A multi-objective construction site layout planning problem solved through integration of location and traffic assignment models

Effective construction site layout planning is imperative for ensuring the productivity and safety of construction operations during the various phases of a project. Contrary to previous studies where the focus has been merely on the location decisions of operating facilities, this study examines the site layout planning problem from the perspective of incorporating planning considerations for on-land traffic assignment on site. The site layout planning problem is thus solved by accounting for location decisions, on-land material handling equipment choices, and traffic assignment on the site’s ground during construction. A sustainable site layout is ensured through minimizing noise pollution measured at noise-sensitive receivers located around the construction site, minimizing the cost of the layout adopted, as well as minimizing the total travel time of on-land equipment traversing between the positioned temporary facilities. The problem is initially formulated as a bi-level model and then later reformulated into a single-level model based on a justified relaxation. To handle the multi-objective nature of the resulting problem, the augmented ϵ-constraint approach is utilized to generate the non-dominated Pareto front. Applied to a realistic case, the results of the proposed bi-level model demonstrate that errors of up to 55% in total system travel time can be avoided when traffic assignment on-site is considered.