A path with no obstacles leads to nowhere: An FCM based modelling of consequences of obstacles on BIM application in architectural design

PurposeDigital media is reshaping architectural design by introducing new tools, methods and workflows. Among various AEC tools, Building Information Modeling (BIM) has gained popularity due to its collaboration platform enabling cross-disciplinary teamwork during whole life cycle of buildings. BIM has further transformed culture and processes associated with design, construction and operation of buildings, hence triggering new building regulations in developed countries. However, in developing countries, BIM implementation is facing several barriers, such as lack of investment in technology and training, hesitation in quitting traditional tools and practices, etc. The purpose of this paper is to highlight potentials of BIM for developing countries, which are in need of more sustainable policies for enhancing their economic and environmental performances.Design/methodology/approachThroughout the text, a literature review on BIM including its dimensions and benefits, impacts on architectural design and adoption in global and local contexts is provided. In case study, surveys and structured interviews are conducted with BIM user and non-BIM user architects throughout Pakistan. Beyond 2D/3D modeling, the use of BIM applications for sustainable design process such as scheduling (4D), cost estimation (5D), performance analysis and facilities management (6D) is investigated.FindingsUsing analytical tools of an online surveying tool and SPSS statistical software, barriers and motivations for BIM implementation in Pakistan are determined. Strategies for further BIM adoption and implementation via “education and training institutions” and “supporting organizations and institutions” are defined.Originality/valueAs a developing country, Pakistan shall be moving the barriers for the spread of BIM technology. Recent research covered the entire AEC sector (Masood et al., 2014; Sohu et al., 2017; Ali et al., 2018), yet this paper focuses specifically on architectural design and practice field. In order to find out experiences and expectations about BIM technology in the architecture sector, professionals are surveyed and four chief architects are interviewed. How far have Pakistani architects adopted BIM? For which project types and scales is BIM more serviceable for them? Which BIM applications are they implementing to overcome the limitations in their professional practice? In Pakistan, where sustainability, in terms of scheduling, cost estimation, performance analysis and facilities management, is an indispensible measure for local practices, has implementation of BIM technology achieved sustainability in architectural design process? What are the motivations of Pakistani architects for becoming BIM users in future?

BIM compatibility and its differentiation with interoperability challenges as an innovation factor

Building Information Modeling (BIM) has been in use in the Hong Kong Architecture, Engineering and Construction (AEC) industry as an Information and Communication Technology (ICT) tool for more than a decade. However, the increasing usage and rapid development in both the AEC industry and academia point to the potential multiple applications, impacts and much broader potential benefits that may be generated from BIM implementation. The current frequently used BIM applications have advanced the project performances levels and consequential benefits of relevant stakeholders in different dimensions.
\nHowever, BIM development in the Hong Kong industry has not been smooth. Attention has been diverted from potential benefits to the barriers and constraints that retard BIM implementation. This has in turn limited the applications, hence not convincing industry participants of their potential benefits in quantitative terms. Furthermore, conflicts between BIM implementation and the existing project processes also retard the smooth development of BIM. A higher level of collaborative working is required for deriving more benefits from BIM.
\nThis research aims to develop possible feasible solutions to reduce the conflicts/barriers in BIM implementation and advance current BIM implementation towards more collaborative and integrated working arrangements (IWAs), with expected broader potential benefits in the context of the Hong Kong industry. IWAs in this research refer to: a) organization structures, b) information exchange mechanisms, and c) project processes. 
\nAn inter-locking set of research methods were applied in this study to achieve the research goal. Literature reviews were conducted to extract and illustrate the basic concepts in BIM and lay the foundation for proposal development. Semi-structured interviews and a questionnaire survey were conducted to explore BIM implementation scenarios in the Hong Kong AEC industry. Two case studies helped to map out BIM implementation processes in real projects in Hong Kong. Finally, a focus group meeting was held to discuss, validate and improve the relevant research findings and improvement proposals. 
\nThe main outcomes of this research are the proposed short term IWAs and long term IWAs for optimizing overall potential benefits of BIM implementation. The proposed short term IWAs consist of specific measures for participants to address the barriers and conflicts in BIM implementation within existing project processes. The proposed long term IWAs are based on a conceptual framework and processes to build an integrated working environment for BIM. The outcomes of this research can help industry practitioners to overcome current barriers and derive more benefits from BIM by developing specific measures targeting the current scenarios, as well as provide possible directions for moving further forward in the long term. The research outcomes also offer relevant contributions to knowledge by proposing fresh concepts and approaches to creating and developing collaborative working environment for BIM implementation based on relevant principles and guidelines that are in turn derived from Relational Contracting (RC) frameworks.

