DePlan: a tool for integrated design management

The iterative and information-intensive nature of the design process makes it hard to plan and schedule work using tools for conventional project management. The success of design projects depends on the quality of the available information. This paper proposes DePlan as a method for integrated design management during the detail design phase. DePlan integrates two techniques, namely, Analytical Design Planning Technique (ADePT) and planning according to Last Planner™, each involving a software tool. ADePT implements the dependency structure matrix (DSM) analysis method to identify iterative processes and the planning strategy for managing them. Planning according to Last Planner™ follows a production management philosophy that includes reliably scheduling and controlling design activities. Combined as DePlan, these techniques help planners generate quality plans, that is, plans that express what is ready for execution by sequencing activities in the right order, by identifying informational and resource requirements ahead of design execution, and by scheduling only activities that have met these requirements. This collaborative research has successfully developed the DePlan approach and associated computer software, and has tested them.