Making friends with Frankenstein: hybrid practice in BIM

2017 ◽  
Vol 24 (1) ◽  
pp. 78-93 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kathryn Davies ◽  
Dermott J. McMeel ◽  
Suzanne Wilkinson
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Construction Industry ◽  
Development Stage ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Project Outcomes ◽  
Building Information ◽  
Generate Process ◽  
Making Friends ◽  
And Performance

Purpose Although the potential of Building Information Modelling (BIM) to generate process and performance improvement in the construction industry has been widely documented, very few projects operate in a wholly BIM environment. The purpose of this paper is to explore the factors that lead to hybrid practice in BIM across disciplines or project stages, and accommodations that must be reached within BIM project frameworks to allow for it. Design/methodology/approach In-depth semi-structured interviews were carried out with 38 BIM specialists from Australia and New Zealand, representing a variety of construction industry disciplines and roles. Data on current practice and experiences in BIM were analysed using a thematic approach within a qualitative framework. Findings Hybrid BIM practice is shown to be a common experience for practitioners in New Zealand and Australia. It is presented as a valid model of BIM adoption; both as a development stage in the process towards more complete BIM implementation, and also as an adoption model in its own right. Research limitations/implications The paper is based on data from New Zealand and Australia, which are currently developing BIM markets. Although surveys have demonstrated many similarities in BIM adoption processes internationally, results may be less applicable to more mature markets. Practical implications The paper suggests that instead of regarding hybrid BIM negatively as an unsuccessful implementation, companies should seek to identify and manage the causes and effects of hybridisation in order to improve project outcomes. Originality/value This paper addresses the management of transitional stages of BIM implementation, which is often overlooked in research.

scholarly journals Examining critical perspectives on Building Information Modelling (BIM) adoption in New Zealand

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Dat Tien Doan ◽  
Ali GhaffarianHoseini ◽  
Nicola Naismith ◽  
Amirhosein Ghaffarianhoseini ◽  
Tongrui Zhang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Construction Industry ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Time Saving ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Effective Strategies ◽  
Building Information ◽  
Baseline Information ◽  
Potential Benefits ◽  
Definition Of

PurposeThis research aims to explore the perspectives of the key actors in the New Zealand construction industry towards BIM adoption. Specifically, four themes are examined, including what BIM is; BIM knowledge and understanding; benefits of BIM adoption; and challenges/barriers to BIM adoption.Design/methodology/approachA qualitative approach using 21 semi-structured interviews with industry experts was adopted.FindingsThe results raise a question concerning whether the New Zealand construction industry needs a unique definition of BIM to achieve a clear and consistent understanding amongst construction practitioners. It was found out that most of the construction practitioners in New Zealand are not well aware of BIM, especially the contractors, QSs, supply chain companies and the SMEs. Fourteen potential benefits and ten barriers/challenges to BIM adoption were identified. Individually, time-saving was considered as the most benefit of BIM adoption while BIM understanding was suggested as the most significant barrier by all the interviewees.Originality/valueThe research provides valuable insights into BIM understanding as well as recommendations regarding BIM adoption in New Zealand. The results could be considered baseline information for the companies and government to have effective strategies towards BIM adoption. Furthermore, it confirms that characteristics such as benefits and barriers to BIM adoption amongst different countries could be similar. Therefore, it could be useful to analyse the studies, strategies and practices of the pioneer countries in BIM adoption for the implementation.

Automation in New Zealand's offsite construction (OSC): a status update

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Genevieve Darlow ◽  
James O.B. Rotimi ◽  
Wajiha Mohsin Shahzad
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Construction Industry ◽  
Qualitative Content Analysis ◽  
Sampling Strategy ◽  
Business Case ◽  
Business Owners ◽  
Current Status ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Level Of Automation