Professional architects with several years of experience in various projects have unique methods to design an architectural work. One of these approaches is to leverage the value of emerging information technologies such as Building Information Modelling (BIM) in architectural design. Leveraging these potentials requires promoting an appropriate context for the implementation and adoption of these new technologies. In response to the turbulent and multifaceted socio-technical nature of modern information technologies and the environmental uncertainty, architects enhance enablers to advance the architectural design process. Enablers are the preeminent factors that facilitate the implementation of new technologies and contribute to the sustainable development of projects and organizations. Given the lack of dedicated studies on the enablers affecting BIM application, this study aims to identify and classify these enablers in the architectural design phase. Following a systematic literature review approach, a comprehensive list of enablers for BIM application in the architectural design phase was identified. The prepared survey questionnaire was distributed to 205 construction experts (i.e. project managers, employers, consultants, and contractors). The collected data were analyzed with the Robust Exploratory Factor Analysis method, ended up with classifying 36 enablers into four main categories: human skills, environmental, technological, and organizational factors. The findings of this study, considering the organizational enablers, recommend that the support of government officials to implement a particular validation process for BIM adoption is crucial. The contribution of this research lies in identifying and classifying enablers for BIM application in the architectural design phase, with the potentials to be applied in real work practices to improve BIM capabilities and enhance BIM initiatives in construction projects.

Building Information Modeling is an innovative technology coupled with process and human interactions. BIM has been used by the Architecture, Engineering, and Construction (AEC) industry in developed and developing countries including Malaysia. This paper aims to explore the BIM implementation in Malaysian Construction Industry. This paper begins with a literature review and then reports on the findings of case studies of selected Malaysian construction organizations, carried out with the aim to explore on existing BIM implementation establishing on the BIM applications, BIM benefits, and BIM future challenges. The review highlights on several BIM benefits regarding financial, better information, communication and coordination, respond to complexity, improved visual, improved sustainability, improved safety and also create service’s or business’s opportunities. Case study findings indicate that the BIM implementation in projects are still limited and requires more efforts to be made if the construction industry wants to gain BIM benefits. The results also indicate that although BIM implementation is considered low in the Malaysian construction industry, the participants are in a consensus of the benefits from BIM implementation, similar to those found in the literature. These benefits agreed by the participants that BIM implementation is a positive way to enhance the task efficiency in project delivery and also contribute to the higher visibility of the project, together with time and cost optimization. Furthermore, in the meantime, the organization that has the knowledge and skills in implementing BIM could benefit the opportunity in getting the new job or projects as well as being hired as the service provider in the construction industry. Nevertheless, implementing BIM is not without challenges. The data analysis had identified several challenges in regards to the implementation of BIM, which are non-technical (human and organizational culture) challenges and technical (technology) challenges. Thus, based on many future challenges for BIM, the Malaysian government and construction industry players need to collaborate and play their roles in supporting BIM development in Malaysia.

