Comparisons of students’ perceptions on BIM practice among Australia, China and UK

University students are the future driving forces in and leaders of the architectural, engineering and construction (AEC) industry advancement. Although BIM pedagogical studies have been performed in different institutions, there has not been sufficient research providing a global perspective of BIM education and students’ perceptions toward BIM practice and application following their learning progress. The purpose of this paper is to adopt student samples from Swinburne University of Technology (SUT, Australia), Wenzhou University (WZU, China) and University of Brighton (UK) as three case studies to investigate the BIM practice and application-related perceptions and motivations. Design/methodology/approach Based on the thorough understanding of the BIM pedagogical delivery including teaching contents and assessment methods among the three institutions, a questionnaire survey approach was adopted to collect AEC students’ perceptions of BIM. Within each selected case, statistical analysis was conducted to investigate both the overall sample and subgroup differences regarding students’ opinions on BIM’s functions (e.g. as a 3D visualization tool) and BIM usefulness in various industry professions, their motivation in BIM-related jobs and their perceptions of challenges encountered in BIM practice and application. Multiple factors influencing BIM learners’ perceptions were discussed, such as pedagogical assessment approach, and individual factors (e.g. disciplines). Findings The results showed that students were able to discern the latest industry practices and critical thinking in BIM movements. For example, SUT students perceived more challenges from the government legislation or incentive policies, which was consistent with Australia’s BIM policy movement. WZU students tended to have less positive views on BIM usefulness. The results also indicated fewer differences regarding perceived challenges among students from these three institutions. Originality/value This study contributed to the body of knowledge in managerial BIM by focusing on learners’ perceptions from the perspective of students’ understanding, motivation and individual views of BIM, which were insightful to both BIM educators and employers. By initiating the framework of BIM learning process and its influence factors, the current study serves as a point of reference to continue the future work in strengthening the connection between institutional BIM education and industry practical needs worldwide

A science mapping approach based review of construction safety research

This study adopted a three-step holistic review approach consisting of bibliometric review, scientometric analysis, and in-depth discussion to gain a deeper understanding of the research development in construction safety. Focusing on a total of 513 journal articles published in Scopus, the influential journals, keywords, scholars, and articles in the domain of construction safety were analyzed

Facilitating Building Information Modelling (BIM) using Integrated Project Delivery (IPD): A UK perspective

The Construction industry is a major player in the UK economy and is in need of continuous improvement. In an attempt to do so, in 2011 the UK government made Building Information Modelling (BIM) level 2 a mandate for all public projects by 2016. Integrated Project Delivery (IPD) is a project delivery approach closely attributed to BIM. However, it does not seem to have received proportionate level of attention and uptake in the UK

Regional Comparisons of Contemporary Construction Industry Sustainable Concepts in the Chinese Context

Emerging construction practices such as building information modelling (BIM), prefabrication construction, green building, and integrated project delivery methods are gaining momentum in China, with great potential due to the size of its construction market. Through this, the sustainability level of China’s construction industry is expected to be enhanced from the economic, social and environmental perspectives. So far, there has been limited understanding of how BIM, as a digital technology, would affect other contemporary sustainable construction practices from the industry professionals’ point of view. Limited studies have been carried out to study the regional differences of these contemporary sustainable practices in China. This study adopted a questionnaire-based approach targeting industry professionals from three different metropolitan cities (Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Wenzhou).The follow-up comprehensive statistical analysis revealed that with regards to these contemporary sustainable construction practices, survey participants held much varied views on the growth of renovation projects, traditional Design–Bid–Build delivery, and conventional on-site construction methods. These three types were also generally perceived to have weak correlation with BIM application. Regional comparison further conveyed information on differences in perceptions among survey respondents from these three cities. For example, respondents from Wenzhou perceived more positive effects of BIM use in conventional construction projects. This research addressed the inter-correlation among these emerging sustainable construction practices, as well as the regional differences in China’s construction market. The findings provide insights and the big picture for both governmental authorities and industry practitioners on the latest sustainable practices of China’s construction industry. Recommendations are also offered towards improved economic, social and environmental sustainability performance for construction projects in the country

