Civil Engineering research team explores lean construction management

Recently, a research team led by Dr Jianli Hao from the Department of Civil Engineering published a paper named ‘Implementing Lean Construction Techniques and Management Methods in Chinese Projects: A Case Study in Suzhou, China’ in Journal of Cleaner Production. The research investigates how lean construction management (LCM) can be implemented to Chinese construction project and thereby maximize the project value while reducing the waste, based on BOSCH Sz215 Project.

The application of lean construction is rare in China, and only very few large firms have the ability and resources to implement lean techniques and lean construction management to projects. This situation greatly obstructed the research progress as no suitable construction project could be a practical case to support the team's theoretical findings.

After consulting Liang Qian, the current Chairman of the Department's Industrial Advisory Board who works at BOSCH China Investment Ltd., the research team was offered a great opportunity. One project located in Suzhou was under construction, and the whole construction process was applied lean construction management, satisfying the needs of the team perfectly. Qian also suggested the team to conduct on-site observation, and systematically introduced the application strategies of lean construction methods in BOSCH.

The research team members participated in the case project Sz215 project for three months to observe the construction process and the application of lean techniques. By participating in on-site construction activities and interacting with the different construction stakeholders, the case study completed the comparison between traditional and lean construction methods, and between domestic and global lean construction management.

The success of this case study and paper publication reflects the vision of the Department's Industrial Advisory Board, which is to develop fruitful collaboration between academia and industry to foster research, learning and career prospects for civil engineering students, and to increase the attractiveness of civil engineering professions to be the first career choice for the young generation.

Story provided by Weiqi Xing

Edited by Yi Qian