A green project scheduling with material ordering problem considering cost constraints and quality of materials

Abstract

PurposeIntegrating project scheduling and material ordering problems is vital in realistically estimating project cost and duration. Also, the quality level of materials is important as one of the key project success factors.Design/methodology/approachIn this paper, a three-objective mathematical model is presented for green project scheduling with materials ordering problems considering rental resources. The first objective is to minimize the total cost of the project site and logistics. The second objective is to minimize the environmental impacts of producing materials and the third objective is to maximize the total quality of materials. Since costs trigger several challenges in projects, cost constraints are considered in this model for the first time and also the cost of delay in supplying of materials by the suppliers has been deducted from the project costs. Subsequently, the model was implemented in a real case and solved by the Lagrangian Relaxation algorithm as an exact method on GAMS software for model validation.FindingsBased on sensitivity analysis of some parameters, the findings indicate that the cost constraint and lead time have considerable effects on the project duration. Also, integrating project scheduling and material ordering improves the robustness of the project schedule.Originality/valueThe primary contributions of the present research can be stated as follows: considering the cost constraints in the project scheduling with material ordering problem, incorporating the rental resources and taking the quality levels of materials as well as the environmental impacts into account.