An investigation into whether building information modelling (BIM) can assist with construction delay claims

It is probable that a construction project anywhere in the world will encounter some form of delay as a consequence of change. The impact of the delay on a project will vary, but it is likely to have a negative financial outcome. Compensation can be requested by an affected party in the form of a claim; however, issues of liability and quantum can be difficult given the ever increasing complexity of construction work involving numerous differing successive parallel tasks with varying levels of interrelated resources. Experts are often employed to analyse delays based on project records and report their findings to a tribunal. This paper identifies the difficulties associated with the retrieval and representation of information for delay claims and recognises technological opportunities to deal with these challenges. The potential to exploit aspects of BIM to support these possibilities are discussed, concluding that it can assist through the ease of access to coordinated contemporaneous project information and the use of visualisation through multiple dimensions. In order to support this initiative a detailed review of the literature is undertaken which forms part of an Engineering Doctorate

An investigation into whether building information modelling (BIM) can assist with construction delay claims

It is probable that a construction project anywhere in the world will encounter some form of delay as a consequence of change. The impact of the delay on the project will vary but it is likely to have a negative financial outcome. Compensation can be requested by an affected party in the form of a claim; however, issues of liability and quantum can be difficult given the ever increasing complexity of construction work involving numerous differing successive parallel tasks with varying levels of interrelated resources. Experts are often employed to analyse delays based on project records and report their findings to a tribunal. This paper identifies the difficulties associated with the retrieval and representation of information for delay claims and recognises technological opportunities to deal with these challenges. The potential to exploit aspects of BIM to support these possibilities are discussed concluding that it can assist through the ease of access to coordinated contemporaneous project information and the use of visualisation through multiple dimensions. In order to support this initiative a detailed review of the literature is undertaken which forms part of an Engineering Doctorate

Development of building information models (BIM) to support innovative time management and delay analysis

Although time is a critical factor for most projects, the majority of construction projects encounter delay. Conventional methods for managing time tend to use static medium, which can make understanding delay challenging. This can result in reactive management, which contributes to inappropriate mitigation measures, untimely and insufficient claims, and failures to award extensions of time. These consequences are common causes of dispute, which have a negative effect on the construction industry. The likelihood and severity of disputes on construction projects are increasing but it is suggested that Building Information Modelling (BIM) has the potential to reduce the number of delays and disputes in the industry. However, literature directly addressing how to achieve this appears limited.To contribute research to this knowledge gap, this EngD aims to improve the understanding of delay on construction projects through BIM. This is addressed through five objectives, which gather data through a case study, workshop, simulation, questionnaire, focus group, content analysis and the available literature. The findings of each objective contribute to the next stage of research and led to the proposed interactive exhibit, which integrates VARK modes of presentation with 4D modelling technology developed to support BIM. The rationale behind this proposal is supported by five journal publications, which are appended to this document. [Continues.]</div

Using BIM for delay management in public sector construction projects in KSA

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) is not an exception in relying on the advancement of its construction industry to support rapid population growth. However, its need for infrastructure development is constrained by low productivity levels and cost overruns caused by factors such as delays in completing projects. Delays in construction projects are a global issue, and while theories such as Optimism Bias can explain some aspects of delays, in KSA, client-related causes of delays are very endemic in public sector projects. These have negative consequences on national development as well as public trust and expectations. Although several studies on delays in construction projects have been carried out globally, these problems have not been comprehensively tackled due to limitations in existing project management techniques. Therefore, to address this research gap, the aim of this study is to examine a new approach to reducing and managing delays in construction projects through Building Information Modelling (BIM), especially with regards to eliminating optimism bias and reducing the cost consequences that such delays have on Saudi public-sector projects.To achieve this aim, a qualitative approach has been adopted for data collection using multiple case studies to investigate how BIM would help the analysis and management of delays in specific kinds of projects. [Continues.]</div

Contractual practices between the consultant and employer in Chinese BIM-enabled construction projects

The management of building information modeling (BIM)-enabled construction projects is challenging and unstructured in nature, particularly in terms of contract administration. Even though previous studies have revealed various legal issues related to BIM, little is known regarding the contractual practices of BIM. Hence, this study was carried out to explore the contractual practices between the BIM consultant and employer in detail. An explanatory case study was carried out on four large BIM-enabled construction projects in China. The contractual practices differed from one project to another in terms of ownership and intellectual property rights of the BIM model, roles of the BIM consultant, liability of the BIM consultant in the event of errors and delays of the BIM model, and BIM-related costs and payments. Some of the interesting findings are as follows: (a) the employer shall retain the ownership and intellectual property rights of the BIM model, (b) the BIM consultant shall provide a warranty to ensure usability of the BIM model after project handover, (c) the BIM consultant shall pay for damages or losses if the BIM model fails to deliver, and (d) the costs of BIM implementation shall be borne by both contracting parties. This study provides a fresh, realistic insight on the development of plausible contractual practices between the BIM consultant and employer and the findings can be used to improve BIM contract protocols in future projects

The potential of implementing Building Information Modelling (BIM) in Malaysian Construction Industry: An exploratory study

In Malaysia, we cannot deny the widespread of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) and the influence of ICT to speed up the working process. Lots of benefits can be gained from utilisation of ICT, especially in construction industry. For decade, construction industry can be considered as a fragmented industry because of lacking of sharing information through its life cycle and with other parties. ICT can be a tool for integrating and collaborating among parties in the construction projects, and Building Information Modelling (BIM) is one of the platforms that can be used to promote the collaboration between parties in the construction projects. Eastman et al., 2011, interpreted BIM as “a digital representation of the building process to aid in exchanging and interoperability information in a digital format." Basically, BIM will act like a respiratory system with full of information to share with for construction projects. Even though there are lots of benefits can be gained by utilisation of BIM, it is a difficult task to convince the construction companies to embrace and implementing it due to some reasons. Since there is a short of understanding of BIM by the construction companies in Malaysia, this paper is intended to review the strategy and action plan from Singapore and Hong Kong in adopting and implement BIM, which could be used in supporting the implementation of BIM in Malaysian Construction Industry. As a summary, this paper revealed that involvement from government, collaboration between government, private sector and universities and awareness program are the most of the important criteria that must be taken into consideration once to developing BIM implementation strategy plan for Malaysian construction industry

Recommendations on the creation of computer generated exhibits for construction delay claims

Representing the cause and effect of construction delays is a challenging task. The use of demonstrative evidence to assist the representation of construction delay claims is likely to increase given the growth of Computer Generated Imagery (CGI) in the courts and the construction industry’s drive towards Building Information Modelling (BIM). This paper identifies how Computer Generated Exhibits (CGE) are currently being used as a form of demonstrative evidence to support construction delay claims through the analysis of two simulations which were created to assist the same claim. The benefits and limitations of the 2D and 4D simulations are discussed and recommendations on the creation of demonstrative evidence for construction delay claim purposes are put forward. The paper recognises the need to test the recommendations and to further investigate how BIM could be used to support delay claims. This forms part of on-going research towards an engineering doctorate

An Investigation into Irish Clients understanding of the Capabilities of Building Information Modelling and their Role within a Construction Project

With an Irish BIM mandate on the horizon there appears to be a growing frustration within the Irish construction industry around the implementation, adoption and use of BIM in construction projects. With many industry professionals highlighting the clients lack of understanding in the capabilities of BIM and their role within a BIM enabled project as the cause to this frustration. This paper aims to investigate these claims by analyzing the findings of recent publications against data gather through interviews held with various Irish construction clients. The results of this paper question the claims of the industry professionals and goes on to highlight other issues which may be leading to this frustration within the Irish construction Industry