This page contains 6 exercises to complete to help cement your understanding of the ALICE principles. Each exercise has a corresponding support page which provides further support and information on the topic covered in each exercise. 

Contents

• Exercise Introduction
• Exercise #1: Creating Project Custom Properties
• Exercise #2: Creating Project Groups 
• Exercise #3: Assigning Project Supports
• Exercise #4: Create Project Resources
• Exercise #5: Create Project Recipes
• Exercise #6: Run Scenarios

Exercise Introduction

We have included a practice exercise prompt as part of ALICR support. They are meant to be one continuous exercise based on the “Leo 1” project. The “Leo 1” project is available under “Trial Projects” in your ALICE dashboard, titled “ALICE Essentials_Part 1_Grouping & Supports.”

If you want to download the 3D model used for the training project, follow the link here: ALICE Leo 1 Revit File: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1wQ7S7iYBMO9MGnUwOE3JEthxvKSJbnNR/view?usp=sharing.

 

Further Support with project setup can be found here:
Projects & Plans: Create Projects and Plans
Projects & Plans: Introduction to Plan / Prepare

Exercise #1: Creating Project Custom Properties

Support Page: Element Properties

In this exercise, we will create a “Zone” parameter to divide the 3D model into three zones: West, Central, and East. These zones will help us to:

• Easily navigate and find the necessary elements / groups
• Perform Automatic Grouping
• Develop WBS (Work Breakdown Structure) for the Gantt view

Note: Delete all Custom and Imported Properties previously created (see Section 3.2.1 and Section 3.2.2 for a refresher).

 

To create the “Zone” parameter:

• Select the entire model: use the selection box or select everything from the Element Tree
• Go to the “Properties”tab and “+ Add Custom”
• Create a parameter called “Zone” with a “0”value. The reason this step is required is because a property cannot be created unless there is an associated value. Consider this “0” value as a dummy placeholder value for now

 

• Next, we must select each of the elements and apply the correct “Zone” parameter value
• Let's start with the West side. Rotate the 3D view to select all the elements on the West side easily. Use the selection box from left to right to select.
• Go to the Properties tab and type “West” in place of “0.” Click the checkmark to confirm the new value
• Immediately hide the selected elements from the 3D view. This step is recommended so that you can focus on the remaining elements that have not been assigned a “Zone” parameter value yet

• Repeat the same actions for the “Central” and “East” sides

• Finally, unhide all elements with the “Show All” command
• Go to the “Properties”tab in the Element Tree and select the elements by the “Zone” parameter

Exercise #2: Creating Project Groups 

Support Page: Groups

The purpose of this exercise is to continue to develop our model and organize the elements by their “Zone,” “Category,” and “Level” parameters. 

Note:For this exercise, ungroup all elements.

Note:Always check the accuracy of the custom parameters or BIM parameters before performing the automatic grouping. 

• Select all elements from the Element Tree or 3D View
• Go to the “Group” tab on the upper right
• Activate the Automatic Grouping tool
• Select the Parameters in the following order: “Category” + “Zone” + “Level”
• Click on “Create Groups”

 

• Check the result of the group names in the Element Tree under the “Groups” category

 

Exercise #3: Assigning Project Supports

Support Page: Supports

The purpose of this exercise is to continue to develop our model and to develop a project-specific support sequence.

You can use “AutomaticSupports,” (see Section 5.3)“Support as Chain,” (see Section 5.4)or manually assign supports (see Section 5.2) to develop your support strategy.

We will develop a specific support strategy for this exercise by keeping only the hard physical construction logic. The assigned supports will limit and constrain ALICE so that the sequence must be done in that order. We will allow flexibility when it comes to resource allocation. ALICE will suggest optimal alternatives based on the resources available in the resource pool.

To develop the support strategy: 

• Select the entire model and remove all supports with the “C” shortcut key 
• Use “Support as Chain” to assign the hard physical construction logic from the foundation to the top slab. What this means is that you cannot build the elements that are physically above it until that element is completed (i.e. you cannot build the top slab until the foundation is complete)
• See the support strategy for this exercise: 

Footing → Column → Wall → Slab → Column → Slab → Column → Slab

• Start to assign supports from the foundation to the top slab as shown in the animation below

• Note: Always refresh the browser after using the “Automatic Supports” or “Support as Chain” function.

