Analysis of Industrial Formwork Systems Supply Chain Using Value Stream Mapping

Abstract

Reinforced concrete (RC) is used as the primary structural material in almost all construction projects worldwide, from infrastructure to building projects. Since formwork is an essential part of RC construction supply chain, it has a significant impact on the project performance. In the industrial formwork systems supply chain, the roles and responsibilities of the main stakeholders (e.g., engineer, contractor, formwork fabricator) at various phases of the project can be represented by different supply chain configurations (SCCs). The objectives of this study are to identify different SCCs for industrial formwork systems in the Turkish RC construction industry and to analyze the identified SCCs using value stream mapping (VSM) method, which is an effective and major lean tool for identifying and eliminating waste. For this purpose, first, three SCCs for industrial formwork systems have been identified, which are predominantly used in Turkey. Then, these configurations were analyzed through VSM method on an ongoing building project where 500 m2 of industrial wall formwork would be used as a real-life case study. The analysis results indicated that the SCC with the early involvement of the formwork fabricator (FWF) had higher performance than other SCCs, which is consistent with a lean construction approach.