Designing for Pre-Fabrication and Assembly in the Construction of UBCäó»s Tall Wood Building

Abstract

The construction of a 53 m, 18 story mass timber high-rise on the Vancouver campus of the University of British Columbia poses significant challenges in its design, approval, procurement and construction. As a way to facilitate the project delivery process, the project team called upon extensive use of virtual design and construction (VDC) and building information modelling (BIM) that are supported through a 3rd party VDC service provider. One of the key uses of BIM and VDC in the project is extensive design for pre-fabrication and assembly of mass timber elements and envelope panels as well as mechanical elements. The processes, techniques and tools used to support design for pre-fabrication and assembly on the UBC Tall Wood Building project are presented in this paper. The challenges and lessons learned in the deployment and use of these tools and processes and their impact on project delivery are also discussed. Lastly, the trade-offs and design considerations that support design for pre-fabrication and assembly are examined. Initial findings indicate that the design for pre-fabrication and assembly process is a highly involved and collaborative process which requires the presence of key decision makers up front in the project delivery process. They also indicate that the involvement of a 3rd party BIM and VDC modeller, using highly sophisticated digital tools, is necessary to ensure proper information flow and capture relating to the elements being designed for pre-fabrication and assembly. Ultimately, in the context of mass timber high-rise construction, where competitive advantage over other approaches resides in speed and quality of execution, aesthetic and sustainability concerns notwithstanding, designing for pre-fabrication and assembly is key in ensuring the projectäó»s economic viability.