The paper presents the results of two last years research in digital education computing using object-oriented building modeling methods including parametric modeling, component-based design approaching to the concept of building information modeling (BIM) as a base concept of contemporary architectural digital design. This paper summarizes results of research in BIM application in architectural design, attempts to determine the problems, capture the trends of object-oriented modeling in computer aided architectural design (CAAD) education. The results of the analysis of various aspects of BIM using surveys of architecture postgraduate students and undergraduate students of the last year are discussed. The methods of statistics for analysis of data are used. The interrelations between various factors of building information modeling as a part of CAAD education are investigated. The results of the work could be important for the definition of the guidelines for the future of architectural digital design education. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5755/j01.sace.1.2.3281

Building Information Modeling (BIM) has recently emerged as a novel technology worldwide however literature review reveals a salient gap in the identification of BIM capabilities in Key Performance Indicators (KPI) of construction projects in Iran. Therefore, the aim of this research is to identify and prioritize the BIM applications toward KPIs in light of the construction stage of projects life cycle in Iran. To do this, a review of literature was performed on the KPIs and associated BIM contributions and the resultants were customized for Iranian context through a two-round Delphi study. An advanced Fuzzy-AHP approach was then applied in the prioritizations of KPIs and associated BIM capabilities via collecting data from construction practitioners. It was identified that quality improvement, sustainable construction and construction cost reduction are the top three KPIs that can be benefitted from BIM applications in the construction stage of building projects. It was also concluded that project coordination, clash detection, 4D and 5D BIM are the subsequent beneficial effects of BIM on the construction project KPIs in Iran. This study is a point of departure for BIM-based research and its managerial perspectives outlining an insight toward the application of BIM in the construction projects of Iran.

Building Information Modeling (BIM) with other associated Information Technologies(IT) is reshaping the construction industry worldwide, and is viewed as a systematic solution targeting at the industry’s nature as traditional, fragmented, document-centric and dangerous. In general, the industry is receptive to the change and becoming more Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) conscious, but the adoption of such implementation lags far behind. There have been a number of technology oriented studies aimed at inventing some BIM software functional modules to facilitate the construction safety management, but the philosophy behind that type of studies remains questionable –the applicability of those inventions for the safety management practice, the acceptability of those functional modules by the industrial practitioners, the non-holistic view on the construction safety management, as well as the equivalence of obeying the safety regulations and the safety performance on site. Essentially, the implementation of BIM is a certain Information System (IS) implementation in an industrial discipline, but BIM implementation is always treated as a static, objective and mechanical phenomenon, and the industrial practitioner’s participation during the implementation course have been subsequently not attained enough attention. Therefore, it is justifiable to take a view of management and/or process change on BIM adoption and implementation issues. In this perspective, how to integrate BIM into the construction safety management technologically, organizationally and institutionally becomes the problem for the Hong Kong construction industry, in which context the research is conducted.
\nDriven by the aim of this study – to understand the mechanism for the adoption and implementation of Building Information Modeling (BIM) and other associated Information Technologies (IT) for the construction safety management in Hong Kong–the qualitative method approach is adopted. More specifically, the narrative approach as the strategy of inquiry is formulated given the consideration of the available time and resource for the study. In so doing, the researcher, himself as the most important research instrument, conducts ten open-ended face-to-face interviews with the industrial practitioners as the first-hand data, and a number of in-depth literature studies on the construction safety management in Hong Kong as the second-hand data. To characterize the qualitative study paradigm, all the procedures from drafting the interview questions to validating the research findings occur in an iterative and inductive manner, and a Computer Assisted Qualitative Data AnalysiS(CAQDAS) program, the QSR NVivo 10 is also employed to smooth the data analysis process.
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\nAssisted by the program –the Word Frequency Query and the detailed coding analysis –the comparison of the results between the partial and the whole interview texts is made to confirm the sample size of the ten interviews has reached the theoretical saturation. Based on this point, all the sub-categories and child-codes under three top parent categories –Attitudes towards BIM in Hong Kong, BIM Acceptance by the Industry, and BIM and Construction Safety –are grouped into visual models for illustration. By comparing and contrasting with the existing knowledge, the research findings are further validated in terms of how to promote BIM implementation for construction safety management in Hong Kong. Beyond those in line with the previous literatures, the machine readable data format for the construction safety management needs to be further explored on its content and the quantification method. Whereas, how BIM implementation will promote the frank auditing as well as the relational contracting approaches are also worth further studied.
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\nBy examining the current contextual situations and through narrative inquiry on BIM implementation for construction safety management in Hong Kong, this study provides understandings, which are elaborated in a trajectory of the sociology of technology, on the implementation of a specific information technology BIM for construction safety management in the Hong Kong construction industry. The research also comes to an open conclusion ready to integrate any continuous emerging evidence, for both the expectation of the qualitative research and the nature of the issue to be addressed –BIM implementation as an emerging phenomenon. The thesis finally presents its recommendations for BIM implementation for the construction safety management in Hong Kong for administrators, policy makers and other decision makers.

