ALICE Technologies

AI scheduling software that simulates millions of sequences to find the fastest buildable plan.

Quick Answer

ALICE Technologies is AI-based construction scheduling software that generates and evaluates millions of possible sequencing and resourcing combinations to find an optimized schedule. Teams import an existing Primavera P6 or Microsoft Project schedule, and ALICE re-sequences it within real project constraints to shorten duration or improve resource use, a process the company calls optioneering.

The Full Picture

Traditional construction scheduling is built by hand: a scheduler sequences activities in Primavera P6 or Microsoft Project based on experience, then tests a handful of what-if scenarios if time allows. That caps how many alternatives a team can realistically compare, even though sequencing and crew-loading decisions can swing a project's duration by months. ALICE Technologies exists to widen that search — using computing power to explore far more of the possible schedule space than a person can evaluate manually.

Mechanically, ALICE takes a project's scope, quantities, crew and equipment resources, and logic constraints, then runs generative simulation: it builds and scores millions of candidate schedules that satisfy those constraints for duration and resource efficiency. Teams can start from an existing P6 or MS Project file or build directly in ALICE, and the tool returns a ranked set of viable schedule options rather than one fixed sequence — the 'optioneering' ALICE markets as its core differentiator from traditional CPM software.

In practice, a scheduler facing a tight substructure sequence might ask ALICE to test dozens of crew-size and trade-sequencing combinations overnight — work that would take days to model by hand one scenario at a time. ALICE and McKinsey have jointly reported schedule reductions of up to 40% on complex capital projects using this approach, with broader early-adopter results in the 15–20% range (McKinsey & Company, 2024).

For preconstruction teams, the value shows up before a price is set. A faster, better-resourced schedule changes the general conditions duration, the crew ramp-up plan, and the assumptions baked into the estimate. Because schedule length drives general conditions and overhead cost directly, optimizing it during precon — not after mobilization — is where the savings actually get captured rather than chased in the field.

Real Examples

→Data center schedule compression: A contractor uploads its baseline P6 schedule for a data center build; ALICE tests thousands of trade-sequencing and crew-loading combinations overnight and returns a resequenced plan reported to compress the build timeline significantly.

→Without AI vs. with AI resourcing: Without ALICE, a scheduler manually tests two or three crew-sizing scenarios before a deadline; with ALICE, the same team compares hundreds of resource-loaded options and picks the one with the best duration-to-cost tradeoff.

→Fast-track validation: Before committing to a compressed fast-track schedule, a preconstruction team runs it through ALICE to confirm the sequence is achievable within labor and equipment constraints, not just theoretically shorter on paper.

Common Misconceptions

People assume: People assume ALICE replaces the project scheduler.

Actually: it generates and ranks schedule options; a scheduler still defines the constraints, selects the plan, and manages it through construction. The tool widens the search space, it doesn't remove professional judgment from the decision.

People assume: People assume an optimized schedule is automatically achievable in the field.

Actually: ALICE optimizes against the constraints and productivity assumptions it's given, so an output is only as realistic as those inputs. Loose or optimistic constraints produce a fast-looking schedule that a crew still can't actually hit.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is ALICE Technologies used for?

ALICE is used by contractors, owners, and consultants to generate and compare optimized construction schedules. Instead of manually testing a few sequencing scenarios, teams let ALICE's algorithm evaluate millions of combinations of activity sequence and resource allocation against project constraints, then select the option that best balances duration and cost.

How does ALICE generate a schedule?

ALICE ingests scope, quantities, resource availability, and logic ties — often starting from an existing Primavera P6 or Microsoft Project schedule — then runs generative simulation to build and score large numbers of candidate schedules, surfacing the best-performing options rather than a single answer.

Who uses ALICE Technologies?

General contractors, construction managers, owners on capital programs, and consulting firms like McKinsey use ALICE for schedule planning on complex, resource-intensive projects such as data centers, hospitals, and large industrial builds, where sequencing choices have an outsized cost impact.

How is ALICE different from Primavera P6?

P6 is a scheduling and tracking tool — it records and manages a sequence a person builds. ALICE sits alongside it as a generative layer: it can import a P6 schedule and then algorithmically explore alternative sequences and resource plans that a scheduler would not have time to test manually.

Why does schedule optimization matter for preconstruction?

Because schedule duration drives general conditions, overhead, and financing costs that get baked into the estimate and the GMP. Finding a shorter, more resource-efficient sequence during precon lowers the priced cost of the project before the number is locked in, rather than after ground has broken.