Professional Documents
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Abstract
Problem
Inefficiencies in Construction industry are the manifestations of a lot of reasons, inadequate
and fragile planning plus clashes in design cause a lot of wastage both in terms of time and
money. Moreover, during construction phase, unseen undetected clashes make huge fuss not
just by themselves but also trigger other hostile issues and rebuff whole schedule in some
cases. Inadequate labor and supply chain management also play their role in loss of turnovers
and accounts for inefficiencies. Inspite, of improvement in efficiency of other industries,
construction industry still remains inefficient one. Above these technical challenges, there is
Industry Structure: Misunderstood by Industry and Researchers (Dean Kashiwagi, Jacob Kashiwagi and John
Savicky) pg no 1
another one Corruption. Transparency International published the Bribe payers index
according to which the industry most prone to corruption is Public Works Contracts and
Construction. In my personal experience as an engineer, corruption is the biggest of all issues
in construction industry of Pakistan (my Homeland).
Learning Objectives:
How BIM involved in other project phases(design and planning) can benefit
construction phase.
Approach
To achieve the learning goals websites, articles, research papers, journals, case studies, Moodle
material(Helsinki metropolia) and major BIM players website (TEKLA, AUTODESK, VICO, Bentley
etc.) are consulted. Moreover personal experience of construction industry also helped me. I
have divided construction management into different subplots like schedule, supply chain
management, human resource management etc. and then introduced the participation of BIM
in those subplots separately.
Analysis
Definition of BIM:
As defined by National Building Information Model Standard Project Committee
MONEY
o Estimation and Clash Detection
Both Estimation and clash detection belongs to the pre-construction phase of the project but
they are critically important for construction management. Estimation is the base of bidding
and contract procurement and it is the birth place of corruption. Low bid contracts is the prime
example of this scenario. Usually contractors bid sometimes as low as -32% just to win the
contract and are clearly on the helm of severe loss because usually a construction contract hold
10 to 25 % profit therefore have no provision to absorb anything like -32% even on no profit no
loss condition. Contractors do so just in order to win contracts and then they start bribing the
owners officials to tackle this issue. For example by claiming work that they havent executed,
using lesser quality material, claiming some extension to the project scope and obtaining that
extended work on very high rates5. Long and short estimation phase is the mother of corruption
in Construction industry. Now in with the help of BIM we can estimate very accurately and
almost immediately. Not just that but it also enables its users to adjust any change in the
3
Michael W. Newell, Marina N. Garshina (2004), The Project Management Question and Answer Book p.8
project in estimation by notifying that what effect it will have on the project 6. Hence making
estimation transparent and nipping corruption in the bud. Which ultimately benefits the whole
project in all aspects of Quality and money.
Clash detection is one of the major benefits of BIM. Clashes in construction are very expensive
penalties where huge money and time is wasted and sometimes unprecedented compromises
are also in the line of decision. Detecting clashes in the early stages before actual construction
begins bears highly valuable results7. The average cost of a clash as described by Dan Gonzales,
the Corporate Manager of Virtual Design and Construction at Swinerton Builders in an interview
is 17000 US $8. Hence Clash detection can help in saving both time and money during
construction phase and benefits construction management.
o Financial Management
BIM provides very comprehensive facilities to aid financial management and to stop
embezzlement. Financial management includes the costs generated by the quantities taken
off9 by BIM. As all the information is contained into the model and very accurate bill of
quantities can be generated and this information can be linked with the cost of items10. hence
absolute and error free cost of the project is obtained according to various aspects . BIM also
gives comparison between estimated costs and actual cost which will enables the project team
to improve its performance. One form of corruption is that contractor claims money for
http://www.vicosoftware.com/products/5d-bim-software-estimating/tabid/229126/Default.aspx accessed on 3
May 2013 (02:23)
7
Case study by VICO software(Sep 2007) on Oy Alfred A. Palmberg Ab; Varma Salmisaari Project pg. 2
http://www.vicosoftware.com/products/3d-bim-software-quantity-takeoff/tabid/229123/Default.aspx accessed
5 May 2013 (18: 44)
10
materials excessively by bribing the owners representative or team member11. The running bill
form of contract is the one where contractor is paid according to the work he will execute in
the field. So contractor with the help of bribery may claim that he had used 50000 sq. meter of
concrete whereas actually only 30000 sq. meter of concrete was used. For that he only have to
temper 1 or two numerals in Bill of quantities. Hence with BIM construction managers can
measure count and price building object accurately which give them in-depth understanding of
project cost during delivery12. It also gives an escape route from Manual formation of B.O.Q
hence adds considerable transparency to Construction industry.
