Abstract

This research aims to present a new method to circumvent the limitations of current schedule compression methods, which reduce schedule crashing to the traditional time-cost trade-off analysis, where only cost is considered. In this research the schedule compression process is modeled as a multi-attributed decision making problem in which different factors contribute to priority setting for activity crashing. For this purpose, a modified format of the Multiple Binary Decision Method (MBDM) and an iterative crashing process are utilized. The developed method is implemented in Visual Basic 2010 environment, with a dynamic link to MS-Project to facilitate the needed iterative rescheduling of project activities. To demonstrate the use of the developed method and to highlight its capabilities, 3 case examples drawn from literature were analyzed. When considering cost only, the generated results were in good agreement with those generated using the Harmony Search method, Genetic Algorithms and iterative crashing process used in original examples, particularly in capturing the project least-cost duration. However, when other factors in addition to cost were considered, as expected, different project least-cost and associated durations were obtained.
The novelty of the developed method lies in its capacity to allow for the consideration of a number of factors in addition to cost. Also through its allowance for possible variations in the relative importance of these factors at the individual activity level, it provides contractors with a number of compression execution plans and assists them in identifying the most suitable plan. Accordingly, it enables the integration of contractors’ judgment and experience in the crashing process and permits consideration of different project environments and constraints.