The changing perception in the artefacts used in the design practice through BIM adoption

When CAD (Computer Aided Design) was generally adopted in the early 1990’s, the hand drawn process was replaced with the CAD drawing but the nature of the artefacts / deliverables and the exchanges of information between disciplines remained fundamentally the same. The deliverables remained 2D representations of 3D forms and Specifications and Bill of Quantities. However, the building industry is under great pressure to provide value for money, sustainable design and construction. This has propelled the adoption of Building Information Modelling (BIM). BIM is a foundational tool for a team based lean design approach. It can enable the intelligent interrogation of design; provide a quicker and cheaper design production; better co-ordination of documentation; more effective change control; less repetition of processes; a better quality constructed product; and improved communication both for the architectural practice and across the supply chain. As BIM enables a new of working methodology, it entails the change in perceiving artefacts used and deliverables produced in the design and construction stages. In other words, defining what the informational issues are, who does what and who is responsible for what and the level of detail required at each stage in design and construction is critically important to adopt and implement BIM in the construction sector. This paper presents the key findings through the action research methodology about the change in the nature of artefacts and deliverables resulting from the BIM adoption in the KTP (Knowledge Transfer Partnership) project undertaken by the University of Salford and John McCall Architects

Streamlining Digital Modeling and Building Information Modelling (BIM) Uses for the Oil and Gas Projects

The oil and gas industry is a technology-driven industry. Over the last two decades, it has heavily made use of digital modeling and associated technologies (DMAT) to enhance its commercial capability. Meanwhile, the Building Information Modelling (BIM) has grown at an exponential rate in the built environment sector. It is not only a digital representation of physical and functional characteristics of a facility, but it has also made an impact on the management processes of building project lifecycle. It is apparent that there are many similarities between BIM and DMAT usability in the aspect of physical modeling and functionality. The aim of this study is to streamline the usage of both DMAT and BIM whilst discovering valuable practices for performance improvement in the oil and gas projects. To achieve this, 28 BIM guidelines, 83 DMAT academic publications and 101 DMAT vendor case studies were selected for review. The findings uncover (a) 38 BIM uses; (b) 32 DMAT uses and; (c) 36 both DMAT and BIM uses. The synergy between DMAT and BIM uses would render insightful references into managing efficient oil and gas’s projects. It also helps project stakeholders to recognise future investment or potential development areas of BIM and DMAT uses in their projects

Integrative Trust-Based Functional Contracting: A Complementary Contractual Approach to BIM-Enabled Oil And Gas EPC Project Delivery

The research has successfully bridged the gap between contractual and technological practices for the Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) contracts in oil and gas projects. It has identified the related Building Information Modelling (BIM) uses and developed an integrative trust-based functional contracting that complement to EPC contracts. The research contributes to new functional perspectives of contracting and also provides significant insights into the proper use contract functions for improving BIM-enabled projects’ performance

An in-depth investigation of digital construction technologies from a building economics perspective

While initial costs in building economics cover a small portion of the costs incurred during its life-cycle, most occur in construction, operation, and subsequent processes. Despite its numerous contributions to building economics, the construction industry is slowly adapting to digital technologies. To overcome the barriers and crown the assets with their proper management, dynamic applications of digital tools and techniques of Industry 4.0 need to emerge in the construction industry. Therefore, this study aims to present an integrative approach that combines quantitative and qualitative analysis techniques to critically review the available literature on the potential contributions of digital construction technologies to building economics through the post-design phases of the life cycle. The primary focus of the investigation is how digital technologies can overcome prevalent problems and how they can impact building economics. The study contributes to the field by providing an awareness that will inform researchers and practitioners of the trends, gaps, and more profound exchange of ideas in future research efforts

Implementation of ISO19650 based framework for asset management in logistics centres for a major food retailer