TIME
o Schedule
BIM is not like CPM scheduling. It is much more elaborated and detailed. Here Schedule is
generated with the help of model or schedule can be imported from 3 rd party schedule planner
and then linked with the model. It boasts the probability of schedule optimization and helps
Construction managers to take better decisions.13 Schedule is linked with the model and on the
time line we can observe visually that what will be the state of our project on a specific date.
Hence managers can scroll through the project durations and can make better decision in
finding the optimum route of project completion14. With the introduction of GIS in BIM, which
is an exciting idea, can gives an extra dimension to BIM where managers will be better
equipped to make right decisions in What if conditions. Schedules will be much more relying
11
12
13
Autodesk video tutorial (from 2:50 to 3:40) http://www.autodesk.com/products/autodesk-navisworksfamily/overview accessed 7 May 2013 (04:02)
14
Autodesk video tutorial (from 2:50 to 3:40) http://www.autodesk.com/products/autodesk-navisworksfamily/overview accessed 7 May 2013 (04:02)
and delay free with the collaboration of BIM and GIS. Sequencing logic, include crew sizes,
productivity rates, and geography-specific pricing are part of scheduling in Building information
modeling15. Sometimes schedules are cost and resource loaded as well as VICO software
provides this opportunity16. Thus BIM scheduling is very different from old techniques of Gantt
charts. It is much more of a complete integrated and real time visual scheduling package.
QUALITY
Construction Simulation:
BIM empowers the construction manager to virtually build the building before he actually hits
the ground19. Construction simulation improves the co-ordination between the project players
15
http://www.vicosoftware.com/products/vico-office-schedule-planner/tabid/225519/Default.aspx accessed 8
May 2013 (15:09)
16
http://www.vicosoftware.com/products/vico-office-schedule-planner/tabid/225519/Default.aspx accessed 8
May 2013 (15:09)
17
Autodesk video tutorial (from 3:40 to 4:31) http://www.autodesk.com/products/autodesk-navisworksfamily/overview accessed 7 May 2013 (04:02)
18
Autodesk video tutorial (from 3:40 to 4:31) http://www.autodesk.com/products/autodesk-navisworksfamily/overview accessed 7 May 2013 (04:02)
19
to maximum, in such a way that co-ordination clashes are spotted before they become a real
pain20. Well co-ordinated project is highly efficient in nature where wastage is very less. Labor
productivity can be maximized by the help of BIM. According to the project manager of a major
EPC company Workface planning boasts 21% crew productivity resulting in millions of dollars
saving21 . Crew productivity has always been a big question mark for construction industry,
BIM enables the construction managers to plan in advance and not just that but it also easily
absorbs the changes to the design and automatically updates the crew requirement. Hence
considerable finances are secured by avoiding wastage.
BIM doesnt only belongs to the work desk in an office but works along with the team in the
actual field. That is what gives it a status of an excellent tool to control productivity 22.
Scheduling is one thing but to deliver the project according to it is another. BIM as described
earlier has a wonderful capacity to absorb changes therefore in case of unforeseen event or
changes it allows the manager to take real time decisions to decide the best strategy and
deliver it to other team players efficiently. Hence avoids the chain reaction of problems that
pile up upon happening of such events23.