 

• Continue to assign support to other elements
• Use the support slider on the top middle part of the page to review the assigned supports
• The final result is shown below (while clicking on the “>” icon in the support slider):

 

Exercise #4: Create Project Resources 

Support Page: Resources

The purpose of this exercise is to continue to develop our model and to create the project resources.

Create the following resources for this project: 

Labor Resource: see Section 6.2 on how to create a labor resource

Name	Available	Prs / Crew	$ / Prs / Hr	$ / Crew / Hr	Calendar
Carpenter Crew	1	3	25	75	Default Calendar
Concrete Crew	1	2	30	60	Default Calendar
Steel Crew	1	3	35	105	Default Calendar

 

Equipment Resource: see Section 6.3 on how to create an equipment resource

Name	Available	$ / Hr
Concrete Pump	1	100
Excavator	2	150

 

Crane Resource: see Section 6.4 on how to create a crane resource. We recommend brushing up on Section 6.4.1 as well to understand the distinction between an equipment resource and a crane resource

Name	Type	Radius	Move Time - Hrs	Qty of Cranes	$ / Hr
Tower Crane #1	Moveable	25	2	1	50

 

• Create three locations for the building's East, Central, and West areas. Notice the 3 circles in the image above.

Materials: see Section 6.5 on how to create a material resource.

Material	Type	Qty Available	$ / Unit
Concrete	Consumable	∞	100
Formwork Sets	Consumable	1	150

 

Milestone: see Section 6.6 on how to create a milestone.

Name	Type	Constraint Date	Key Dates
Interior Completion	End	None	Yes
Stair Completion	End	None	Yes
Structure Completion	End	None	Yes

 

Production Rates: see Section 6.7 and Section 6.7.1 on how to create a production rate.

Name	Qty / Hr
Steel Fixing	7.5
Excavation	375

 

Calendars: see Section 6.8 on how to create a workweek and how to create a calendar.

Name	Workweek	Overtime
Default	40 Working Hours	No
Overtime	60 Working Hours	Yes

 

Exercise #5: Create Project Recipes

Support Page: Recipes

The purpose of this exercise is to continue to develop our model and create project recipes for the model elements.

For our project, we have to create 4 recipes for: 

• Foundation Footings
• Concrete Walls
• Concrete Columns
• Concrete Slabs and Stairs

 

7.5.1 Foundation Footings

For foundation footings we need to create the following tasks:
1. Excavation → 2. Lean Concrete → 3. Drop Rebar → 4. Setup Formwork → 5. Pour Concrete → 6. Cure → 7. Strip Formwork

Tasks	Crew	Min-Max	Equipment	Qty	Material	Qty	Rate	Qty	Duration (Hr)
Excavation	Excavation Crew	1-2	Excavator	1	Earthwork	26000	Excavation	350	Material / Rate / Crews
Lean Concrete	Concrete Crew	1-1	Concrete Pump	1	Concrete	N/A	N/A	N/A	8
Drop Rebar	Steel Crew	1-2	Tower Crane	1	Rebar	el.volume*0.1	Steel Fixing	0.375	el.volume*0.2 / Rate / Crews
Setup Formwork	Carpenter Crew	1-2	N/A	N/A	Formwork Set	1	N/A	N/A	40 / Crews
Pour Concrete	Concrete Crew	1-1	Concrete Pump	1	Concrete	el.volume*0.9	N/A	N/A	8
Cure	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	72
Strip Formwork	Carpenter Crew	1-2	N/A	N/A	Formwork Set	1	N/A	N/A	32 / Crews

 

• On the Plan page, go to Recipes and click “+ New Recipe”
• Name the recipes: “Foundation Footings”
• Create all the tasks listed in the Recipe Matrix listed above with all the resources
• In the “Setup Formwork” operation, select “Require” as material type, and in “Strip Formwork,” select “Supply”

• Create any new / missing resources in the Resource pool
• “Duration Error” will be fixed after assigning the recipes to elements 
• Use only FS relationship types without lag 

Use FaS relationship only for the “Cure”operation, and ALICE will prioritize the start of this operation.

 

7.5.2 Formwork Tracking and Usage 

Formwork is used like a mold in which wet concrete is poured. Once the concrete dries and reaches an appropriate strength, the forms can be removed (stripped) and reused on other concrete elements.

Formwork can be tracked in units of surface area (square feet), units of length for walls (lineal feet), and sometimes in sets of forms (for example, when most slabs are of similar size).

