Development of product family structure for high-rise residential buildings using industry foundation classes

摘要

This paper presents an approach of specifying building design through a set of common platforms with defined variations. Both platforms and variations are expressed in terms of product family structures which include modules and components described with parameterized attributes. Furthermore, inter-relationships and constraints among modules and their components are explicitly represented in the taxonomy of the product family structure framework. The motivation of this new approach is not only to develop a concise descriptor of buildings but also to accentuate designer knowledge about product variety and product commonality. To avoid disparity in module definitions, Industry Foundation Classes, has been adapted to represent modules. The ramification of this new approach includes promoting commonality for enhancing economies of scales and offering customized building units through simplified reconfiguration of building modules. The approach is demonstrated by using a high-rise residential building example with adaptation to pre-fabricated construction modules, and its economic benefits are discussed.