Development and On-Site Evaluation of an Automated Materials Management and Control Model
Publication: Journal of Construction Engineering and Management
Volume 131, Issue 12
Abstract
Materials resources constitute a large portion of a project’s total cost and this makes them an important and attractive subject to control. Proper control and management of materials can meaningfully increase productivity by 6%, or more. A model based on automatic, or semiautomatic, data collection for materials management and control was developed. Based on project plans, the model initiates and manages the ordering of materials automatically and monitors both the actual flow of materials and the current stock at the construction site. The model permits real-time control, enabling corrective actions to be taken. In this manner, costs and unnecessary handling of materials are reduced. In addition, up-to-date information regarding materials flow is available and different statistical analyses are enabled: materials acquired from a specific supplier; materials used for a specific activity; and materials used during a specific month, etc. The information generated by the model enables the updating of a historical database to be used for planning of future projects.
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Acknowledgment
The writers would like to thank Dr. Cliff Schexnayder for his useful comments.
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Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Construction Engineering and Management
Volume 131 • Issue 12 • December 2005
Pages: 1328 - 1336
Copyright
© 2005 ASCE.
History
Received: Nov 22, 2004
Accepted: May 6, 2005
Published online: Dec 1, 2005
Published in print: Dec 2005
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