Implementation Strategies of Building Information Modelling towards Sustainable Residential Construction Project in Malaysia

Abstract

There are major challenges in regards to building information implementation strategies in achieving sustainable residential construction projects in Malaysia, namely project management team's lack of knowledge, the high cost in training, lack of technology infrastructure and software readiness, no support for the management to change from conventional method to BIM application. Therefore, this paper is aimed to appraise the BIM implementation in achieving sustainable residential construction in Malaysia in terms of its challenges and implementation strategies. This paper is undertaken based on data gathering via literature review, which is then analysed and validated by an expert focus group inclusive of 2 developers, 2 consultants, and 1 contractor with more than 20 years of experience in the BIM application. It is found that the challenges in BIM to achieve sustainable residential construction projects in Malaysia are lack of BIM technical knowledge, difficulties in accessing BIM technology and its framework, absence of appropriate BIM guidelines, and insufficient government support for BIM regulation and its implementation. Hence, it is important to propose good implementation strategies in implementing BIM to achieve sustainable residential construction projects in Malaysia, which include proper governments support for BIM initiatives and awareness within the Architectural, Engineering, and Construction (AEC) industry players, and provide an incentive for the relevant parties utilising BIM in their project and implement BIM in all government and private projects. The proposed BIM implementation strategies can serve as a guide for the industry player who is involved in the construction project in Malaysia to drive the Public Work Department Strategic Plan 2021-2025 and to support the green building initiatives by The Malaysia Green Building Council (MGBC) and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal (UN SDG).