ABSTRACT
ABSTRACT: An important part of infrastructure engineering involves the design of complex construction operations. Often, such operations involve considerable risk due to inaccurate understanding of the cost and time required to accomplish them. Discrete-Event simulation modeling and visualization can be of significant assistance in understanding the associated risks, and in reducing these risks via improved operations design. This paper illustrates these concepts in the context of earthwork operations. The paper describes the essential characteristics of earthwork operations and the thought processes that guide their design. It also shows how to use discrete-event simulation to design these operations so that involved risks can be better understood and minimized. The operation selected to illustrate the design process includes two interesting aspects: a long and narrow curve that can only accommodate traffic in one direction at a time, and the routing of trucks to one of two possible excavators. Both aspects require the implementation of dynamic strategies for their improvement and present complexities that can be analyzed well using discrete-event simulation. the field applicability of the various strategies explored and the effectiveness of traditional solutions are also discussed.