Since one activity, “Setup Formwork,” takes away a piece of Formwork from the available resource pool, and another one, “Strip Formwork,” gives it back to the resource pool, we can model formwork as a consumable resource and use “require” and “supply” to manage it.

ALICE will use the formwork from “Setup Formwork” to “Strip Formwork” and then make it available for other operations.

7.5.3 Concrete Walls 

For concrete walls, we need to create the following tasks:

1. Install Rebar → 2. Setup Formwork → 3. Pour Concrete → 4. Cure → 5. Strip Formwork

 

Tasks	Crew	Min-Max	Equipment	Qty	Material	Qty	Rate	Qty	Duration (Hr)
Install Rebar	Steel Crew	1-2	Tower Crane	1	Rebar	el.volume*0.1	Steel Fixing	0.375	el.volume*0.2 / Rate / Crews
Setup Formwork	Carpenter Crew	1-2	N/A	N/A	Formwork Set	1	N/A	N/A	32 / Crews
Pour Concrete	Concrete Crew	1-1	Concrete Pump	1	Concrete	el.volume*0.9	N/A	N/A	8
Cure	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	72
Strip Formwork	Carpenter Crew	1-2	N/A	N/A	Formwork Set	1	N/A	N/A	24 / Crews

Note:Use the same approach for formwork tracking as described in Section 7.5.2.

 

7.5.4 Concrete Columns

For concrete columns, we need to create the following tasks: 

1. Install Rebar → 2. Setup Formwork → 3. Pour Concrete → 4. Cure → 5. Strip Formwork

 

Tasks	Crew	Min-Max	Equipment	Qty	Material	Qty	Rate	Qty	Duration (Hr)
Install Rebar	Steel Crew	1-2	Tower Crane	1	Rebar	el.volume*0.1	Steel Fixing	0.375	el.volume*0.2 / Rate / Crews
Setup Formwork	Carpenter Crew	1-2	N/A	N/A	Formwork Set	1	N/A	N/A	48 / Crews
Pour Concrete	Concrete Crew	1-1	Concrete Pump	1	Concrete	el.volume*0.9	N/A	N/A	8
Cure	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	72
Strip Formwork	Carpenter Crew	1-2	N/A	N/A	Formwork Set	1	N/A	N/A	40 / Crews

Note:Use the same approach for formwork tracking as described in Section 7.5.2.

 

7.5.5 Concrete Slabs & Stairs

For concrete slabs and stair, we need to create the following tasks: 

1. Install Rebar → 2. Setup Formwork → 3. Pour Concrete → 4. Cure → 5. Strip Formwork

 

Tasks	Crew	Min-Max	Equipment	Qty	Material	Qty	Rate	Qty	Duration (Hr)
Install Rebar	Steel Crew	1-2	Tower Crane	1	Rebar	el.volume*0.1	Steel Fixing	0.375	el.volume*0.2 / Rate / Crews
Setup Formwork	Carpenter Crew	1-2	N/A	N/A	Formwork Set	1	N/A	N/A	56 / Crews
Pour Concrete	Concrete Crew	1-1	Concrete Pump	1	Concrete	el.volume*0.9	N/A	N/A	8
Cure	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	72
Strip Formwork	Carpenter Crew	1-2	N/A	N/A	Formwork Set	1	N/A	N/A	48 / Crews

Note:Use the same approach for formwork tracking as described in Section 7.5.2.

 

7.5.6 Assign Recipes to elements or groups 

The final step of the ALICE planning process is to assign the recipes to elements or groups. See Section 7.4.1 on how to assign a recipe.

In the “Recipe List” view, you might see this sign:

This sign will appear if: 

• There is no duration defined in that task
• There is a mistake in the duration formula 
• The parameters cannot be read because the recipe is not assigned to any elements

For example, in the Concrete Column recipe, we have two errors: 

• Duration and Material error in “Install Rebar” task
• Material error in “Pour Concrete” task

Both of these errors appear because we are using the “el.volume” parameter for material and duration calculation. This will be fixed automatically after assigning the recipe to elements. 

 

To assign the recipe:

• Close the Recipe List
• From the “Element Tree” or “3D view,” select all the columns 

Note: You can use the search option in the “Element Tree” to find and select the elements by name or other parameters.

