Multi-objective Project Scheduling Considering Discrete Resource Constraints Problem with Multiple Crashable Modes and Mode-identity Capabilities

The purpose of this paper is to provide a model to solve the problem of discrete resource constraints project scheduling with multi objectives of reliability, risk, time and cost of the project, taking into account the multiple crashable modes and mode-identity capabilities.

Studying the literature on the subject, a mathematical programming model for the problem is presented. Due to the NP-hardness of discrete project scheduling problems, the NSGA-II, NSGA-III and MODA, meta-heuristic algorithms are developed within different dimensions to solve the problem. After presenting the results, the comparison of these algorithms has been done using a number of multi-objective performance measures.

Using multiple crashable modes concept and mode-identity in the subset of activities, and, consequently, choosing the best mode for executing activities in each subset and also determining the number of suitable units to reduce the time span, will lead to much better results in terms of project objectives.  As a result, the reliability of the project will be maximized and the risk, the time and the cost of project completion will be minimized.

While most previous studies have mainly focused on the time and costs of the project objectives, considering the reliability and risk of the project can help projects to yield better results. In addition, the features such as multiple crashable modes and mode-identity will lead to the real world situations and also better solutions can be found.