Optimization of Formwork Management Using Building

Information Modeling (BIM) and Cascading Tool

A thesis submitted to the

Division of Research and Advanced Studies

of the University of Cincinnati

in partial fulfillment of the

requirements for the degree of

MASTER OF SCIENCE (M.S.)

In the Department of Civil and Architectural Engineering and

Construction Management

College of Engineering and Applied Science

July 2016

By

Dolly N Mansuri

B. E., Institute of Engineering and Technology, Indore, India 2014

Committee Chair: Hazem Elzarka, Ph.D.

Committee Members:

Abhijeet Deshpande, Ph.D.

Julian Wang, Ph.D.

Trevor Gronseth, B.S.

 Abstract


Formwork systems are accountable for a significant share of the cost of reinforced concrete

structures. The application of constructability principles to the design, selection and management

of formwork systems in the preconstruction phase can significantly reduce the cost of reinforced

concrete construction projects. Formwork management is affected by various practical factors

such as availability of forms, budget for formwork material and cost constraints, project duration,

estimated installation and stripping schedule etc. Due to its dependence on human judgement,

this process has not been successfully automated in the construction industry. Although many

researchers have developed tools and methodologies to automate the design and selection of

formwork systems, few studies have explored the benefits of improving the process of managing

formwork.

The focus of this research is on the development of a novel Cascading tool in MATLAB and its

applicability to maximize the return on formwork investment, improve the management of

formwork and optimize the re-use of formwork. The tool developed in this research uses data

drawn from the Building Information Models coupled with a cascading algorithm to efficiently

manage the formwork inventory on a construction project by generating a formwork re-use

schedule for the project and to estimate the minimum reusable formwork material quantity

required. This research presents a comprehensive review of previous research on formwork,

formwork selection, design, management and BIM. It also discusses use of BIM to extract the

formwork material quantity take off data and project information from the building information

models and the use of this extracted information with the cascading tool developed. This study

ii
also discusses the application and capabilities of MATLAB to process huge amount of data,

which are generated by building information models in this case. In addition, this study also

presents a case study and a comparative analysis between the results from the proposed tool and

current processes utilized by the concrete subcontractor of the case study project. The results

from the quantitative and qualitative analysis of the case study supports the benefits of the

cascading tool. This research concludes by discussing the potential benefits of the proposed tool,

limitations and future research.

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This work is dedicated to my mother, Minoo Mansuri, the strongest and bravest woman I have

ever known, for her love, sacrifices and support throughout my life. You are my inspiration.

iv
 Acknowledgements

I would like to first express my most sincere gratitude and thanks to my academic and research

advisor, Dr. Hazem Elzarka, for being an unending source of guidance, encouragement and

support. I am very grateful to his contribution to my academic career and for providing his

constant reassurance in my academic contributions. I am thankful for his continuous support and

patience through last two years where he gave me various opportunities to participate in

seminars, conferences and journals. I am very fortunate to have worked under him as a graduate

student and have him as a mentor, as he has helped me achieve my academic and career goals for

which I will forever be grateful.

I am also very grateful to Dr. Abhijeet Deshpande for his valuable insights and constant

cooperation through the duration of this work. His expertise in this domain has helped this work

tremendously. I am also thankful to him for constantly supporting me and working with me on

my thesis and papers. His constant encouragement and guidance has enabled me to achieve my

academic goals.

I would also like to thank Dr. Julian Wang for serving on my research committee, for his

valuable opinion and guidance for this research. I am also very grateful to Mr. Trevor Gronseth

for accepting to serve on my research committee as well as his invaluable insights on my

research. He has been a constant support and guidance throughout my research journey and

working with him has been an opportune experience.

I would also like to extend my gratitude to my fellow student colleague and dearest friend Mr.

Debaditya Chakraborty for his contribution, support and feedbacks towards my research.

v
I would especially like to thank my father Mr. Faroukh Hussain Mansuri, my mother Mrs. Minoo

(Naeema) Mansuri and my dearest sister Miss. Farmin Mansuri for being so strong and loving,

supporting and believing in me. Their unwavering support has made me come so far and I will

always be indebted to them for everything they have done for me. I would also like to thank my

dearest friends Miss. Srishti Chadha and Miss. Shreya Pandey for their six years of friendship,

love and support.

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 TABLE OF CONTENTS

ABSTRACT
 .............................................................................................................................................. II

TABLE OF CONTENTS ....................................................................................................................... VII

LIST OF FIGURES ................................................................................................................................... X

LIST OF TABLES .................................................................................................................................. XII

CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................... 1

1.1 BACKGROUND ..................................................................................................................................... 1

1.2 GOALS AND OBJECTIVES .................................................................................................................... 3

1.3 ORGANIZATION OF THE THESIS........................................................................................................... 3

CHAPTER 2 LITERATURE REVIEW ................................................................................................... 5

2.1 FORMWORK:........................................................................................................................................ 5

2.1.1 Classification according to material:.......................................................................................... 6

2.1.2 Classification based on type of concrete structure: .................................................................. 13

2.2 RESEARCH ON FORMWORK SYSTEMS: .............................................................................................. 20

2.2.1 Formwork Design and Selection: .............................................................................................. 21

2.2.2 Formwork Management: ........................................................................................................... 30

2.3 BUILDING INFORMATION MODELING (BIM): ................................................................................... 34

2.3.1 Information Integration: ........................................................................................................... 34

2.3.2 Quantity Take-off: ..................................................................................................................... 36

CHAPTER 3 METHODOLOGY ............................................................................................................ 39

3.1 DATA EXTRACTION FROM BIM:........................................................................................................ 40

3.1.1 Prepare a formwork component catalog: ................................................................................. 41

vii
 3.1.2 Model concrete structure in 3D: ............................................................................................... 43

3.1.3 Place formwork on concrete structure and identify formwork components by phases: ............ 44

3.1.4 Exporting QTO reports: ............................................................................................................ 45

3.2 EXECUTING THE CASCADING TOOL: ................................................................................................. 46

CHAPTER 4 APPLICATION AND CAPABILITIES OF MATLAB ................................................. 49

4.1 INTRODUCTION: ................................................................................................................................ 49

4.2 MATLAB FUNCTIONS FOR MATRIX DATA........................................................................................ 50

4.2.1 Multidimensional Arrays: ......................................................................................................... 50

4.2.2 Vectorization: ............................................................................................................................ 51

4.2.3 Structures: ................................................................................................................................. 51

4.2.4 Tables ........................................................................................................................................ 52

4.3 DEVELOPMENT OF THE CASCADING TOOL ON MATLAB: ............................................................... 53

4.3.1 Algorithm-1 ............................................................................................................................... 54

4.3.2 Algorithm-2 ............................................................................................................................... 56

4.4 ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGE OF MATLAB .......................................................................... 60

4.4.1 Advantages of MATLAB: ........................................................................................................... 61

4.4.2 Disadvantages of MATLAB:...................................................................................................... 64

CHAPTER 5 CASE STUDY AND ILLUSTRATION OF TOOL BENEFITS ................................... 65

5.1 PROJECT DESCRIPTION: .................................................................................................................... 65

5.2 DATA COLLECTION: .......................................................................................................................... 67

5.3 ANALYSIS OF THE CASE STUDY ........................................................................................................ 68

5.3.1 Using data from Case Study with the Cascading tool: ............................................................. 69

5.4 RESULTS FROM THE EXECUTION OF CASCADING TOOL: ................................................................... 72

5.4.1 Quantitative Savings: ................................................................................................................ 72

5.4.2 Qualitative Savings: .................................................................................................................. 74

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 5.4.3 Maximum savings from the most expensive and uncommon formwork components: ............... 75

CHAPTER 6 DISCUSSION..................................................................................................................... 78

CHAPTER 7 CONCLUSION .................................................................................................................. 80

REFERENCES: ........................................................................................................................................ 81

APPENDIX A ............................................................................................................................................ 91

1. MAIN FUNCTION-CASCADING TOOL ................................................................................................... 91

2. SUB FUNCTION-READ EXCEL ............................................................................................................. 95

3. SUB FUNCTION-PROCESS STARTS....................................................................................................... 97

4. SUB FUNCTION-MAILTO STARTS ...................................................................................................... 100

APPENDIX B .......................................................................................................................................... 101

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 List of Figures

Figure 2-1: Plywood and lumber used for wall formwork and walkway for labors [9]. ................ 7

Figure 2-2: Aluminum shoring towers to support slab decks (proprietary formwork) [11]. .......... 8

Figure 2-3: Pre-fabricated steel wall panel forms and concrete finish after forms are stripped

(proprietary formwork) [12]. ................................................................................................ 10

Figure 2-4: Pre-fabricated steel wall panel forms joined together by bolts, ties and alignment rails

(proprietary formwork) [12]. ................................................................................................ 11

Figure 2-5: Plastic formwork used to form circular columns and concrete finish from plastic

formwork (proprietary formwork) [13]. ............................................................................... 12

Figure 2-6: Members of typical horizontal formwork system [14]. ............................................. 13

Figure 2-7: Plywood decking with metal I-beams as joists and stringers supported by metal

shoring frames (proprietary formwork) [15]......................................................................... 15

Figure 2-8: Members of a typical wall formwork system [16]. .................................................... 16

Figure 2-9: Pre-fabricated and patented metal forms used with alignment rails (wales) and braces

as wall forming systems (proprietary formwork) [17]. ......................................................... 18

Figure 2-10: Members of a typical column formwork system [18]. ............................................. 19

Figure 2-11: Prefabricated metal forms for column forming (proprietary formwork) [19]. ........ 20

Figure 3-1: Research Process ........................................................................................................ 40

Figure 3-2: Super-Stud and Soldiers as modeled in Tekla Structures and as actual components

used on site [60]. ................................................................................................................... 41

Figure 3-3: Integrating specific formwork information to the custom component. ..................... 42

Figure 3-4: Phase manager tool and phase attributes (AP). ........................................................... 44

Figure 3-5: Cascading Algorithm. ................................................................................................ 48

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Figure 4-1: Flow chart illustrating the working of Cascading Tool. ............................................ 54

Figure 4-2: Algorithm-1. ............................................................................................................... 56

Figure 4-3: Algorithm -2. .............................................................................................................. 59

Figure 4-4: The run-time performance of cascading tool recorded by MATLAB. ...................... 60

Figure 5-1: Proposed Proton Therapy Center Expansion [81]...................................................... 66

Figure 5-2: Proton Therapy Center under construction [82] ........................................................ 66

Figure 5-3: BIM model of the Proton Therapy Center created in Tekla Structures 20.1 ............. 67

Figure 5-4: Formwork components placed around the concrete structure. .................................. 68

Figure 5-5: Comparative Analysis of actual v/s calculated formwork material cost. ................... 72

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 List of Tables

Table 3-1: A sample QTO repost exported out of Tekla Structures based on design template. ... 46

Table 5-1: A sample report generated by cascading tool for 12'x4' wall panel. ........................... 70

Table 5-2: The master report generated by the cascading tool, containing the order information

for all 82 types of formwork equipment used. ...................................................................... 70

Table 5-3: Cost Analysis Report based on the list prices of formwork material .......................... 72

Table 5-4: Comparative cost analysis report based on the most relevant formwork components

used on the case study project. .............................................................................................. 77

Table B- 1: List of 82 components used in 24 phases of the case study project (Part-1)............101

Table B- 2: List of 82 components used in 24 phases of the case study project (Part-2)............102

xii
 Chapter 1

Introduction

1.1 Background

Building Information Modeling (BIM) is a revolutionary process that is transforming the

construction industry [1]. This transformation is a result of BIM’s integration of project

information with the 3D model, which provides more accurate data on building characteristics

and specifications as compared to the traditional 2D Computer-Aided Design and Drafting

(CADD) which is subject to workers’ skill and is prone to error [2]. Contractors and

subcontractors are using BIM for a variety of construction applications including: (1) Quantity

takeoff and cost estimation, (2) Inventory management, (3) Early identification of design errors

through clash detections, (4) Construction planning and constructability analysis, (5) Onsite

verification guidance and tracking of construction activities, (6) Offsite prefabrication and

modularization, (7) Site planning, and (8) Better safety planning and management [3]. This

research makes the case that BIM models can also be used for optimizing the use and

management of formwork on reinforced concrete construction projects.

Formwork is a significant cost factor in reinforced concrete construction. Formwork can

potentially account for as much as fifteen percent of the total construction cost and thirty-three

percent of the cost of the concrete structure [4]. Disorganized management and handling of

formwork systems can potentially result in an inefficient construction schedule and subsequently

impact the total budget for construction.

1
In a typical formwork process, structural engineers design the concrete structure; construction

contractors then design the formwork by studying the shape and size of the concrete members.

The contractors rely on their knowledge and experience to use the appropriate formwork

materials and systems [5]. Once the formwork system is selected, the structure is divided into

multiple phases of concrete pours. The number and size of phases depends on the availability of

concrete, placing equipment and labor on site, limitations due to construction joints, cost of

erecting and stripping forms and reuse and maintenance of forms between phases [6].

In many cases, even after the careful selection and planning of concrete phases, there is no

formal strategy for optimizing the re-use of formwork between phases. When the formwork is

taken off from concrete in one phase, it is usually taken to a temporary storage/inventory shelter

on the site and may or may not be reused in another phase based on management’s judgment and

effectiveness. In this informal process, formwork is double handled and may be unnecessarily

stored for long durations, which can damage the formwork, increase labor and crane hours, and

result in overall poor formwork management [7].

To improve the formwork management process and optimize the re-use of formwork among

construction phases, there is a need for a formal process that generates a scheduled formwork

reuse plan based on the concreting phase schedule and calculates the minimum quantity of

formwork required for the project. Such a formal process can minimize the time elapsed between

the stripping and re-erection of forms without damaging them in the process [6]. This can also

result in efficient use of material and reduce labor and equipment cost due to reduction of double

handling of materials.

2
1.2 Goals and Objectives

The main goal of this study is to optimize formwork re-use and formwork management on site.

For this purpose, this study has explored an integrated approach of utilizing information

extracted out of BIM models along with a Cascading tool developed in MATLAB.

The objectives realized through the development of the Cascading tool to achieve the research

goal are listed below:

1. Maximize and optimize the re-use of formwork components on site by creating a formwork re-

use schedule for each type of formwork component.

2. Calculating the minimum quantity of formwork material required on a project in the

preconstruction phase in order to estimate the total expenditure on the formwork material cost

and to order the required quantity of formwork which can be re-used throughout the phases of

project

1.3 Organization of the Thesis

In the second chapter a brief background of formwork systems used in United States is presented

along with an extensive review of the scientific research done in the field of formwork design

and selection processes. Various journal databases, conference proceedings and journals

including ASCE, Science Direct, Journal of Computing in Civil Engineering, Journal of

Construction Engineering and Management, Automation in Construction, Journal of

Computation Design and Engineering etc. were searched in order to find the research trends and

relevant studies suitable for this work. In addition, trends in research on BIM with emphasis on

information integration and quantity take off are discussed in details.

3
The research methodology is discussed in the third chapter. This chapter includes various steps

adopted in order to extract the information from a BIM model and use this information with the

cascading tool to generate the formwork re-use schedule and the “formwork ordering” master

report. It also includes a detailed description of the cascading algorithm, developed for the

purpose of this study.

In the fourth chapter, the application and capabilities of MATLAB are discussed. The advantages

and disadvantages of using MATLAB along with some special functions of MATLAB, which

makes it capable to process huge amount of matrix data, are presented. This chapter also

discusses the development of the cascading tool from the cascading algorithm in detail.

The fifth chapter gives a brief description of the case study project chosen for this research along

with the data collected from the project. This chapter includes the analysis of the data collected,

execution of the cascading tool with the collected data and results from the execution. In

addition, this chapter also discusses the qualitative and quantitative savings achieved by the

cascading tool in detail.

The sixth chapter discusses the need for the cascading tool along with the scope of use of the

tool. It also presents scenarios where the benefits of cascading tool can be maximized and

discusses its limitations. This chapter also includes some suggestions for future research, which

can enhance the use of this tool.

The conclusions of this research are presented in seventh chapter, which are supported by the

qualitative and quantitative savings calculated by the analysis of the case study.

4
 Chapter 2

Literature Review

2.1 Formwork:

Fresh concrete doesn’t have any shape when it is poured. Concrete gains its strength after drying

up in a controlled environment. This controlled environment refers to the mold in which the

concrete is poured. This mold can be made up of many different materials ranging from wood to

metal including aluminum, steel, reusable plastic, heavy strength fabric etc. The concrete has to

be supported until it gains its strength, this support system can be dismantled (stripped) after the

concrete regains its strength. This support system or mold is called Formwork.

