An Investigation Into ‘Lean-BIM' Synergies in the UK Construction Industry

2017 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 1-13
Author(s):  
David J Greenwood ◽  
Lou Thai Jie ◽  
Kay Rogage

This article highlights the advantages of Lean Construction (‘Lean') and Building Information Modelling ('BIM') that have received much attention. Individually, each promises transformative and beneficial effects on the construction process, prompting researchers to consider the possibility of synergies between the two. An early example is the hypothetical ‘Lean-BIM Interaction Matrix' of Rafael Sacks and his collaborators. In this, Lean principles are set against BIM functionality and synergies predicted. Early tests of the proposals were through retrospective case studies. Further promising results have been demonstrated in construction projects in the USA. This suggests that similar results might be possible elsewhere, prompting the present UK study. The methodological approach is case-study based on projects where the contractor purports to be using (i) Lean principles, (ii) BIM, and (iii) both. Evidence will be collected through a variety of means (including interviews, documents, and observation). The research is currently at a stage where data has been collected from the first few case-study projects.

Author(s):  
Nguyen Manh Tuan

The concepts of Building Information Modeling (BIM) and Lean construction are increasingly popular and used for the purpose of improving the efficiency of construction projects. The Lean construction approach helps optimize the system, thereby minimizing the waste and increase the maximum amount of value for clients. This is in line with the effectiveness of BIM for the purpose of analyzing, evaluating, and managing projects based on the virtual information model before, during and after construction. The combination of BIM and Lean construction will certainly be the trend of the construction industry in the near future. This paper aims to analyze the integration of Lean construction principles in the BIM coordination process through a specific case study. The project management unit is responsible for managing and evaluating BIM models from consultants and contractors and serves as the project's BIM coordinator. Keywords: building information modeling; BIM coordination process; Lean construction; Lean principles. Received 20 November 2018, Revised 30 December 2018, Accepted 25 January 2019


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Hemalattha ◽  
R. Vidjeapriya

PurposeThis study aims to develop a framework for optimizing the spatial requirements of the equipment in a construction site using a geographic information system (GIS).Design/methodology/approachAn ongoing construction project, an existing thermal powerplant in India, is considered to be the case study, and the corresponding construction activities were scheduled. The equipment spaces were defined for the scheduled activities in building information modelling (BIM), which was further imported to GIS to define the topology rules, validate and optimize the spatial requirements. The BIM simulates the indoor environment, which includes the actual structure being constructed, and the GIS helps in modelling the outdoor environment, which includes the existing structures, temporary facilitates, topography of the site, etc.; thus, this study incorporates the knowledge of BIM in a geospatial environment to obtain optimized equipment spaces for various activities.FindingsSpace in construction projects is to be considered as a resource as well as a constraint, which is to be modelled and planned according to the requirements. The integration of BIM and GIS for equipment space planning will enable precise identification of the errors in the equipment spaces defined and also result in fewer errors as possible. The integration has also eased the process of assigning the topology rules and validating the same, which otherwise is a tedious process.Originality/valueThe workspace for each activity will include the space of the equipment. But, in most of the previous works of workspace planning, only the labour space is considered, and the conflicts and congestions occurring due to the equipment were neglected. The planning of equipment spaces cannot be done based only on the indoor environment; it has to be carried out by considering the surroundings and topography of the site, which have not been researched extensively despite its importance.


2018 ◽  
Vol 74 (6) ◽  
pp. 1318-1338 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah Higgins

Purpose Digital curation addresses the technical, administrative and financial ecology required to ensure that digital information remains accessible and usable over the long term. The purpose of this paper is to trace digital curation’s disciplinary emergence and examine its position within the information sciences domain in terms of theoretical principles, using a case study of developments in the UK and the USA. Design/methodology/approach Theoretical principles regarding disciplinary development and the identity of information science as a discipline are applied to a case study of the development of digital curation in the UK and the USA to identify the maturity of digital curation and its position in the information science gamut. Findings Digital curation is identified as a mature discipline which is a sub-meta-discipline of information science. As such digital curation has reach across all disciplines and sub-disciplines of information science and has the potential to become the overarching paradigm. Practical implications These findings could influence digital curation’s development from applied discipline to profession within both its educational and professional domains. Originality/value The disciplinary development of digital curation within dominant theoretical models has not hitherto been articulated.


