Adaptation of WorkFace Planning for construction contexts

WorkFace Planning (WFP) is a construction industry best practice aimed at improving productivity on industrial construction projects. It is now a common requirement in the construction contracts of industrial projects in Alberta. Since its debut, the implementation of WFP in different project contexts has not been formally studied. Construction project contexts differ greatly and have an impact on the effectiveness of implementation of any industry standard procedure. The purpose of this paper is to present a framework for identifying the context variables that warrant changes to the industry standard WFP procedures and to illustrate how these variables require the adaptation of WFP within an organization and on a project. The framework is illustrated with a case study of an organization and a project, which found that modifications to the standard WFP procedures were made at both the organization and project levels during implementation, based on certain organization and project characteristics. These modifications to the standard WFP procedures, coupled with the organization and project char- acteristics identified, are of value to the future implementation of WFP in specific contexts. Furthermore, the methodology used in this study to investigate the adaptation of WFP is useful in studying the adaptation of other industry best practices for different construction contexts.