Formwork can be defined as the temporary structure that supports its own weight, weight of the

concrete poured or any other live construction loads such as hardware, material, equipment or

labor until the concrete gains sufficient strength of bear its own load [8]. Formwork remains the

main support system for concrete in the initial phase until it can safely support itself. Generally,

the structural engineer designs the concrete structure but no information is provided to the

construction contractors regarding the formwork. The contractor decides the formwork, by

studying the shape of the concrete and then using his/her knowledge and experience to use the

appropriate formwork.

In the past, most of the formwork was wooden and it was supposed to be the carpenter’s

expertise, but today it is more likely to be designed by an engineer [5]. Metal is the most

commonly used formwork material today, but it is complemented by the wooden formwork

when necessary.

5
Formwork can be classified into a variety of categories, relating to the material of formwork, size

of formwork, type of concrete structure it is being used on and also by the name of the

manufacturing company. Classification according to some of the factors mentioned above will be

discussed in the following sub-sections:

2.1.1 Classification according to material:

1. Lumber:

The original material used for formwork was lumber and it is still in practice. Lumber is

extensively used in areas where labor costs are low and industrial technology is not very

advanced. Although, use of lumber for formwork is decreasing in the US because of increasing

labor costs, demand for smooth finish of concrete, accuracy and economic benefits of mass

production [6]. However, reinforced concrete projects in the US still require some use of lumber

in combination with other materials. Choice of lumber depends on the availability and cost,

however softwood has been used extensively for formwork uses because of its abundance. Types

of lumber most commonly used for formwork include douglas fir larch, southern pine, douglas

fir, spruce pine fir, hem fir etc. Lumber has many advantages over other engineered products as

it is relatively cheaper and easily procurable, it is light in weight for handling and does not

necessarily require cranes for lifting, it can be shaped easily because of its flexibility and it is

easy to fix inserts in lumber. However, lumber has its disadvantages due to its low durability and

its limited life. Being in contact with fresh concrete the exposed surface of lumber gets damaged

and variations in the moisture content of lumber causes significant dimensional modifications in

the finished concrete product [5]. In addition, the grains on the face of the lumber leaves imprint

on the concrete surface, which is undesirable. Although, there is no specification on the limited

6
number of reuses for lumber, ACI 347 considers ten reuses as a dividing line between “limited”

and “considerable” reuses [6].

Lumber is also the basis of other engineered wood products and sheathing material used for

formwork in US including glued laminated timber, structural composite lumber, plywood,

hardboard, waferboard, oriented strandborad, particleboard or fiberboard etc. Plywood is most

extensively used for sheathing for pre-fabricated as well as job built form panel systems. Due to

the flexibility of plywood it can be easily bend to shape curved concrete surfaces for shorter

radii. With proper care and treatment of edge surfaces, standard grade plywood can easily last for

five to ten reuses. Figure 2-1 shows the use of wooden formwork used to fabricate a wall

formwork and walkway for labors.

Figure 2-1: Plywood and lumber used for wall formwork and walkway for labors [9].

7
2. Aluminum:

The use of aluminum formwork material has increased in the construction industry due to its low

handling cost, relatively lightweight because of lower density and longer service life. But

aluminum has a major disadvantage that it reacts quickly with fresh concrete and relatively

slowly with atmosphere, which results in corrosion. To overcome this disadvantage many alloys

of aluminum are used and their successful use has been reported [10]. Some widely used

aluminum formwork in the US includes tabular aluminum used for bracing, shoring beams and

pan forming system for slabs; beams used as joist or stringers for shoring purposes and

supporting slab decks; aluminum shoring towers, etc. Some manufactures have also introduced

wall panel made of aluminum, which offers a better concrete surface finish than traditional

plywood and can be reused multiple times with less maintenance. In addition, aluminum

formwork components can be joined together to make a larger unit called “flying forms” which

can allow large deck forms to move easily because of their relatively lightweight compared to

other materials. Figure 2-2 shows aluminum-shoring towers.

Figure 2-2: Aluminum shoring towers to support slab decks (proprietary formwork) [11].

8
3. Steel:

Steel is an important and widely used material for all kind of forms including steel sheets for

sheathing, steel frames and bracing for plywood, prefabricated steel panel forming systems,

vertical and horizontal shores, steel members including I-beams and framing for supporting of

formwork. Steel has multiple advantages over any other material. Steel provides rigidity and

strength to the formwork due to its stiffness. Steel forms can be readily installed, dismantled,

moved and re-installed provided suitable handling and lifting equipment is available on site [10].

Steel members make longer spans possible, which is not possible with any other material [6].

Also, because of the durability of steel forms, they can be reused several number of times

without being damaged. Steel sheathing can also provide a smooth concrete finish, which is very

desirable as it saves the cost of smoothening and finishing concrete after the formwork is

stripped. Steel forms are used for concrete walls, piers, columns, slab decks, tunnel linings,

concrete dams, precasting concrete members, architectural concrete, etc. However, steel

formwork has its limitations as well. For example, for steel sheets it is not possible to easily fix

inserts without drilling and once it has been drilled, plugging of the holes are required to make

the sheathing concrete proof again [5]. Steel panels and bracing are joined together using small

pieces of bolts and ties, which often get lost on site, as it is very difficult to keep track of such

small pieces. Also, steel forms are very expensive unless they are reused multiple times. Steel is

a high-density material as compared to wood and aluminum, which makes steel forms difficult to

lift and move without cranes, which also adds to the total cost of construction. In spite of some

limitations of steel formwork, it is still being used extensively for large reinforced concrete

construction project in the US, as the return on steel formwork cost investment is more than the

initial cost. Figure 2-3 shows prefabricated wall panel forms and concrete finish after the forms

9
are stripped and figure 2-4 shows pre-fabricated steel wall panel forms joined together by bolts,

ties and alignment rails.

Figure 2-3: Pre-fabricated steel wall panel forms and concrete finish after forms are stripped (proprietary formwork)

[12].

10
Figure 2-4: Pre-fabricated steel wall panel forms joined together by bolts, ties and alignment rails (proprietary

formwork) [12].

4. Plastic:

As Wilshere [5] describes, there has been a possibility of using plastic formwork in everyday

concrete construction, but its use has been curbed by the low stiffness and strength of plastic and

rising prices of oils. However, plastic formwork can be used for some particular cases where

greater stiffness is not required. Glass-fiber reinforced plastic formwork is being used for pre-

fabricated sheathing as it can provide a smooth concrete finish, is lightweight and can be reused

a number of times. Glass fiber reinforced plastic can be easily molded in different shape without

losing high quality finish. In addition to its ability to mold into unusual shapes, it also eliminates

any corrosion possibility and forms made of glass fiber reinforced plastic are very easy to use

and move. However, thermal movement is the biggest disadvantage of plastic formwork. Heat

11
from the exothermic reaction of cement or exposure to hot weather may cause expansion of

plastic, which might lead to some serious dimensional faults and alignment problems. Figure 2-5

shows plastic formwork used to form circular columns and the concrete finish when forms are

stripped.

Figure 2-5: Plastic formwork used to form circular columns and concrete finish from plastic formwork (proprietary

formwork) [13].

12
2.1.2 Classification based on type of concrete structure:

Formwork can also be classified on the basis of type of structure it supports that is horizontal

formwork system and vertical formwork systems.

1. Horizontal Formwork Systems:

Formwork systems that are used to support horizontal concrete members or elements such as

slabs, beam, girder etc. are classified under horizontal formwork systems [10]. Horizontal

formwork system typically consists of decking or sheathing, joists, stringers and shores. Figure

2-6 shows elements of typical horizontal formwork system.

Figure 2-6: Members of typical horizontal formwork system [14].

Decking/ Sheathing (Plywood): Decking is the solid plywood sheets or panels, which directly

supports fresh concrete and resists the vertical pressure of wet concrete. Plywood sheets are

commonly used for decking purpose in US, but in some cases glass fiber reinforced plastic sheets

are also used.

13
Joists: Joists are members under the decking which directly supports the decking by distributing

the load of concrete over long spans. Joists can be made up of wood usually 4 inches thick and

the depth depends on the load applied on them. Joists can also be made of aluminum and steel in

the form of tabular metal beams for example, trapezoidal e beam and aluma beams (proprietary

formwork term).

Stringers: Stringers are members under the joists, which directly support the joists. Stringers

span in direction perpendicular to the direction of joists span. Stringers can also be made up of

wood usually 4 inches thick and their depth depends on the load applied on them. Stringers are

also made of aluminum and steel in the form of tabular metal beams for example, trapezoidal e

beam and aluma beams (proprietary formwork term). Stringers and joists together make a mesh

of members to support the decking in both directions.

Shores: Shores are vertical members that support joists and stringers. They may be single wood

posts, single steel joists or shoring frames and towers. Typically stringers rest on shores.

For the most economical horizontal form system, joists are spaced for maximum safe span of

decking. Joists spacing is calculated by checking the maximum allowable shear stress, bending

moment and deflection in the joists according to the load of fresh concrete. However, in practice

joists are not spaced more than 16 inches on center spacing. Use of reasonably large stringers is

also recommended, which will permit shores to be spaced at greater distance apart (so that fewer

shores could be used) for economical purposes. Figure 2-7 shows plywood decking with metal I-

beams as joists and stringers supported by metal shoring frames.

14
Figure 2-7: Plywood decking with metal I-beams as joists and stringers supported by metal shoring frames (proprietary

formwork) [15].

2. Vertical Formwork Systems:

Formwork systems that are used to support vertical concrete members or elements such as wall,

column etc. are classified under vertical formwork systems. Vertical formwork system typically

consists of sheathing, studs, wales, ties and braces.

a. Wall formwork: Wall formwork can be one of the following types:

i. Built in place using plywood sheathing and lumber for studs and wales.

ii. Prefabricated job built panels using plywood sheathing, lumber studs and wales.

iii. Pre-fabricated and patented metal wall panels which are joined together by clamps.

15
Figure 2-8 shows members of a typical wall formwork system and figure 2-9 illustrates pre-

fabricated and patented metal forms used with alignment rails (wales) and braces as wall forming

systems.

Figure 2-8: Members of a typical wall formwork system [16].

Sheathing: Plywood sheets are generally used for sheathing purpose. Sheathing is placed on

each side of the wall where concrete is placed. It resists the vertical pressure of the fresh

concrete. In pre-fabricated patented metal panel forms steel sheets attached to the back of the

panel acts as sheathing.

16
Studs: Studs are vertical members attached to the sheathing and provide main support to it.

Wooden planks of size 2x4 or 2x6 are generally used in case of wooden formwork. In case of

pre-fabricated patented metal panel forms, metal studs are already attached to the face of the

panel.

Wales: Wales are double 2x4 (inches x inches) and 2x6 (inches x inches) planks, attached

perpendicular to the direction of studs on each side of wall to provide support for studs. They

hold the studs in place and ensure the alignment for forms. Wales are also used for inserting ties

across the wall. In case of pre-fabricated patented metal panel forms metal wales are already

attached to the studs.

Ties: Ties are inserted across the depth of the wall to hold the forms on opposite sides together

and to resist the bursting pressure exerted by fresh concrete. They provide support to wales.

Different type of metal ties is used in US, which are available in different sizes.

Braces: Braces are fixed on to the form on each side of the wall to provide support to forms and

to secure the forms in place. Braces can be made of wood planks or metal. Various types of

braces are commercially available including adjustable metal braces, which can be reused

multiple times.

Spacing of the studs is determined by the strength of the plywood against shear stresses and

bending moment and maximum allowable deflection. And the spacing of the wales is determined

by the bearing strength of the studs and its maximum allowable deflection. The position of the

wall ties are dependent on the span of wales and can be determined by using maximum safe

spacing between the ties along the wales.

Wood panels built on site are the most economical wall formwork for single use. However, metal

prefabricated and patented forms, which are available in standard sizes, can be good investment

17
if they are reused multiple times. Most of the prefabricated and patented forms are made of steel

and require cranes for lifting which makes their handling costly. But they are preferred over

wooden forms in the industry as they offer better service, have longer life and provide better

concrete finish than job built wooden forms [10].

Figure 2-9: Pre-fabricated and patented metal forms used with alignment rails (wales) and braces as wall forming systems

(proprietary formwork) [17].

b. Column formwork:

Columns have a relatively small cross section than height, due to which column forms are

subjected to higher lateral pressure than walls and thus they require a secure base and tighter

joints [6]. Columns can be rectangular, round, square or L-shaped in cross section. Typically

used column formwork includes sheathing, battens, ties, clamps and braces. Sheathing used for

18
rectangular, square, L –shaped columns are made of plywood. However, prefabricated metal,

fiber and plastic molds are also available commercially which are used for round columns.

Sheathing is supported on all four sides by battens and yokes, which are made of 2x4 (inches x

inches) lumber in case of wooden formwork or directly attached to the panel face in case of pre-

fabricated metal column form panels. Ties are inserted across the depth of the column to hold the

sheathing and yokes in place, similar to wall formwork. Braces can also be fixed on sides of the

column to secure the forms in place, prevent the shifting of forms and to transfer the load of

fresh concrete to ground. Figure 2-10 shows elements of typical column forms. Figure 2-11

shows prefabricated metal forms for column formwork.

Figure 2-10: Members of a typical column formwork system [18].

19
Figure 2-11: Prefabricated metal forms for column forming (proprietary formwork) [19].

2.2 Research on Formwork Systems:

From the perspective of time and cost, installation and disassembly of formwork, it has a

significant impact on the productivity of the concrete construction process as well as the

productivity of other crafts such as mechanical, electrical, plumbing etc. [20]. For some

structures, an adequate formwork design can reduce the total frame costs by as much as 25%

[10]. Due to its significant impact on the overall construction process, the proper selection,

management and planning of formwork system is critical for an economical and efficient

construction. Significant savings can be realized by focusing on formwork systems cost and

management [21]. In this section, previous research efforts completed in the field of formwork

systems and BIM technology are discussed.

20
Before the advent of sophisticated computer software in construction engineering and

management, design, selection and management of formwork systems relied on the construction

engineer’s design experience and engineering judgment. Because of the lack of consistency in

the results as the process depended largely on human judgment, it was considered more of an art

rather than science. In addition, this process was labor intensive and time consuming [22]. With

the emergence of computational analysis in construction engineering processes, researchers

started to challenge this presumption by discovering methods to automate the formwork systems

design, selection and management process.

2.2.1 Formwork Design and Selection:

A formwork structure is designed to safely support concrete in the required shape until the

concrete sets and starts supporting its own weight. In a typical formwork design process,

different alternatives of the formwork components based on their strength, shape, and size are

tested repeatedly until an alternative is selected which satisfies the structural, safety and

economic requirements. The design of formwork structure is a time consuming and repetitive

process, which required engineering design knowledge and judgment. Selection of appropriate

formwork system greatly influences the material and labor cost, quality and strength of concrete

and project duration and phase cycle time. Formwork system is typically selected by contractors

according to their knowledge and expertise with no guidelines or rulebook available to aid the

selection of formwork; and relying on contractor’s experience alone may not lead to an optimal

solution [23]. Many research attempts have been made to find an effective, economical and

practical solution to this problem and are classified on the basis of their approach in the

following sub-sections:

21
2.2.1.1. Use of Knowledge Based System:

One of the very early advances to simplify and expedite this process was made by Tah and Price

[22], by developing a rational formwork design system RatForm to help the formwork designers

to achieve a structurally sound and economically suitable design without indulging in time

consuming and repetitive calculations by using the computational power of the user interactive

RatForm. dBASE was used in order to develop an information modeling structure, which could

store and retrieve large amounts of information on formwork material and equipment from

multiple sources, to be used by the RatForm system. dBASE was most popular database

management system then and supported relating, editing, deleting, adding and combining data to

create a global database which was the central database system for RatForm. However, due to

inability of dBASE to perform computations involving large amount of numeric information, the

original RatForm was developed on PASCAL. But PASCAL did not support the maintenance of

the global database, which resulted in the development of a local database, which included fewer

data, which combined together yielded relevant information. The original RatForm system was

developed from two different algorithms used for vertical and horizontal formwork systems

which used the same design steps including the calculation of design pressure, plywood facing

direction, ties and plate design and design loading analysis. Both the algorithms were similar,

except the difference in design procedure because of the difference due to the nature of the loads

involved. This system was intended to aid the designers in the preliminary design of formwork

and it was reported that for detailed designs this approach might be inadequate, because it was

based on the rational assumption that all loads are uniformly distributed and formwork-framing

members are equally spaced. A reported limitation of this system was its inability to include the

22
additional fixtures and accessories used along with the primary formwork components such as

panels.