• On the right-hand side, click “Assign Recipe”

• In the opened “Recipe List” window, click “Assign” to assign the recipe

 

• Repeat the same for the all elements
• Go to the “Recipe List” to make sure all the errors have been resolved

 

Exercise #6: Run Scenarios 

Support Page: Explore Page / Running Scenarios

The purpose of this exercise is to continue to run different scenarios to analyze and pick the best solution. 

According to our baseline solution, the structure completion date is 29 May 2023. Our goal is to recover the project and bring back the structure completion to 01 Dec 2022 (save ~6 months).

For our project, we need to run five scenarios: 

• Scenario #01: Saturate all crews 
• Scenario #02: Increase critical crews by 1
• Scenario #03: Increase the Concrete Pump and Concrete Crew by 1
• Scenario #04: Apply 50 Working Hour calendar to Carpenter Crew

Note: Before starting the exercise, make sure to delete all previous scenarios and keep only the “Base Parameter” run

8.6.1 Scenario #01: Saturate all crews

To run the first scenario:

• Click on the “What If” button to open a new scenario and name it “Scenario #01 - Saturate all crews” 
• Click “Saturate all resources” in only the Labor tab and select “Run Scenario”

Note: Resource Saturation helps to identify the critical resources of the project. It does not necessarily generate the best possible scenario.

When the run is complete, pick the fastest dots with the lowest total duration to review the milestones. According to the fastest dot, it’s possible to complete the structure on 16 August 2022. However, we always need to compare the schedule with the “Base Parameter”run to understand the resource usage difference.

Following the steps described in Section 8.5 , compare the fastest solutions between the “Base Parameter” and “Scenario #01” solutions. 

In the Parameters tab, we can clearly see that ALICE tries to use 4 Carpenter crews, 4 Excavation crews, 4 Steel crews, and only 1 Concrete crew. This gives us an indication that the Concrete crew is non-critical. While ALICE is utilizing 4 crews of each for the Carpenter crew, Excavation crew, and Steel crew, we want to optimize further and figure out if there is a lower number of crews required to still meet the project objectives.

 

8.6.2 Scenario #02: Increase critical crews by 1

To run the second scenario:

• Click on the “What If” button to open a new scenario and name it “Scenario #02 - Increase critical crews by 1” 
• Increase Carpenter, Excavation, and Steel Gangs by 1 each under the Labor tab

Note: The criticality of certain resources may be connected to the number of equipment or number of materials available for this project as well.  

When the run is complete, pick the fastest dots with the lowest total duration to review the milestones. According to the fastest dot, it’s possible to complete the structure on 14 December 2022.

This is a more realistic output taking into account the number of resources available compared to “Scenario #01 - Saturate all crews” option. 

However, it is not enough to meet our project objective: Structure Completion on 01 December 2022.In the next scenario, we need to increase the number of equipment to see if there is an impact. 

 

8.6.3 Scenario #03: Copy #02 + Increase Concrete Gang and Pump by 1 

In the third scenario, we need to copy “Scenario #02”and increase the number of concrete gangs and concrete pumps. 

To run Scenario #03: 

• Copy Scenario #02 
• Name it “Scenario #03 - Copy #02 + Increase Concrete Gangs and Pump by 1”
• Increase Concrete Gang and Concrete Pump quantity available by 1

When the run is complete, pick the fastest dots with the lowest total duration to review the milestones. According to the fastest dot, it’s possible to complete the structure on 07 December 2022.

 

We still need to optimize the program by 7 days to achieve our objective of Structure Completion on 01 December 2022. However, we assume we reached the maximum limit of resources we can add to the project because of the site or logistic constraints. 

The next step is to use overtime calendars to accelerate the program.

 

8.6.4 Scenario #04: Copy #03 + Assign 50 Working Hour Calendar to Carpenter Gang

Similar to the previous example, to run the fourth scenario:

• Copy Scenario #03 
• Name it “Scenario #04 - Copy #03 + Assign 50 Working Hour Calendar to Carpenter Gang”
• Assign “50 Working Hour Calendar” to Carpenter Gang

When the run is complete, pick the fastest dots with the lowest total duration to review the milestones. According to the fastest dot, it’s possible to complete the structure on 15 November 2022.

The exercises in Section 8.6 describes a simple example of the workflow for ALICE optimization, starting from the baseline case and running through different scenarios, finding the optimum number of resources, production rates, and calendars to achieve the project objectives.