Inefficiencies and ineffectiveness of delivering construction projects have negatively impacted the construction industry for decades. However, the emergence of BIM technology has influenced the construction process with its many benefits towards project success. Among the benefits offered by BIM are reduced project time and cost; and enhanced team collaboration and communication through the improvement of project quality and its performance. Consequently, BIM applications are claimed to provide more reliable working practice for Quantity Surveyors especially in establishing their cost estimates. Despite its well-known advantages that drive BIM employment worldwide, its usage in Malaysia is still at infancy level, with the lack of implementation by the Quantity Surveyors. Thus, this paper aims to explore BIM usage amongst Quantity Surveyors in Malaysia. A preliminary survey was undertaken to capture their views on BIM awareness, the application of BIM software, BIM usage by project stages, prospects of BIM and its importance. The findings from the survey show that BIM implementation amongst the professionals was still low. The application of BIM tools was used mostly for cost estimating and preparing Bills of Quantities (BQ) for tender documentation purpose only. Although BIM was mostly rated as important, most of the respondents were only aware of BIM but were not using it in their practice. However, they showed their interest in knowing more on how BIM would benefit their practice. The significance of this preliminary study is in terms of getting input on BIM adoption level amongst the construction players focusing on the quantity surveying field, which could be used as a reference point and benchmark towards BIM development in Malaysia.

Along with the times, infrastructure development is increasingly complex, especially in terms of road planning. An innovation is needed to face these challenges. Before the introduction of the building information modeling (BIM) method, road planning still used conventional methods. Many studies have revealed that the BIM method is more accurate and superior compared to conventional methods. The PT ITCI Hutani Manunggal (IHM) jetty access road construction package still uses conventional methods in its planning. So the plan for the road construction project was updated by applying BIM technology. The objective of research are to know implementation of 3D, 4D, and 5D BIM on integration of road redesign. This research was conducted for two months with the location in Penajam Paser Utara Regency. The data analysis technique using the BIM Method consists of 3 stages, namely modeling alignment and profile plans, integration of total costs into the BIM model, integration of work duration into the BIM model. The results of the application of 3D BIM provide a clear initial picture of the shape of the infrastructure to be built, and the application of 4D BIM provides a detailed visualization of construction progress with a 270-day scheduling plan, and the application of 5D BIM describes the cost aspects in an integrated manner with the total planning cost obtained of Rp 166,491,010,588. With the integration of these three dimensions in the BIM model, cost, schedule, and quality estimation becomes more organized and transparent.PENERAPAN BUILDING INFORMATION MODELLING 3D, 4D, DAN 5D PADA PERENCANAAN DESAIN JALAN AKSES DERMAGA IHMSeiring dengan perkembangan zaman pembangunan infrastruktur semakin kompleks, terutama dalam hal perencanaan jalan. Perlu sebuah inovasi dalam menghadapi tantangan tersebut. Sebelum dikenalnya metode building information modeling (BIM), perencanaan jalan masih banyak menggunakan metode konvensional. Banyak penelitian yang mengungkapkan bahwa metode BIM lebih akurat dan unggul dibandingkan dengan metode konvensional. Paket pembangunan jalan akses Dermaga PT. ITCI Hutani Manunggal (IHM) masih menggunakan metode konvensional dalam perencanaannya. Maka rencana untuk proyek konstruksi jalan tersebut diperbarui dengan menerapkan teknologi BIM. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui penerapan BIM 3D, 4D, dan 5D pada redesain jalan yang saling terintegrasi. Penelitian ini dilakukan selama dua bulan dengan lokasi di Kabupaten Penajam Paser Utara. Teknik analisis data menggunakan Metode BIM terdiri dari 3 tahapan yaitu permodelan alignment dan profile rencana, integrasi total biaya terhadap model BIM, integrasi durasi pekerjaan terhadap model BIM. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa penerapan BIM 3D memberikan gambaran awal yang jelas terhadap bentuk infrastruktur yang akan terbangun, penerapan BIM 4D memberikan visualisasi progres konstruksi secara detail dengan rencana penjadwalan selama 270 hari, serta penerapan BIM 5D menggambarkan aspek biaya secara terintegrasi dengan total biaya perencanaan diperoleh sebesar Rp 166.491.010.588. Dengan integrasi ketiga dimensi tersebut dalam model BIM, estimasi biaya, jadwal, dan mutu menjadi lebih terorganisasi dan transparan.

