| A simulation-based tunneling modeling system, which was the state-of-the-art in tunneling simulation, was first developed in 2002 and has continued developing ever since. The innovative tool for decision-making has been broadly applied to tunneling projects for the bettering of construction performance. However, project engineers face the challenge of precisely evaluating and predicting tunneling behavior based on the modeling system, as shaft construction, the process significantly influencing the overall productivity of tunneling operations, was given little attention in the developed system. Moreover, the impact of well-planned construction sites during planning phases on the efficiency of tunnel construction has been recognized.;This research presents the design, development, and implementation of an integrated framework for modeling the shaft construction process and planning tunnel construction site layout in a simulation environment. A near optimum site layout is carried out through satisfying a set of identified constraints by employing genetic algorithms as the optimization engine. As another step toward the generation of a comprehensive modeling system for tunnel construction projects, the simulation tool inherits some of the existing template's features, with respect to consistency, yet enhanced with more flexibility and better extendibility. A case study from the industry was chosen to validate and illustrate the system's performance, with the comparison of performance between the original site layout and the generated one provided. |
