Simulating the impact of supply chain management practice on the performance of medium-sized building projects

Construction supply chains encompass the flows of materials, labour, information, plant, equipment and temporary works that originate from a variety of different parties. The impact of various supply chain management practices on project performance has been measured, through a combination of a survey and the development of simulation models. Preliminary investigations were carried out by visiting two medium-sized building projects regularly over a period of six months to gain an understanding of the ways in which delays on supply chains impact on project performance. This was followed by the main survey which was designed to collect data required for developing the simulation models. These models were developed using Pertmaster Risk Expert™ software and incorporated supply chain delays applied to a CPM network of a typical medium-sized building project of 300 days' duration. The results of the simulation showed that the project's median delay was 67 days (22% of the project duration). The use of subcontractors in the project reduced this delay by approximately 45%. It was also learned that delays in material flow caused the biggest impact on the project, followed by labour flow, information flow and 'plant, equipment and temporary work' flow. These findings are an important measure of how much supply chain delays impact on project performance.