BIM models are relational and parametric in nature and the building construction industry across the globe uses it. Going a step further, 5D BIM models include specification data and several other properties which are directly used for pricing an entire construction project or a particular construction phase/work; are not less popular.
Quantity surveyors, working in a collaborative project environment, want to leverage 5D features to ease out their tasks of quantity take-offs, cost estimation and management, but they don’t - why?
5D BIM: Numerous benefits & challenges
Benefits that 5D BIM offers include visualization, collaboration, project quality and BIM data quality, project conceptualization, analysis capability, efficiency of take-offs during budget estimate stage, efficiency of cost planning during detailed cost plan stage, risk identification, ability to resolve requests for information (RFIS) in real time and many more.
Highlighting BIM adoption challenges and a possible solution in form of BIM specialists delivering quick and responsive 5D Revit BIM models to integrate construction costs; has become a pre-requisite for full inter-operability and collaborative working across the AEC industry.
Electronic standard for coding BIM software
Due to the absence of an electronic standard for coding BIM software to standard methods of measurement, designers, architectural – structural or MEPF engineers, don't code everything and if they even code it, they may code it incorrectly. No doubts that existing software help, but it is as good as the information plugged in at the first instance.
Though BIM assisted estimating tools are capable of generating large quantities of construction items to produce cost estimates, the extracted quantities clearly portray the lack of understanding of construction procedures and methods, ultimately reducing the efficiency of the estimates. Common electronic coding standard for BIM would address such challenges – effectively.
Incompatible to cost planning element formats
There are two sets of professionals who are of the opinion that when they used traditional 2D estimating methodology and 3D software for cost estimation simultaneously – the previous one resulted in reduced errors and time taken. Reasons to such incidents are that BIM models have numerous design errors and often miss out on important information – withhelding BIM’s use for producing 5D cost services. If the data is too incomplete or inaccurate to use – it is bound to happen. To provide cost planning services with use of BIM, the 3D BIM models are required to be correct – complete and objects should contain all the data that is required.
Protocols for coding BIM objects
A standard, which is no different to the measuring standards, is required to standardize coding of objects within BIM models – as the lack of protocols for coding BIM objects is one of the main hindrance in the adoption of 5D BIM. The graveness of the situation can be measured by the fact that RICS - Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors in the UK, and Australian Institute of Quantity Surveyors in Australia are making dedicated efforts towards development of new rules of measurement, aka NRM.
Software compatibility
Lack of software compatibility restricts the use of BIM, which also indicates lack of inter-operability and a hurdle to the adoption of 5D BIM for quantity surveying. It is not always about the physical compatibility of the software. It can pertain to the knowledge about working with different software. In a given scenario, if a lead architect is using ArchiCAD and others are operating on Revit - now that also is a gap to make things difficult for estimating in 5D. Inter-operability across all BIM disciplines maximizes the benefits, but all the efforts made in this direction have failed miserably.
Software vendors are smart enough to assess the fragmented and isolated approach of players across the construction industry; and so run software in proprietary type formats that restrict the exchange of critical building data amongst multiple organizations. The incompatibility between the BIM model and estimating platforms is considered to be the top most challenge to 5D BIM adoption. To improvise the situation, efforts in the direction of open data standards like Industry Foundation Classes (IFCs) are being made – but with very far-fetched positives.
Disintegrated models
Decreased reliability and effectiveness of 5D is due to architectural, structural and MEP disciplines developing their own BIM model in isolation from each other, leading to lack of integration. Usually every BIM model is more or less about time and cost. Architects and contractors end up spending a lot of time integrating those models. Need of the hour is to assert a balance between the information architects need to use to build BIM ready 3D models, and the additional information that quantity surveyors require to model the costs in projects.
5D setup costs
Setup of 5D BIM includes the cost of software, training and hardware. Every building contractor wants to reap the benefits that 5D BIM offers, but still consider cost of hardware and software upgrades as an obstacle. On one hand where big companies conveniently manage the setup costs, small and medium companies still struggle to make the ends meet. Upon asking about the challenges, quantity surveyors may come up with strong training requirements associated with BIM adoption, but also term it to be time consuming and a hurdle as very few users have the expertise to train other resources on it.
Risk exposure
Increased exposure to risk is also among the leading factors that discourage quantity survey firms to adopt 5D BIM. Enlisted are some of the unanswered questions, which need clear demarcation:
- Who has rights to the information contained in the BIM models?
- Who is in charge of the information that is in the model?
- What happens when there are errors in the model?
- Who is responsible for other actions and activities to be done in the overall model?
Even before the construction industry realizes the full potential of BIM, with all the parties involved in collaboration – contracts and insurances that underwrite stakeholders for financial loss – should be reinvented or improvised.
Fragmented construction industry
Quantity surveyors, QS firms, Architects and architectural firms still operate out of separated and fragmented state limiting the effectiveness of 5D BIM. Database integration, collaboration and commitment of companies to use BIM software are the key to address challenges.
Cultural resistance
Opinion mining to assess whether cultural resistance in companies can be hindrance to BIM’s effectiveness, could lead to a mixed notion. But believe it or not – one may find people saying “BIM is nothing but a situation where we are going from horse carts to motor vehicles’. This is an indication in itself that lot of AEC professionals still are resistant to the much anticipated change. Instances where several BIM-capable project participants are not ready to share BIM information with other firms involved; are not new to the construction industry. Culture and dynamics of a project do pose a threat to the use of 5D BIM, and successful BIM adoption overall. Not to forget – cultural transformation is a bigger challenge than technological challenges.
Conclusion - Embrace full inter-operability & collaborative working
By increasing efficiency, increasing visualization of construction details, and earlier risk identification – this eventually is possible, but not unless the challenges to 5D BIM adoption within the construction industry are addressed by embracing full inter-operability, and hence collaborative working.