Although the design and selection of formwork depends on the concrete pressure, strength, shape

and load bearing capacity, typically the selection of the formwork systems is made by a senior

professional in the concrete contractor’s organization, which is highly influenced by the cost of

the formwork. This decision may not be optimum as it will vary according to that professional’s

knowledge and expertise, as there is no literature available to guide the practitioners for the

selection criteria of formwork. In an effort to solve this problem, a knowledge acquisition based

tool was developed by Hanna et al. [24]. This system was based on the expert knowledge of

industry professionals involved with design and selection of formwork systems. The knowledge

acquisition process was divided into three stages namely, familiarization, elicitation and

organization and presentation. Extensive unstructured and structured and feedback interviews

were conducted in these three stages by a knowledge engineer to collect responses and formulate

the responses in a set of if-then rules which were the decision basis of the developed system. The

system was divided into two sub systems: Wallform (vertical formwork) and Slabform

(horizontal formwork) because the knowledge/information acquired for types of formwork

systems were different. These systems were developed using EXSYS Professional shell because

of ease of use, and rapid development. The development included extensive iterative process of

transforming the knowledge base into a suitable format, and was designed to handle 3000 of if-

then rules. The system was designed such that at the end of each run, it displayed a probability

number on a scale of 1-10, 10 being the most desirable choice for the formwork system selected.

The major finding of this study included the ability of the expert system to assist the formwork

designers to select the most optimum system of formwork (horizontal and vertical) and providing

23
expert advice regarding type of sheathing, shoring and recommended some manufacturers. This

study also reported problems encountered during interviews, which included the inaccessibility

of cost data, interview bias and conflicts between recommendation of some experts. They also

reported a pre-requisite for using the expert system which is the basic knowledge of the

formwork system on the user’s part and advised to run the system twice for buildings where

different floors have certain functions, to determine the optimum system of formwork.

2.2.1.2. Use of Neural Networks:

Other researchers developed complex approaches to optimize formwork selection process, such

as the development of a neural network based system which can imitate the human expertise and

critical thinking of formwork selection process thereby automating and simplifying this process

and overcoming the limitations of expert systems. Kamarthi et al. [25] developed a formwork

selection system Neuroform, based on neural networks by using experts’ formwork selection

knowledge for training the neural network. This expert knowledge bank was based on knowledge

acquired from experts during the development of a rule-based expert system for the selection of

vertical formwork system called Wallform developed by Hanna et al. [24]. This change in trend

from developing expert-based system to developing neural network based system was adopted

because of the fact that in practical world applications, rules are often approximate and

probabilistic description of a more complex problem and rule-based systems will fail to deliver

any output response if the input does not belong to any pre-defined rule as described by

Kamarthi et al. [25]. In the neural network based system, the knowledge is learned from a

module of training example and is self-organized, fault tolerant, able to generalize response for

unknown or missing outputs (generalization) and able to perform parallel processing. A back

propagation-training algorithm was used to train the neural networks used for this system. The

24
examples used to train the neural networks in this study was generated in the form of 96

examples containing binary input obtained from the formwork knowledge acquisition done by

Hanna et al. [24] for developing a vertical formwork selection expert system: Wallform.

Neuroform was able to provide recommendations for up to five vertical formwork systems

including conventional wall forming systems, ganged form systems, slip form systems, jump

form systems and self-raising forming systems. The resulting recommendations for 20

hypothetical test samples from Neuroform and Wallform were compared to validate the working

of Neuroform and the Neuroform gave same recommendations as Wallform with 95%

confidence level. The only reported limitation of Neuroform was its inability to generate

explanations of the recommendations unlike Wallform, because the recommendations were

based on distributed weights of the neural network and not on a set of defined rules as in case of

Wallform.

After the successful use of neural networks for selection of vertical formwork systems, Hanna

and Senouci [21] developed a back-propagation neural network based horizontal formwork

selection system NeuroSlab. NeuroSlab was developed using the rule based expert system based

on the knowledge acquired from experts for the selection of horizontal formwork systems:

Slabform developed by Hanna et al. [24]. This study also identified five factors that affect

selection of horizontal formwork system, which included horizontal uniformity, vertical

uniformity, slope and camber uniformity, crane service adequacy and site adequacy. For training

and testing of the neural network system for NeuroSlab, 202 training examples and a set of 50

testing examples were generated from Slabform. The average absolute testing error of NeuroSlab

was reported to be 0.057. The resulting recommendations for a 14 story concrete building in two

experiments from NeuroSlab and Slabform were compared to validate the working of

25
NeuroSlab. The study reported that the recommendations of NeuroSlab and Slabform were very

close, however the basis of quantitative comparison was not clear. Also a notable finding of this

study was the ability of NeuroSlab to accurately identify the appropriate horizontal formwork

system with noise level in the data as much as 50% with an average absolute error of 0.11.

2.2.1.3. Use of Probabilistic Neural Networks:

Kamarthi et al. [25] and Hanna and Senouci [21] used the back propagation algorithm to train the

neural networks to develop Neuroform and NeuroSlab for the selection of vertical and horizontal

formwork systems. Back Propagation Networks (BPN) is a method employed widely to solve

classification problems such as selection of formwork systems. Although the back propagation

training algorithms generate promising results, it is essentially a heuristic approach that involves

many modifications to the input data and requires long computation time for massively iterative

calculations. In addition, back propagation also has a susceptibility to show false minima. To

overcome the limitations of the back propagation method, Specht [26] developed Probabilistic

Neural Network approach (PNN), which provided speed improvements up to seven orders of

magnitude compared to BPN [27] and more accurate generalization. In generalization, the neural

network is trained from a set of inputs and expected to predict accurate output for an unknown

test input which is not included in the training input, by learning the underlying knowledge form

the training inputs. In other words, generalization is the ability of a neural network to learn the

underlying domain model from training input and predict accurate output for an unknown test

input [28].

Tam et al. [20] chose the PNN approach to address the classification of selection of formwork

and to overcome the limitations of the back propagation system. They developed neural network

models for the selection of vertical formwork system using PNN and ‘Genetic Adaptive’

26
algorithm for calibration. The main objective of their study was to test the generalization

capabilities of the models developed using PNN. They identified six key factors affecting the

formwork selection including height of structure, structural system, concrete finish, and site

condition, hoisting equipment and building shape and identified input parameters based on the

key factors. They used 97 sets of data based on the input parameters for the selection of vertical

formwork system which was divided into training set, test set and validation set. They reported

that out of the 97 data sets processed on an experimental case, 90.1 percent of the total data sets

were classified correctly. However, the main objective of this study which was to test the

generalization capabilities of the models developed using PNN was not quantified.

2.2.1.4. Use of Fuzzy Logic Modeling:

The neural networks based models use a “black box” technique and are ambiguous in nature as

they cannot provide the explanation for arriving at a certain decision and their accuracy is highly

dependent on the training input provided to the user [23]. To overcome this ambiguity, Elbeltagi

et al. [23] used fuzzy logic for developing a model to assist formwork decision makers in

selecting appropriate vertical formwork systems. They identified a list of 38 factors, which

affects the selection of formwork system and conducted semi structured interviews with nine

experts representing formwork companies to finalize the most important factors from the list by

calculating the importance index of each factor based on the opinion of the experts. The finalized

factors included type of structural system, building shape, floor height, initial cost and progress

rate. Each selected factor is expressed into numerical form to suit fuzzy logic model and served

as fuzzy input variables. A knowledge base was developed for this study, to assist the model for

selecting suitable formwork on the basis of the most important factors. In order to develop the

knowledge base, a questionnaire was developed for 41 industry experts to identify the suitability

27
of the formwork systems for the identified factors. This knowledge-based system was used for

constructing fuzzy rules to be used by fuzzy logic models. The output of the developed model

was the degree of suitability of all formwork types for the given numeric input for input

variables. The developed model was validated with the input data of three projects, and reported

satisfactory results. The authors also reported that the model received an average satisfaction

level of 77%. In addition, Elbeltagi et al. [29] used fuzzy logic to develop a system for selection

of horizontal formwork systems. They identified the five most influential factors governing the

selection of horizontal formwork systems as speed of construction, hoisting equipment, available

capital, slab type and area of practice. They developed a knowledge base in matrix form to guide

practitioners in selecting horizontal formwork and then developed 243 fuzzy rules to be used in

the developed fuzzy logic based system. The system proved to be useful and accurate in case

studies and received an average satisfaction level of 80% in a survey conducted on formwork

experts.

2.2.1.5. Use of Decision Tree Models:

Along with existing methods like neural networks and knowledge based expert systems, the

decision tree (DT) approach also emerged as a promising technique to develop models for

assisting practitioners for the selection of formwork systems. A DT technique has a tree structure

that grows from a root node, flows outward into internal nodes and terminates at leaf nodes. Each

node represents a condition and is split into branch nodes according to the decision of the

condition. The decision tree technique has its advantage of human interpretability as it was an if-

then binary rule based structure and could provide explanation for the final decision made by the

system. However, the main disadvantage of the decision tree technique is the instability of the

trees, as a small fluctuation in the data could cause large changes in the results, for example, if

28
there are two nodes having same decisive power, then a small fluctuation can cause a node to

split the other way, which would not be the case if there was no fluctuation, which can ultimately

change the whole DT and produce a completely different outcome [30]. However, the instability

of the decision tree technique was overcome by the use of boosting approach developed by

Freund and Schapire [31], which involves growing a forest of decision trees, and classifying

instances by a majority vote of the classifications given by individual trees.

Shin et al. [30] developed a Boosted Decision Tree (BDT) model for the selection of formwork

system in tall building construction. They divided the various formwork alternatives in five

classes of decision trees which included, wood form, con-panel, aluminum form, table form and

sky-deck. To validate the results, they collected data for 101 cases from 15 general contractors

and randomly divided the data sets into 81 training sets and 20 test sets. The same cases were

applied to an Artificial Neural Network (ANN) and DT model for a comparative analysis of the

developed BDT model. The resulting average accuracy for 20 different data sets of the BDT

model was found to be 81.0%, which was greater than the average accuracy of ANN model

(76.1%) and DT model (79.1%) as reported in the study. Also a stability comparison was

conducted on the DT and BDT model, where random data sets were fluctuated from the training

data set and DT and BDT model showed accuracy of 85.25 and 90.25 % respectively, which

validated that the BDT approach is more stable to fluctuations unlike DT approach. However, the

authors reported the smaller size of data sets and number of factors to be a limitation and

proposed that detailed review of training data sets and collection of a larger data set is required to

generalize the results of the model as the accuracy of the model is largely affected by the size

and quality of the training dataset.

29
It is evident from the amount of research done towards the automation of the design and

selection of the formwork systems, that scholars and researchers have realized the impact of

formwork systems on construction. However in practice, in spite of the vast amount of previous

research completed, the selection and design of formwork in the US construction industry is still

considered a practical process that depends on the subjective and intuitive opinions of the

concrete subcontractor’s supervisory personnel at the site [30], [23]. These opinions are affected

by factors such as whether the formwork is owned by the contractor or rented, cost constraints,

project’s duration, and contractor’s experience and knowledge. Due to its dependency on human

judgment, the result of the selection process may not be consistent, which adversely affects the

cost and schedule of the project.

2.2.2 Formwork Management:

Previous research has predominantly emphasized selection of the formwork system and not

formwork management [32], [2] [33]. In order to increase formwork productivity and to control

cost of formwork it is important to focus on formwork inventory management by optimizing the

allocation of available resources and maximizing the return on formwork cost investment. Some

studies have focused on constructability factors which influence formwork productivity and they

concluded that management, repetition, standardization and consistency are the factors that

impact formwork productivity, the most [34] [35]. Hurd [6] concluded that the sooner the

formwork is stripped, the more economical and practical it becomes to schedule many reuses of

formwork. In order to make a reinforced concrete project cost effective, it is crucial to use the

formwork material economically and efficiently [36]. In other words, planning for maximum

reuse of forms within the basic limitations of safety and quality of construction is one of the most

important factors that lead to an economical project.

30
A predefined formwork repetitive reuse schedule can ensure maximum reuse of formwork

systems and hence improve the productivity and cost effectiveness of the system. Although

proper phase reuse and planning for the reuse schedule in concrete construction phases of the

building is essential for a successful reuse of formwork [33], a limited amount of research has

focused on repetitive use of formwork systems.

Huang et al. [32] used Cyclone to optimize the repetitive re-use of modular formwork systems on

a high-rise building. They identified five formwork module reuse schemes including crane use

and sharing. They defined a gang forming operation, which included different construction

activities ranging from main flow of structural construction to steel and rebar preparation and

formwork operations. The Cyclone modeling technique was used for simulating the gang form

operations. Cyclone (Cyclic Operations Network) is a modeling technique used to model

production processes, which are cyclic or repetitive in nature such as concrete pouring,

formwork layout etc. It consists of basic modeling elements such as Normal (unconstrained)

tasks; Combi (constrained tasks- requiring pre-requisites) tasks, Queue (idle or waiting task) and

Arrow to define the logical flow of resources [37]. Huang et al. [32] developed a basic cyclone

model of gang forming operations consisting of 22 major activities and five cyclone models for

each of the identified formwork re-use techniques. Micro Cyclone simulations and sensitivity

analysis of all five reuse schemes were conducted on projects to quantify their impact on

productivity and cost effectiveness. It was found that each scheme has different impact on the

productivity and cost of different type of projects. A limitation of this research is that it only

discussed its application to a typical high-rise building where most of the floors follow the same

layout. The application of this research to unconventional buildings was not discussed.

Moreover, it was emphasized in the study that for the successful implementation of the proposed

31
model proper planning for form reuse schemes including resource allocation and determination

of proper construction sequence is necessary.

Lee et al. [2] developed an automatic module formwork layout tool using BIM based on a cost

oriented formwork layout algorithm. The main reason behind using BIM for the data extraction

was the accuracy of the data extracted from BIM models than existing 2-dimensional drawings

for enhancing of the accuracy of the developed system. They identified five key consideration

factors for formwork layout, which includes cost, constructability, safety, quality and

characteristics of the building and site from existing literature and expert interviews. They

further divided these factors into sub factors with quantitated priority out of which number of

reuse and assembling and dismantling costs of formwork was calculated as the highest priority

sub factor. An algorithm primarily reflecting the cost factor with highest priority was developed

to design the formwork layout system. A windows operating system based independent

application using .NET and Vectordraw CAD was developed based on the algorithm which had

the ability to convert drawings and models produced by BIM tools to extract the shape,

dimension and size of the structure accurately. The system receives the extracted information

from BIM models and drawings and assists user to select the formwork system and decides

whether or not the form should be reused in view of cost and size of forms in terms of

constructability. A limitation of this cost based formwork layout system which was reported by

the authors was its inability to be used on unconventional buildings which are increasing in

number day by day [2]. Also, the applications of this study for formwork reuse only included the

decision that whether a form should be reused on the basis of the cost and size of the forms in

terms of constructability.

32
Since the initial cost of formwork is high, it should be carefully handled and reused as many

times as possible [35]. Due to the lack of proper guidance in the assessment of formwork

construction, foremen and superintendent make important decisions regarding the installation

and stripping by visual inspection. Formwork may be taken off early or later than the required

duration and hence stored in inventory early or engaged in construction longer, which leads to

double handling and hence results in poor formwork management. Also, as the decision whether

a form should be re-used or not depends on the superintendent on site, the subjective opinion

may lead to inadequate decisions which can result in under-utilized formwork which might cause

the lack of material efficiency and increased cost [7].

Proper utilization of formwork reuse ensures a better labor and material productivity. For

adequate reuse of formwork, one approach is to create a concrete schedule in the pre-

construction phase, containing the data for the concrete pours such as day of the concrete pour,

size of the pour etc. This can assist the engineers in creating a formwork schedule by calculating

the time at which the installation of formwork should start and the amount of time for which the

formwork has to stay in position before being stripped. Such a formwork schedule can guide the

foreman and superintendents working on site, to install or uninstall the formwork according to

the pre-scheduled time so that forms are not engaged on a pour for more days than needed

according to the concrete schedule, specifications or local code requirements and help them

ensure that the formwork is not being double-handled. Following a formwork schedule can

provide better formwork productivity instead of relying on visual inspection. The creation of a

formwork schedule can also be useful in calculating the least number of forms required for a

smooth-work flow resulting in maximum reuse, which can ultimately lead to the maximum

return on investment for formwork materials.

