Identification of Key Performance Tasks to Demonstrate the Benefit of Introducing the Facilities Manager at an Early Stage in the Building Information Modelling process on Public Sector Projects in Ireland.

Modelling (BIM) governed process was investigated in this thesis. Governments are now seeking a more rewarding methodology in the management and procurement of public sector building assets. This has seen an integrated focus by International Governments on BIM as a partial solution in both managing and procuring public sector building assets. Despite BIM bringing the Facility Manager closer to project conceptualisation, there was still a reluctance and a lack of perceived benefits of having them involved earlier in the design phase. There remains a lack of clear evidence on what improved contribution the Facilities Manager can provide. This thesis provides a review of current initiatives in place in the Irish public sector and advocates BIM and early Facility Manager involvement as a solution in establishing a more intelligent public sector estate. There was a strong understanding that early Facility Management involvement is a crucial requirement in the design process to ensure the model is challenged for operability and maintainability issues. Their involvement though has been hindered by a clear lack of understanding to what areas they can contribute to within the early BIM design process. In depth observational studies identify inefficiencies that currently exist in the Irish public sector. In particular, demonstrations have been provided to show how the Facility Manager can be included in the design team to assist in addressing a number of these inefficienes. Surveys carried out by the author suggest that there was a high level of awareness and early usage of BIM in Ireland. Despite the lack of involvement of the Facility Manager in the traditional process there was an understanding that he/she can utilise current BIM technologies in addressing key areas of concern which are usually left unaddressed until the operational phase. The thesis presents a number of Key Performance Tasks (KPTs) that can be used to demonstrate the benefit of including the Facility Manager earlier in the BIM process for public sector projects. The KPTs have been piloted, refined and validated on a number of pilot and public sector projects. The output from this research has demonstrated that the inclusion of the Facility Manager can ensure a more robust Facilities Management (FM) design process for public sector projects, thereby realising improved project outcomes

Improving the Sustainability of the Built Environment by Training its Workforce in More Efficient and Greener Ways of Designing and Constructing Through the Horizon2020 BIMcert Project

The construction industry consumes up to 50% of mineral resources excavated from nature, generates about 33% of CO2 present in the atmosphere and is responsible for 40% of total global energy through both construction and operation of buildings. The realisation that current pervasive construction practices now face globalization, sustainability, and environmental concerns, as well as ever-changing legislation requirements and new skills needed for the information age has resulted in technologies such as Building Information Modelling (BIM) becoming a key enabler in navigating these barriers. To assist in overcoming these barriers, a number of funding initiatives have been put in place through Horizon 2020 with a focus on BIM, due to it having the potential to rapidly produce energy outputs that enable design teams to analyse and compare the most costeffective, energy-efficient options. One of these initiatives, the BIMcert project, aims to educate all areas of the supply chain in the use of BIM, to achieve better energy efficiency during the design, construction and ongoing maintenance of an asset. The goal is to develop more efficient and relevant training programme materials that integrate concepts of sustainability and renewables with practical application and integration with technology. The first stage of this project involved a detailed and exhaustive process that was used to establish the proposed curriculum, methodologies, concepts, and pilot training material. This paper will explore stage 2 of the BIMcert Project were a series of workshops across the consortium’s jurisdictions were used for the rigorous evaluation of pilot training material. The paper will also discuss how the developed training material has assisted in improving the sustainability of the built environment by training its workforce in more efficient and greener ways of designing and constructing through the use of BIM processes

Delivering Energy Savings for the Supply Chain Through Building Information Modelling as a Result of the Horizon 2020 Energy BIMcert Project

The global buildings sector is now responsible for 40% of final energy consumption as well as accounting for 33% of energy-related carbon dioxide emissions. This has resulted in a growing urgency to address energy and emissions from buildings and construction, to meet restrictive 2020 targets as specified by the European Union (EU). To achieve these targets a number of funding initiatives have been put in place through Horizon 2020 with a focus on BIM, due to it having the potential to rapidly produce energy outputs that enable design teams to analyse and compare the most cost-effective, energy-efficient options. However, despite the recorded benefits that BIM can bring to the design, there is still a lack of understanding of how it can be used on site by the supply chain to impact energy savings directly. In order to address this industry-wide concern a Multi-International consortium, bid, won and then launched the Horizon 2020 Energy BIMcert project in March 2018 with the goal to educate all areas of the supply chain in the use of BIM, so as to achieve better energy efficiency during the design, construction and ongoing maintenance of an asset. An online platform will be launched in September 2019, which will deliver blended training that combines theory, practice, and eLearning that will enable workers to train more effectively. This paper will explore the initial stages of this project and will focus on how the findings from a survey and series of workshops conducted within the member states of the Energy BIMcert consortium has helped establish the training needs of the industry. These findings were cross-referenced with a state-of-the-art literature review on BIM pedagogy, which has resulted in the formation of the curriculum and learning outcomes for a number of BIM focused training units. Further to this, the paper will discuss how the delivery of the blended training and associated materials will affect current energy saving targets

An Investigation Into Current Procurement Strategies That Promote Collaboration Through Early Contractor Involvement With Regards to Their Suitability for Irish Public Work Projects

Previous research has established that multi-disciplinary collaboration will benefit a construction project throughout its lifecycle. While Lean Construction, Building Information Modelling (BIM), and Integrated Project Delivery (IPD) can all be viewed as separate processes which add independent value to a project, they are more effective when used in partnership with each other. In order to ensure the high levels of collaboration expected for these processes to work in unison, the early involvement of the Contractor is paramount. Early contractor involvement within the design process can ensure a more focused integrated project team, improvement of both constructability and cost certainty, as well as better risk management. This approach has only been used occasionally on Irish public works projects. Competitive tendering has resulted in creating a culture of claims and adversity, not conducive to collaboration and therefore raising the question, is the traditional procurement format representing value for money for the Irish State. This paper will investigate current procurement strategies that promote early contractor involvement and their suitability for Irish public works projects. The research will primarily focus on contracts that are best aligned to the Capital Works Management Framework (CWMF) strategic objectives of ensuring greater cost certainty, better value for money and more efficient end-user delivery. To achieve this an initial literature review was undertaken exploring award criteria for early Contractor involvement both within the International and Irish public and private sectors. This research focused on establishing and examining the potential barriers for implementation. The analysed data from this process was interrogated through Stakeholders interviews that aimed to understand the current state of the public work project procurement process and if government agencies would endorse a move away from the “lowest bid win” criteria for contractor selection. A case study was also carried out showcasing a form of IPD used in Ireland. The findings from this paper suggest that early contractor involvement in partnership with IPD can provide a more advantageous solution for the Irish State while also promoting both BIM and Lean Construction processes