PurposeAutomation facilitates production activities within offsite construction (OSC) projects through computer-controlled and mechanised systems that can be programmed to deliver various products in a self-regulating sequence. Despite known benefits of automation to offsite production, the level of automation adoption in New Zealand is low. This study is an effort to understand the current status of automation within the New Zealand construction industry and to identify the barriers and enablers to its uptake.Design/methodology/approachThis study utilises the qualitative approach of semi-structured interviews (open-ended questions). Using a referral sampling strategy (snowballing), fifteen New Zealand industry experts were interviewed, and the data collected were analysed using qualitative content analysis.FindingsThe study found that there is a weak business case for full automation. Four main categories of barriers to the uptake of automated OSC were identified, including requirement of high capital cost, lack of education about automation and OSC and non-existence of regulations to support OSC. It was noted that financial supports to the OSC sub-sector in form of subsidies, tax waivers, and enhanced leasing model could enhance the uptake of automation. Further to this more awareness about OSC's automation and regulations suitable for OSC could enhance the confidence of business owners to invest in this area.Originality/valueOriginality of this paper stems from the fact that, not much attention has been paid to investigating the uptake of automation for OSC sub-sector of construction industry in New Zealand context.

Offsite construction skills evolution: an Australian case study

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Buddhini Ginigaddara ◽  
Srinath Perera ◽  
Yingbin Feng ◽  
Payam Rahnamayiezekavat
Keyword(s):  
Construction Industry ◽  
Single Case ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Project Coordinator ◽  
Depth Analysis ◽  
Building Information ◽  
Specific Skill

Purpose The construction industry is currently responding to pressures of industrialisation happening across all sectors. Consequently, offsite construction (OSC) has become a vehicle to achieve industrialisation. This requires changes in traditional construction processes resulting in possible changes in construction skill requirements. Accordingly, the purpose of this study is to identify and review prevailing OSC practices and skills in the Australian construction industry. This study aims to critically analyse the existing skill profile classifications through a single case study and identify the need for an OSC specific skill classification. Design/methodology/approach This study follows a case study design, with an in-depth analysis of a single construction project. Only one case study was studied because scientifically, one example was enough to prove that the prevailing skill classifications do not represent OSC skills in a modern context. Data was retrospectively collected through semi-structured interviews of project stakeholders representing design, manufacture and assembly. Content analysis was conducted to analyse the collected data and produce findings. Findings This study identifies the inadequacy of the existing classification system, unavailability and the need of OSC specific skill categorisation. It highlights new skills that enter OSC; building information modelling engineer, three-dimensional draftsperson, OSC project manager and project coordinator, which are not identified in the available Australian skill classifications. These, together with existing skills need to be carved in to create a new skill classification. Originality/value This study is the first of its kind where a comprehensive OSC project is evaluated as a case study to determine OSC skill classification requirements in Australia.

A THEORETICAL EVALUATION ON THE IMPLEMENTATION OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE FOR LEARNING CURVE FOR BUILT ENVIRONMENT

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mokgaetji Gift ◽  
Xolile Nokulunga
Keyword(s):  
Artificial Intelligence ◽  
Construction Industry ◽  
Construction Projects ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
Development Stage ◽  
The Body ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Theoretical Evaluation ◽  
Increase Productivity ◽  
And Performance

Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology has the power to unlock the challenges faced in construction projects such as poor efficiency issues, design errors, low productivity, and accidents on site. Therefore, the study is a literature review on the evaluation of the implementation of AI technology on South African construction projects. The method adopted in this study is based on the cross analyses of inferences from structured interviews with reference to existing theoretical literature, published and unpublished research. The primary findings emanating from this study reveals that past other underground empirical studies have identified several important impacts of AI technology and how it can revolutionize the construction industry. This includes timely delivery of the projects, improved profitability, and reduced construction errors. Moreover, the study revealed that if AI technology is fully exposed and exploited on construction projects especially to both developed and developing countries it would certainly eliminate design errors, increase productivity, improve efficiency, and performance issues. However, the adoption of AI technology in South Africa is still at an early development stage. The study would contribute to the body of existing knowledge of AI technology. Again, it will help construction industry professionals to advance their workplaces and organizations.

