Modeling change impact flows in construction projects

In an ongoing research, a model of construction projects is being developed which can facilitate the analysis of the expected impact of proposed changes. The research examines the hypothesis that it is possible to conduct such an analysis before a change is implemented in the project, since much of the required information already exists when the change is proposed, though it currently remains largely inaccessible or difficult to obtain. A number of graph-theoretic tools and algorithms are used in the model to analyze change impacts. A graph-based Project Connectivity Model represents the information required for providing a rough indication of the possible implications of a proposed change. A clustering algorithm and a path search algorithm are used to identify project elements which are likely to be affected by the change. The propagation of a change impact in the project is modeled as a Change Impact Flow. A quantitative assessment takes into account the ability of project elements to absorb a Change Impact Flow through buffers. This assessment can be highly uncertain. Hence, a non-probabilistic info-gap model is used to represent the uncertainty.