Marcelo Azambuja

Strategic Procurement Practices for the Industrial Supply Chain

AbstractEarly sourcing decisions have a critical impact on the performance of industrial construction projects. However, the industrial construction sector has been relatively understudied, especially the sourcing and supply chain practices typically implemented in early phases of capital projects. 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. Data were collected from multiple individuals in each firm with extensive supporting documentation. A cross-case analysis describes similarities and differences between EPCs and helps to compare empirical findings with the broader literature. Findings contradict some areas of the literature, in particular the push for strategic supplier alliances. Other findings confirm the strategic importance of early procur...

Leveraging Building Information Models to Support Supply Chain Decisions in Construction Projects

This study uses Vrijhoef and Koskela’s model on the four roles of supply chain management (SCM) in construction to investigate how building information modeling (BIM) can be used in the management of construction supply chains. Two important facts are known about supply chains in general: 1. supply chains compete for projects, not isolated companies; and 2. participants who can see each other’s needs are able to better manage their business and ultimately better serve their clients. In this environment, BIM may be used as a catalyst to provide visibility in terms of product, project, and participants’ requirements to the extended supply chain working to deliver a project. The authors identify cases provided by the literature and ongoing case studies in which BIM has been utilized to exchange information with suppliers. The cases are categorized using the model to identify which SCM roles are currently being used for different products based not only on the characteristics of the products but also the supplier’s approach to delivering product and services. The findings point out the supply chain decisions that were enabled by BIM as well as opportunities for further application of models to facilitate the implementation of supply chain practices in construction.

Visualizing Construction Supply Chains with Google Cloud Computing Tools

There is an increasing awareness of the importance of supply chain management to the performance of construction projects in the construction industry. Project delays, disruption of site work flows, and elevated carbon footprint are common consequences of poor supply chain management. Information technology solutions, such as enterprise resource planning systems, are widely used in the manufacturing industry for managing supply chains. However, in the construction industry, only a few large construction firms can afford to deploy such sophisticated IT tools. The majority of the firms in the construction industry are small to medium size companies, and they don’t have resources and manpower to use and maintain proprietary supply chain management solutions. This research explored freely available Google cloud computing tools, including Google Fusion Table (GFT), Google Maps, and Google Earth, as a potential cloud-based supply chain management platform. The focus of this research is on the capability of the proposed platform on providing mechanisms for online information exchange, multi-party collaboration, real-time supply demand update, and supply chain data visualization. Experiments were conducted on a campus building project. The results suggest that the proposed platform provides the basic functionalities for developing a costeffective tool for small and medium size construction firms to manage supply chain

INVESTIGATION OF SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT PRACTICES IN INDUSTRIAL PROJECTS: STATE OF PRACTICE VS. STATE OF KNOWLEDGE

This paper focuses on strategic sourcing and planning issues and describes a set of supply chain practices implemented by leading EPC firms and owners executing industrial projects worldwide. Industrial projects include suppliers who are located overseas, a major part of installed items are long lead engineered equipment, shop fabrication capacity is limited and their prices are escalating. Our main purpose is to contrast current practices against the ones presented in the current body of knowledge. The authors conducted interviews with experienced Procurement and Materials Management managers and analyzed documents supporting supply decisions. This study provides an up-to-date description on how firms have been mitigating material supply risks in such complex environment via supplier integration, relationships, supply chain planning, and use of market knowledge

A Decision Support Tool for Rapid Assessment and Selection of Engineered Equipment Suppliers

Procurement of long lead engineered equipment is a complex process which requires the evaluation of several suppliers and project targets. This analysis is usually performed manually, takes long time and certain tradeoffs may be overlooked. This paper describes the development of a decision support tool which aims to integrate market forecasting or historical data on supplier performance with procurement targets. A supplier selection module uses the Aspiration Interactive Method (AIM) for providing rapid tradeoff analysis and points how each supplier is ranked in relation to the expected targets. The tool has been developed in Visual C#, in the form of simple and intuitive forms, with Microsoft Access as the back-end database. According to experienced managers, this tool brings intelligence to the traditional selection process. The ability to quickly generate what-if scenarios based on real data improves the quality of decision making and supports the selection of suppliers in the early phases of capital projects.

A simulation case study on supply chain management of a construction firm adopting cloud computing and RFID

Recently, construction firms have been implementing lean manufacturing practices to reduce waste and improve performance. Information technology (IT) systems are introduced to facilitate implementation of lean practices in construction. However, many construction firms are small to medium-sized and do not have enough resources to implement sophisticated and expensive IT solutions. This research presents a cost-effective and easy-to-use cloud-based system integrated with RFID that increases visibility and traceability of material and information flows of construction supply chains. Simulation models for a local construction firm are developed to evaluate the firms performance under the existing and the proposed system so as to show the feasibility of the proposed system and its impact. Simulation results show that the proposed system significantly outperforms the current system on various performance measures. The real-time information provided by the proposed system enables users to promptly change inventory/fabrication/installation/shipping schedules against unexpected events taking place in construction supply chains.

