Early collaboration is crucial if the final design is to be clash-free, and automation processes through Building Information Modelling (BIM) have the capacity to reduce clashes through 3D design ...coordination. Yet, current design practices are still dependent on clash detection and contemporary literature presents several reasons for this. This paper investigates the root causes of clashes with respect to achieving “clash avoidance” as proposed in PAS 1192-2 design phase specifications for BIM in the UK. Empirical data from BIM coordinators around the world was collected and analyzed using explanatory sequential mixed-methods. It was found that: (i) isolated working was the prime cause of high occurrences of clashes linked to mechanical, electrical and plumbing (MEP) 3D BIM systems; (ii) there is a link between non-BIM specific training (or the professional qualifications) of design practitioners with the high incidence of clashes; and (iii) the current structure of cloud-based common data environments (CDEs) does not facilitate clash avoidance and in fact, encourages isolated working in the early design stage by creating “digital information silos”. A conceptual framework for an open work in progress (OWIP) has been proposed to address this problem. These findings point to the need for more transparency during collaboration through CDE where designers from multidisciplinary backgrounds can engage in concurrent co-creation. This transparent and inclusive process could have consequences on how future architectural, engineering and construction (AEC) professionals are trained.
This reprint captures recent advancements in the introduction, usage, and adoption of smart and digital disruptive technologies in the built environment. It consists of 17 chapters covering a range ...of topics and article types. The key topics include the adoption of smart technologies, automation, and disruption in the built environment, such as wearable devices and augmented reality in construction safety, electronic process monitoring for construction tasks, digital capture of buildings through point clouds, UAVs, and LIDAR, BIM for a learning environment, underground works and wood construction, collaborative information management technologies in construction, techniques for structural health monitoring and evaluation, construction risk management, inclusive walking communities, smart spin models for cities, landfill and waste management in cities, and circular economy in construction for sustainable development.
After a few years of the coexistence of the building information modelling (BIM) methodology with the architecture, engineering, and construction professions, its main uses are often limited to 3D ...modelling and collision checking between different disciplines. However, while this way of working demonstrates opportunities for optimization and clear benefits, there is still much potential for the BIM methodology to be explored. In the scope of a particular underground work, the Arnotegi tunnels of the Bilbao Metropolitan Southern Bypass, a specific contractual framework favouring the collaboration among stakeholders has been defined to implement the use of this methodology by the main participants in the project, encouraging more advanced uses, such as the use of the model as an integrator of the information contained in the common data environment. Due to the very essence of tunnel construction and the relative geotechnical uncertainty of the terrain, the tunnel model evolves day by day during the course of the work, with information being shared in real time between all those involved. This approach has made it possible to improve the quality of decisions and the perception of important information by presenting it in a transparent and easily interpretable way.
Over the years, the construction industry has been evolving to embrace the delicate balance between buildings and a sustainable environment by optimizing resource use to create greener and more ...energy efficient constructions. Sustainable building design and optimization is a highly iterative and complicated process. This is mainly attributed to the complex interaction between the different heterogenous but heuristic construction processes, building systems and workflows involved in achieving this goal. Augmented Reality (AR) has rapidly emerged as a revolutionary technology that could play a key role towards improving coordination of sustainable design processes. AR makes possible the real-time visualization of a threedimensional (3D) building prototype with linked design information in a real-world environment based on a twodimensional drawing. From past research, it is evident that this technology relies heavily on a common data environment (CDE) that syncs all construction processes with their related building information in one central model. However, due to the fragmented nature of the construction industry, different domain experts generate and exchange vast amounts of heterogenous information using different software tools outside a CDE. This paper therefore investigates the performance gap that exists within Malaysia’s construction industry towards using linked building data (LBD) with AR to improve the lifecycle sustainability of buildings. The results of this study clearly delineate how current construction practices in Malaysia do not favor the use of AR however, stakeholder perception is positive towards adoption of workflows that link heterogenous building data to streamline AR with sustainable building design and construction.
Case studies available in the literature clearly point to the numerous benefits of BIM (Building Information Modeling), in addition to the barriers that participants of such projects may face. This ...paper is a case study of Employer’s Information Requirements (EIR) for preparing and managing BIM models in the design and construction of selected large public construction projects: the Cogiteon Lesser Poland Science Center (LPSC Cogiteon), the Krakow Music Center (KMC) and the Copernican Revolution Studio (CRS). The paper presents the main aspects included in EIRs. It discusses the technical (e.g., requirements for the Common Data Environment platform—CDE), management (including the scopes of responsibility of staff in charge of BIM) and strategic sections (primary expectations concerning Data Drops) of the EIR. Projects executed using BIM by public institutions allow for the application of insight gained as a result of their completion and the creation of a knowledge base or checklist for future projects. The projects discussed here, carried out using advanced BIM solutions, could potentially be developed further by the proposed content extension concerning levels of detail (this paper cites potential guidelines that can be applied), component elements concerning price and qualifications, so as to easily generate bills of costs, and information used in facility management which can also encourage facility manager cooperation. Examples of EIR provisions are presented based on an analysis of three completed construction projects carried out using advanced BIM solutions. BIM is still a new form of management and this paper expands the range of available EIR standards, in addition to presenting guidelines for their practical application in the construction industry.