Dissertação de mestrado em Modelação de Informação na Construção de Edifícios BIM A+A relevância da informação tem acelerado a par da importância das profissões que envolvem dados, com a gestão da informação a assumir um papel central. Para a indústria AECO (Arquitectura, Engenharia, Construção e Operações) BIM representa dados (geométricos e não geométricos) e verifica-se, em muitos casos, que os dados originados na construção são pouco ou nada utilizados durante as fases de exploração dos edificios e na manutenção dos mesmos. Com base nesta realidade é de grande importância investigar a gestão de ativos e sua integração com BIM. Esta pesquisa aborda o tema através de pesquisa estruturada quanto á utilização passada e presente da metodologia BIM na gestão de ativos e manutenção. A pesquisa também aponta a questões em torno da implementação da norma ISO-19650 para as indústrias de operações e manutenção, pelo desenvolvimento duma estruturação que identifica e lista os requisitos de informação relevantes aplicáveis (OIR, AIR e EIR), bem como o nível de informação necessário. A revisão de literatura aponta a que há poucos casos de implementação na área da gestão de ativos com recurso a BIM. Verifica-se que os gestores de manutenção e ativos procuram casos de sucesso verificáveis para convencer proprietários e/ou investidores nas vantagens da adoção de BIM. Ao definir os requisitos de informação para a operação e manutenção de ativos utilizando os dados recolhidos no caso estudado, esta dissertação contribuiu para o aprofundar de conhecimento na implementação da referida gestão. Uma vez que a gestão com recurso à integração BIM é ainda nova nas operações e manutenção, há pouca pesquisa verificável no tema, como já apontado. Para melhor percebermos o nível de implementação BIM em operações e manutenção, o autor estudou sistematicamente o processo de gestão de ativos da logística do maior retalhista alimentar em Portugal, SONAE MC. O objetivo desta pesquisa é criar uma estrutura de trabalho para a implementação dum sistema de gestão de ativos baseado na norma ISO-16950 e que será aplicável a um ‘site’ real da empresa. Esta dissertação também procura utilizar a capacidade de visualização e exploração isométrica BIM, dando à equipa de gestão uma nova ferramenta que garante informação geométrica e que permite melhorias no planeamento das intervenções de manutenção, resolução de problemas e uma intervenção que se prevê mais rápida e produtiva. Como parte da implementação da norma ISO-19650 esta dissertação explorou ainda a modelação direcionada à gestão de ativos, pelo estudo da importação e exportação de dados COBie no sistema (CMMS) da empresa (IBM MAXIMO), em paralelo com a integração desses dados COBie num ‘plugin’ de visualização BIM (Autodesk Forge), que foi instalado no ambiente de gestão existente. Este processo permitiu a reengenharia do sistema de gestão de ativos na logística SONAEMC, permitindo um processo único, sequencial, poupando tempo e garantindo uma organização mais eficaz dos dados e exploração dos mesmos no processo de gestão.In recent times, the relevance of information has grown in prominence with roles involving data or information management taking centre stage. For the AECO (Architecture, Engineering, Construction and Operations) industry BIM represents data (geometric and non-geometric). The data from construction has been put to little or no use in the operation and maintenance stage. Based on this proposition it is of great value to investigate BIM-asset management integration. This research approaches the subject by carrying out structured research into the past and present use of BIM methodology in asset management. It also highlights issues around ISO-19650 implementation for the operations and maintenance industry, by developing a framework that promotes the creation of relevant ISO 19650 information requirements documents (OIR, AIR and EIR) and level of information need. The literature review reveals that there is a lack of case study implementations in the area of BIM-asset management. Asset managers generally require verifiable data from case studies to convince building owners and investors to adopt BIM. By defining the information requirements for operation and maintenance using the data collected from the case study, this dissertation has contributed to increased knowledge in BIM- asset management implementation. Since BIM- asset management integration is still new in the operations and maintenance areas, there is little verifiable research on this topic. To understand the status of BIM implementation in the operations and maintenance fields, the author systematically studied the logistics operations asset management process of the largest food and consumer goods company in Portugal, Sonae MC. The objective of this research is to create a framework for the implementation of an ISO 19650 compliant BIM based asset management system, for the case study in which such system will be applicable for a chosen existing facility. This dissertation also aims to use BIM visualization capabilities to provide the asset management team with tools containing both geometric and other asset relevant information and that will allow for improved maintenance planning, better problem solving and faster reactive maintenance response times. As a part of the ISO 19650 implementation process, this dissertation explored subjects on modelling for asset management purposes, importing and exporting COBie data in a Computerized Maintenance Management Systems (CMMS) IBM Maximo. Alongside COBie data integration, a BIM viewer plugin (Autodesk Forge) was installed within Maximo asset management environment. This implementation process allowed the reengineering of the asset management system in Sonae MC, namely simplifying the existing workflow, saving time spent uploading individual asset information and improving the overall information storage and management process.Erasmus Mundus Joint Master Degree Programme – ERASMUS+ European Master in Building Information Modelling BIM A

Modelling flexible manufacturing systems through discrete event simulation

As customisation and product diversification are becoming standard, industry is looking for strategies to become more adaptable in responding to customer’s needs. Flexible manufacturing systems (FMS) provide a unique capability where there is a need to provide efficiency through production flexibility. Full potential of FMS development is difficult to achieve due to the variability of components within this complex manufacturing system. It has been recognised that there is a requirement for decision support tools to address different aspects of FMS development. Discrete event simulation (DES) is the most common tool used in manufacturing sector for solving complex problems. Through systematic literature review, the need for a conceptual framework for decision support in FMS using DES has been identified. Within this thesis, the conceptual framework (CF) for decision support for FMS using DES has been proposed. The CF is designed based on decision-making areas identified for FMS development in literature and through industry stakeholder feedback: set-up, flexibility and schedule configuration. The CF has been validated through four industrial simulation case studies developed as a part of implementation of a new FMS plant in automotive sector. The research focuses on: (1) a method for primary data collection for simulation validated through a case study of material handling robot behaviour in FMS; (2) an approach for evaluation of optimal production set-up for industrial FMS with DES; (3) a DES based approach for testing FMS flexibility levels; (4) an approach for testing scheduling in FMS with the use of DES. The study has supported the development of systematic approach for decision making in FMS development using DES. The approach provided tools for evidence based decision making in FMS