Productivity and ergonomic analysis for a panelized construction manufacturing facility

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Offsite and industrialized building methods are becoming more widely used due to the reduced environmental impact, speed of construction, waste reduction, and cost-competitive prices. Panelized construction is an offsite manufacturing method that encourages a more sustainable and efficient construction process. This research targets the development of productive and safe working environments and construction processes in a panelized construction manufacturing facility. It develops and implements a method to continuously improve the productivity of the production line through time study, production process assessment, and reduction of process waste with the support of a discrete-event simulation (DES) optimization model. When pursuing higher productivity in the manufacturing plant, the consideration of ergonomics is also important, since workers can perform with higher productivity when working in a healthy and safe environment. Thus ergonomic and biomechanical analysis is also included in this scope of work as a means to improve return-to-work programs and reduce potential work-related disorders and corresponding workers' compensation costs. A systematic physical demand analysis will be conducted for the purpose of ergonomic risk identification, risk assessment, and risk mitigation in the production line, thereby enabling the industry to be proactive in preventing injury rather than reactive. A biomechanical human body simulation model will be created and experimental kinematic analysis will also be conducted to provide the construction industry with more comprehensive understanding of the tasks that expose workers to high risks; will limit the maximum load of workers and recommend proper motions for workers, will assist in providing modified work, and will help to stagger tasks among workers in a manner which minimizes ergonomic risk and improves productivity.