Constructing a BIM climate–based framework: regional case study in China

BIM has been undergoing continuous growth in the global architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) industry. However, knowledge development within BIM management is lagging behind its implementation. This study initiates a BIM management–based framework involving BIM climate, which is measured by individual BIM practitioners’ perceptions. Subgroup comparison is highlighted in measuring perceptions. Regional variance in BIM climate is addressed in applying the framework by adopting an empirical case study within the context of China’s AEC industry. The case study uses Shanghai and Wenzhou, which represent a BIM-leading metropolitan city and a BIM-developing counterpart, respectively, for the comparative analysis of BIM climate. Based on data collected from a questionnaire survey sent to BIM practitioners from these two cities, it is revealed that Shanghai, as the BIM-leading city in China, has somewhat significant differences in BIM climate compared with Wenzhou. For example, Shanghai BIM practitioners perceive fewer challenges in BIM training, but higher risk in adopting BIM technology. This study contributes to both academic work and practice in BIM based on its initiation of the concept of BIM climate and the case study of BIM-climate comparison. Academically, this holistic study proposes the BIM management– related knowledge framework aiming to fill the knowledge gap in BIM climate and culture, and it could be further applied in subclimates and subcultures within BIM. Practically, the case study provides insights to stakeholders regarding regional variations in BIM climate when promoting BIM practice or establishing BIM guidelines

Project-based pedagogy in interdisciplinary building design adopting BIM

Purpose – This study aims to present a pedagogical practice in the project-based assessment of AEC students’ interdisciplinary building design work adopting BIM. This pedagogical practice emphasizes the impacts of BIM, as the digital collaboration platform, on the cross-disciplinary teamwork design through information sharing. This study also focuses on collecting students’ perceptions of BIM effects in integrated project design. Challenges in BIM adoption from AEC students’ perspective were identified and discussed, and could spark further research needs. Design/Methodology/Approach – Based on a thorough review of previous pedagogical practices of applying BIM in multiple AEC disciplines, this study adopted a case study of the Solar Decathlon residential building design as the group project for AEC students to deliver the design work and construction planning. In total 13 different teams within the University of Nottingham Ningbo China, each group consisting of final year undergraduate students with backgrounds in architecture, civil engineering, and architectural environmental engineering, worked to deliver the detailed design of the solar-powered residential house meeting pre-specified project objectives in terms of architectural aesthetics, structural integrity, energy efficiency, prefabrication construction techniques, and other issues such as budget and scheduling. Each team presented the cross-disciplinary design plan with cost estimate and construction scheduling together with group reports. This pedagogical study collected students’ reflective thinking on how BIM affected their design work, and compared their feedback on BIM to that from AEC industry professionals in previous studies. Findings – The case study of the Solar Decathlon building project showed the capacity of BIM in enabling interdisciplinary collaboration through information exchange and in enhancing communication across different AEC fields. More sustainable design options were considered in the early architectural design stages through the cross-disciplinary cooperation between architecture and building services engineering. BIM motivated AEC student teams to have a more comprehensive design and construction plan by considering multiple criteria including energy efficiency, budget, and construction activities. Students’ reflections indicated both positive effects of BIM (e.g., facilitating information sharing) as well as challenges for further BIM implementation, such as some architecture students’ resistance to BIM, and the lack of existing family types in the BIM library, etc. Research limitations/implications – Some limitations of the current BIM pedagogy were identified through the student group work. For example, students revealed the problem of interoperability between BIM (i.e., Autodesk Revit) and building energy simulation tools. To further integrate the university education and AEC industry practice, future BIM pedagogical work could recruit professionals and project stakeholders in the adopted case studies, for the purpose of providing professional advice on improving the constructability of the BIM-based design from student work. Originality/value – This work provides insights into the information technology applied in the AEC interdisciplinary pedagogy. Students gained the experience of a project-based collaboration and were equipped with BIM capabilities for future employment within the AEC job market. The integrated design approach was embedded throughout the team project process. Overall, this BIM pedagogical practice emphasized the link between academic activities and real-world industrial practice. The pedagogical experience gained in this BIM course could be expanded to future BIM education and research in other themes such as interoperability of building information exchange among different digital tools

Façade refurbishment of existing office buildings: Do conventional energy-saving interventions always work?

