Research Themes and Application Areas

In its third term (2017–2022), the NSERC Industrial Research Chair in Strategic Construction Modeling and Delivery researchers built on the successes of previous IRC terms while focusing on the individual needs of its collaborating organizations. The IRC team continued to deliver innovative tools and practices to help the Albertan construction industry enhance its competitive position through improved project performance. In addition, joint collaborative projects were undertaken with our partners to address industry-wide issues.

Under Dr. Aminah Robinson Fayek’s leadership as Chairholder, the IRC in SCMD integrated fuzzy logic with other advanced AI techniques such as machine learning and/or simulation methods. The resulting fuzzy hybrid techniques allowed enhanced decision support tools and methods to be developed that can lead to improved predictability, efficiency, and performance on construction projects, thereby boosting the competitiveness of the IRC’s partner organizations. The program also produced highly qualified personnel (HQP) for employment in the construction industry.

To achieve these objectives, the IRC in SCMD research program focused on four major themes:

Advancing fuzzy hybrid techniques for construction modeling and decision support.

The IRC in SCMD group was committed to advancing each member’s expertise in the areas of fuzzy hybrid modeling for construction. This allowed our researchers to establish themselves as academic and industry leaders in these fields. We focused on advancing current fuzzy hybrid techniques that capture unique characteristics of the construction environment for use in decision-making and modeling. We applied these techniques to labour and project productivity prediction and improvement strategies, assessing organizational competencies and performance in construction, and advancing risk assessment and management techniques.

Application: The IRC in SCMD produced software-based models capable of modelling crew dynamics to account for the impact of various factors (e.g., crew motivation) on performance and to optimize the use of skilled labour. The group also developed ways to create generic (i.e., universal) models from existing context-specific models to address new contexts for which data are not available. In addition, the group improved risk assessment and management models to provide greater accuracy in contingency determination.

Developing advanced fuzzy system dynamics techniques for improved construction project certainty and performance

In one area of IRC-SCMD research, we combined fuzzy logic with system dynamics in order to enhance our ability to model construction systems that include subjective and uncertain elements. Fuzzy system dynamics techniques allow researchers to address topics related to productivity analysis and modeling, as well as risk analysis and mitigation, which are intended to lead to greater project certainty and performance.

Application: The IRC in SCMD developed an integrated fuzzy system dynamics (FSD) modeling framework that enabled researchers to model full-scale construction applications that 1) contain fuzzy, non-probabilistic uncertainty and complex, dynamic system components and 2) can be applied to both productivity and risk modeling and analysis.

Developing advanced fuzzy agent-based modeling techniques for improved construction analysis and project delivery

IRC in SCMD research combined fuzzy logic with agent-based modeling to enhance researchers’ ability to model interactions among components of a system and derive information regarding overall behaviour. These findings allowed us to address topics related to construction labour productivity, including crew motivation and behaviour, in order to improve project performance.

Application: The IRC in SCMD developed a fuzzy agent-based modeling framework that can effectively and accurately model social interactions and environments in the construction domain and capture the subjective uncertainty associated with human behaviour and decision-making. This framework provides a way to model the behaviour of individuals in a complex system and derive the effect of their collective actions on the system as a whole.

Developing construction industry best practices and implementing research products and tools that are of immediate interest to our partners

The IRC in SCMD advanced the development and implementation of the research and software tools created in the previous IRC term. Our researchers also focused on addressing topics of immediate interest to the IRC’s partner organizations, such as the creation of a framework to assess the costs and benefits of advanced work packaging. Furthermore, the IRC’s research was applied in the development of best practices that increase productivity and improve overall performance in construction.

Application: In collaboration with its industry partners, the IRC in SCMD addressed industry-wide issues by developing and implementing best practices and new tools and techniques that enhance the competitiveness of the Albertan construction industry.