The resource-constraint project scheduling problem of the project subcontractors in a cooperative environment: Highway construction case study

Large-scale projects often have several activities which are performed by subcontractors with limited multi-resources. Project scheduling with limited resources is one of the most famous problems in the research operations and optimization cases. The resource-constraint project scheduling problem (RCPSP) is a NP-hard problem in which the activities of a project must be scheduled to reduce the project duration. Therefore, subcontractors of the construction projects join together to decrease the project time and finally increase the project profit. This is an incentive for the subcontractors to form coalitions. This study presents a model based on the resource leveling problem. Results of the proposed model show that the subcontractors can earn more profit by the cooperation rather than working individually. Moreover, it is demonstrated that techniques such as the Shapley Value, Max-Min Core, and Equal Profit Method are able to fairly allocate extra profit of the cooperation among the subcontractors.