33
2.3 Building Information Modeling (BIM):

BIM is an intelligent three-dimensional model of building, which can connect data, processes

and resources between different stages of the building lifecycle [38]. Building Information

Modeling has transformed the construction industry from the traditional two-dimensional CAD

to a multi-dimensional modeling platform through the combination of 3D object based

parametric model with schedule, and cost data [39]. BIM is a multi-purpose tool, which can be

used for modeling, information integration, communication as well as facility management [40].

BIM has a wide variety of applications including but not limited to visualization, 3D modeling,

fabrication, code reviews, cost estimating, quantity take off, construction sequencing, clash

detection, forensic analysis of buildings and facility management [41]. In this research, two

applications of BIM are primarily used: information integration and quantity takeoff.

2.3.1 Information Integration:

A number of studies have emphasized the implementation of BIM and the integrated

information that can be leveraged out of it. The use of BIM can provide quantitative information

for a number of processes and transform the construction information to a three-dimension

information system having actual shape and data [2]. A BIM model can provide more accurate

data on building shape, dimension and structure than traditional two-dimensional CAD. Also,

BIM serves as an excellent data management tool due to the ability to create data rich models

and to facilitate easy and fast access to the information [42]. BIM enables the user to feed

specific data into the 3D model, which can be extracted out of the model and transformed into

activity data and can be used for multiple purposes including generation of construction schedule

as well as to define construction sequences [43] [44]. A significant amount of information can be

integrated with the building information model using its parametric characteristics and attributes

34
thus incorporating the actual project characteristics such as building shape, formwork alignment

and concrete phase sequences which can be changed easily and coordinated with construction

personnel [45]. BIM can be a knowledge resource facility where project members can

collaborate through implementation of integrated design methods and leverage the information

stored in BIM models on different levels of a project’s design to enhance the project’s

performance [46] [47]. Chi et al. [48] proposed a methodology to develop BIM objects for

temporary construction aids (formwork and scaffolding), which are integrated with construction

design, construction efficiency and safety parameters that will be easy to incorporate in BIM

models and can assist the designers and engineers to create smarter and safer BIM models. The

main objective of this study was to develop BIM objects integrated with information which can

help the designers to perform clash detection for the structural concrete and formwork

(particularly industry-identified high risk formwork components) by using the information

integrated in those parametric BIM objects. This approach illustrates the transfer of information

to and from BIM model and objects to be used in construction planning and management phases.

BIM software products such as Autodesk Revit, Tremble Tekla, Autodesk Navisworks, etc.

allow users to create parametric BIM objects with multiple built-in parameters and enable the

creation of custom parameters. Information specific to every object or component created can be

associated with selected (built-in or custom) parameters. After the model is populated with the

required information, the information can be extracted out of the model in a digital format such

as the IFC (Industry Foundation Classes) format. This extracted data can be used for various

planning and management activities such as quantity takeoff, schedule generation etc.

35
2.3.2 Quantity Take-off:

Quantity take-off (QTO) is a detailed measurement of material, labor and cost associated with

different activities on a construction site. QTO can also be defined as the measurement of the

building’s schematics or quantification of the work done on site including labor and equipment

hours [49]. QTO is essential for cost estimation and project’s cost control, scheduling and

management [50]. QTO is a crucial and deciding factor in pre-construction phase as it is used to

plan the construction activities [51]and during construction as the efficiency of the project and

accuracy of schedule is dependent on it.

Traditionally QTO is a time consuming, complex and manual process, which includes

measurement of different elements of a building structure. This process also includes interpreting

the two-dimensional architectural and structural plans to extract the geometric configuration of

the building structure. Due to the dependency of QTO on two-dimensional documentation and

manual production, they are very error prone.

However, with the emergence of BIM in the construction industry, the process of generating

QTO has changed. BIM acts as an excellent data management tool, which is capable of storing,

retrieving and displaying QTO information in a format consistent with user [52]. A BIM model

acts as a data server for a construction project, where the information can be stored inside its

parametric objects, which constitutes the model. This information can be extracted from the

parametric objects of a BIM model in the form of QTO reports, as QTO is a predefined feature in

most of the sophisticated BIM tools available today [49].

Many research efforts have been made for improving the efficiency and accuracy of BIM based

QTO generation. Staub et al. [53] presented a successful industrial case study on integrating

design, cost and schedule information in a 3D CAD model of the project for automatic

36
generation of QTO. Jadid and Idrees [54] proposed a new concept for generating QTO or bill of

quantities using AutoCAD and an interactive automated algorithm. This algorithm was used to

convert the AutoCAD files into drawing inter-exchangeable file format (DXF). This algorithm

was capable of recognizing the layers and objects of DXF drawing and could extract the data to

estimate the quantity of required material by detecting the coordinates of the structural objects to

calculate the volume and area of the structure. This concept was tested on a simple building and

reported to provide fairly accurate QTO. Jungsik et al. [51] developed a prototype QTO system

based on open BIM to improve the accuracy of estimation in early design stage within the

building frame, as major construction costs are determined in the designing stage by designers

decisions. The developed QTO prototype system was used on a sample model, which was

modeled for the purpose of schematic estimation and QTO. The prototype QTO was reported to

generate promising results but the scope of the system was limited to the building frame and the

authors proposed to expand the application of the QTO in future.

BIM is a highly automated tool because of its ability to automatically generate the data attached

to its objects [55]. However, using BIM for QTO has some limitations as well. Wijayakumar and

Jayasena [56] made a valid case that the data extracted from BIM model for QTO will be

efficient and useful only if it suits the expectations and requirements of a quantity surveyor. This

is because, as the data extracted for the QTO depends on the BIM objects and model, the

accuracy of the QTO is highly dependent on how the objects were modeled and parameterized,

which relies on the expertise and modeling skills of the BIM user and modeler [57]. In such case,

the QTO from a BIM model may not always be reliably used for further processes such as cost

estimation. To overcome this problem, more details have to be added to the model to extract

reliable data and more attention has to be paid in modeling accurately, which can account for

37
increased modeling time and can compromise the whole purpose of timely QTO and cost

estimation [49]. However, this problem can be solved as accurate and automated BIM modeling

techniques are developed in near future, so that BIM users and modelers can divert their time

towards accuracy of QTO data attached to the model, rather than modeling [58].

Typically in the construction industry, BIM is primarily considered to be a pre-construction tool

and used for visualization, simulation and planning progress tracking, but relatively rare to be

used for management, especially in construction phase [59]. This research discusses the use of

BIM especially for formwork inventory management and formwork reuse by using the

information leveraged from the BIM model of a project as an input for the developed Cascading

tool. The tool can generate an optimized formwork reuse schedule and calculate the minimum

quantity formwork material required to be ordered for project’s execution, thereby optimizing

the reuse and simplifying management of formwork.

38
 Chapter 3

Methodology

The proposed methodology is divided into two major parts as shown in figure 3-1. The first part

as illustrated on the left side of figure 3-1, involves the extraction of the Quantity Take Off

(QTO) data from the BIM model. For the purpose of this research, Tekla Structure was used as

the BIM authoring software. To extract QTO data from the BIM model, a formwork component

catalog is first created. The catalog contains 3D models of formwork components used on a

project and associated information such as name, number, vendor etc. Then a 3D BIM model of

the concrete structure is modeled and concrete phase schedule information for all phases are

populated in the phase manager of the BIM tool. After the modeling of concrete structure is

completed, components from the formwork catalog are used to place the formwork around the

concrete structure and the material quantity take off reports for all the phases are exported out of

the BIM model.

In the second part of the proposed methodology as illustrated on the right side of figure 3-1, the

exported QTO reports are fed into the Cascading tool. After processing, individual formwork

reuse schedule plan for each formwork component used in the construction project as well as a

master table containing the minimum formwork component quantity required to be ordered for

the construction of the concrete structure are generated by the tool. The methodology is

explained in detail in the following sub-sections.

39
Figure 3-1: Research Process

3.1 Data extraction from BIM:

BIM was used as the main tool in order to generate the quantity take off reports for the cascading

model. The process to generate the input required for the cascading tool is described in following

sub-sections.

40
3.1.1 Prepare a formwork component catalog:

A formwork component, in this context, is defined as a virtual three-dimensional representation

of an actual formwork component used on site. The “virtual 3D” component may completely or

partially resemble the actual formwork component depending on the software used to model it

and user’s requirements. Various software products are used in the industry to model virtual

formwork such as Autodesk Revit, AutoCAD, and Tekla Structures. Formwork components can

be modeled and saved as Revit in-place family files (.rfa files) using Family Editor, as Blocks in

AutoCAD and as custom components (.uel files) in Tekla Structures. Once these visual

formwork components are created and saved in a catalog or family, they can be used across

different models for various projects.

In Tekla Structures, formwork components can be modeled into 3D space using different types

of materials, shapes, default and custom profiles and converted into custom components using

the “Define Custom Component” tool. Figure 3-2 illustrates typical formwork components

“Super-Stud and Soldiers” modeled and created as a part-custom component in Tekla and the

actual components used on site.

Figure 3-2: Super-Stud and Soldiers as modeled in Tekla Structures and as actual components used on site [60].

41
Once the component has been modeled and saved, information corresponding to individual

formwork parts such as name, vendor, dimensions, surface area, unique identification number,

etc. can be integrated into the custom components. Figure 3-3 shows the process of information

integration to the custom component Taper Tie. This is done using parametric variables called

“Component parameters” created inside the component. These variables are linked with the parts

of the component using the user-defined attributes (AC). The user-defined attributes are fields in

the 3D parts of the component and they can be populated with the data to provide extra

information about the component. These attributes play a very significant role while exporting

the quantity take off reports, as the value in the fields of user-defined attributes can be drawn out

of the 3D parts when the quantity take off reports containing the user-defined attributes are

exported. These values are essential for the processing done by the cascading tool in order to

generate the individual formwork component reuse schedule plan and the master table.

Figure 3-3: Integrating specific formwork information to the custom component.

42
3.1.2 Model concrete structure in 3D:

The concrete structure/frame can be modeled in the three dimensional space by using concrete

modeling tools available in Tekla Structures (e.g. beam, column, footings, slab, wall etc.). Users

can customize these tools according to their requirements. Tekla supports and provides a

standard catalog containing a variety of shapes, profiles, color, and also allows the user to create

new shapes for the concrete profile. For example, the column tool can be used to create a

rectangular, square, circular column or in any other profile from the profile catalog or a profile

created by the user, by changing the profile type in the tool. As stated previously, a concrete

frame structure is typically divided into multiple phases of concrete pours. The size and final

number of concrete phases is selected after studying different possible alternatives. Concrete is

typically modeled from foundation level to roof level, starting from phase 1.The process and

time required for modeling the concrete structure depends on modeling skills, RFI(s) and

corrections, size of the structure and schedule of the project.

After the modeling of all the phases of the concrete structure is completed, the phases of each

pour are defined in the Phase Manager, which is a standard Tekla Structures tool. Each phase in

the phase manager has a number of phase attribute fields (AP), which can be used to link the

concrete schedule information of that concrete phase to the concrete model. Phase attributes (AP),

are similar to user-defined attributes of the components (AC), and they can be populated with the

concrete schedule data to provide information about the concrete phase including formwork

installation schedule, concrete pour schedule, formwork stripping schedule, etc. The phase

attributes (AP) are also essential for the processing done by the cascading tool in order to

generate the optimized formwork reuse schedule. Figure 3-4 illustrates the phase manager tool

and phase attributes (AP). As shown in the figure, the phase manager has free attributes for

43
example, scheduled fab date, scheduled erection date, classification1, classification2, etc. which

can be used as per user’s requirements for any type of data and are not limited to the actual name

given to the attributes by Tekla Structures.

Figure 3-4: Phase manager tool and phase attributes (AP).

3.1.3 Place formwork on concrete structure and identify formwork components by phases:

In this step, formwork is detailed around concrete members starting from phase 1 which is

typically the first pour of concrete on a project. Formwork components from the formwork

component catalog are used. Placing and detailing formwork on the concrete structure is a time-

consuming process, which requires expert design and engineering knowledge. The formwork

selection is done according to concrete specifications, required concrete finish and strength. In

addition it also depends on the volume of the concrete, dead and live construction load, the load

carrying capacity of the type of formwork used, shape of concrete structure etc. The decisions for

formwork selection is typically made by formwork engineers and are also affected to a limited

extent by the organizational factors such as the quantity of formwork owned by the organization,

the quantity of formwork rented from a formwork renting company, shipping charges, the weight

44
of the formwork and whether the formwork can be installed by labors or if a crane is required for

installation, etc.

Once the detailing of formwork in one phase is completed, all objects (formwork and concrete)

in that phase are selected and assigned a phase from the list of phases in phase manager by using

the “Modify Phase” command which is a standard Tekla Structures command.

3.1.4 Exporting QTO reports:

After the modeling of concrete structure and the placing/detailing of formwork components

around the concrete structure is completed, material quantity take off report (QTO) for all the

phases are generated and exported out of the model using “Create Report” command provided by

Tekla Structures. This tool utilizes report templates, which can be designed and customized by

the user using the “Template Editor” tool in Tekla Structures. This template will include the

user-defined attributes (Ac) and the phase attributes (Ap), so that the value inside the fields of

these attributes can be drawn out of the components and the modeled concrete structure when the

QTO reports are exported. The report designed for this study includes following attributes:

1. Phase Number

2. Formwork Installation Start and End Date

3. Formwork Stripping Start and End Date

4. Specification of Formwork Components:

a. Name

b. Vendor.

c. Part Number (Identification Number)

d. Weight of each component

A sample QTO report exported out of Tekla Structures is shown in table 3-1.

45
Table 3-1: A sample QTO repost exported out of Tekla Structures based on design template.

Phase Name: FW-GP-0905

Installation Installation Stripping Stripping
Start Date End Date Start Date End Date
6/3/2014 6/9/2014 6/26/2014 7/2/2014
Vendor Cat/Class Item No. Description Qty. Unit WeightExt. Weight
Meva 880-0202 2-500-2990 DCR Brace-Bolt 3 2 6
Meva 880-0257 23-300-40 12x3 Panel 2 478 956
Meva 880-0129 23-300-50 12x2.5 Panel 2 416 832
Meva 880-0043 23-300-60 12x2 Panel 4 351 1404
Meva 880-0078 23-306-00 Outside Corner 12ft 4 134 536
Meva 880-0108 29-106-50 Scaff. Bracket 4 25 100
Meva 880-0001 29-106-75 Guardrail Post 4 8 32
Meva 880-0110 29-311-95 Shoe Plate 4 5 20
Meva 880-0072 29-400-71 M-Assembly Lock 55 7 385
Meva 880-0118 29-400-90 Uni Assembly Lock 2814 9 126
Meva 880-0020 29-401-10 Flange Screw 18 16 2 32
EFCO 875-0254 82060 TTW 1 1/4 10 3 30
Meva 111111 111111 D-1 Brace 3 0
Dayton Superior B-12 3/4" Coil Rod 5 2 10
Dayton Superior878-0312 B39 Wingnut 1 1/4 10 0
Dayton Superior879-0133 D30 She-Bolt 1.25 x 20 10 8 80
RMD 880-0071 MVS10109-h AR180 6 43 258

3.2 Executing the Cascading tool:

The cascading tool is based on a cascading algorithm whose logic is illustrated in figure 3-5.

First, the data from the QTO reports is converted into individual reports for each type of

formwork component used in the project. Each individual formwork component report contains

formwork schedule information, such as, installation/stripping start, end dates and required

quantity of components for all phases. For each individual component report, the algorithm

operates in a loop incorporating every possible formwork component that can be reused from a

particular phase in the upcoming phases. For each current phase in the loop, all previous phases

are checked for any available components that can be re-used in the current phase. If the

46
components from previous phase are stripped before the installation start date of the current

phase (i.e. Stripping date “SSD” of components from previous phases <= Installation date “ISD”

of component in current phase), then those components from previous phases are re-used in the

current phase and this re-use information is updated. If the formwork requirement of the current

phase is fulfilled, the algorithm moves to next phase. However, if the formwork requirement is

not fulfilled, then other previous phases are checked. After checking all other previous phases, if

the formwork requirement of current phase is still not completed, then new formwork

components will be ordered to satisfy the formwork requirement of current phase. The quantity

of formwork components that needs to be ordered is updated in a virtual “new order” inventory.

Finally, individual optimized re-use reports for each formwork component is generated which

contain re-use schedule for components and the “new order” quantity of components required for

all phases. A master report is also generated, which contains the minimum quantity of formwork

components (all types of formwork parts and pieces) required for all concrete phases.

