Analytical design planning technique (ADePT): A dependency structure matrix tool to schedule the building design process

Current planning practice takes little account of the interdisciplinary, iterative nature of the building design process. This leads to a compromised design process containing inevitable cycles of rework together with associated time and cost penalties in both design and construction. The analytical design planning technique (ADePT) is a planning methodology which helps to overcome these difficulties. The central part of ADePT is a dependency structure matrix (DSM). This paper describes DSM techniques and a tool developed to optimize the design process.