A Conceptual Knowledge-based Cost Model for Optimizing the Selection of Materials and Technology for Building Design

In the growing housing sector, new technology, products and materials are continuously being introduced. The design and construction teams need tremendous efforts and time to choose the appropriate combination of technology, products and materials from the vast array of possibilities available in order to fulfil client’s requirements within budget. The self-builders and general clients are not well acquainted with the available technology, products and materials and the right combinational mix to optimize construction cost. This research which is at its early stage, aims to develop a knowledge-based cost modelling system for building design stage by optimizing the selection of materials and technology. A conceptual model of the roof element is presented in this paper. The approach adopted was to design database and knowledge base modules in order to achieve the knowledge-based cost modelling system. The knowledge base also incorporates the multi criteria decision making (MCDM) technique which helps in solving the combinational problem. The system which is presently being developed for roof element has the potential to assist the architects, design teams, quantity surveyors and self house builders to make a decision for the design from early stage to detailed design stage by selecting the appropriate materials and technology and estimating cost.