Dynamic transportation planning for prefabricated component supply chain

Purpose

Prefabricated construction concerns off-site production, multi-mode transportation and on-site installation of the prefabricated components, which are interdependent and dynamically interactive, so coordination among the multiple stages along the prefabricated component supply chain (PCSC) is indispensable. This study aims to solve the dynamic transportation planning problem for the PCSC by addressing the interdependency, dynamic interaction and coordination among the multiple stages and different objectives of the stakeholders.

Design/methodology/approach

The PCSC is analyzed and then the formulation for the dynamic transportation planning problem is developed based on the just-in-time (JIT) strategy. The particle swarm optimization (PSO) algorithm is applied to solve the dynamic optimization problem.

Findings

The proposed dynamic transportation planning method for the PCSC regarding component supplier selection, transportation planning for means, routes and schedule, site layout planning and transportation plan adjustment is able to facilitate coordination among the multiple stages by addressing their interdependencies and dynamic interactions, as well as different economic objectives of the stakeholders such as suppliers or the contractor.

Originality/value

The study helps to achieve the advantages of prefabricated construction by prompting coordination among multiple stages of the PCSC by realizing different benefits of the stakeholders. In addition, it provides the stakeholders with the competitive bidding prices and the evaluation data for the bids quote. Meanwhile, it contributes to the domain knowledge of the PCSC management with regard to the viewpoint of coordination and integration of multiple stages rather than only one stage as well as the dynamic optimization model based on the JIT strategy and the PSO algorithm.