Slim Rebai

Despite continued efforts to improve the construction industry’s performance in terms of productivity, budget adherence, and schedule reliability, the sector remains a laggard compared to others. Among the innovative project management approaches aimed at addressing these issues are Advanced Work Packaging (AWP) and Integrated Project Delivery (IPD). This study conducts a comparative literature-based analysis of AWP and IPD, focusing on their performance outcomes and implementation challenges. Through a systematic review of 47 publications and key institutional reports, this study evaluates both methods across criteria such as adaptability, risk sharing, collaboration, workflow granularity, and cost-effectiveness. The results indicate that AWP excels in workflow standardization, package-level planning, and field execution, particularly in industrial and modular projects, while IPD demonstrates superior adaptability, stakeholder integration, and collaborative risk management in complex building projects. However, both methods face barriers including legal constraints, change resistance, and high integration costs. This study proposes context-specific recommendations and highlights potential synergies between AWP and IPD. While the analysis is constrained by limited empirical studies—especially regarding AWP—it lays a foundation for future research and offers actionable insights for project managers selecting between or integrating the two methods.

This study presents a systematic literature review (SLR) of the Advanced Work Packaging (AWP) methodology, focusing on identifying barriers to its adoption. The review encompasses an analysis of 287 documents from 2013 to 2023, including conference articles, doctoral theses, journal articles, master theses, reports, and organizational documents. Following a rigorous selection process, 59 of these documents were identified as pertinent to the investigation. This research employs a dual approach. First, a scientometric analysis to map the collaborative networks of authors and the co-occurrence of keywords, providing a comprehensive picture of the research landscape in AWP. Second, the study delves into the main barriers hindering the adoption of AWP, as revealed through the SLR of the selected documents. The findings offer an overlay network visualization of coauthorship and a network visualization of keyword co-occurrence. The study culminates in a detailed identification of primary AWP barriers, suggestions for future research directions, and potential lines of inquiry within the field. This work contributes to the existing body of knowledge by offering a novel perspective on the challenges associated with AWP implementation and provides a foundation for future scholarly endeavors in this domain.

Purpose: This study aims to introduce and evaluate the COPULA framework, a construction project monitoring solution based on blockchain designed to address the inherent challenges of construction project monitoring and management. This research aims to enhance efficiency, transparency and trust within the dynamic and collaborative environment of the construction industry by leveraging the decentralized, secure and immutable nature of blockchain technology. Design/methodology/approach: This paper employs a comprehensive approach encompassing the formulation of the COPULA model, the development of a digital solution using the ethereum blockchain and extensive testing to assess performance in terms of execution cost, time, integrity, immutability and security. A case analysis is conducted to demonstrate the practical application and benefits of blockchain technology in real-world construction project monitoring scenarios. Findings: The findings reveal that the COPULA framework effectively addresses critical issues such as centralization, privacy and security vulnerabilities in construction project management. It facilitates seamless data exchange among stakeholders, ensuring real-time transparency and the creation of a tamper-proof communication channel. The framework demonstrates the potential to significantly enhance project efficiency and foster trust among all parties involved. Research limitations/implications: While the study provides promising insights into the application of blockchain technology in construction project monitoring, future research could explore the integration of COPULA with existing project management methodologies to broaden its applicability and impact. Further investigations into the solution’s scalability and adaptation to various construction project types and sizes are also suggested. Originality/value: This research offers a comprehensive blockchain solution specifically tailored for the construction industry. Unlike prior studies focusing on theoretical aspects, this paper presents a practical, end-to-end solution encompassing model formulation, digital implementation, proof-of-concept testing and validation analysis. The COPULA framework marks a significant advancement in the digital transformation of construction project monitoring, providing a novel approach to overcoming longstanding industry challenges.

Improper understanding of complexity can be a leading factor in the failure of construction projects. This study aims to provide a better understanding of the complexity of construction projects. For this purpose, this study uses the systematic literature review (SLR) approach to review the related literature and propose a definition for complexity and the criteria that affect the degree of complexity in construction. The results of analyzing 49 studies from the literature showed that, generally, complexity is understood in three ways: the meaning of the word “complexity”, system and organizational complexity, and project complexity. Within these three types of definitions, it was found that “interdependency” and “multiple parts/parties” are the most frequently used keywords. The results also showed that another look at the current lingual definition of complexity is needed. Regarding the criteria, the results showed that the “number of stakeholders”, “scope and project objectives”, and “management structure” are the most important criteria to assess construction project complexity. Accordingly, this study provides a set of recommendations and strategies to help manage complexity in construction projects.

The demand on affording homes for the growing population in the world is noticeably increasing. This demand creates a high pressure to find solutions that can help in constructing quick and affordable shelters. In efforts to improve productivity, performance, and constructability of residential buildings, the direction toward modularity in construction is increasing. In order to gain the best benefits of modular systems in construction, these systems should be associated with project management practices. Among these practices, Advanced Work Packaging (AWP) is a construction driven planning tool that proved its value in improve the delivery and execution effectiveness in the oil and gas fields and currently is witnessing greater consideration in the construction industry. The current study aims to link the two concepts through proposing a framework to integrate AWP in residential modular construction. This article is also presenting an example about the possible way for this integration. The article also discusses the opportunity to improve productivity and installation costs due to the implementation of the proposed framework.