The cascading tool developed in this study runs in MATLAB runtime environment. Upon

starting the tool the user is prompted to select the folder where the QTO reports are stored on the

user’s hard drive. After selecting the folder, the tool processes all the files and once the

processing is completed, the user is again prompted to select the destination folder where the

resulting files will be stored. The result generated by the tool includes individual formwork

component reuse reports and the master “formwork ordering” report.

47
Figure 3-5: Cascading Algorithm.

Note: Installation Start Date1, SSD- Stripping Start Date2

48
 Chapter 4

Application and Capabilities of MATLAB

4.1 Introduction:

In this research, MATLAB was selected as the programming platform for the development of the

Cascading tool. This chapter discusses the capabilities, advantages and disadvantages of

MATLAB which justifies its use for developing the cascading tool. The code structure for the

cascading tool is also discussed in the form of two generic algorithms in this chapter.

MATLAB (Matrix Laboratory) is a commercial multi paradigm mathematical computing

environment developed by Mathworks Inc. in USA. It is a fourth generation programming

environment, which can be used to develop algorithms, data visualization, data analysis, numeric

calculation and is capable of processing huge amount of data. MATLAB program is a

combination of a procedural programming language, an integrated development environment

(IDE) including an editor and debugger and an extremely rich set of functions that can perform

many types of technical calculations [61]. Interdisciplinary researchers are extensively using

professional toolboxes available with MATLAB such as artificial neural networks, algorithm

development and parallel computing. MATLAB has also been considered as an influential

scientific software due to its easy application to tackle various operations of matrix, polynomial,

graphics drawings, calculus, etc. [62]. In construction and civil engineering, researchers have

started using MATLAB widely because of its advantages over other languages.

Notable research completed using MATLAB in construction and civil engineering include: the

development of a neural network algorithm for short term hydrological forecasting [63],

optimized design of four track tunnel based on a MATLAB toolbox [64], critical slip surface and

49
reliability analysis of soil slope stability using MATLAB [65], estimation of intersection tunnel

movement proportion using MATLAB [66], application of optimum service rate in highway

charging system [67], modeling substance flows in urban sewer systems using MATLAB/

Simulink [68], and simulation of automobile dynamic property based on MATLAB [69].

The common trait that all researches above has recognized is the huge amount of data that needs

to be processed and the use of MATLAB for that purpose. This capability of MATLAB to

process huge amount of data comes from its optimized operations involving matrices and

vectors. The data that needs to be processed is often in the form of tables containing column and

rows that is in the matrix form. For example, in construction industry most of the data exported

out of BIM models are in the form of excel files or tables such as quantity take off reports.

MATLAB has advantages over other languages when it comes to processing matrix data.

MATLAB has specially designed functions, which can process the data in the matrix form and

generate fast results.

4.2 MATLAB functions for matrix data

Some of the MATLAB special matrix functions and their roles are explained in following sub-

sections.

4.2.1 Multidimensional Arrays:

An array having more than two dimensions is called a multidimensional array in the MATLAB

application, which is an extension of two-dimensional matrix as matrices have two dimensions:

the row dimension and column dimension [70]. MATLAB arrays are self-dimensioning, which

means after initializing an array, MATLAB automatically allocates the correct amount of space

for the array. If you add an element to an existing array, MATLAB automatically resizes the

50
array to handle the new element. This quality of MATLAB is different from other programming

languages where memory allocation and array sizing takes a considerable amount of

programming effort [71]. This is also one of the reasons for the processing power of MATLAB

for matrix data. Also the MATLAB functions that are used for two-dimensional arrays can also

be used for multi-dimensional arrays. This multi-dimensional array function of MATLAB allows

user to save all the data in one array instead of making different arrays for smaller data sets

hence saving the memory and decreasing the execution time of the MATLAB code.

4.2.2 Vectorization:

Vectorization is a process that involves revising loop-based, scalar-oriented code to use

MATLAB matrix and vector operations. Vectorization of code is important for the following

reasons [72]:

1. Appearance: Vectorized code appears more mathematical which makes it easier to understand.

2. Less Error Prone: Vectorized code replaces loops and makes the code shorter which decreases

the amount of errors during program’s executions. Vectorization decreases the amount of loops

hence making the code easier and less complicated to understand for a user.

3. Performance: Vectorized code executes faster than the code that contains loops and hence

vectorization of code enhances the performance of the code and the results.

4.2.3 Structures:

A structure is a collection of data that groups related data using data containers called fields.

Each field can contain any type of data type. Each field is a variable name for some sub-piece of

data. In MATLAB a structure is used to represent information that is not confined to one data

type for example string, number, character, boolean etc. Structures allow the user to combine

51
multiple data type information under a single variable [73]. Structures can be used to store tables

containing tables of data (tables inside a table) that makes it easier to store the data in a smaller

memory and confined space instead of making new variables for storing tables. This makes the

code structure shorter and easier to understand for the user and hence faster for the execution of

the program.

4.2.4 Tables

A table is a data type used for column oriented or tabular data that is often stored as column in a

text file or spreadsheet. Tables consist of rows and column-oriented variables. Each variable in a

table can have a different data type and a different size where each variable must have the same

number of rows [74]. Tables are very convenient for collecting and organizing related data

variables and for viewing and summarizing data. For example, the user can extract variables to

perform calculations and conveniently add the results as new table variables and after finishing

the calculations write the table to a file to save the results. A very typical use for a table is to

store experimental data, where rows represent different observations and column represent

different measured variables.

MATLAB has some operations designed to process tables including import tool or the readtable

function. These functions enable users to make the program read data from a spreadsheet or

comma-delimited text file and import the data into a table. Readtable function can import data

from various type of files such as files with extension .txt, .dat, .csv for comma delimited text

files and .xls, .xlsb, .xlsm, .xlsx, .xltm, xltx or .ods for spreadsheet files. While importing data

from a spreadsheet each column becomes a table variable [75]. The data inside a table can be

accessed to perform calculations and create desired results as well as for graphically representing

the data in the form of a histogram.

52
After processing the data inside a table, a MATLAB function called writetable can be used to

export the data inside a table into a comma delimited file or a spreadsheet. When writetable

writes the table to a file, each column of each variable in the table becomes a column in the

output file. The variable names of the table become column headings in the first line of the file.

Writetable function writes the table into a file and extension specified by the file name and it

determines the file format based on the specified extension. It supports various file extensions

including .txt, .dat and .csv for comma delimited text files; .xls, .xlsm, or. xlsx and .xlsb for

spreadsheet files. However, if there is no file extension specified in the filename, the writetable

function automatically generates a .txt file [76].

4.3 Development of the Cascading tool on MATLAB:

In this research, a combination of readtable, table, structures and writetable functions were used

to read the data from QTO reports and convert them into tables. All such tables were stored in a

three-dimensional global structure, which acted as the data server where all the QTO reports

were saved as tables, and processed. After processing of the data inside the tables of the created

structure was done, the writetable function was used to create the desired files in .csv format,

readable as excel spreadsheets. The cascading tool is based on cascading algorithm-1 and

algorithm-2 described in the following sub-sections and was developed on MATLAB platform.

The code structure of the cascading tool can be found in Appendix A. Figure 4-1 shows the

working of the Cascading tool.

53
Figure 4-1: Flow chart illustrating the working of Cascading Tool.

4.3.1 Algorithm-1

Figure 4-2 illustrates working of algorithm-1. Algorithm-1 reads the data stored in the QTO

reports and converts the data in a format that is readable by Algorithm-2. The QTO reports are

exported from each concrete phase and hence contain information belonging to that particular

phase only. This has to be converted into tables containing information particular to different

component number types for processing. The data inside all QTO reports are stored in a

structure. From the structure, all the different component numbers are searched and stored in a

variable. Moving forward, tables for all the identified component numbers are created with

columns containing information belonging to the component number type i.e. phase name,

quantity, description, installation start date, installation end date, stripping start date and

stripping end date. All the columns in the table are sorted in ascending order of the installation

start date to set the data in chronological order of formwork installation start date of concrete

54
phases. All tables created for different component numbers are then passed on to algorithm-2 for

further processing.

Algorithm-1-Read data from quantity take of (QTO) reports:

1. Create a structure named G

2. names  Get names of QTO report files in source directory

3. for m=1,2…length(names)

4. D Read data from names(m)

5. items  Get unique item numbers from D

6. for l=1,2…length(items)

7. varname  dynamically generate a variable name using stored value in items(l)

8. if no entry exist in G with key “varname”;

9. create a new table T in G and assign the key “varname” to T

10. endif

11. Get table T from G which is assigned to the key “varname”

12. index  Get index of last entry in T

13. T.Phase name(index)  Get phase name from D

14. T.Description(index)  Get description from D

15. T.ISD1(index)  Get ISD from D

16 T.IED2(index)  Get IED from D

17. T.SSD3(index)  Get SSD from D

18. T.SED4(index)  Get SED from D

19. T.Quantity(index)  Get Quantity from D

20. Sort T in ascending order with respect to column ISD1

21. Store the updated T in G with the key “varname”

22. end for

23.end for

55
24. Return G

Installation Start Date1, Installation End Date2, Stripping Start Date3, Stripping End Date4

Figure 4-2: Algorithm-1.

4.3.2 Algorithm-2

Figure 4-3 illustrates working of algorithm-2. Algorithm-2 receives the tables created for

different component numbers from algorithm-1. In the beginning of Algorithm-2, a master table

is created with three columns: component number, component description, and total order. Then

each component number table is accessed and two new columns are also created in all tables,

which will store the new order information and scheduling information during processing. The

processing will start from phase-1. The component quantity to be ordered for the first phase is set

equal to the required component quantity, as there are no phases before phase 1 to reuse

components from. Starting from phase-2, each phase before the phase that is being processed, is

checked for any component quantity that is available to be used. This decision is made by

checking the installation start date of the phase that is being processed, and the stripping start

date of the previous phase. If the components from previous phase are stripped before the

installation has to start on the current phase, then the components from previous phase are reused

in the current phase and this reuse information is updated in the column ‘scheduling

information’. However, if after using some components from a previous phase in the current

phase, some components are still left in the previous phase, then that component quantity will be

stored in a virtual inventory variable so that those components can be used in any next phase

where the decision condition is be satisfied. All the phases previous to the current are checked

until the required quantity of components for the current phase is fulfilled, or the decision

condition is not satisfied, or there are no previous phases available to be checked. However, if

56
the requirement of the current phase is only partially fulfilled and there are no components

available in previous phases to be reused in current phase, then the remaining required quantity

will be ordered to completely fulfill the requirement of the current phase. This ordered quantity

will be stored in the column ‘order information’. Thus, ‘scheduling information’ and ‘order

information’ is updated for each phase until all the phases are processed. After the processing for

a table is completed, all quantity that has to be ordered which is stored in ‘order information’

column are summed and stored in the master table in the ‘total order’ column along with the

‘component number’ and ‘component description’. Similarly all tables for different component

numbers are processed and the master table is updated. After the processing for all component

tables are completed, Algorithm-2 creates a .csv files for each component number table and

transfers the data from each component number table to their respective files. A separate .csv file

named Master table is also generated with the data from the updated master table.

Algorithm-2-Process:

1.Create a table M; initialize k=1

2.For each table T in global Structure G

3. n  length of table T

4. Create an empty column in T called Order_Info of length n

5. Create an empty column in T called Scheduling_Info of length n

6. R  Quantity Required (T.Quantity)

7. N  Quantity to be ordered (T.Order_Info)

8. P  Phase name (T.Phase name)

9. Create a vector A of length n;

10. N(P(1)) = R(P(1))

11. for d = 2,3,…n

57
12. for i=1 to (n-1) ;

13. j=d-i;

14. if ISD1(d) ≥ SSD3(j) and A (j) ≠0

15. if A (j) ≤ R (d) – A(d)

16. Scheduling_info(d)= “P (j) to P (d) ---A (j)”

17. A (d)= A (d) +A (j)

18. A (j)=0

19. else

20. x=A (j) – {R (d)-A (d)}

21. Scheduling_info(d)= “P (j) to P (d) ---A (d)”

22. A(d) =R (d)

23. A (j)=x

24. endif

25. N(d)= R(d)-A(d)

26. endif

27. if N(d)==0 Or (i+1)=d

28. break for

29. endif

30. end for

31. A (d)=A(d)+N(d)

32. endfor

33. T.Order_Info  N;

34. T. Scheduling_Info  Scheduling_info;

35. Create a .csv file in the disc and copy values from T into the .csv file

36. M (k, 1)  name of table T

37. M(k,2)  component description

38. M (k, 2)  ∑𝑛𝑐=1 N(𝑐)

39. k=k+1

58
40. end for.

41. Create a .csv file called “Master table” and copy values from M to “Master table”

Installation Start Date1, Installation End Date2, Stripping Start Date3, Stripping End Date4

Figure 4-3: Algorithm -2.

The cascading tool is developed and runs in MATLAB runtime environment. Upon starting the

tool the user is prompted to select the folder where the QTO reports are stored on the user’s hard

drive. After selecting the folder, the tool processes all the files and once the processing is

completed, the user is again prompted to select the destination folder where the resulting files

will be stored. The result generated by the tool includes individual formwork component reuse

reports and the master “formwork ordering” report. The MATLAB code for cascading tool can

be found in Appendix A.

Figure 4-4 illustrates the run-time performance of the cascading tool. MATLAB is able to

process QTO reports in the form of excel spreadsheets for 24 phases in 52 seconds on a Mac OS

X El Capitan operating system with version 10.11.5. In addition the tool generated 82 different

.csv files for 82 different types of component used along with a master table report .csv file,

which illustrates the capabilities of MATLAB to efficiently process and generate huge amount of

matrix data.

59
Figure 4-4: The run-time performance of cascading tool recorded by MATLAB.

4.4 Advantages and Disadvantage of MATLAB

MATLAB has emerged as a potential programming language for academic researchers due to its

advantages and ease of application over other languages. Some advantages and disadvantages of

MATLAB are listed below:

60
4.4.1 Advantages of MATLAB:

1. Ease of use and fast prototyping for researchers

MATLAB is an interpreted language and is easy to use. MATLAB can be used as a platform to

develop new ideas or to execute large prewritten programs. Academic researchers need to

develop their ideas and algorithms faster in order to validate their findings by preliminary results.

MATLAB’s integrated capabilities allow users to deeply explore algorithm designs and make

deployment efficient. Because of its ease of use, it is ideal for rapid prototyping of new models,

tools and programs. It allows users to edit, debug and test different designs without compiling or

linking. MATLAB also contains a huge variety of proven algorithms and functions, which are

already implemented in the language. Users can easily browse and recall previous commands to

repeat and modify their approach. MATLAB is a very good developing environment for

researchers as the implementation is fast and trusted and it can help researchers focus more on

implementation and application of their tool compared to the back end coding or programming

[61].

2. Independence of platform

MATLAB is supported by a wide range of operating systems including Windows®, Mac OS® X

and Linux® hence providing platform independence [61]. Programs built using MATLAB are

stored as .m extension files which can work regardless of the type of operating system used.

However, Mathworks suggests that it builds its products with a different complier on each

platform and hence each has its own performance characteristics. But in a general way

MATLAB programs can work successfully on different platforms [77].

61
3. Built in Functions

MATLAB has an extensive library of predefined functions that are pretested solutions to many

basic technical tasks. The category of built in functions available in MATLAB include functions

for array creation and concatenation, indexing, array dimensions, sorting and reshaping arrays,

arithmetic functions, relational and logical operational functions, set operations, bit-wise

operations, data types, processing of character and strings, exponents and logarithm operations,

trigonometric operations, descriptive statistics, complex numbers, discrete math, polynomials,

linear algebra, matrix operations, matrix analysis, interpolation, optimization, and differential

and integral equations [78].

Along with a large library of built in functions, many special purpose toolboxes are also

available to buy, for computation in specific areas. Some of the tool boxes developed by

MATLAB include tool box for parallel computing, math-statistics and optimization, control

systems, signal processing and wireless communications, image processing and computer vision,

real time simulation and testing, verification-validation and testing, computational finance,

computational biology, application development, control systems, and event based modeling

[79].

4. Plotting

MATLAB contains various integral plotting and imaging commands. The plots and images can

be displayed on any graphical output device. This makes it a very good tool for visualization of

technical data and communicating results.

62
5. Documentation

MathWorks has developed a very detailed documentation of the MATLAB language. In

comparison to other languages such as Python and R, MATLAB’s documentation is far superior,

and easier to understand and implement. It consists of various examples in different scenarios to

make the users understand the use of different commands for different requirements and results.

