Critical BIM qualification criteria for construction pre-qualification and selection

© 2017 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. Despite emerging research on Building Information Modelling (BIM) capability, there remain no studies that specifically look at criteria for the pre-qualification and selection of construction supply chain (CSC) firms for BIM projects. As a consequence, there is insufficient theoretical insight and empirical justification for critical BIM qualification criteria for the CSC context. In order to bridge this knowledge gap, a study was conducted to ascertain the most critical BIM capability attributes, as well as relevance to the pre-qualification and selection of suitable CSC firms for BIM-enabled projects. The relative importance of these criteria was determined based on their perceived influence on overall BIM delivery success on recent BIM-enabled projects. A sequential exploratory mixed methodological research design was adopted involving semi-structured interviews (n = 8) and a Delphi survey (n = 25) of experts, as well as a survey of CSC firms (n = 64) on BIM-enabled projects. The findings reinforce the criticality of past BIM experience in delivery success. Furthermore, it revealed that while technological infrastructure-related capacities (such as software and hardware availability) are perceived as very important qualification criteria, their actual contribution to delivery success is not as high in comparison to criteria related to previous BIM experience. This study provides insights on prioritising BIM capability criteria based on evidence on their contribution to delivery success in practice rather than their perceived importance as capability metrics

Towards a consensus of expert opinions on implementing ISO 14001 in the architecture, engineering and construction sectors of the UK

As society places greater emphasis on sustainability and environmental management, particularly within the architecture, engineering and construction (AEC) sectors, it is vital to understand the effectiveness of the tools available to deliver change in these areas. The AEC sectors contribute to a significant impact on the environment, both in terms of materials used and waste produced. They are also seen as being environmentally negative. Therefore, the use of ISO 14001 is of increasing importance in terms of demonstrating a commitment to working towards being more sustainable within their operations. Therefore, the aim of this study is to reveal the opinions of an expert panel of environmental management professionals working within the AEC sectors on the benefits and barriers of implementing ISO 14001. A Delphi study was conducted, which consisted of two rounds (Round 1 involved n = 15 participants; Round 2 involved n = 9 participants). The participants were asked to independently rank 145 statements (comprising: n = 86 benefits; n = 59 barriers), across n = 17 categories, which were derived from ISO 14001 and AEC literature. After two survey rounds and weighted average analysis, the results reveal the highest ranked benefits are: (i) improved relationships with stakeholders, (ii) tender requirement, (iii) community participation, (iv) industry standards, (v) efficient operations, (vi) employee environmental awareness, (vii) cost savings through energy efficiency, and (viii) improved environmental performance; whilst the highest ranked barriers are: (i) open to public scrutiny, (ii) costs involved, (iii) top management commitment towards implementation, (iv) lack of link to EIA, (v) public not interested, (vi) lack of support to assist staff, and (vii) legal compliance. However, unlike previous Delphi studies that have sought to gather consensus, most participants in this study were unwilling to shift their opinions towards a shared middle-ground. Therefore, whilst the survey results enlighten our appreciations of ISO 14001 implementation within the AEC sectors, they also indicate significant differences in opinion by different environmental management professionals

Differences in stakeholder ability in addressing unethical practices: Insights from the surveying profession

While several measures have been suggested to address unethical practices within the built environment, it remains unclear whether some stakeholders are more able to influence improvement in unethical practices than others, and if so whether such phenomenon manifests similarly or differently in different national contexts. This study pioneers the exploration of whether different built environment profession stakeholders (i.e., the practitioner/individual professional, the practitioner’s organization/company, and the professional body/association) have different abilities to influence improvement (i.e., positive change) in unethical practices, and subsequently whether such phenomenon manifests differently in different national contexts. The study used cross-sectional surveys of built environment surveying professionals in three countries: Ghana, Nigeria, and Tanzania. The findings revealed that there are significant differences in the abilities of stakeholders to influence improvement in unethical practices like political interference, discrimination, and nepotism. The findings further revealed that differences in stakeholder ability to influence improvement in unethical practices can manifest differently in different national contexts. The implication is that, in different national contexts, specific stakeholders could play a leading role in efforts to address unethical practices in which they are more capable of influencing improvement

Design for safety in construction in Sub-Saharan Africa: A study of architects in Ghana

Design for safety (DfS) is an important mechanism for addressing accidents in construction. In the main, DfS studies have largely focussed on various regions of the world other than sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Through a questionnaire survey, this study investigated the DfS awareness and practice amongst architects in the Ghanaian construction sector. Data analysis revealed that there is a low engagement in DfS practice despite a high level of awareness of DfS amongst architects. There is a high interest in DfS training juxtaposed against a low engagement in DfS training. DfS practice is not associated with: awareness of the concept of DfS; engagement in DfS professional development training; receipt of DfS education; membership of professional body; years of experience in role; and the company size. Concerted efforts by industry stakeholders, including clients, educational institutions and design professional bodies would be required to encourage the application of DfS amongst architects and other design professionals within the Ghanaian construction environment. Furthermore, more studies on DfS within the SSA context are required in order to profile DfS awareness and practice amongst design practitioners and other industry stakeholders within the region