PurposeThe Nigerian construction industry, like in most emerging economies has been slow with technological advances such as building information modeling (BIM). More so, the application of BIM among Nigerian practitioners is rather limited to architects’ usage for schematic design and presentation of drawings. The purpose of this study is to enhance BIM’s uptake, this study explores the drivers for the implementation of BIM within the Nigerian construction industry.Design/methodology/approachAn interpretivist epistemological design was adapted to extensively manually review and search the literature on BIM implementation drivers. Based on 14 drivers for BIM implementation drivers identified, a survey questionnaire was used to collect data from the Nigerian construction practitioners. The data obtained is then subjected to descriptive, inferential statistics and multivariate techniques such as factor analysis.FindingsThe study, through factor analysis, categorized the 14 drivers to BIM implementation into four principal factors. The factors are construction related-drivers; process digitalization and economic-related drivers; sustainability and efficiency-related drivers; and visualization and productivity-related drivers.Practical implicationsTo effectively adopt BIM in the construction industry, it is necessary to identify the BIM implementing drivers, which can act as catalysts of change and, thus leading to sustained adoption of BIM. Therefore, the identified drivers and categorization of principal factors could provide managerial implications for better execution and adoption of BIM, as well as the creation of the required change for the BIM implementation.Originality/valueThe research provides insights into the implementation drivers of BIM in lesser studies in a developing country such as Nigeria. The study further contributes to this research sphere by using factor analysis to customize and contextualize the drivers that were previously identified.

Building Information Modelling (BIM) implementation is a dynamic process and there are a number of influential variables that may change throughout. There is little research on the dynamics of the change environment and the AEC organizations’ approaches to BIM adoption and implementation. A considerable number of BIM enablers have been identified and/or developed in the extant literature. However, stipulating BIM implementation enablers per se provides only a static view that is not adequate for describing effective management of BIM implementation in Architectural, Engineering, and Construction (AEC) organizations. This study is the second part of an ongoing research about BIM implementation enablers. In the first paper “Building Information Modelling (BIM) adoption and implementation enablers in AEC firms: a systematic literature review” (Abbasnejad et al., 2020) the organizational BIM enablers have been identified. The aim of this second paper is to (1) further review and validate the key BIM implementation enablers using both the existing literature and expert interviews, and (2) develop a structural model of the key enablers using the ISM technique to understand the mutual interaction of these enablers and identify the driving enablers and the dependent enablers. Twenty-eight enablers for BIM implementation were initially identified from the literature and subsequent discussion with experts from academia and industry has been conducted to select most key BIM implementation enablers. Eleven enablers were finally chosen based on the literature review and expert interviews and the Interpretive Structural Modeling (ISM) technique has been adopted to evaluate the contextual interrelationships among them. MICMAC (Matrix Impacts Cross-reference Multiplication Applied to a Classification) analysis was employed to classify the eleven enablers based on their dependence and driving power. The results indicate that there is no enabler in the autonomous cluster and this therefore signifies that all enablers are required for the implementation of BIM. BIM leadership and top management support have been identified as the enablers with the highest driving power in the initial stages of the BIM adoption and implementation process and for that reason, these enablers demand a greater priority given that there are other dependent enablers that will be impacted.

