Development of an integrated system for planning earthwork operations in road construction

The objectives of existing computer programming methods of earthwork systems optimization in road construction have generally been either to minimize cost or maximize profit. However, the required computer memory needed is generally excessive and, moreover, the method demands a prior knowledge of the cost of transporting a unit of material along a given haul distance. As a consequence, the equipment resources would, by implication, have already been decided upon. Inexperienced personnel are clearly unable to reach this decision. This paper describes the development of an integrated system that combines earthwork allocation with the selection of equipment for road construction. Knowledge and experience possessed by planning engineers and equipment specialists has been captured and interpreted in a form suitable for manipulation by computer programs. The validity of the model is demonstrated by applying it to a real case study to provide an additional tool to management in deciding the earthwork allocation and cheapest equipment fleet cost.