Development and Application of an Innovative Planning and Monitoring Tool to Optimize Construction Projects

Abstract

This research develops and applies a tool that allows the breakdown of time objectives to the same level of detail traditionally applied to cost, while also providing a favorable production scheme to ensure the project quality. This tool introduces an innovative approach to planning and execution monitoring through cascading dashboards, representing production packages and activities across designated project zones. This approach reinterprets the Last Planner System for jobs on-site in conjunction with the Location-Based Management System. The primary dashboard facilitates the management of complex work structures—typically involving hundreds of rows in Gantt chart representations or numerous lines in Line of Balance diagrams—while enabling the easy identification of activity cycles and gaps between activities in each zone. The tool offers a four-dimensional planning visualization—what, where, when, and who—enhancing the understanding of activity sequences and workflows across project zones, while also contributing to product quality improvement. Furthermore, it has been demonstrated through its application that the tool provides reliable, real-time information that supports decision-making, optimizes resource allocation, and improves overall project competitiveness. © 2025 by the authors.