Method to produce field instructions from product and process models for cast-in-place concrete operations

Abstract

The state-of-practice method to produce good and formal work instructions for construction laborers takes time, is error prone and produces outcomes with inconsistent format and content. That is why contractors rely on verbal work instructions in spite of the field mistakes and inefficiencies that this poor communication produces. Our research addresses the underlying scientific problem of this practical quandary: the lack of a formal method that defines the steps and information needed to produce good work instructions from a company's best practices and a project's 3D product model.

This paper describes an automated method (Field Instructions from Product And Process Models, FIPAPM) to systematically produce work instructions with a predefined format and content (field instructions template) for cast-in-place (CIP) concrete operations using design and construction information contained in product and process models. The paper also explains the information schemas needed by the FIPAPM method to produce field instructions.

We developed this method and information schemas through active project participation and computer prototyping. Initial validation of the FIPAPM method shows that it enables a faster, more correct and more consistent production of good work instructions than the state-of-practice method. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.