Tolerance requirement general theory and automated task difficulty assessment

The paper considers the development process for experimental work intended as a pilot study of the role of tolerance requirement general theory. This theory is proposed as a factor in the automated assessment of task difficulty in construction industry activities. Task difficulty, structured within a generic task hierarchy, is taken as a possible indicator of the level of buildability inherent in the on‐site production of construction artefacts. The proposed nature of general tolerance requirement theory is introduced. This initial research proposes six individual tolerance requirements, each with a different function within the general theory, which an operative responds to either explicitly or implicitly in carrying out construction tasks. These tolerance requirements are not defined in terms of plus or minus values. The paper concentrates on a discussion of factors relevant to the design of a suitable experiment as a pilot study of the suggestion that tolerance requirements may allow quantitative analysis of task difficulty.