Using the basic principles of Operations Science, this paper seeks to reveal the secret, one that is hidden in plane sight, of the success of Lean. The list of seven, eight or even ten forms of waste are replaced by one malefactor, variability and the three buffers that will always be present to couple demand with transformation.
Nuclear power is returning to the energy agenda in Europe and elsewhere across the globe because of the challenges of Climate Change and a refreshed understanding of the need for energy security. Nuclear power has a cost problem which is largely driven by the high cost of construction and long build schedules. This paper addresses the key ways of making nuclear p ...
Kanban, a subsystem within the Toyota Production System, was popularized throughout the world alongside just-in-time (JIT), fool-proofing, heijunka, kaizen, andon, hoshin kanri, etc., as part of Lean Manufacturing approaches and techniques. Kanban’s simplicity, effectiveness, and robustness are well-understood by many. At the same time, it is probably one of the ...
The concurrent development of product designs and process designs, typically to achieve a balance of customer requirements, product functionality, and predictable buildability, is one effective technique in the pursuit of industrialized construction. Too many customer requirements and functions, and the product becomes difficult and unpredictable to deliver. Too ...
Construction simulation models often need to interrupt activities in progress when events such as equipment breakdowns or differing soil conditions are encountered. The new functions and statements to support activity preemption directly in the STROBOSCOPE simulation system are described and illustrated by two examples. The first example involves moving soil usin ...
The future of capital project execution for the heavy industrial sector needs to look at innovative ways to improve productivity and project success, which includes the implementation of productization methods. The benefits of a productization strategy are not well known, however industrial productization is becoming more communicated within the industry as the f ...
Target Value Delivery (TVD) is a process for setting project value targets and the corresponding cost targets prior to design, then steering design and construction to those targets. Doing so has proven to consistently deliver value for money. This paper describes how TVD differs from other project delivery processes and how to do TVD successfully. Keywords: Allo ...
Getting projects off to a good start is the aspiration of every project manager and a critical first step towards smooth flowing work later. Unfortunately, many of our large projects are stymied before the construction team gets a chance to mobilize. Few aspects of project delivery are more disruptive or wasteful than discovering the desired scope cannot be compl ...