Design for safety implementation among design professionals in construction: The context of Palestine

Design for safety (DfS), also known as prevention through design, is a prominent means for tackling work-related illnesses and injuries in construction. However, the available DfS studies in construction have paid very limited attention to developing countries. Consequently, there is limited insight into DfS implementation in many developing countries including Palestine. This study therefore investigates DfS implementation among design professionals in the Palestinian construction industry. A questionnaire survey was used to obtain data from design professionals and the data was analysed using inferential statistics (i.e. analysis of variance and t-test) and descriptive statistics. The results revealed that the extent of engagement in DfS practices among the design professionals is very low despite a high awareness and positive attitude towards the concept of DfS. Additionally, while there is a great interest in undertaking DfS training, the designers' participation in training is low. Additionally, awareness of DfS, DfS education and training, professional body affiliation, level of education, years of experience, and size of organisation were found to have limited association with the extent of engagement in DfS practices by the designers. These findings suggest the presence of DfS implementation barriers/challenges, which are undermining the implementation of DfS by the design professionals in Palestine. Collaborative efforts are required by the construction industry stakeholders to improve DfS implementation. Furthermore, the findings mirror the outcomes of similar studies in other developing countries and thus highlight an urgent need for additional studies within developing countries to ascertain the barriers/challenges to DfS implementation in those geographic contexts

Association of Researchers in Construction Management

Building information modelling (BIM) has been proposed as a technology enabled process for the realisation of the performance ambitions of the construction industry through integrated management of information in virtual 3-D formats. Significant challenges however exist which undermine its implementation within the construction industry. The identification of these challenges is an imperative precondition for successful implementation of BIM given the associated risk. The design phase has particularly been cited as a significant beneficiary of process improvement and efficiency gains expected from the deployment of BIM. Despite the critical role of the design phase to project delivery and consequently BIM usage, few studies have sought to interrogate the challenges faced by designers. A qualitative approach was adopted through semi-structured interviews to solicit perspectives of UK design firms on the implementation challenges being faced. Findings reveal a categorisation of challenges as design-specific, team-orientated, project-related, technology related (BIM specific), industry-wide challenges and cost. This categorisation is used as a basis for identifying critical challenges which include: design process lag and loss of time; lack of understanding by clients regarding requirements for the BIM model; lack of learning feedback from projects on which BIM has been used; and lack of supply chain integration. Variation in the challenges across different maturity levels of firms is also confirmed in this study, particularly in relation to cost of implementation. Awareness of these challenges provides opportunities for identifying effective solutions for their mitigation

The importance of BIM capability assessment: An evaluation of post-selection performance of organisations on construction projects

Purpose: The emergence of building information modelling (BIM) has led to the need for pre-qualification and selection of organisations capable of working within a BIM environment. Several criteria have been proposed for the assessment of an organisation’s BIM capability during the pre-qualification and selection phase of projects. However, no studies have sought to empirically establish whether organisations selected on the basis of such criteria have actually been the most successful at delivering BIM on projects. The purpose of this paper is to address the aforementioned gap through a comparison of predicted BIM capability and post-selection performance. Design/methodology/approach: BIM capability of firms in a case study was predicted using 28 BIM pre-qualification and selection criteria, prioritised based on their perceived contribution to BIM delivery success from a survey of practitioners on BIM-enabled projects. The comparison of predicted BIM capability and post-selection performance was, on the other hand, achieved through the application of the Technique to Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution and fuzzy sets theory (Fuzzy-TOPSIS). Findings: Findings underscore the reliability of the 28 BIM pre-qualification and selection criteria as well as the priority weightings proposed for their use in predicting BIM capability and likelihood of performance. The findings have highlighted the importance of criteria related as previous BIM use experience as well as information processing maturity as critical indicators of the capability of organisations, particularly design firms. Originality/value: Overall, the findings highlight the need for prioritisation of BIM pre-qualification and selection criteria on the basis of their actual contribution to delivery success from post-selection evaluation of performance

Investigation into the key barriers to achieving UK “Construction 2025” strategy targets

The “Construction 2025” is a United Kingdom (UK) Government Strategy introduced in 2013 to improve the construction industry in the United Kingdom by meeting outlined performance targets by 2025. However, with only a few years left to reach the targets, it is unclear how much industry is advancing to meet them. This paper reviews the progress to achieve the Strategy targets. The data collected from 96 UK construction professionals was utilised to assess the key barriers to achieving the UK “Construction 2025” Strategy targets. Results indicate that industry professionals are uncertain about reaching the reduction in overall cost and time targets by 2025. However, they are more positive about reducing greenhouse gas emissions and the trade gap. In terms of the key barriers, the results revealed a reluctance to adopt change, lack of implementation of new technology, fragmentation in the industry, and failure to adopt modern construction methods as the key barriers to the Strategy targets. The research is the first attempt at a comprehensive assessment of the progress and barriers to the UK “Construction 2025” Strategy. The results reinforce the call for government initiatives to transform the industry