processes are evaluated
using the output / input ratio accordingly. Value stream mapping (VSM) is used to analyse
the lead times, work in progress levels (WIPs) and non-value added time. The current value
stream was mapped to determine the flow of information as well as materials. The current
value stream had significant amount of lead time and ideal time . Improvements were made
by identifying & eliminating waste and non-value adding activities. Thus the final state of
value stream is arrived at.

3.12-Applying lean thinking in construction and performance improvement by

Remon Fayek Aziz and Sherif Mohamed Hafez

The productivity of the construction industry worldwide has been on decline over the past 40
years. One approach for improving the situation is using lean construction. Lean construction
results from the application of a new form of production management to construction. In
general, lean construction projects are easier to manage, safer, completed sooner, cost less
and are of better quality. One of the best known Lean techniques is the Last Planner System
which is a very useful tool for management of construction process. It is highly advantages
as it helps in continuous monitoring of the planning efficiency, to assist in developing
foresight, smoothing workflow variations, and reducing/removing uncertainties plaguing
construction processes. The two main objectives of LPS are to make better assignments to
direct workers, through continuous learning and to make the work to flow across production
units in the best achievable sequence and rate. Last Planner System aims to shift the focus of
control from the workers to the flow of work that links them together.

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