CONSTRUCTION PROJECT SIMULATION USING CYCLONE

Construction simulation is a powerful tool that can be used by a const ruction company for a number of tasks such as productivity measurement , risk analysis, resource planning, design and analysis of constructio n methods, and site planning. The success of simulation at the constru ction-process level has led to a natural attempt to use simulation at the construction-project level. Cyclic Operations Network (CYCLONE) an d related simulation methodologies have provided the fundamental basis of these developments. This paper describes the enhancements made to the CYCLONE modeling methodology to allow simultaneous simulation of p rocesses involved in a construction project. The objective of these en hancements is to allow development of individual models for all the pr ocesses that constitute a project and then to link them so as to simul ate them simultaneously using a common resource pool. Such a simulatio n experiment will allow the construction manager to realistically mode l, analyze, and plan construction projects. This paper provides the sp ecifications required to perform a project-level simulation using the CYCLONE modeling concepts.