In addition, other online resources such as webinars and MATLAB’s file exchange (where

MATLAB users upload their code files) are also available so users can learn how to use the

language better and also to troubleshoot their problems by learning from others’ experiences.

6. Integrated development environment (IDE)

The MATLAB package comes with an integrated development environment unlike other

languages such as Python, which needs additional packages for IDE such as Pyzo, PythonXY

etc. MATLAB’s IDE is optimized for efficient data processing and analysis. IDE offers more

functionality (than just using a text editor like Notepad) such as error checking, debugging,

syntax compilation and performance suggestions.

7. Concise coding

Concise coding is also responsible for the quick development time in MATLAB. MATLAB

predefined functions enables the user to use fewer lines of code, saves coding time and effort.

This is a real advantage when a program is very long as it makes understanding and finding the

code an easier task. This advantage also makes it easy to understand and implement a code

written by someone else.

63
4.4.2 Disadvantages of MATLAB:

The principal disadvantage of MATLAB is its cost. For non-commercial usage, a home license

costs 200$ base + approximate 50$ per toolbox and an academic license costs 500$ + 200$ per

toolbox [80]. However for many students and academic researchers MATLAB license is

provided by the university. There is also a student edition of MATLAB, which is quite

inexpensive as compared to other licenses and is essentially identical to the full edition [61].

64
 Chapter 5

Case Study and Illustration of Tool Benefits

This section describes the project chosen for the case study, explains the data collected and the

case study analysis including comparative cost analysis between the actual project data and the

results generated by the Cascading tool.

5.1 Project Description:

The Proton Therapy Center building is an expansion of the Cincinnati Children’s Cancer

Treatment Center located in Liberty Township, Ohio. Figure 5-1 shows the proposed

construction site for the proton therapy center, which is to the left of the existing main hospital

building. It is primarily a medical facility that will provide radiotherapy treatment for children

and young adults with brain tumors, lymphoma, sarcomas and other cancers using proton

radiation. The cost of this expansion was estimated to be 48 million USD and it includes 24,000

cubic yards of concrete and 1500 tons of rebar. The therapy area of the building was constructed

entirely out of mass concrete.

The Proton Therapy Center expansion was the first project completed by Baker Concrete

Construction Inc. where three-dimensional BIM formwork modeling was performed. According

to the formwork engineers of the project, due to the three-dimensional BIM modeling of

formwork this was the most efficient project in terms of estimation of the vertical formwork

material quantity that was ordered for the completion of the project. Although, three-dimensional

formwork modeling could not be performed for horizontal formwork systems due to time

constraints and other organizational limitations, this project was considered very successful in

terms of formwork management in comparison to other projects where formwork modeling was

65
performed on two-dimensional CAD. The Proton Therapy Center is scheduled to open in winter

2016-17. Figure 5-2 shows the proton therapy center under construction.

Figure 5-1: Proposed Proton Therapy Center Expansion [81].

Figure 5-2: Proton Therapy Center under construction [82]

66
5.2 Data Collection:

The data for the validation of the Cascading tool was collected from Baker Concrete

Construction Inc., the concrete subcontractor. The collected data includes the following:

1. BIM model of the project: A BIM model of the project was modeled by formwork engineers at

Baker Concrete Construction Inc. using Tekla Structures 20.1 (figure 5-3 and figure 5-4). This

model included the concrete layout of the structure, the formwork layout and the components

modeled in Tekla Structures used for layout and detailing of the formwork around the concrete

structure.

Figure 5-3: BIM model of the Proton Therapy Center created in Tekla Structures 20.1

2. Pre-Construction Schedule of the project: A pre-construction schedule of the project including

the timeline and schedule of each concrete phase was also collected in order to integrate the

concrete schedule with the three dimensional model.

67
Figure 5-4: Formwork components placed around the concrete structure.

3. Vendor Lists and Order Information: Actual order information list for the formwork material

ordered for the project were obtained to perform a comparative quantitative analysis for the

validation of the tool.

5.3 Analysis of the Case Study

The project was divided in 54 different concrete phases. Formwork BIM modeling was

performed for 24 phases which included vertical formwork systems and was not performed for

phases which included horizontal formwork systems. All 24 concrete phases which included

vertical formwork modeling were listed in the phase manager and the concrete phase schedule

was defined using the phase attributes (AP) as discussed in section 3.1.2. Then, QTO reports for

all those 24 phases were exported out of the BIM model. These reports collectively served as the

main input for the cascading tool.

68
5.3.1 Using data from Case Study with the Cascading tool:

The Cascading tool was executed with the exported QTO reports as the input. After processing

of the QTO reports with the tool, it was found that 82 different types of formwork parts were

used in the modeled 24 phases which are listed in Appendix B: table B-1. The tool generated 82

different optimized formwork re-use schedules in .csv format for all 82 formwork parts. Each

spreadsheet contains the name, unique identification number, and the quantity of each type of

formwork part as well as the sequence of concrete phases that the formwork material follows. In

addition to the 82 individual formwork component re-use optimized schedules, the tool also

generated a master “formwork ordering” report listing the minimum number of formwork

material required for the execution of all 24 modeled phases.

5.3.1.1 Individual Reports for each Formwork part:

An example of an individual optimized formwork component re-use report generated by the tool

is illustrated in table 5-1. The report contains quantities of 12’x4’ wall panels required for each

of the 13 concrete phases in which 12’x4’ panels are used and the installation and stripping start

and end dates of panels for the corresponding phases. The report also contains the “Order_Info”

which is the calculated quantity of panels that has to be ordered or rented in order to complete

the entire project. For some phases, entries in the column “Order_Info” are zero, which signifies

that no new panels have to be ordered for those phases and the required quantity will be fulfilled

by using the panels from previous phases. The last column in the report shows the formwork

schedule, which describes the sequence of the concrete phase that the formwork material

follows.

For example, entry in the third row illustrates that 1 panel is used in phase FW-L1-11 and as

shown under the “Scheduling_Info” column, this 1 panel will be re-used from phase FW-GP-

69
0525 and that this 1 panel will not be ordered (since one already exists) and hence value in

“Order Info” column is “0”.

Table 5-1: A sample report generated by cascading tool for 12'x4' wall panel.

Phase Desc Quantity ISD IED SSD SED Order_Info Scheduling_Info

1 FW-GP-0425 12x4 Panel 2 7-May-14 13-May-14 19-May-14
19-May-14 2 No reuse from any phase
2 FW-GP-0525 12x4 Panel 1 16-May-14 22-May-14 30-May-14
2-Jun-14 1 No reuse from any phase
3 FW-L1-11 12x4 Panel 1 28-Jul-14 31-Jul-14 5-Aug-14
6-Aug-14 0 (Phase FW-GP-0525 to Phase FW-L1-11 - 1) ;
4 FW-L1-7 12x4 Panel 1 29-Jul-14 31-Jul-14 11-Aug-14
12-Aug-14 0 (Phase FW-GP-0425 to Phase FW-L1-7 - 1) ;
5 FW-L1-12 12x4 Panel 4 31-Jul-14 7-Aug-14 15-Aug-14
18-Aug-14 3 (Phase FW-GP-0425 to Phase FW-L1-12 - 1) ;
6 FW-L1-8 12x4 Panel 8 5-Aug-14 13-Aug-14 27-Aug-14
29-Aug-14 7 (Phase FW-L1-11 to Phase FW-L1-8 - 1) ;
7 FW-L1-4 12x4 Panel 9 11-Aug-14 19-Aug-14 21-Aug-14
22-Aug-14 8 (Phase FW-L1-7 to Phase FW-L1-4 - 1) ;
8 FW-L1-3 12x4 Panel 5 21-Aug-14 29-Aug-14 2-Sep-14
3-Sep-14 0 (Phase FW-L1-4 to Phase FW-L1-3 - 5) ;
9 FW-L1-9 12x4 Panel 2 25-Aug-14 28-Aug-14 1-Sep-14
2-Sep-14 0 (Phase FW-L1-4 to Phase FW-L1-9 - 2) ;
10 FW-L1-10 12x4 Panel 5 28-Aug-14 9-Sep-14 15-Sep-14
16-Sep-14 0 (Phase FW-L1-8 to Phase FW-L1-10 - 3)
; (Phase FW-L1-4 to Phase FW-L1-10 - 2) ;
11 FW-L2-12 12x4 Panel 5 24-Oct-14 31-Oct-14 4-Nov-14 5-Nov-14 0 (Phase FW-L1-10 to Phase FW-L2-12 - 5) ;
12 FW-L2-13 12x4 Panel 6 5-Nov-14 14-Nov-14 14-Nov-14 14-Nov-14 0 (Phase FW-L1-9 to Phase FW-L2-13 - 1)
; (Phase FW-L2-12 to Phase FW-L2-13 - 5) ;
13 FW-L2-8 12x4 Panel 4 17-Nov-14 21-Nov-14 25-Nov-14 26-Nov-14 0 (Phase FW-L2-13 to Phase FW-L2-8 - 4) ;

Note: ISD- Installation Start Date, IED- Installation End Date, SSD- Stripping Start Date, SED-Stripping End Date

5.3.1.2 Master Report for all formwork material:

In addition to the individual component reports, the tool also generates a master “formwork

ordering” report. This master report contains the minimum quantity of formwork material (all

types of formwork parts and pieces) required for the completion of the project. In this case, the

tool has calculated the minimum quantity of all 82 types of formwork parts required for the

project. A part of the master report generated by the tool is illustrated in table 5-2.

Table 5-2: The master report generated by the cascading tool, containing the order information for all 82 types of

formwork equipment used.

70
No. Component_Id Component_Description Total_Order
1 2-500-2990 DCR Brace-Bolt 59
2 23-300-05 12'x8' Wall Panel 54
3 23-300-60 12'x2' Wall Panel 28
4 23-300-70 12'x1.5' Wall Panel 6
5 23-300-80 12'x1' Wall Panel 10
6 23-302-05 8'x8' Wall Panel 49
7 23-302-40 8'x3' Wall Panel 10
8 23-302-60 8'x2' Wall Panel 23
9 23-302-80 8'x1' Wall Panel 7
10 23-306-00 Outside Corner 12' 35
11 23-306-10 Outside Corner 8' 5
12 23-306-50 Inside Corner 12' 21
13 23-307-50 Articulated Inside Corner 12' 9
14 23-310-20 Alignment Rail 4' 3
15 23-311-10 I-Scaffolding Adapter 104
16 23-312-15 I-Filler-12'x2' 2
17 29-106-50 Scaffolding Bracket 90
18 29-106-75 Guardrail Post 193
19 29-311-95 Shoe Plate 86
20 29-400-71 M-Assembly Lock 516
21 29-400-90 Uni Assembly Lock28 309
22 29-401-10 Flange Screw18 227
23 29-804-85 Prop Connector 15
24 42-413-50 Head Bolt 16/90 38
25 1500 Super-Stud 12' 40
26 1501 Super-Stud Screw Jack 58
27 3500 Super-Stud 3' 39
28 6501 Super-Stud Diagonal Hinge 24
29 9501 Super-Stud 45 Deg Adapter 28
30 38901 Soldier 4' 27
31 38902 Soldier 8' 86
32 80080 Pipe Brace Shoe-1 43
33 80182 Quick Bolt 3/4"x4" 43
34 81106 Heavy Duty Pipe Brace3'-5' 13
35 82060 TTW 1 1/4 585
36 83109 Heavy Duty Pipe Brace10'-15' 27
37 111111 D-1 Brace 42
38 B39 Wingnut 1-1/4" 585
39 D30 She-Bolt 1.25" x 20" 586
40 MVS10027-h Flange Screw 12in 110
41 MVS10109-h Alignment Rail 180 50
42 2-500-2330 Turnbuckle 12

71
5.4 Results from the execution of Cascading tool:

In order to illustrate the benefits of the cascading tool, the generated results are compared with

the actual vendor lists and order information from the project. Out of 82 total formwork parts

used in the project, the order information was available for 32 parts. Hence a preliminary cost

analysis was performed on the minimum quantity of formwork predicted from the tool compared

to the actual quantity of formwork ordered for the project. The calculated quantitative and

qualitative savings are discussed in the following sub sections:

5.4.1 Quantitative Savings:

Cost Analysis
$500,000.00

$450,000.00

$400,000.00

$350,000.00

$300,000.00
Price in USD

$250,000.00

$200,000.00

$150,000.00

$100,000.00

$50,000.00

$0.00
29-400-71
23-300-05
23-300-60
23-300-70
23-300-80
23-302-60
23-306-00
23-306-10
23-306-50
23-307-50
23-311-10
29-106-50

29-400-90
29-401-10
29-804-85

23-300-20
23-311-00
23-300-40
23-302-30
23-304-30
23-304-40
23-304-50
23-304-70
23-306-60
23-309-10
23-300-50
23-300-30
23-307-00
80182
81106
83109

Item#
Price Predicted Price_Actual

Figure 5-5: Comparative Analysis of actual v/s calculated formwork material cost.

Table 5-3: Cost Analysis Report based on the list prices of formwork material

72
Item Description List Required Price Actual Price
Number Price Predicted Predicted Order Actual
23-300-05 12'x8' Panel $7,775.10 54 $419,855.56 57 $443,180.87
23-300-60 12x2 Panel $2,228.27 28 $62,391.56 30 $66,848.10
23-300-70 12x1.5 Panel $1,854.74 6 $11,128.43 8 $14,837.90
23-300-80 12x1 Panel $1,578.20 10 $15,781.98 10 $15,781.98
23-302-60 8x2 Panel $1,756.26 23 $40,393.98 25 $43,906.50
23-306-00 Outside Corner 12ft $1,018.08 35 $35,632.73 35 $35,632.73
23-306-10 OC 8ft $743.33 5 $3,716.63 6 $4,459.95
23-306-50 Inside Corner 12ft $2,703.80 21 $56,779.80 16 $43,260.80
23-307-50 Art. IC 12ft $4,185.12 9 $37,666.04 12 $50,221.38
23-311-10 I-Scaffolding Adapte $555.60 104 $57,782.40 194 $107,786.40
29-106-50 Scaff. Bracket $315.36 90 $28,382.40 183 $57,710.88
29-400-71 M-Assembly Lock $71.48 516 $36,883.68 1342 $95,926.16
29-400-90 Uni Assembly Lock 28$113.48 309 $35,065.32 155 $17,589.40
29-401-10 Flange Screw 18 $36.24 227 $8,226.48 618 $22,396.32
29-804-85 Prop Connector $39.92 15 $598.80 40 $1,596.80
80182 Quick Bolt 3/4 x 4 $4.40 43 $189.20 180 $792.00
81106 HDPB 3-5 $206.00 13 $2,678.00 20 $4,120.00
83109 HDPB 10-15 $558.88 27 $15,089.76 31 $17,325.28
23-300-20 12x4 Panel $3,747.10 21 $78,689.00 24 $89,930.28
23-311-00 I-Column Clamp $237.48 9 $2,137.32 27 $6,411.96
23-300-40 12x3 Panel $3,502.40 24 $84,057.60 24 $84,057.60
23-302-30 8x3.5 Panel $2,837.84 9 $25,540.52 4 $11,351.34
23-304-30 4x3.5 Panel $1,620.16 1 $1,620.16 1 $1,620.16
23-304-40 4x3 Panel $1,583.97 1 $1,583.97 1 $1,583.97
23-304-50 4x2.5 Panel $1,253.86 1 $1,253.86 1 $1,253.86
23-304-70 4x1.5 Panel $902.03 1 $902.03 1 $902.03
23-306-60 Inside Corner 8ft $2,000.30 2 $4,000.59 12 $24,003.54
23-309-10 Inside Strip Corner $1,879.52 6 $11,277.09 8 $15,036.12
23-300-50 12x2.5 Panel $2,664.09 16 $42,625.44 15 $39,961.35
23-300-30 12x3.5 Panel $3,642.84 12 $43,714.12 15 $54,642.65
23-307-00 Art. OC 12ft $2,686.53 16 $42,984.48 8 $21,492.24
Total $1,208,628.91 $1,395,620.56
Nominal wastage-3% $36,258.87 $41,868.62
Grand Total $1,244,887.78 $1,437,489.17
Savings $192,601.39
Percentage Savings 13.80041247

As shown in table 5-3 and figure 5-5, a comparative cost analysis report was prepared according

to list prices of the formwork material used in the project. Table 5-3 contains the descriptions of

73
formwork material, the actual quantity ordered on site for the project, the minimum quantity of

material as calculated by the proposed cascading tool and the list prices for the formwork

components. The quantitative analysis also accounted for 3 percent of total formwork material

cost as nominal wastage/waste factor to compensate for any formwork component that is lost on

site or damaged during construction. This wastage factor also compensates for the deterioration

of the formwork material which occurs due to double handling or poor management. As shown

at the bottom of table 5-3, a cost comparison of the actual quantity of the formwork material used

on site and the cost of formwork calculated by the tool, reveals savings of 13 percent in material

cost.