Empirical Study on the Key Drivers Affecting Durations for Right-of-Way Acquisition on Highway Projects

AbstractRight-of-way (R/W) acquisition, one of the most basic of preconstruction activities on a highway project, is an important subject by many state DOTs because the failure to make timely acquisitions of R/W causes significant delays and conflicts. Various management practices and strategies have been designed and implemented to deliver R/W acquisition on schedule but completing this preconstruction process is still not an easy activity for many state DOTs. The Texas DOT (TXDOT) is no exception. The research reported in this paper has identified all drivers that can be considered influential in the determination of durations for R/W acquisition; it was undertaken to improve the R/W duration-prediction capabilities of practitioners involved in regional districts of TXDOT. In the research process, each driver’s importance level was evaluated by such practitioners. The practitioners, all of whom had different levels of accuracy at estimating durations, showed significantly different perceptions of the id...

Benefit/Cost Analysis of International Instructional Methods for Construction Management and Engineering Students

In the last five years, the construction management department at Southern Illinois University (SIUE) has offered two semester travel study courses with weeklong travel study trips for students. One trip was to Mexico and one to Panama. The objective of these courses was to provide students with an opportunity to learn about and be exposed to international construction projects and the culture of another country. Two other courses and similar trips are being considered for the future, but SIUE faculty found that trips to international destinations can be challenging to plan and are quite costly in time and money. Are the benefits of a travel study experience worth the cost? Are there less costly alternatives that can achieve similar benefits? In this paper a number of methods for providing international educational experience to students are examined. The fiscal costs of travel studies were found to be readily available, but the benefits were not so easily quantified. Overall it was determined that given the international nature of construction projects in the world today, students do need some type of international awareness and exposure as part of their educational program, but traditional travel study courses may not be the best option.

A Conceptual Framework for Assessing Climate-Related Heat Effects on Craft Time Utilization in the Construction Industry

The nature of construction jobs often exposes construction workers to hot weather conditions. Incidence of extreme weather events is rising with climate-related changes observed globally and in the United States. Heat illness prevention strategies have unknown impacts on craft time utilization in the construction industry. A new approach, which relies on the integration of worker physiology models, sampling methods, thermal comfort theories, and meteorological knowledge, is employed in this research to develop a framework for assessing climate-related heat effects on craft time utilization. The findings of this research will provide great implications for increasing the productivity and sustainability of U.S. construction workforce.

An implementation study of the right-of-way acquisition and utility adjustment process duration information (RUDI) tool

For the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT), accurately predicting the duration of Right-of-Way (R/W) acquisition and utility adjustment processes in highway projects has been deemed as one of the principal capabilities that regional districts should possess. TxDOT has sought to establish an effective methodology for predicting the durations of these two processes. The “Right-of-Way (R/W) Acquisition and Utility Adjustment Process Duration Information (RUDI) tool” was developed and has been analyzed for effectiveness in implementation on projects. RUDI is an Excel-based tool that takes into consideration user inputs regarding project circumstances, such as schedule urgency and levels of uncertainty. The accuracy of RUDI and the key drivers that affect the durations of R/W acquisition and utility adjustment have been examined in order to identify future enhancements of the RUDI tool. The drivers identified by the experts with the most predictive accuracy in estimating durations for R/W acquisition include “TxDOT Project Type,” “District R/W Annual Budget,” “Dedication of Funds to the Project,” “Funding Limitations for the Project,” “Level of Political Pressure,” “Need for Residential Relocation,” “Level of Local Availability of Replacement Housing Facilities,” and “Likelihood of Title Curative Actions.” Likewise, for the duration of the utility adjustment process, the drivers deemed by the ones with the most accurate predictions include “Dedication of Funds to the Project,” “Funding Limitations for the Project,” “Have Subsurface Utility Engineering (SUE) Investigations been Performed?” and “Adjustment is Reimbursable Utility or NonReimbursable Utility.” In addition to the identification of these critical drivers, the RUDI tool proved helpful in predicting durations with the better accuracy in spite of limited data availability. Specifically, RUDI provided experts with reasonable duration ranges that can be used in better forecasting the durations of utility adjustment. The study revealed that further research is needed to maximize the benefits of the RUDI tool, although validating the study findings was restricted due to a lack of data. INTRODUCTION In order to ensure the timely delivery of R/W acquisition and utility adjustment on highway projects, TxDOT has focused on accurately predicting the amount of time required for acquiring properties and adjusting utilities relevant to highway projects. However, making precise forecasts for these tasks is both extremely challenging and complex because doing so requires a sophisticated understanding of the numerous factors 1 Taehong Sohn, Ph.D., Dept. of CAEE, The University of Texas at Austin, University Station C1752, Austin, TX 78712, P(512) 573-2619, E-mail: thsohn@mail.utexas.edu (corresponding author) 2 James T. O’Connor, Ph.D., Professor, Dept. of CAEE, The University of Texas at Austin, University Station C1752, Austin, TX 78712, P(512) 471-4645, E-mail: jtoconnor@mail.utexas.edu 3 William O’Brien, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Dept. of CAEE, The University of Texas at Austin, University Station C1752, Austin, TX 78712, P(512) 471-4638, E-mail: wjob@mail.utexas.edu 4 Marcelo Azambuja, Doctoral Student, Dept of CAEE, The University of Texas at Austin, P(512) 294-0566, E-mail: azambuja@mail.utexas.edu