Systematic Literature Review on the Combination of Digital Fabrication, BIM and Off-Site Manufacturing in Construction—A Research Road Map

Abstract

AbstractAccording to the scientific literature, 98% of megaprojects in the construction sector suffer from cost overruns of more than 30%. This is due to several reasons, the most important of which is issues with productivity (Changali et al. The Construction Productivity Imperative, p 10, 2015, [1]). Off-site manufacturing in construction is one solution to increase productivity, but there is a current lack of studies linking it to the concept of design for manufacturing and assembly (Jin et al. J Cleaner Prod 202:1202–1219, 2018, [3]). Building information modeling (BIM) also offers new opportunities to underpin the computerized design and fabrication of industrialized buildings, providing greater productivity and cost-effectiveness (He et al. J. Cleaner Prod 278:123505, 2021, [18]). The combination of BIM and off-site construction (OSC) could maximize their benefits to the construction industry and their applications are highly recommended to improve construction efficiency (Yin et al. Autom Constr 101:72–91, 2019, [7]). However, even if the relationship between BIM and off-site construction has been identified and discussed among pioneer researchers, gaps were found in the literature concerning the integration of BIM and digital fabrication with off-site manufacturing (OSM) in construction. There has been insufficient research in integrating these practices. The aim of this literature review is to assess the current state of the combined use of digital fabrication, BIM, and OSM in the context of Construction 4.0. A bibliometric analysis was conducted to study the relationship between these practices. The contribution to the body of knowledge will be the outcome of this literature review including an in-depth discussion on main trends in off-site construction, research gaps, and recommendations for near-future perspectives in off-site construction.