Managing transformation, flow and value generation: A solid timber frame housing case

A governmental evaluation of the Swedish construction industry indicates the possibility to reduce the production costs of housing through industrialisation, customer orientation and a more efficient construction process. A way to address this is through implementing the concept of lean thinking, which stresses the importance of improving and integrating design and production while eliminating waste. This paper analyses the design process of a recent Swedish solid timber frame housing project by using the concept of lean thinking. The aim is to suggest actions to improve the management of transformation, flow and value generation. For the timber construction process to become more effective (lean) and customer orientated, the timber frame supplier is suggested to increase the information flow and make the flow management more efficient. To establish a better control of the processes in timber housing in particular, the design process must be decomposed into small manageable pieces (time and cost specified) and evaluated within the project team. To increase value generation and make the construction process understood as a generation of value for the client, we think that active clients are the key.