Managing Customization Strategies to Reduce Workflow Variations in House Building Projects
Publication: Journal of Construction Engineering and Management
Volume 142, Issue 8
Abstract
Ensuring that all resources required to complete a task (materials, equipment, etc.) are available is essential to create a reliable workflow. Yet, in customized house building, clients’ design information (e.g., design drawings containing clients’ desired changes) is a key input that is often missing. This can affect the performance of the task in which such input is first needed and all subsequent ones. In spite of that, this theme has received limited attention by the literature. It is not yet clear how to manage customization strategies to minimize disruptions in production or how to quantify the workflow variations created by distinct strategies. This paper addresses this gap by proposing a set of guidelines to manage customization strategies (i.e., clients’ information flow and scope of customization) to support a reliable workflow. A visual indicator is also proposed and applied in two projects (completed in 2011 and 2014) with distinct customization strategies. The results suggest that workflow variations (due to customization) were lower in the latter project. The changes in the strategy that led to the improvements measured are discussed. This research contributes to the existing body of knowledge by (1) presenting guidelines to manage clients’ information flow in customized projects; (2) proposing a visual indicator to measure and compare workflow variations created by different customization strategies; (3) suggesting tactics that can be incorporated in full-customization strategies to reduce workflow variations; and (4) critically examining the mass customization theoretical background and its role in addressing construction problems.
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Acknowledgments
The authors thank C.Rolim Eng. Ltda. (CRE) for supporting this research and also the National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq) for sponsoring this study. They would also like to thank Pedro D. M. Prietto for his helpful contribution in the manuscript preparation.
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Information & Authors
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Published In
Journal of Construction Engineering and Management
Volume 142 • Issue 8 • August 2016
Copyright
© 2016 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Jan 21, 2015
Accepted: Nov 3, 2015
Published online: Feb 18, 2016
Discussion open until: Jul 18, 2016
Published in print: Aug 1, 2016
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