• Proceedings of the Korean Institute Of Construction Engineering and Management
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• autumn
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• pp.113-119
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• 2003

Since Lean Construction has been introduced as a new management approach to improve productivity in the construction industry, much research is in progress to develop lean concepts and principles for better implementation and to get results of the successful adaptation of lean ideas from manufacturing for application in the construction industry. Currently, several construction companies in the USA have applied the Last Planner System (LPS), a decentralized system developed by the Lean Construction Institute. Thus, there are demands to share information how other companies implement lean construction, to identify the benefits and barriers of lean implementation in the construction fields, and finally to improve their lean implementation. This study carried out case studies to assess current lean construction projects with the objective to find out how effectively and to what extent lean construction is being adapted by the construction industry. This study will only introduce the Last Planner which has four levels in the LPDS, findings based on interviews with project participants, and observations from the projects. This study will also provide empirically identified success factors associated with lean implementation on the construction site. Finally, the recommendations are offered to support the effort of adaptation of lean construction in the domestic construction industry. Even though lean construction still stood on the bridge crossing from current practice to lean practice, it is the researcher's conviction that lean construction would be successfully adapted to the construction industry in the near future and would be recognized as an effective management innovation.