Even in the context of increasing digitisation, the construction sector continues to be characterised by redundancy, multiplication and, at the same time, a lack of transparency and disaggregation of ...data and information, leading to ineffective management of the time, costs and quality of the project life cycle. This paper shows the results of the development of an ICT application, TRL 4-5, based on the integration of Building Information Modeling and blockchain technologies and designed to foster digitisation processes in the supply chain, in the direction of greater transparency of information flows, knowledge-based organisations and decision-making processes based on unambiguous ordered data. Starting from a broader industrial research collaboration, the project involves a university spin-off, companies operating as system integrators and leaders in the customisation of BIM solutions for the Italian construction market. The project, launched as part of a network of public and private stakeholders established in 2019 and developed between September 2020 and March 2021, is part of a territorial development strategy financed by European Structural Funds. As a result, the research output is a prototype of ICT tool, which implements the Common Data Environment, CDE, making the life cycle management unambiguous, certified and clear. In this regard, the results of the project are meant to respond to the supply chain's need to encourage the digitisation and automation of processes, as well as to encourage the acquisition of unambiguous data, according to a big data approach.
The Architecture Engineering and Construction/Facility Management (AEC/FM) industry assumes a significant part in financial turn of events. Lately, the inescapable use and improvement of Building ...Information Modeling (BIM) has advanced the advancement of information and digitalization of the AEC/FM industry. The absence of accountability within the construction industry has been a continuous issue for a long time, and with amazingly crushed net revenues, firms are poised to seek out ways to chop corners and deflect blame from the subsequent failures. Subsequently, change and advancement in the business may get affected. Internet of Things (IoT) and blockchain can be considered as two advancements that can be facilitated with the BIM of the AEC/FM sector. This paper aims at developing an integrated BIM-IoT-Blockchain prototype which would help in automation of the monitoring process of mega complex infrastructure projects. The proposed prototype/model would enable to carry out data management for the construction project through Decentralized Common Data Environment (DCDE). Furthermore, the proposed model would improve the payment process to the contractors and subcontractors of the project. The model would also help in improved construction supply chain management, construction asset management and also for administering of smart construction contracts.
PurposeSustainability considerations are often treated as an add-on to building design, following ad-hoc processes for their implementation. The purpose of this study was to investigate, model and ...facilitate the early stages of building information modelling (BIM) enabled sustainable building design (SBD) by formalising the ad-hoc working relationships of the best practices in order to standardise the optimal collaboration workflows.Design/methodology/approachFour stages of data collection were conducted, including a total of 32 semi-structured interviews with industry experts from 17 organisations. Fourteen “best practice” case studies were identified, and roles and responsibilities, resources, information exchanges, interdependencies, timing and sequence of events and critical decisions were examined.FindingsThe research classified the critical components of SBD into a framework utilising content and thematic analyses. These components were coordinated explicitly into a systematic process, which followed concurrent engineering (CE) principles utilising Integrated DEFinition (IDEF) 3 structured diagramming technique. Then, Green BIM Box (GBB) workflow management prototype tool was developed to analyse communication and delivery of BIM-enabled SBD in a centralised system.Originality/valueThis study represents an improvement to previous attempts to systematically define the BIM-enabled SBD process for the early stages. The results support the idea that a transparent SBD process, which follows specified communication patterns, can assist in achieving sustainability efficiently in terms of time, cost and effort.
The use of Common Data Environment (CDE) collaboration platforms, although a requirement of the government BIM (Building Information Modelling) mandate within the UK, is an area that has been ...under-reported in research publications, especially in relation to the education sector for the management of undergraduate multidisciplinary student BIM projects. Up to this point, academics have focused on the use of BIM authoring and analysis tools and collaborative and multidisciplinary working methods, but not necessarily on how information is managed and the platforms that can be used in this regard. This paper presents the findings of a three-year longitudinal study undertaken at Ulster University experimenting with three different platforms for the delivery of an undergraduate multidisciplinary collaborative student BIM project. A case study methodology is employed to provide a description of experiences over the three-year period, with an ethnographic approach to data collection in the form of direct observations in the field. Thematic analysis is used to identify key trends followed by a cross-case synthesis. The results of the study identify advantages for all of the differing platforms utilised depending on the functionality and learning outcomes required, whilst highlighting challenges in terms of familiarity and assessment integration. The paper concludes by presenting potential CDE methods of integration at undergraduate Levels 4, 5 and 6 (Years 1, 2 and 3).
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