TY  - CONF
TI  - Implementation of Lean Thinking to Improve Masonry Construction and Design
AU  - Momenifar, Samaneh
AU  - Keyrouz, Karl
AU  - Hamzeh, Farook
AD  - MSc Student, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, U of A, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada,  momenifa@ualberta.ca, https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9491-8044
AD  - MSc Student, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, U of A, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada,  keyrouz@ualberta.ca, https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7704-5109
AD  - Associate Professor, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, U of A, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada,  hamzeh@ualberta.ca, https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3986-9534
PY  - 2023
DA  - 2023/06/26
T2  - Proceedings of the 31st Annual Conference of the International Group for Lean Construction (IGLC31)
C3  - Proceedings of the 31st Annual Conference of the International Group for Lean Construction (IGLC31)
CY  - Lille, France
SP  - 1534
EP  - 1545
DO  - 10.24928/2023/0195
SN  - 2789-0015 (ISSN)
AB  - Masonry construction provides multiple functions with a single element, is cost-effective, durable, and provides a visually appealing finish. In addition, its flexibility in design and reasonable construction cost makes it more attractive. Specifically, characteristics of loadbearing masonry make it a viable choice for residential buildings, hence a viable solution to address housing demands. However, evidence shows this type of building is less desired nowadays due to its reputation as having traditional shapes and low productivity in the construction process. Lean thinking has been widely applied in the construction industry. However, lean applications in the masonry industry can be widened. In this research, site visits, consultations with industry professionals and stakeholders, and an extensive literature review have been conducted to understand existing problems of design and construction of load-bearing masonry systems in Canada. To address the discovered problems, several lean thinking solutions are proposed with the focus on consideration of complex wall configurations and providing early feedback in the conceptual design stage of masonry buildings. Development of one-piece flow for mortar transportation and generative design tools are two of proposed solutions. Development of intelligent BIM and construction simulation models are presented as future research ideas to validate the proposed lean solutions.
KW  - Masonry
KW  - generative design
KW  - simulation
KW  - lean thinking.
L1  - https://www.iglc.net/papers/details/2130/pdf
UR  - https://www.iglc.net/papers/details/2130
DB  - IGLC.net
LA  - English
N1  - Export date: 04 October 2026
ER  -