THE SUITABILITY OF EXISTING CONSTRUCTION CONTRACTS FORMS FOR BIM CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS

Abstract

Numerous major construction projects suffer from cost and schedule overruns. In addition, the potential for conflict between project participants, for example due to changes in performance, additional services or ambiguities in the contract, has increased substantially in recent years, while at the same time the ability to resolve conflicts quickly has declined significantly. In the context of digitization, Building Information Modeling (BIM) represents a way of implementing projects more efficiently and satisfactorily for all parties involved. With the method, "risks can be significantly minimized, construction times considerably shortened and costs noticeably reduced". In order to make the most of the advantages of the BIM method, the choice of a suitable form of construction contract is of decisive importance. Within the research conducted at the University of Wuppertal, characteristic features of conventional and alternative forms of construction contracts as well as management concepts were examined and the respective advantages and disadvantages were compared with regard to the criteria identified. In addition, the construction contract forms and management concepts were also examined and evaluated for compatibility with the BIM method. The result of this investigation shows a scoring model. It includes both the nationally established construction contract forms of individual award with unit price contract as well as alternative forms such as the Framework Alliance Contract-1 with the concept of value engineering. The result of the study should encourage clients to consider alternative forms of construction contracts in order to be able to design construction projects more efficiently.