Building Information Modeling is an innovative technology coupled with process and human interactions.BIM has been used by the Architecture, Engineering, and Construction (AEC) industry in developed and developing countries including Malaysia.The reason for having BIM in practice triggered by the Director of Public Works Department (PWD) in 2009; who urged construction companies to adopt ICT to enhance productivity and efficiency. This paper aims to explore the BIM implementation in Malaysian Construction Industry. A literature review was carried out to explore on existing BIM implementation that includes definitions, BIM applications, BIM benefits and BIM future challenges.The data collected from various sources such as books, journal articles, conference papers and material available on the Internet, which related to BIM. The review highlights on several BIM benefits regarding financial, better information, communication and coordination, respond to complexity, improved visual, improved sustainability, improved safety and also create service’s or business’s opportunities.Nevertheless, implementing BIM is not without challenges although it gains attention from many countries. Some issues regarding culture, technology, process and policy for the construction stakeholders, organizations and policymaker have been raised to take up the challenges for effective BIM implementation.

Building Information Modeling (BIM) is an intelligent 3D model-based process that enhances productivity and management performance of construction projects. Recognizing many benefits of BIM, governments of the most developed members of the European Union encourage BIM usage which results in a higher BIM awareness and BIM adoption. These facts suggest that BIM is becoming the norm within construction industry. On the contrary, Croatia and Slovakia have been very low in BIM application and have done little to support BIM initiatives. Previous studies suggested several strategies to increase the BIM application, where providing BIM education at university level is one of them, so universities need to update their curricula accordingly. In this study we compared implemented Construction Management (CM) BIM education on master’s study at the Faculty of Civil Engineering Košice and Zagreb. The results show that BIM education at the both faculties should be connected with other departments on the same faculty, other disciplines but also with real companies and projects. Such extension will provide civil engineers with wider BIM knowledge related to interoperability, integration, communication, collaboration, standardization and clash detection. Thus, BIM education improvement will have good impact on rising BIM awareness and will be good incentive for further BIM implementation in Croatia and Slovakia. This study is an extension of paper presented on Creative Construction Conference 2018 in Ljubljana. In this paper we showed deeper statistical analysis of CM educational programs in Croatia and Slovakia as well as relationship between BIM awareness and BIM education in both countries.

Over the past decades, the construction industry has benefited from implementing Lean Construction (LC) principles, extensive usage of Building Information Modeling (BIM) tools, and application of advanced Facilities Management (FM) theories as standalone packages. Recently, integrated applications of LC, BIM, and FM have attracted a lot of attention. While progress has been made, few researchers have attempted to develop a method for optimizing integrated applications of LC, BIM, and FM in developing countries. In addition, relatively little is known about the hindrances and challenges in integrating LC, BIM, and FM at various levels of inquiry. The current study contributes to these gaps by examining the challenges that hinder developing countries from adopting integrated applications of LC, BIM, and FM. Qatar, a rapidly developing economy, was used as a case illustration. In the present study, drivers for enabling optimized integration of LC, BIM, and FM were identified. A closed-ended survey was conducted to investigate and understand contextual and organizational factors that hinder the integration of LC, BIM, and FM at three levels of inquiry. Findings displayed that lack of communication skills, language barriers, and inappropriate training provided to low-level skilled workers were the most prominent hindrances. To this end, an integrated communication and collaborative environment for bridging the communication gap was outlined. Furthermore, the wide disparity in the levels of awareness, readiness, and implementation of LC, BIM, and FM across construction companies was identified as a major challenge in deploying and disseminating succinct knowledge on how to optimize the integration of LC, BIM, and FM. To resolve challenges, an integrated collaborative platform for disseminating differentiated knowledge and information on how to seamlessly integrate LC, BIM, and FM was developed. This integrated collaborative platform can be used by authorities to monitor progress and productivity in the construction industry. The significance of this study lies in providing a basis for organizations that intend to implement LC, BIM, and FM in an integrated manner.