5.4.2 Qualitative Savings:

The individual optimized formwork component re-use reports can assist the labors and engineers

on site to install and take off the formwork according to formal optimized schedules so that the

formwork installation or stripping do not rely on visual inspection only. This will ensure that the

formwork is re-used up to its maximum potential and is not left on a concrete phase for more

than the time actually required. In addition to the maximum reuse, the optimized re-use schedule

of the forms can also potentially decrease labor hours and work pressure as the forms will be

taken from one phase after stripping to the next phase for installation, which will eliminate

double handling, any need of temporary storage, reduce formwork damage and decrease the

amount of labor work in the process.

Furthermore, an efficient formwork schedule can decrease the number of crane lifts and labor

hours as the form can be lifted up from the phase it is stripped from and taken directly to the next

phase where it is scheduled to be installed. Since the labor working hours and crane lifts data

were not available from the case study, no quantitative assessment could be performed.

74
5.4.3 Maximum savings from the most expensive and uncommon formwork components:

On a concrete construction project, major savings can be achieved by minimizing the number of

most expensive, larger and uncommon formwork components along with keeping track of

movement of those components on the construction site. Typically larger and expensive

components such as a 12’x8’ wall panel, are not likely to get lost on site, however poor

formwork management and double handling can damage the components which adds the cost of

maintenance and repair of damage to the total cost of concrete construction. In addition, some

formwork components such as wall panels have a protective lining on their surface which can get

damaged due to poor and double handling and once it gets damaged it is very expensive to

replace it. Hence, along with maximizing the re-use of larger formwork components, it is very

important to track and plan the proper movement of such components so that they do not get

damaged in handling and lifting.

Inexpensive and smaller formwork components, which are more likely to get lost on site and

damaged are often ordered in abundance such as clamps, connectors, assembly locks and ties.

These components are not very expensive and keeping track of them on construction site

becomes very difficult and costs additional labor, which decreases their priority as compared to

more expensive components.

Additionally, uncommon formwork components such as wall panels of irregular sizes for

example, 1’-6”, 2’-6” and 3’-6” wall panels are more expensive to manufacture as they are

produced in less volumes. Although being smaller in size these components are expensive and

impact the total cost invested in formwork material and are given more priority for tracking and

handling as compared to the smaller and inexpensive formwork components used on site. Hence,

75
the most expensive, larger and uncommon formwork components are more relevant to a concrete

construction project as they have the greatest impact on the cost of concrete construction.

In order to calculate the savings from more relevant components which significantly impact the

cost of construction, the minimum quantity of such formwork components ordered for the case

study project is compared with the minimum quantity calculated by the cascading tool. Table 5-4

shows the comparative cost analysis report according to the most relevant formwork material

used on the case study project. The comparative analysis reveals savings of 10 percent in

material costs for the most expensive and uncommon formwork components.

76
Table 5-4: Comparative cost analysis report based on the most relevant formwork components used on the case study

project.

Item Description List Required Price Actual Price

Number Price Predicted Predicted Order Actual
23-300-05 12'x8' Panel $7,775.10 54 $419,855.56 57 $443,180.87
23-307-50 Art. IC 12ft $4,185.12 9 $37,666.04 12 $50,221.38
23-300-20 12x4 Panel $3,747.10 21 $78,689.00 24 $89,930.28
23-300-30 12x3.5 Panel $3,642.84 12 $43,714.12 15 $54,642.65
23-300-40 12x3 Panel $3,502.40 24 $84,057.60 24 $84,057.60
23-302-30 8x3.5 Panel $2,837.84 9 $25,540.52 4 $11,351.34
23-306-50 Inside Corner 12ft $2,703.80 21 $56,779.80 16 $43,260.80
23-307-00 Art. OC 12ft $2,686.53 16 $42,984.48 8 $21,492.24
23-300-50 12x2.5 Panel $2,664.09 16 $42,625.44 15 $39,961.35
23-300-60 12x2 Panel $2,228.27 28 $62,391.56 30 $66,848.10
23-306-60 Inside Corner 8ft $2,000.30 2 $4,000.59 12 $24,003.54
23-309-10 Inside Strip Corner $1,879.52 6 $11,277.09 8 $15,036.12
23-300-70 12x1.5 Panel $1,854.74 6 $11,128.43 8 $14,837.90
23-302-60 8x2 Panel $1,756.26 23 $40,393.98 25 $43,906.50
23-304-30 4x3.5 Panel $1,620.16 1 $1,620.16 1 $1,620.16
23-304-40 4x3 Panel $1,583.97 1 $1,583.97 1 $1,583.97
23-300-80 12x1 Panel $1,578.20 10 $15,781.98 10 $15,781.98
23-304-50 4x2.5 Panel $1,253.86 1 $1,253.86 1 $1,253.86
23-306-00 Outside Corner 12ft $1,018.08 35 $35,632.73 35 $35,632.73
23-304-70 4x1.5 Panel $902.03 1 $902.03 1 $902.03
23-306-10 OC 8ft $743.33 5 $3,716.63 6 $4,459.95
23-311-10 I-Scaffolding Adapter $555.60 104 $57,782.40 194 $107,786.40
83109 HDPB 10-15 $453.00 27 $12,231.00 31 $14,043.00
29-106-50 Scaff. Bracket $315.36 90 $28,382.40 183 $57,710.88
81106 HDPB 3-5 $206.00 13 $2,678.00 20 $4,120.00
Total $1,122,669.35 $1,247,625.64
Nominal wastage-3% $33,680.08 $37,428.77
Grand Total $1,156,349.43 $1,285,054.41
Savings $128,704.97
Percentage Savings 10.31599293

77
 Chapter 6

Discussion

Formwork has a significant impact on the concrete construction process from the perspective of

time, cost and quality and hence the formwork selection and management process is crucial for a

successful and efficient construction project. Most of the previous research related to automating

the formwork process has focused on improving the formwork selection process and not the

formwork management process. This research has focused on improving the formwork

management process by developing a tool that optimizes the re-use of formwork. The tool was

validated by using data from a large concrete structure project. Validation results revealed a

potential savings of thirteen percent in formwork material costs with additional anticipated

savings resulting from a reduction in labor hours and crane lifts.

Although, the proposed tool can be used on any concrete construction project, it is anticipated

that the cost savings achieved may vary depending on the type of project. For example,

maximum cost savings from using the tool will typically be achieved on a complex concrete

construction project where the concrete phases do not necessarily follow the same layout and it is

difficult to plan the formwork reuse schedule manually for all concrete phases. In such case, the

tool can generate more accurate results than manual calculations.

The proposed tool is intended for use after concrete modeling is completed and formwork is

placed/detailed around the concrete for all phases and formwork material quantity take off data

are generated before the beginning of concrete construction. This can be a limitation of the tool

as currently formwork detailing and layout is a time consuming process and in many cases,

concrete construction begins before the formwork detailing for all concrete phases are

78
completed. We anticipate that this limitation will be reduced as more automated processes of

modeling formwork in BIM are developed.

Future efforts towards increasing the potential of the proposed cascading tool may include the

development of intra organizational data collection to monitor and include quantity take off data

and project schedule from other “local” projects. This may enable contractors to optimize the re-

use of formwork across multiple projects simultaneously. This function will also aid contractors

to avoid the shipping charges paid if the formwork material is available on a nearby project site.

79
 Chapter 7

Conclusion

The main objective of this research was to increase formwork reusability and minimize man-

hours required for formwork planning. To achieve this objective, this study discussed the

development and use of a BIM enabled cascading formwork re-use scheduling tool. This tool

uses quantity takeoff reports from the different concrete phases of a project as the input and

generates the following output:

 Optimized formwork reuse schedules for each formwork component, which will assist

personnel on site to install and take off the formwork based on the scheduled timeline.

 Master “formwork ordering” report which contains the minimum quantity of all

formwork components that need to be ordered.

The proposed tool can potentially increase formwork reusability, reduces the need for temporary

storage, reduces damage due to double handling, saves labor hours, reduces crane lifts and

ultimately reduces the cost of concrete construction by increasing the return on cost investment

for formwork systems.

Cost savings benefits associated with using the proposed tool were estimated using data collected

from a case study project. The results generated from the tool were compared with actual data

available for the project and thirteen percent savings in material cost was calculated.

80
 References:

[1] Salman Azhar, Malik Khalfan, and Tayyab Maqsood, "Building Information Modeling

(BIM): Now and Beyond," Australasian Journal of Construction Economics and Building,

vol. 12, no. 4, 2012.

[2] Chijoo Lee, Sungil Ham, and Ghang Lee, "The Development of Automatic Module for

Formwork Layout using the BIM," System, vol. 3, no. 7, pp. 8-10, 2009.

[3] Brad Hardin, BIM and Construction Management: Proven Tools, Methods, and Workflows,

1, Ed.: John Wiley & Sons.Inc, 2009.

[4] Chien Ho Ko, Wei-Chieh Wang, and De-KuoJium, "Improving Formwork Engineering

Using the Toyota Way," Journal of Engineering, Project, and Production Management,

vol. 1, no. 1, pp. 13-27, July 2011.

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90
 APPENDIX A

1. Main Function-Cascading tool

0 function Cascading_Tool
1 source_directory = uigetdir('','Enter Source File Location'); % The user is asked to enter the
folder location where the QTO reports are saved on hard drive.
2 source_files = dir(fullfile(source_directory, '*.xlsx')); % All the files with extension .xlsx
present in the source directly specified by the user are stored in "source_files".
3 h = waitbar(0,'Initializing...'); % The wait bar is initialized.
4 Glo_Struct = struct; % Initializing a matlab structure to the variable "Glo_Struct".
5 temp_tab = table; % Initializing a matlab table to the variable "temp_tab".
6 for i = 1:length(source_files) % For-loop to access all the files in the source directory
7 waitbar(i/length(source_files),h,'Processing...')% The wait bar displays "Processing..." and
increases as it runs across all the source files from i=0 to i=no of all files.
8 name = source_files(i).name; % Variable "name" is used to store the name of the files located
in the source directory.
9 [Phase,Instal_Start_Date,Instal_End_Date,Strip_Start_Date,
Strip_End_Date,c,Description,Quantity] = Read_Excel(source_directory, name); % The source
directly and variable "name" is sent to a sub function "Read_Excel" for further processing. The
program is redirected to Line-73 to use the sub function "Read_Excel". Convert Phase files to
item tables contained in a global structure- Now the original QTO reports which are sorted by
phase numbers are converted to individual Item# files
10 for j = 1:length(ItemNumber) % For-loop iterates through all the entries in array
"ItemNumber" and removes leading and trailing whitespace and then converts them to cell array
of character vectors.
11 if iscellstr(cell2mat(ItemNumber(j,1)))
12 IN = strtrim(cell2mat(ItemNumber(j,1)));

91
13 else
14 IN = strtrim(num2str(cell2mat(ItemNumber(j,1))));
15 end
16 varname = matlab.lang.makeValidName(IN,'Prefix','Z'); % "varname" is a dynamically
generated key which will create files named by ItemNumbers and Letter "Z" is added before all
Itemnumbers as Matlab does not support variable names starting from numeric values. This letter
will be omitted in the Line-49.
17 if isfield(Glo_Struct, varname) ~= 1 % This if block creates an unique table by
ItemNumber in the Glo_Struct and if a table with that ItemNumber already exists it moves to
next ItemNumber so that the tables are not overridden.
18 tab = table;
19 Glo_Struct.(varname)=tab;
20 end
21 tab = Glo_Struct.(varname); % Table for each ItemNumber is retrieved from Glo_Struct
and it's size is checked and incremented by 1 for the new entry.
22 ind = size(tab,1)+1;
23 temp_tab.Phase(1,1) = cellstr(strtrim(Phase(1,1))); % A temporary table "temp_tab" is
created and it is populated with ItemNumber data i.e. Phase,
Description,Quantity,Instal_Start_Date, Instal_End_Date, Strip_Start_Date, Strip_End_Date,
24 temp_tab.Desc(1,1) = cellstr(strtrim(Description(j,1)));
25 temp_tab.Quantity(1,1) = Quantity(j,1);
26 temp_tab.ISD(1,1) = datetime(Instal_Start_Date(1,1));
27 temp_tab.IED(1,1) = datetime(Instal_End_Date(1,1));
28 temp_tab.SSD(1,1) = datetime(Strip_Start_Date(1,1));
29 temp_tab.SED(1,1) = datetime(Strip_End_Date(1,1));
30 tab(ind,:) = temp_tab; % The data populated in "temp_tab" is stored into table "tab".
31 Glo_Struct.(varname)=tab; % The table "tab" with updated data is now stored in
Glo_Struct corresponding to the ItemNumber key.
32 end
33 end % End of for-loop.
34 close(h); % The wait bar showing "Processing..." is closed now.

92
% Call Process function
35 h = waitbar(0,'Generating Reports...'); % The wait bar is initialized again.
36 name_tables = fieldnames(Glo_Struct); % "name_tables" is a variable to store the names of
the fields in Glo_Struct i.e. the ItemNumbers.
37 Master_Table = table; % A table "Master_Table is created.
38 temp_tab = table; % A table "temp_tab" is created.
39 dest_directory = uigetdir('','Enter Destination Location'); % The user is asked to specify a
destination location to save the results.
40 if ismac
41 dest_dir = [dest_directory,'/'];
42 elseif ispc
43 dest_dir = [dest_directory,'\'];
44 end
45 for i = 1:length(name_tables) % For-loop iterates through each entry in name_tables i.e. each
ItemNumber tables stored in Glo_Struct.
46 waitbar(i/length(name_tables),h,'Generating and Saving Reports...')% The wait bar
displays "Generating and Saving Reports..." and increases as itruns across all the entries in
name_tables from i=0 to i=no of all entries.
47 Component = Glo_Struct.(char(name_tables(i,1))); % A table "Component" is created and
it retrieves data from Glo_Struct corresponding to the particular name_tables i.e. ItemNumber.
48 Component = sortrows(Component,'ISD'); % All the data in the "Component" is sorted by
ISD(Installation Start Date) in ascending order.
49 comp_id = strrep(strrep(char(name_tables(i,1)),'Z',''),'_','-'); % The character "Z" added as
prefix to ItemNumbers in Line-16 is now omitted and any underscores are replaced by hyphen
and saved in array "comp_id".
50 [ ~,Num_Comp ] = Process(Component,comp_id,dest_dir); % The array "comp_id" and
tables "Component" corresponding to each entry in "comp_id" along with the the destination
directory is now passed to function "Process" and code is redirected to Line-99.
51 var = cellstr(comp_id); % Array "var" is created which stores the entries form the array
"comp_id".
52 temp_tab.Component_Id(1,1) = var(1,1); % A column "Component_Id" is created in a new

93
table "temp_tab" and it is populated with the entries from array "var".
53 temp_tab.Total_Order(1,1) = Num_Comp; % Another column is created in table
"temp_tab" and it is populated with entries from the array "Num_Comp" which is returned by the
sub function "Process" in Line-50.
54 Master_Table(i,:) = temp_tab; % A table "Master_Table" is created which is populated
from the information stored in table"temp_tab".
55 end % The for-loop initialized in Line-45 ends here.
56 filename = [dest_dir,'Master_Table.csv']; % A .csv file is created in the destination directory
with name "Master_Table".
57 writetable(Master_Table,filename); % The table "Master_Table" is populated in the file
created in Line-56.
58 close(h); % The wait bar displaying "Generating and Saving Reports..." is now closed.
% Share generated reports via e-mail- this enables the user to make a .zip file of the destination
directory and email it to a desired mailbox.
59 options.Interpreter = 'tex';
60 options.Default = 'No';
61 choice = questdlg('Cascading reports has been generated: Would you like to share the
reports?','Share Reports','Yes','No',options); % The user is asked if he/she desires to mail the
generated results in the destination directory.
62 if isequal(choice, 'Yes') % If the user selects "Yes" to the choice in Line-61 then the pop-up
window asks the user to enter the recipients email address.
63 x = inputdlg('Enter recipients E-mail address: ','E-mail', [1 100]);
64 email = char(x);
65 default_message = 'Please find the attached Reports';
66 subject = 'Cascading Reports';
67 zip([dest_directory,'.zip'],dest_directory);
68 mailTo(email,default_message,subject,[dest_directory,'.zip']); % If the user selects "Yes"
to the choice in Line-61, then the code redirects to a sub function "mailTo" in Line-143.
69 end % The if-statement initialized in Line-62 ends here.
70 clearvars; % All the temporary variables are cleared.