Building organisational resilience for the construction industry

2017 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 98-108 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zulkfli Sapeciay ◽  
Suzanne Wilkinson ◽  
Seosamh B. Costello
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Natural Disasters ◽  
Construction Industry ◽  
Assessment Tool ◽  
Community Resilience ◽  
Assessment Tools ◽  
Negative Consequences ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Post Disaster

Purpose This paper aims to explore New Zealand construction practitioners’ approaches to organisational resilience practice in built environment discipline, based on survey and interview results. The objective was to explore the resilience practice within the construction sector with the intention of developing a resilient assessment tool specifically for construction organisations. Design/methodology/approach A literature review was conducted to gather information on assessment tools for measuring organisational resilience, their characteristics and indicators. Subsequently, a set of questions was formulated to collate opinions from construction practitioners in New Zealand, using a questionnaire survey and semi-structured interviews. Findings This paper concludes by showing that the construction industry lacks resilience practice, especially from an organisational perspective. The findings suggest that the industry would benefit from a resilience assessment tool to help improve resilience. The adoption of such a tool could potentially enhance organisational capacity to recover quickly from crises and disasters. Practical implications Improving the resilience of construction organisations to natural disasters not only minimises the negative consequences to their organisations post-disaster and enhances their organisational performance during business as usual but also helps to improve community resilience. Originality/value Improving the resilience of construction organisations also helps to improve community resilience and overall post-disaster recovery. However, at present, little research has been conducted on how construction organisations deal with the risk of natural disasters.

scholarly journals Status of BIM implementation in the Dominican Republic construction industry – an empirical study

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ana Karina Silverio ◽  
Subashini Suresh
Keyword(s):  
Dominican Republic ◽  
Construction Industry ◽  
Empirical Work ◽  
Primary Data ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Building Information Modelling ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Building Information ◽  
The Status ◽  
Research Gap

Purpose The increased use and proven benefits of building information modelling (BIM) worldwide suggest that its implementation could be of great help in diminishing inefficient traditional practices in the Dominican Republic (DR) construction industry. However, there is no empirical work about the implementation of BIM in the country. This study aims to critically appraise and document the status of the implementation of BIM in the DR to raise awareness and understand how BIM can be successfully implemented in the country. Design/methodology/approach A qualitative approach was adopted in which data was collected through semi-structured interviews, with the participation of 53 professionals from 36 construction organisations. The data collected was analysed with the method of content analysis. Findings The results confirmed that the DR is a BIM infant country. There are low levels of BIM implementation. The reasons why BIM is not implemented are explored, and a significant interest in implementing BIM in the future was also reported. Drivers to implement BIM include BIM benefits, competitive advantage and pressure from external partners. Current BIM approaches are mainly single-disciplinary, principally in architecture, and the effectiveness and scope of implementation are highly affected by intra-organisational and inter-organisational barriers. Originality/value There is a lack of research about the implementation of BIM in the DR. This study bridges this research gap by collecting primary data from Dominican construction organisations and construction professionals to report findings related to BIM implementation.

Stakeholders’ expectations on building information modelling (BIM) concept in Malaysia

2018 ◽  
Vol 36 (4) ◽  
pp. 400-422 ◽  
Author(s):  
Afifuddin Husairi Husain ◽  
Muhammad Najib Razali ◽  
Sabariah Eni
Keyword(s):  
Construction Industry ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Building Information Modelling ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Information Modelling ◽  
Building Information ◽  
Knowledge Policy ◽  
Expected Benefits ◽  
Great Knowledge

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the benefits that client organisations expect from building information modelling (BIM) investment in Malaysia. Furthermore, this paper investigates the outcomes that, from the stakeholders’ point of view, the BIM approach needs to present. Design/methodology/approach To achieve this aim, this research employed a series of structured interviews which were conducted with representatives from client construction organisations in Malaysia. A structured questionnaire, containing 34 items, was used to collect data from respondents. Findings This research’s findings indicated that increased project revenue is one of the most expected benefits of BIM investment. In addition, it has been revealed that the Malaysian construction industry has implemented the BIM approach to project management. Furthermore, the great deal of acceptance among industrial players has been significantly positive, and thereby it can be concluded that the implementation of BIM in Malaysia has lots of potential. Originality/value This paper’s finding offers great knowledge, policy, and academic contribution, acknowledging the development of BIM’s implementation within the Malaysian construction industry.

scholarly journals Developing organizational capabilities to deliver lean and green project outcomes using BIM

2018 ◽  
Vol 25 (10) ◽  
pp. 1255-1276 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ritu Ahuja ◽  
Anil Sawhney ◽  
Mohammed Arif
Keyword(s):  
Construction Projects ◽  
Integrated Approach ◽  
Information Modeling ◽  
Organizational Capabilities ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Skill Sets ◽  
Project Outcomes ◽  
Building Information ◽  
Lean And Green