2015 ◽  
Vol 19 (4) ◽  
pp. 770-790 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexander Schauer ◽  
Ana Cristina Vasconcelos ◽  
Barbara Sen

Purpose – This paper aims to present a holistic framework, termed ShaRInK (Sharer, Relations, Institution, Knowledge), that depicts key categories of influences that shape individual perceptions of knowledge sharing within an organisational setting. Design/methodology/approach – An exploratory and qualitative case study strategy in which empirical data were gathered from 24 interviewees that were based in four different branches (i.e. China, The Netherlands, the UK and the USA) of a single information technology services organisation. Findings – The findings led to a holistic framework that depicts four key categories of influences that shape knowledge sharing from an individual perspective: attitudes and characteristics of the sharers, relations between the sharers, institutions which act as a united entity on sharer perceptions and knowledge itself. Furthermore, the four key influences not only shape knowledge sharing independently but are intertwined and have a synergistic effect. The ShaRInK framework is formed by combining these. Originality/value – The findings indicate that knowledge sharing from an individual-level perspective is a more complex phenomenon than currently portrayed in the literature. All four key influences, each being fundamentally different in nature, and their relationships should be taken into account. Equally, the ShaRInK framework can be applied by organisations when developing a knowledge-sharing strategy or auditing existing strategies.


Author(s):  
Lukumon O. Oyedele ◽  
Martin Regan ◽  
Jason von Meding ◽  
Ashraf Ahmed ◽  
Obas John Ebohon ◽  
...  

PurposeThe UK construction industry produces up to one third of all waste to landfill. This study aims to identify specific project practices impeding the reduction of waste in construction projects as well as uncovering potential waste solutions throughout the project delivery process. The rationale being that for such a drastic reduction in waste to landfill, holistic and extensive measures would be required.Design/methodology/approachA two‐way methodological approach was used. This comprised qualitative unstructured interviews and a quantitative questionnaire survey of three major stakeholders in the UK construction industry: clients, architects and contractors.FindingsDesign factors remain the major cause of impediments to waste reduction to landfill. Critical impediments include clients making waste prevention a top priority in projects, overly complex designs, waste taking a low priority compared to project time and costs, lack of concerns by designers for buildability, among others. Critical solutions include early supply chain involvement in design process, choosing materials for their durability, early communication of design changes to all parties, longer project programmes and better lead times, among others.Practical implicationsIn all, the target of halving construction waste to landfill based on the 2008 benchmark is achievable but would require construction companies to take it upon themselves to implement the proposed solutions suggested by this study.Originality/valueThe value of this research is to provide UK construction companies with solutions to reduce waste and aid the reaching of the landfill target, as landfill is decreasing as a solution to waste. In addition the cost savings on reducing waste could be crucial for companies in this current economic climate.


2009 ◽  
Vol 08 (03) ◽  
pp. 251-265 ◽  
Author(s):  
Champika Liyanage ◽  
Tabarak Ballal ◽  
Taha Elhag

This paper investigates and evaluates the process of knowledge transfer in construction projects. Due to the highly competitive nature of business environments, knowledge transfer between organisations has become increasingly popular in recent years. However, although organisations can realise remarkable benefits by transferring knowledge from one unit to another, successful knowledge transfer can be difficult to achieve. The discussions presented in the paper are mainly based on findings of two case studies. The two cases were selected from Private Finance Initiative (PFI) projects in the UK. According to the case study findings, different stages of a knowledge transfer process can be overlapped, omitted, repeated as well as intermitted and then restarted. One of the significant findings of the case studies was the role of the "knowledge mediator". In selected case studies, there were external consultants and expert staff in the form of knowledge mediators. The importance of their roles was frequently highlighted by the interview participants. They were not only facilitating the close liaison between the knowledge source and the receiver, but also their role was strongly associated with practices of translation and interpretation. This combined role of mediator/translator, therefore, appears to be particularly significant for inter-organisational knowledge transfer in PFI projects.


