The success of the Architecture, Engineering, and Construction (AEC) project relies heavily on the effective communication and information exchange between project team members. A prominent reason for delays and progress shortcomings in AEC project teams is information bottlenecks, defined as missing project information bits which can be due to large influx of information or inadvertent withholding of information at a particular time. Information bottlenecks both in planning and execution phases of the project tend to cause schedule delays and cost overruns. Information and communication exchange patterns between project team members shed a light on the possible occurrence of information bottlenecks. Recent literature efforts have focused on use of software programming and key performance indicators (KPIs) to identify which phases of project are prone to occurrence of bottlenecks. One of the roadblocks in implementing majority of bottleneck identification techniques in AEC projects is the difficulty in execution. Some of the metrics defined are too complex and require rigorous manual calculations. Given the complexity and feasibility difficulties of the present methodologies for identification of bottleneck, this study aims to contribute to the body of knowledge by providing an adaptable tool that aims to improve the accuracy and practicality for predicting bottlenecks. Therefore, the research question this research aims to answer is "Can the usability and adaptability of information bottleneck prediction in AEC projects be improved through a web-based tool?"Expanding on Lean Construction concepts, key performance indicators (KPIs), efficiency, quantification metrics are developed to study the trends of information shared between AEC project team members. The developed model is semi-automated and reads data by importing the Microsoft Excel sheet which has all the raw project documentation data. A Python code developed by the researcher is used to extract information from the excel, create a dashboard, and publish information bottleneck calculations through a web-based tool. Statistical inferences drawn from the model are then be used to identify occurrence of project bottlenecks. The web-based platform is designed to cater the specific information exchange trends in a typical project. Providing visual representations, and explanations further ease the understanding of the root issue. Finally, through two expert interviews, the web tool is revised, and final tool is presented, and future directions of work are discussed.
Read