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to describe the process through which an organization develops organizational capabilities by tapping the technical skills and social skills of its employees in the use of Building Information Modeling (BIM) to deliver lean and green project outcomes. The resulting framework for BIM-based organizational capabilities development comprising of three hierarchical layers – technology, process and outcomes – is explained. Design/methodology/approach For this study, BIM has been identified as an enabler and a process for achieving lean and green outcomes on construction projects. Based on a detailed literature review, this paper identifies the organizational capabilities needed by the architecture, engineering and construction organizations to effectively implement BIM on construction projects. The study has been conducted through a sequential mixed-method approach involving semi-structured interviews, focus groups and qualitative comparative analyses. Findings It was discovered that to attain desired project outcomes, an organization needs to embrace an underlying BIM adoption culture not only within its project teams but also within the organization as a whole. The study also concluded that an integrated approach to BIM usage – connecting it with lean and green initiatives – on construction projects resulted in improved project outcomes, especially ones targeting lean and green aspects of improvements. Practical implications The proposed outline for BIM-based organizational capabilities will help the organizations focus on the “human factors” along with the technical factors while striving for successful usage within their organizations. Originality/value Using the organizational capabilities matrix, this paper highlights the importance of technical and social skill sets of an individual employee and their role in developing the organizational capabilities to gain the desired lean and green outcomes.

Site managers’ ICT tools for monitoring resources in refurbishment

2019 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 109-127 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ahmet Anıl Sezer ◽  
Jan Bröchner
Keyword(s):  
Construction Industry ◽  
Information And Communication Technologies ◽  
Postal Questionnaire ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Performance Expectancy ◽  
Use Of Technology ◽  
Building Information ◽  
Efficient Planning ◽  
Ict Tools ◽  
Site Managers

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to analyse site managers’ ICT preferences for monitoring resource use in refurbishment projects. Design/methodology/approach Information and communication technologies (ICT) developments for the construction industry are increasing the scope for more efficient planning and monitoring of refurbishment projects. The analysis is based on the unified theory of acceptance and the use of technology model. After a short initial survey, a Swedish web/postal questionnaire has received 78 responses from refurbishment site managers, implying a 34 per cent response rate. Findings Managerial choices related to ICT depend more on perceived performance expectancy than on effort expectancy. Large projects and larger firms are associated with more extensive ICT use. Site managers see little need to link to refurbishment clients’ ICT systems. Performance expectancy and age are found to influence ICT choices. Practical implications Site managers play a crucial role in everyday use of ICT tools in the construction industry. The outcome of this investigation is useful for developing digital support, including applications of building information modelling, to improve refurbishment site practices. Originality/value Much has been written about ICT support for new construction practices, but not much attention has been paid to refurbishment site managers’ media choices.

scholarly journals Zero Carbon Building Practices in Aotearoa New Zealand

Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (15) ◽  
pp. 4455
Author(s):  
Thao Thi Phuong Bui ◽  
Suzanne Wilkinson ◽  
Niluka Domingo ◽  
Casimir MacGregor
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
New Zealand ◽  
Construction Industry ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
Policy Implications ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Building Projects ◽  
Aotearoa New Zealand ◽  
Zero Carbon

In the light of climate change, the drive for zero carbon buildings is known as one response to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Within New Zealand, research on climate change mitigation and environmental impacts of buildings has received renewed attention. However, there has been no detailed investigation of zero carbon building practices. This paper undertakes an exploratory study through the use of semi-structured interviews with government representatives and construction industry experts to examine how the New Zealand construction industry plans and implements zero carbon buildings. The results show that New Zealand’s construction industry is in the early stage of transiting to a net-zero carbon built environment. Key actions to date are focused on devising a way for the industry to develop and deliver zero carbon building projects. Central and local governments play a leading role in driving zero carbon initiatives. Leading construction firms intend to maximise the carbon reduction in building projects by developing a roadmap to achieve the carbon target by 2050 and rethinking the way of designing and constructing buildings. The research results provide an insight into the initial practices and policy implications for the uptake of zero carbon buildings in Aotearoa New Zealand.

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