94
71 msgbox('Operation Completed'); % The message box displays "Operation Completed"
72 end % The program ends here.

2. Sub Function-Read Excel

73 function
[Phase,Instal_Start_Date,Instal_End_Date,Strip_Start_Date,Strip_End_Date,ItemNumber,Descri
ption,Quantity]= Read_Excel(source_directory, name) % The program is redirected here from
Line-8.The function requires source directory and name as input and returns
Phase,Instal_Start_Date,Instal_End_Date,Strip_Start_Date,Strip_End_Date,ItemNumber,Descrip
tion and Quantity as output
% Import data from spreadsheet
% Script for importing data from all spreadsheets:
% Import the data
74 [~, ~, raw] = xlsread(fullfile(source_directory, name)); % xlsread is an inbuilt matlab
function that returns both numeric and text data in cell array named "raw"
75 cellVectors1 = raw(4,1:4); % In the generated QTO reports the fourth row contains the
installation start and end dates and stripping start and end dates for that phase
76 cellVectors1(cellfun(@(x) ~isempty(x) && isnumeric(x) && isnan(x),cellVectors1)) = {''};
% Replacing empty, non numeric and invalid cells with empty cells
77 cellVectors2 = raw(1,2); % In the generated QTO reports the first row and second column
cell contains the name of the phase
78 cellVectors2(cellfun(@(x) ~isempty(x) && isnumeric(x) && isnan(x),cellVectors2)) = {''};
% Replacing empty, non numeric and invalid cells with empty cells
79 cellVectors3 = raw(11:end,[1,2,3,4]); % In the generated QTO reports the eleventh to end
rows and first to 4 columns contain alphanumeric formwork equipment information for that
phase
80 cellVectors3(cellfun(@(x) ~isempty(x) && isnumeric(x) && isnan(x),cellVectors3)) = {''};
% Replacing empty, non numeric and invalid cells with empty cells
81 cellVectors4 = raw(11:end,[5,6,7]); % In the generated QTO reports the eleventh to end rows

95
and fifth to seventh columns contain alphanumeric formwork equipment information for that
phase
% Replace non-numeric cells with 0.0
82 R = cellfun(@(x) (~isnumeric(x) && ~islogical(x)) || isnan(x),cellVectors4); % Find non-
numeric cells in cellVectors4
83 cellVectors4(R) = {0.0}; % Replace non-numeric cells with 0
% Allocate imported array to column variable names
84 ItemNumber = cellVectors3(:,3); % Column#3 from "cellvectors3" is stored in array
"ItemNumber".
85 Description = cellVectors3(:,4); % Column#4 from "cellvectors3" is stored in array
"Description".
86 Quantity = cellVectors4(:,1); % Column#1 from "cellvectors4" is stored in array "Quantity".
87 Phase_Name = cellVectors2(:,1); % Column#1 from "cellvectors2" is stored in array
"Phase_Name".
88 Installation_Start_Date = cellVectors1(:,1); % Column#1 from "cellvectors1" is stored in
array "Installation_Start_Date".
89 Installation_End_Date = cellVectors1(:,2); % Column#2 from "cellvectors1" is stored in
array "Installation_End_Date".
90 Stripping_Start_Date = cellVectors1(:,3); % Column#3 from "cellvectors1" is stored in array
"Stripiing_Start_Date".
91 Stripping_End_Date = cellVectors1(:,4); % Column#4 from "cellvectors1" is stored in array
"Stripping_End_Date".
% Prepare return variables
% The data stored in array "Phase_Name" etc. are trimmed to remove leading and trailing
whitespace and then converted to cell array of character vectors
92 Phase = cellstr(strtrim(char(Phase_Name(1,1))));
93 Instal_Start_Date = cellstr(strtrim(datestr(Installation_Start_Date(1,1))));
94 Instal_End_Date = cellstr(strtrim(datestr(Installation_End_Date(1,1))));
95 Strip_Start_Date = cellstr(strtrim(datestr(Stripping_Start_Date(1,1))));
96 Strip_End_Date = cellstr(strtrim(datestr(Stripping_End_Date(1,1))));
% Clear temporary variables

96
97 clearvars raw cellVectors1 cellVectors2 cellVectors3 cellVectors4 R; % The temporary
variables are cleared from workspace.
98 end % The function "Read_Excel" ends and redirects to Line-11.

3. Sub Function-Process Starts

99 function [ Comp,Num_Comp ] = Process(Comp,Comp_Id,dest_dir) % The program is

redirected here from Line-50 and the subfunction "Process" receives array "comp_id" and
corresponding "Component" table and the destination directory and returns array "Comp" which
stores the component id and array "Num_comp" which stores the minimum number of
equipment of corresponding component id(s) required to order for the project.
100 indices = find(Comp.Quantity(:)==0); % This checks whether any indices in column
"Quantity" in the table "Comp" is zero or not.
101 Comp(indices,:) = []; % If any indices in column Quantity is zero then that row it is emptied.
102 Comp.Temp(1)=Comp.Quantity(1); % In the table comp a new column "Temp" is created
and it is populated with the first entry in column "Quantity", this signifies that the quantity of
formwork equipment required in the first phase must be ordered and hence the first entry is
treated uniquely.
103 ISD = Comp.ISD; % Array "ISD" is created to store the entries of column "ISD" from table
"Comp".These are Installation Start Dates for phases.
105 SSD = Comp.SSD; % Array "SSD" is created to store the entries of column "SSD" from
table "Comp".These are Stripping Start Dates for phases.
105 R = Comp.Quantity; % Array "R" is created to store the entries of column "Quantity" from
table "Comp". These are the quantities of the particular ItemNumber required in the phases.
106 A = Comp.Temp; % Array "A" is created to update the "virtual inventory" or available
quantity of the particular ItemNumber.
107 n = length(R);
108 Comp.Order_Info = Comp.Quantity; % A new column "Comp.Order_Info" is created in the
table "Comp" and populated with entries from the "Quantity" column in order to initialize the
process.

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109 N = Comp.Order_Info; % Array "N" is created and it retrieves the data from the column
"Oder_Info" in table "Comp".
110 Comp.Scheduling_Info = cell(n,1);
111 P = Comp.Phase; % Array "P" is created which retrieves data from the "Phase" column in
the table "Comp".
112 for d = 2:n % For-loop starts from d=2, i.e. from Phase (2) as in the Phase (1) the items
required will be equal to the items ordered as there is no phase before Phase (1).
113 for i = 1:n-1
114 j = d-i;
115 if ISD(d)>=SSD(j) && A(j)~=0 % The if statement checks if the ISD of phase(2) is
greater than or equal to SSD of phase(1).If this is true, then the equipment stripped from phase(1)
can be directly taken to phase(2) for re-use and the program keeps moving forward. If this
statement is false then the program redirects to Line-136.
116 if A(j) <= (R(d) - A(d)) % The if statement checks if the {required quantity in
phase(2)- available quantity in phase (2)}, is greater than the available quantity from phase(1). If
this is true then, all the available quantity from phase(1) will be sent to phase (2) and the
program keeps moving forward. If this statement is false then the program redirects to Line-127.
117 str = ['(Phase ',char(P(j)),' to ','Phase ',char(P(d)),' - ',num2str(A(j)),')']; % This
populates the column "Scheduling_Info" with the re-use information for example- Phase(1) to
Phase(2)-15; which means the number of components used from Phase(1) in Phase(2) is 15.
118 Comp.Scheduling_Info(d,1) = strcat(str, {' ; '},Comp.Scheduling_Info(d,1));
119 A(d) = A(d) + A(j); % Now the available quantity in the phase (2) will be equal to
the quantity which was available in phase(1).
120 A(j) = 0; % And the available quantity in the phase(1) for reuse will be zero as the
whole quantity has been sent to phase(2) for re-use.
121 else % If the statement in Line-122 is false the program is redirected to this
statement.
122 x = A(j) - (R(d) - A(d)); % This is the case where the available quantity in phase(1)
is greater than the required quantity in phase(2). In this case a remaining quantity will be left in
Phase (1) after sending the other quantity to phase (2) for reuse. This quantity is stored in a
temporary variable "x".

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123 str = ['(Phase ',char(P(j)),' to ','Phase ',char(P(d)),' - ',num2str((R(d) - A(d))),')'];
124 Comp.Scheduling_Info(d,1) = strcat(str, {' ; '},Comp.Scheduling_Info(d,1));
125 A(d) = R(d); % Now the available quantity in phase(2) will be equal to the required
quantity in phase(2) as the required quantity was sent from phase (1) to phase (2).
126 A(j) = x; % And the remaining quantity in the phase(1) will be equal to the quantity
left after sending the required quantity of phase (2) to phase (2) i.e. the value stored in the
temporary variable "x".
127 end % The if-statement in the Line-116 ends here.
128 N(d) = R(d) - A(d); % The quantity required to be ordered for phase(2) will be the
{required quantity in phase(2)- quantity now available in phase(2)}.
129 end % The if-statement in the Line-115 ends here.
130 if N(d)==0 || i+1 == d % This statement checks if the quantity required to be ordered for
phase(2) is either zero or if there are no more phase(s) to check for available quantities-for
example- for quantity required for phase (2) can only be fulfilled by quantity available in
phase(1) and there is no other phase previous to phase(1).
131 break; % If the condition in Line-130 is true, then the program breaks out of the for-loop
initialized in Line-119 and moves forward, else it redirects to Line-119.
132 end % The if-statement in Line-130 ends here.
133 end % The for loop initialized in Line-113 ends here which signifies that the required
quantity for phase (2) has been fulfilled by all the previous phases available and the program can
move to phase (3) now.
134 A(d) = A(d) + N(d); % After the required quantity for phase(2) has been fulfilled, the
available quantity in phase(2) for re-use in next phases will be equal to { quantity now available
in phase(2) + any quantity that has to be ordered for phase (2)}.
135 end %The for loop initialized in LIne-112 ends here after processing all the phases unto
phase(n).
136 Comp.Order_Info = N;
137 Num_Comp = sum(N); % Now the total quantity required for a particular ItemNumber will
be equal to the sum of all quantities in array "N".
138 Comp.Temp = [];
139 filename = [dest_dir,Comp_Id,'.csv'];% Files are created for all ItemNumbers with the

99
names retrived from array "Comp_Id" in the destination directory.
140 writetable(Comp,filename); % The processed table with the order and scheduling info is
stored in the files created in Line-145.
141 clearvars d i j n x A D K N R indices str; % All the variables created for the purpose of the
sub function "Process" are cleared.
142 end % The sub function "Process" ends here and the program is redirected to Line-51.

4. Sub Function-mailTo starts

143 function recipient = mailTo(recipient, message, subject, attachment, sender, psswd) % The
program is redirected here from Line-68
% Function "mailTo" sends an email from a predefined Gmail account. In the following block
the user specifies the default server, email account username, password of the default sender's
email account used to send the generated results to a third party.
144 if nargin<5
145 sender = 'full email id';
146 psswd = '************';
147 end
148 setpref('Internet','E_mail',sender);
149 setpref('Internet','SMTP_Server','smtp.gmail.com');
150 setpref('Internet','SMTP_Username',sender);
151 setpref('Internet','SMTP_Password',psswd);
152 props = java.lang.System.getProperties;
153 props.setProperty('mail.smtp.auth','true');
154 props.setProperty('mail.smtp.socketFactory.class','javax.net.ssl.SSLSocketFactory');
155 props.setProperty('mail.smtp.socketFactory.port','465');
156 sendmail(recipient, subject, message, attachment);
157 end % Sub-function mailTo ends here and program is redirected to Line-69.

Published with MATLAB® R2016a

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 APPENDIX B

Table B- 2: List of 82 components used in 24 phases of the case study project (Part-1).

No. Component_Id Component_Description Total_Order

1 2-500-2990 DCR Brace-Bolt 59
2 23-300-05 12'x8' Wall Panel 54
3 23-300-60 12'x2' Wall Panel 28
4 23-300-70 12'x1.5' Wall Panel 6
5 23-300-80 12'x1' Wall Panel 10
6 23-302-05 8'x8' Wall Panel 49
7 23-302-40 8'x3' Wall Panel 10
8 23-302-60 8'x2' Wall Panel 23
9 23-302-80 8'x1' Wall Panel 7
10 23-306-00 Outside Corner 12' 35
11 23-306-10 Outside Corner 8' 5
12 23-306-50 Inside Corner 12' 21
13 23-307-50 Articulated Inside Corner 12' 9
14 23-310-20 Alignment Rail 4' 3
15 23-311-10 I-Scaffolding Adapter 104
16 23-312-15 I-Filler-12'x2' 2
17 29-106-50 Scaffolding Bracket 90
18 29-106-75 Guardrail Post 193
19 29-311-95 Shoe Plate 86
20 29-400-71 M-Assembly Lock 516
21 29-400-90 Uni Assembly Lock28 309
22 29-401-10 Flange Screw18 227
23 29-804-85 Prop Connector 15
24 42-413-50 Head Bolt 16/90 38
25 1500 Super-Stud 12' 40
26 1501 Super-Stud Screw Jack 58
27 3500 Super-Stud 3' 39
28 6501 Super-Stud Diagonal Hinge 24
29 9501 Super-Stud 45 Deg Adapter 28
30 38901 Soldier 4' 27
31 38902 Soldier 8' 86
32 80080 Pipe Brace Shoe-1 43
33 80182 Quick Bolt 3/4"x4" 43
34 81106 Heavy Duty Pipe Brace3'-5' 13
35 82060 TTW 1 1/4 585
36 83109 Heavy Duty Pipe Brace10'-15' 27
37 111111 D-1 Brace 42
38 B39 Wingnut 1-1/4" 585
39 D30 She-Bolt 1.25" x 20" 586
40 MVS10027-h Flange Screw 12in 110
41 MVS10109-h Alignment Rail 180 50
42 2-500-2330 Turnbuckle 12

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Table B- 3 List of 82 components used in 24 phases of the case study project (Part-2).

No. Component_Id Component_Description Total_Order

43 23-300-20 12'x4' Wall Panel 21
44 23-302-20 8'x4' Wall Panel 24
45 23-311-00 I-Column Clamp 9
46 23-312-20 I-Filler-12'x1' 1
47 23-802-70 8'x1.5' Wall Panel 7
48 29-802-48 Articulated Foot Plate 4
49 29-900-20 Flange Nut 100 9
50 2500 Super-Stud 6' 17
51 80058 Super-Stud-01 Scaffold Arm 23
52 82058 Super-Stud-42 Scaffold Post 23
53 MBS10112-h Alignement Rail 250 2
54 23-300-40 12'x3' Wall Panel 24
55 23-302-30 8'x3.5' Wall Panel 9
56 23-302-50 8'x2.5' Wall Panel 7
57 23-312-10 I-Filler-12'x3' 3
58 23-304-30 4'x3.5' Wall Panel 1
59 23-304-40 4'x3' Wall Panel 1
60 23-304-50 4'x2.5' Wall Panel 1
61 23-304-60 4'x2' Wall Panel 4
62 23-304-70 4'x1.5' Wall Panel 1
63 23-304-80 4'x1' Wall Panel 1
64 23-305-30 2'x3.5' Wall Panel 1
65 23-305-50 2'x2.5' Wall Panel 2
66 23-305-80 2'x1' Wall Panel 1
67 23-306-60 Inside Corner 8' 2
68 23-309-10 Inside Stripping Corner 6
69 23-300-50 12'x2.5' Wall Panel 16
70 ABS10006 Aluminium Beam 6' 9
71 ABS10008 Aluminium Bea 8' 6
72 ABS10012 Aluminium Bea 12' 9
73 AMS10012 Aluminium Stringer 12' 3
74 ASX10011 Base Plat 6
75 ASX10015 U-Head 6
76 ASX10030 Short Jack 6
77 ASX31500 Leg 1.5m 4-11 6
78 ASX41200 Frame 1-2M 7
79 23-300-30 12'x3.5' Wall Panel 12
80 23-307-00 Articulated Outside Corner 12' 16
81 23-312-45 I-Filler-8'x2' 3
82 23-306-20 Outside Corner 4' 1

102