Shams, A. and Marzouk, M. (2026) Leveraging BIM and time-cost-safety trade-off analysis for optimized decisions in construction projects. Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management, 33(7), pp. 5180-5209. ISSN 0969-9988
Abstract
Purpose – Construction projects are frequently plagued by fatal accidents, emphasizing the necessity for proactive safety measures. Therefore, it is important to evaluate safety leading indicators to prevent construction project accidents proactively. This study aims to evaluate safety-leading indicators in construction projects and then conducts a time-cost-safety trade-off to enhance the performance of construction projects. Design/methodology/approach – This research introduces a comprehensive framework designed to enhance construction project safety through safety visualization to illustrate safety risk scores throughout the project implementation. Safety is evaluated through two-stage structured interviews and analytical hierarchy process. Then, an optimization process takes place using a nondominated sorting genetic algorithm to get the Pareto front solutions in terms of time, cost and safety. Multi-criteria decision-making model is then applied to get a feasible solution which is fed to a safety visualization model that employs a 3D heat map to visualize safety on project elements over time. Findings – The proposed framework is capable to evaluate safety leading indicators, optimize the time-cost-safety trade-off and visualize the selected feasible solution on a 3D-colored heat map. A case study of a residential building located in Cairo, Egypt has been applied to demonstrate the practicality of the framework. Originality/value – This research focuses on proactive safety measures by assessing leading indicators rather than reactive measures like incident reports. Integrating BIM with decision-making techniques allows stakeholders to see how the safety risk levels change to assess and respond to safety risks proactively.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | 3D heat map; analytical hierarchy process; BIM-based safety management; construction safety assessment; multi-criteria decision-making; multi-objective optimization; non-dominated sorting genetic algorithm |
| Index terms: | safety management, genetic algorithm, Cairo, visualization, case study, safety measures, decision-making, multi-criteria decision-making, interview, methodology, Egypt, construction safety, residential building, analytical hierarchy process, construction project, multi-objective optimization, implementation |
| Subjects: | environmental health, production management, decision-making and optimization, health safety and environment, design practice, algorithms, construction type, occupational health and safety management, decision analysis, data collection methods, research methods, contractual arrangements, Geography |
| Topics: | Geographical Context, Project Management, Research Practice, Digital Applications, Procurement, Construction Technology, Sustainability, Risk Management, Health and Safety, Design Practice |
| Descriptive scope: | 5 PCTEA |
N.B. Descriptive scope is a count of how many of the five facets of empirical research are indicated by the words used in title, abstract and keywords. It is not intended as a judgement on the research; merely a count of the kind of word we would expect to indicate Phenomenon, Concepts, Theoretical framing, Empirical techniques, Analytical techniques. If all five are present, then a code of “5 PCTEA” will indicate this. If you feel the coding for this record is questionable, we welcome discussion around the terms we matched or the way we categorized them. The facet you would expect may not be coded, or a facet may be coded inappropriately. This can also bear on a larger question, of which facets should be treated as defining in construction management research. Please get in touch, and we will look at it. More details here