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Buildings
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Advances and Applications of Modeling and Simulation in Construction Operations
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Advances and Applications of Modeling and Simulation in Construction Operations

A special issue of Buildings (ISSN 2075-5309). This special issue belongs to the section "Construction Management, and Computers & Digitization".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 March 2023) | Viewed by 9259

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Yasser Mohamed

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Faculty of Engineering, Civil and Environmental Engineering Department, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB T6G 2R3, Canada
Interests: construction engineering and management; industrial construction; modeling and simulation; machine learning; construction digitalization
Prof. Dr. Vicente A. Gonzalez

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Hole School of Construction Engineering, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
Interests: Lean Construction 4.0; production planning and control; mixed-reality; AI; digital twinning; BIM; safety

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Construction operations are highly dynamic and are influenced by various deterministic and stochastic factors that have competing effects on their performance. Modeling and simulation techniques have been among the most useful approaches used for the design, analysis, decision support, and improvement of construction operations.

Modeling and simulation of construction operations can be carried out for different purposes, such as risk assessment, evaluation of various planning scenarios, optimization of resource utilization, or comparing alternative construction methods.  Simulation models can be developed at different levels of abstraction, using different algorithms and tools, and can be integrated with other analytical techniques such as optimization and machine learning algorithms. They can also be used to augment the functionality of digital twins and industry 4.0 technologies.

The goal of this Special Issue is to provide a collection of articles that present a wide range of advances and innovative applications of modeling and simulation in construction.

The articles may address, but are not limited to, the following subjects:

  • Modeling and simulation case studies in different construction domains.
  • Data harvesting, transformation, and modeling for simulation input.
  • Simulation world views, methods, and algorithms for construction operations.
  • Simulation-based analytics and visualization.
  • Hybrid simulation approaches.
  • Integration of BIM and digital twins.
  • Human-in-the-loop and simulation-based games.
  • Validation and verification methods.

Prof. Dr. Yasser Mohamed
Prof. Dr. Vicente A. Gonzalez
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Buildings is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • construction processes
  • simulation modeling
  • case studies
  • input modeling
  • simulation games
  • decision support
  • construction digitalization
  • visualization

