Agent-Based Modeling and Simulation of Congested Sites

Site planning is always performed on construction sites to arrange the locations of facilities to minimize travel distances of the different resources. However, this type of planning and optimization does not consider the clashes and the congestions that may happen due to the presence of multiple types of resources. This results in safety hazards and injuries and loss of productivity in congested areas, leading to delays in the original schedule. The objective of this paper is to track the actual paths where resources are followed, starting from entering the site, moving to the desired location, performing work, moving to another location, and exiting the site. A simulation model is created using AnyLogic software to track the path of every single resource and produce a density map combining all of them, highlighting the different congestion areas. The model focuses on three types of resources, namely (1) labor, (2) equipment, and (3) material. After analyzing the congestions and conflicts between the resources, the model produces a safety analysis. In addition, the model helps identify the actual productivity rates of each resource, taking into consideration the travel time and delays on the site, hence producing an updated schedule. Finally, during the execution of the work, online tracking of resources may be used to compare it against the model to identify loss of productivity between the resources on-site. The main aim of this paper is to design the framework and the model that will further be used for the analysis.