BIM in infrastructure projects

Abstract

Building Information Modeling (BIM) has made one of the most significant and fundamental enhancements in the construction industry and has led to more in-depth collaboration among project stakeholders. Large infrastructure projects differ from other construction projects, mainly because of size, location, levels of interfacing, complexity, and time frame. Coordinating such intense projects challenge, particularly across multiple teams and numerous stakeholders However, Building Information Modeling (BIM) helped to resolve some of these difficulties by facilitating a collaborative environment. BIM for infrastructure projects helps ensure the efficiency and accuracy of large-scale infrastructure projects design and implementation phases, in addition to the management of these projects. This research is aimed to explore the benefits and importance of implementing BIM in an infrastructure project for stakeholders through analyzing Five international projects and investigating how the utilization of BIM enhanced the processes during projects’ stages from design, construction, and operation. It was found that, amongst the various obstacles of implementing BIM practices the prime factor is the rarity of qualified BIM personnel in construction field; however, the near future promises to use BIM systems on a large scale in infrastructure projects.