BIM as we all know is a virtual model that holds all the information and with the help of it
Designer can actually copy paste the ideas in his mind to the mind of execution team. The
construction manager knows what he is expected to deliver in the finish form. This eradicate
any ambiguity that may exist plus the virtual model holds details about all building objects and
elements thus quality achieved by BIM is surely better than traditional practices.
20
Case study by VICO software(Sep 2007) on Oy Alfred A. Palmberg Ab; Varma Salmisaari Project pg. 2
21
Video Tutorial ConstructSim v8i, Betley (2:01) ; accessed on 9 May 2013 (23:44) from
http://link.videoplatform.limelight.com/media/?mediaId=a4711992985643c2b1123402c7ce6005&width=480&he
ight=411&playerForm=6a6b96d1f08d456f81ec5ab10c9f3a24
22
http://www.vicosoftware.com/products/4d-bim-software-scheduling/tabid/229125/Default.aspx?source=pr
accessed on 9 May 2013 (23:56)
23
http://www.vicosoftware.com/products/4d-bim-software-scheduling/tabid/229125/Default.aspx?source=pr
accessed on 9 May 2013 (23:56)
24
25
26
27
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Business Impact
This study shows that construction industry can cut short their inefficiencies and can increase
the ROI considerably. Some of the features like Clash detection and quantity take off will not
only improve the profitability of the construction business but also make construction practices
more secure and risk free. For example, Construction VP of a construction management firm
explained, Workface planning saved the client $1.5 M on a potential change order 29
Corruption that has plagued the construction industry most can be thoroughly controlled with
the administration of BIM. I think it time for construction industry to move on from previous
less efficient and tiring practices.
Conclusion
BIM has answered the call of construction industry that was crying for radical changes. Still
now, in 21st century, old light table technique is used to detects design clashes between HVAC,
MEP, Architectural and Structural elements. BIM gives a new dimension to clash detection
where clashes can be visualized and analyzed by it automatically. Thus saving a lot of time and
money which is oftenly wasted. This also saved the parties from arguments between each
others which can lead to litigations. Scheduling is synchronized with the visual 3 D model and
work scope gives the best possible understanding to its users till today. Accurate and
instantaneous quantity take-off and estimation features make it very useful features. While
working on Varma Salmisaari Project On-site Engineer of Palmberg group, Erno Aalto described
the estimation capability of BIM as In the project of this size, we used to have a full time
estimator and 10 other people extracting quantities from drawing but now with the help of BIM
one man works with the model and feeds the whole organization faster and more accurate 30.
Labor productivity can be increased significantly as projects will be well controlled and planning
29
Video Tutorial ConstructSim v8i, Betley (2:13) ; accessed on 9 May 2013 (23:44) from
http://link.videoplatform.limelight.com/media/?mediaId=a4711992985643c2b1123402c7ce6005&width=480&he
ight=411&playerForm=6a6b96d1f08d456f81ec5ab10c9f3a24
30
Case study by VICO software(Sep 2007) on Oy Alfred A. Palmberg Ab; Varma Salmisaari Project pg. 2
will be more comprehensive with the help of BIM. Corruption that is the mainstay in the
construction industry be deported for good with the implication of the BIM.
Not just construction management has been benefitted by BIM but design and
project development has reaped many benefits. Infact BIM covers all and thats
the real advantage to this new technology. It gives BIM a real cutting edge.
Still BIM has to go a long way before it can be an ultimate tool as legal
complications and compatibility between different softwares is still an issue
References:
http://www.bmvbs.de/cae/servlet/contentblob/89516/publicationFile/62036/construct
ion-industry-in-germany-2011-abstract.pdf page no 2, 29/04/2013 (4:39)
Industry Structure: Misunderstood by Industry and Researchers (Dean Kashiwagi, Jacob
Kashiwagi and John Savicky) pg no 1
http://www.buildingsmartalliance.org/index.php/nbims/faq/ accessed on 2 May 2013
(18:46)
Michael W. Newell, Marina N. Garshina (2004), The Project Management Question and
Answer Book p.8