Research Expertise and Interest
lean construction, lean production, design management, sustainability, supply-chain management, life-cycle engineering, civil infrastructure systems, adaptive project leadership, engineering project management, megaproject delivery, construction process engineering, integrated project delivery IPD, building information modeling BIM, virtual design and construction VDC.
Research Description
Iris D. Tommelein is Professor of Engineering and Project Management, in the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department at UC Berkeley. Her interests are in developing principles and methods of project-based production management for the architecture-engineering-construction (AEC) industry, what is termed Lean Construction. Her pioneering research in Lean Construction includes teaming up with design specialists, general- and specialty contractors, owners and suppliers to increase process and product development performance.
Professor Tommelein is an expert on Lean Construction, site logistics, layout, operations and methods design, materials management, and supply-chain management. Her work involves computer-aided design, planning, scheduling, simulation, and visualization of construction processes; and the use of information technology including web-based systems, wireless communication, bar-coding, and laser-based positioning systems.
Professor Tommelein served 4 years on the Executive Committee of ASCE's Technical Council on Computing and Information Technology (TCCIT). She was a member of the TCCIT's Database and Information Management Committee, TCCIT's Expert Systems and Artificial Intelligence Committee. She is a member of the Construction Division's Construction Research Council. Professor Tommelein served as the Secretary General of the International Group for Lean Construction until 2017. She served on the Board of Directors of the Lean Construction Institute until 2017.
Professor Tommelein was recognized by the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) as the 2002 recipient of the Walter L. Huber Civil Engineering Prize "for her research on civil engineering computing for managing project-based production systems in the engineering-architecture-construction industry" and as the 2014 recipient of the Peurifoy Construction Research Award "for her contributions in developing Lean Project Production theory, methods and tools, and for successfully disseminating these theories, methods and tools into multiple large, complex projects in the US and worldwide.”
She received the Lean Pioneer Award 2015 from the Lean Construction Institute (LCI), recognizing an individual (or organization) who has moved the design and construction industry forward in embracing and implementing Lean tools and techniques on capital projects.
She received the PPI Technical Achievement Award in 2022, recognizing significant contributions and thought leadership in the area of Project Production Management and Operations Science theories as well as leadership in delivering tremendous value through application.
Most recently, as the first female recipient, she received the 2024 Construction Management Award awarded by ASCE’s Construction Institute for "her groundbreaking research in Lean Construction and leadership in teaching and advancing state-of-the-art construction management practices worldwide."