Author(s):  
Tochukwu Moses ◽  
David Heesom ◽  
David Oloke

It is clear that challenging economic times inspire innovative abilities and solutions in the construction industry. In particular many of these innovations focus on cost implications, saving project time, reducing or eliminating waste, increasing productivity or redefining value. There is increasing pressure in the UK construction industry for new construction innovations, technology and processes with ability to lever a significant impact relative to disrupting the existing status quo; creating solutions that promote construction efficiencies deploying means to exploiting offsite construction approaches. The increased concern and challenge globally is that as knowledge and experience grows, the offsite manufacturers and suppliers are expected to demonstrate absolute innovative solutions that will heighten the proportion of project value being delivered through the use of offsite solutions on the bases that it makes sound project and business sense. Unparalleled huge cost saving benefits to clients and end users which is more than just creating a model is yet to be realized.


Author(s):  
Mazurina Mohd Ali ◽  
Sakinah Zahra Norman ◽  
Erlane K. Ghani ◽  
Noor Hasniza Haron

Risk Management is recognized as an important exercise that creates value to a project and improves project performance. Time, cost and quality are the primary measures of a project performance in this industry. The success or failure in any construction project can be monitored through the attainment of these primary measures. Notably, Malaysian construction industry is considered as one of the important industries that positively contribute to the increase of Gross Domestic Product and subsequently the growth of the country’s economic development. Unfortunately, this industry suffers poor performance in which it leads to failure in accomplishing effective time, cost and quality performance. Most construction projects face a schedule delay, cost overrun and are poor in product quality. Thus, the aim of this study is to determine the influence of risk management on construction project performance of Malaysian companies based on these three primary measures. The degree of diffusion of risk management practice in the chosen construction project in Malaysia is also examined. The methodological approach exploited in this study is a case study approach involving analysis of documented data and face-to-face interviews with key players that hold different roles and responsibilities. They include a director, project managers, finance managers, contract managers and quantity surveyor managers. The results demonstrate that adopting effective risk management practices positively impacts project performance thus leading to project success. Nevertheless, the lack of knowledge and poor communication of risk management practices in construction projects contribute to the weak implementation of an effective and systematic risk management practices in Malaysia.


2019 ◽  
Vol 25 (1) ◽  
pp. 53-75 ◽  
Author(s):  
Timothy O. Olawumi ◽  
Daniel W. M. Chan

The study aims to develop an effective BIM-project information management framework (BIM-PIMF) and associated assessment model for construction projects with a view to enhancing the functional management of project information. An explanatory case study technique and case study evidence from four BIM construction projects form the study’s research design. The study identified and established the three sub-criteria of the BIM-PIMF model which are the BIM process level factors, BIM product level factors, and the key indicators for a successful BIM deployment on construction project sites. These criterias were semantically linked to the development of the BIM-PIMF framework on a five-point metric scale. The deliverables of this study include the development of the BIM-PIMF framework, together with its analytical scoring system. The findings of the study will improve the information channels of and ease the integration of technological innovations in construction processes while improving the technical competencies of project staff. The study highlighted a basket of effective recommendations and strategies to enhance the deployment of BIM throughout a project lifecycle. Policymakers and government departments can utilize the model in assessing the level of usage of BIM in a construction project as one of the useful measures in gauging which construction firms to be provided subsidies.


2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 821 ◽  
Author(s):  
Schimanski ◽  
Marcher ◽  
Monizza ◽  
Matt

Many researchers have stated that lean and building information modeling (BIM) have positive synergies. This integrative literature review aims at exploring this body of knowledge within the scope of combinations of BIM and the Last Planner® System, as an important Lean construction method, in the phase of construction execution. The research motivation is to find out whether a comprehensive understanding of how to take advantage of these synergies exists. Eventually, the question arises of how to condense this understanding—if existing—into a robust conceptual model for integration. As a theoretical backbone, we will make use of the original BIM-Lean interaction matrix. The hypothesis is that new BIM functionalities have been evolved since the first formulation of this interaction matrix almost 10 years ago. These new BIM functionalities cause new interactions with existing lean principles. We will focus on interactions that refer directly or indirectly to production planning and control and use them to find the most relevant literature for this review. Within the content analysis, as a part of this review, we focus on existing conceptual models and frameworks for integration of BIM and the Last Planner® System and reveal their shortcomings. Eventually, we will propose a new conceptual model.


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