Abstract

Studies have confirmed the benefits of using Third-party logistics (TPL) for efficient construction management, especially in large projects. Nevertheless, there is a dearth of decision-making models evaluating the exact role of TPL providers as drivers for supply chain (SC) integration and optimisation. This study aims to develop a decision-making model for construction supply chain (CSC) optimisation, with possible TPL integration. The proposed model considers two types of purchased materials (type-1 and type-2) and assists the main contractor in determining construction supply chain management (CSCM) strategies, including supplier selection, order quantity determination, and TPL use evaluation. Using the model, the main contractor can take advantage of the TPL provider’s warehouse and order larger quantities, if necessary, to obtain lower prices offered by suppliers. Through case examples in Canada, we find that the proposed model performs better in optimising total SC cost, as compared to the model without TPL. Model validations also show that TPL can be conditionally used to improve construction logistics performance and to meet practical requirements targeting issues in the construction industry.

摘要

研究证实了使用第三方物流（TPL）进行有效的施工管理的好处，尤其是在大型项目中。但是，缺乏决策模型来评估TPL提供者作为供应链（SC）集成和优化驱动力的确切作用。这项研究的目的是为建筑供应链（CSC）优化（可能与TPL集成）建立决策模型。提出的模型考虑了两种类型的采购物料（类型1和类型2），并协助主承包商确定建筑供应链管理（CSCM）策略，包括供应商选择，订单数量确定和TPL使用评估。使用该模型，总承包商可以利用第三方物流提供商的仓库，并在需要时订购更大数量的产品，获得供应商提供的较低价格。通过加拿大的案例，我们发现，与不使用TPL的模型相比，所提出的模型在优化总SC成本方面表现更好。模型验证还表明，TPL可以有条件地用于改善建筑物流绩效并满足针对建筑行业中实际问题的实际要求。