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

16 pages, 3698 KiB  
Article
Simulation-Assisted Project Data Integration for Development and Analysis of As-Built Schedules
by Muaz Fagiar, Yasser Mohamed and Simaan AbouRizk
Buildings 2023, 13(4), 974; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings13040974 - 6 Apr 2023
Viewed by 1154
Abstract
As-built schedules are an essential tool for evaluating contractors’ schedule performance and analyzing delay and lost productivity claims. Yet, most often construction schedules are not updated frequently and/or accurately as required, which limit the availability of as-built schedules. Furthermore, the retrospective development of [...] Read more.
As-built schedules are an essential tool for evaluating contractors’ schedule performance and analyzing delay and lost productivity claims. Yet, most often construction schedules are not updated frequently and/or accurately as required, which limit the availability of as-built schedules. Furthermore, the retrospective development of as-built schedules, when sufficient and reliable project data is available, is a lengthy and costly process. This study describes a simulation-assisted modeling approach that automatically processes and integrates schedules progress data and develops as-built schedules at the activity level. The proposed method uses conceptual entities that are central to the operation of simulation models and whose content changes as they route through the schedule network model. The approach introduces (1) an entity information model that records relevant schedule information either in a materialized or virtual form, and (2) an entity lifecycle model that imitates the possible routes an entity instance may maneuver through in a schedule network model which, together, simultaneously respond to schedule logic and invoking duration changes. To demonstrate its effectiveness, a prototype based on the framework was developed using Excel and MS Project and was tested with a real case study. The study is expected to facilitate the development of as-built schedules for the analysis of delay and time extension claims. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances and Applications of Modeling and Simulation in Construction Operations)
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27 pages, 18910 KiB  
Article
Evaluation of the Impact of Input-Data Resolution on Building-Energy Simulation Accuracy and Computational Load—A Case Study of a Low-Rise Office Building
by Dezhou Kong, Yimin Yang, Xingning Sa, Xuanyue Wei, Huoyu Zheng, Jiwei Shi, Hongyi Wu and Zhiang Zhang
Buildings 2023, 13(4), 861; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings13040861 - 25 Mar 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1809
Abstract
Building-energy consumption is the primary aim of urban energy consumption, which can aid in optimization of building operation and management techniques, creating sustainable building and built environments. However, modellers’ understanding of the relationship between building-energy modelling (BEM) accuracy and computational load is still [...] Read more.
Building-energy consumption is the primary aim of urban energy consumption, which can aid in optimization of building operation and management techniques, creating sustainable building and built environments. However, modellers’ understanding of the relationship between building-energy modelling (BEM) accuracy and computational load is still qualitative and deprived of accurate quantitative study. Based on a bottom-up engineering methodology, this study aims to quantitatively explore the effects of building-model input data with different resolution accuracies on energy simulation results, including evaluation of computational load. According to the actual parameters of the case-study building, 108 models with varying input resolution levels were developed to estimate hourly energy usage and annual mean ambient temperature. The results demonstrated that with input parameters at low resolution levels, geometric parameters such as exterior windows, interior windows, and shading exhibited significantly lower computational loads, resulting in reduced errors in the final simulation performance, whereas the occupancy schedule, thermal zoning, and HVAC configuration parameters exhibited significant declines in simulation performance and accuracy. This study presents a methodology applicable to the majority of low-rise, rectangular office structures. Future work would concentrate on carrying out comparison tests for different building forms and types while gradually improving the automation of the process to enable use of the appropriate accuracy level in assessing the crucial issue of energy-modelling input. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances and Applications of Modeling and Simulation in Construction Operations)
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20 pages, 1510 KiB  
Article
Improvisation in Construction Planning: An Agent-Based Simulation Approach
by Hasnaa Alhussein, Lynn Shehab and Farook Hamzeh
Buildings 2022, 12(10), 1608; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings12101608 - 5 Oct 2022
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 3040
Abstract
Improvisation is the decision-making process addressing unexpected obstacles in a spontaneous but rational manner. Although undesirable, as it indicates deviation from plans, improvisation is unavoidable in construction to address issues related to unforeseen uncertainties. An adaptive planning system employing improvisation to react rapidly [...] Read more.
Improvisation is the decision-making process addressing unexpected obstacles in a spontaneous but rational manner. Although undesirable, as it indicates deviation from plans, improvisation is unavoidable in construction to address issues related to unforeseen uncertainties. An adaptive planning system employing improvisation to react rapidly to unplanned events may therefore boost the performance in construction projects. Accordingly, this research aims to predict the outcomes of construction planning processes from an improvisational perspective by better understanding the dynamics of improvisation. It seeks to identify how different variations of improvisational parameters influence the improvisational outcome. This objective is achieved through an agent-based model used to simulate the improvisation practices at the level of planners interacting together. Parameters relating to planners, projects, and problems influencing each planner’s improvisational means are illustrated in the model. The model’s inputs were validated through data from large-sized projects. Linear regression models that predict the results of the improvisational practices were then developed through simulation experiments. Findings regarding the impacts of different types of improvisors on the improvisational outcomes are presented. The contribution of this study lies in enhancing the overall improvisational performance in construction planning to ultimately guide decision makers and planners to better handle uncertainties in projects. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances and Applications of Modeling and Simulation in Construction Operations)
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22 pages, 5183 KiB  
Article
Framework for BIM-Based Simulation of Construction Operations Implemented in a Game Engine
by Carlos A. Osorio-Sandoval, Walid Tizani, Estacio Pereira, Jelena Ninić and Christian Koch
Buildings 2022, 12(8), 1199; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings12081199 - 10 Aug 2022
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2519
Abstract
Construction simulation has been widely used in academia for research purposes. However, it has been neglected by the industry for various reasons, including the amount of data, skills, effort, and time required to develop complex simulation models, the difficulty of model reuse, and [...] Read more.
Construction simulation has been widely used in academia for research purposes. However, it has been neglected by the industry for various reasons, including the amount of data, skills, effort, and time required to develop complex simulation models, the difficulty of model reuse, and the abstract and confusing way in which simulation results are usually presented. This article demonstrates how BIM can be employed to facilitate the development of a construction simulation model that considers constraints related to resource allocation and task interdependencies. Furthermore, it shows how a game engine can be used as a platform to implement the proposed framework for the integration of BIM and construction simulation and to produce animations from simulation results. The feasibility of the framework is demonstrated through a case study on masonry construction. Results of implementing the framework reveal that BIM-based simulations can reduce the skills, effort, and time required to develop simulation models and enable model reuse. The integration of simulation-based animations provides a model verification and validation mechanism and a means to communicate model results to stakeholders unfamiliar with simulation. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances and Applications of Modeling and Simulation in Construction Operations)
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