Offices account for 40% of energy use in construction sector. Office building stock is already under-performing and dilapidating at a fast pace. With the current rate of replacing old building stock in the UK, it is expected that at least 60% of what was built before 1985 still exists in 2050. Therefore, refurbishment, with an aim to improve performance of buildings, seems to remain as the most feasible and arguably most cost efficient way forward. Precedent studies in this area are not few and far between. However, some recommendations and interventions seems to have been taken for granted and thought to be globally applicable almost everywhere. This study chooses a recently refurbished office building to challenge this common belief. It was shown that, from the carbon point of view, benefits as a result of interventions were marginal. It was found that a full pre-refurbishment survey, measures aimed at reducing the performance gap between intended and actual figures, and study of occupancy patterns would probably help in this respect. The study results also showed that study of contextual conditions i.e. careful considerations with regards to building orientation, topography, site constraints, and exposure to solar gains will help achieve better results. Finally it was envisaged that better user engagement, communication and using few other measures to enhance user satisfaction will help guarantee some other aspects pertaining to performance than its mere energy consumption or carbon footprint

Incorporating Woodwork Fabrication into the Integrated Teaching and Learning of Civil Engineering Students

As an alternative to the traditional structural analysis adopting computer-aided modeling and evaluation, this pedagogical research provides an integrated teaching and learning approach by mapping cognitive domains in a newly launched course, Woodwork Fabrication and Analysis, for second-year students. The course incorporates ancient Chinese woodworking tradition into the integrated learning activities involving engineering graphics, mechanics of materials, hands-on fabrication, and structural modeling/analysis. Comparing the traditional and new courses in terms of their effectiveness in enhancing student learning of structural engineering subjects, both courses are designed to achieve consistent learning outcomes (e.g., to develop structural analysis skills). This study demonstrates student work in engineering drawing and structural analysis reflecting their critical thinking and active learning in the new course. Students from both the traditional and new courses were surveyed about their overall satisfaction with their selected course, their perceptions of the course effectiveness in enhancing civil engineering–related skills, and their expectations of the effect of the course on their further study and work. With the student sample from the traditional course as the control group, the comparative study reveals that the integrated teaching and learning approach in the new course could lead to higher overall student satisfaction and more-positive perceptions of the course effectiveness in enhancing structural analysis–related skills. This pedagogical study will serve as a reference for other civil engineering educators in adopting integrated teaching and learning in lower-year undergraduate education

An empirical study of perceptions towards construction and demolition waste recycling and reuse in China

This study was designed to investigate the recent movement and current stage of China’s construction and demolition (C&D) waste recycling and reuse. Specifically, the research aimed to provide the big picture of recent C&D waste diversion practice in China, as well as to offer insights from Chinese field practitioners’ perceptions towards benefits, challenges, and recommendations of C&D recycling and reuse. This research was conducted based on a review of existing practice and a holistic approach by collecting feedback of professionals from multiple disciplines through a questionnaire-based survey. Totally 77 valid responses were received from 592 questionnaires sent. Both quantitative data and qualitative information implied that China was still at the early stage of recycling C&D wastes. Lack of client demands was identified as one of the main difficulties in C&D waste diversion. The study revealed that engineers and consultants had a more positive perception on promoting industrial training in C&D waste recycling, while construction management professionals held more conservative opinion on it. It was also found that gaining experience in C&D waste recycling and reuse would offer professionals more positive perception on the quality of products containing recycled contents. It was further implied that although governmental supervision had a high impact on China’s current C&D waste management practice, the economic viability should eventually dominate the C&D waste diversion

Urban Heat Island (UHI) mitigating strategies: A case-based comparative analysis

Urbanisation may have been shown to have no effect on climate change, but some researchers suggest that cities are fully capable of responding to it. Urban Heat Islands (UHIs) represent dense urban areas within cities where the temperature is recorded to be higher than the neighbouring areas or those located in suburbia. Mitigation of UHI effects can help diminish detriments of climate change. This paper sets out to establish UHI mitigation strategies, their effectiveness and resilience to help provide recommendations for application of such strategies in future. Existing literature suggest that UK is facing with growing problem of UHI effects and sustainable development at urban scale can be improved if proportionate measures are taken to mitigate those effects. The lack of guidance for designers and planners with regards to UHI mitigation is also indicated in the literature where trees, shrubs and grass (TSG), use of high albedo materials (HAM) in external building surfaces and urban inland water bodies (UIWB) are identified as effective measures to mitigate UHI. This research identifies and tests resilience and effectiveness of UHI mitigation strategies, using ENVI-met simulations and through Urban Futures Assessment Method (UFAM). Assessed mitigation strategies (TSG, HAM, UIWB) are shown to have a similar level of resilience which could be improved if proper future-proof measures are taken in place. As a result, some practical suggestions are provided to help improve the resilience of tested UHI mitigation strategies in this study