The construction industry is a multifaceted field associated with uncertainty, operational inefficiency, and dependency. Although the industry has often been criticized for its failure, it is still thriving. An increase in population, increased demand, and increase in shareholders have always ensured that the business stays afloat. With the emergence of technology, the construction business has made one of its finest advancements (BIM). Building information modeling is an integrated strategy that uses a virtual structure to represent a structure. This technology is being used to address the inefficiencies that have long existed in the construction business (Daniotti et al., 2020). Initially, the industry suffered losses because of a lack of information reuse and management and inadequate cross-disciplinary communication, but the issues have been resolved by building an information model. Building information modeling can be defined as a digital representation and process for creating and managing construction information. Locally, the technique shares knowledge to represent a project’s physical and functional characteristics, further offering a reliable basis for decisions. According to the British standards institute, business information modeling generates and manages information throughout construction. The process often relies on 2D and 3D technology to control a model of a building project. Globally the technique stimulates collaboration and knowledge sharing while increasing human capital across borders (Santos et al., 2019). The model is beneficial to architects, engineers, and constructors (AEC) to visualize a building project in a simulation environment. As a new technique, planning and managing the tasks can be done online. This study will discuss how building information modeling has impacted the small and medium-sized firms in the construction sector.
The construction sector, especially the SMEs, has been looking for techniques to lower project costs, improve productivity, quality, and speed completion. Since BIM is a three-dimension model, able can mimic the construction project (Heaton et al., 2019). This offers a viable potential to attain the goals. BIM incorporates significant modifications to the workflow and delivery procedures that are intelligent. BIM, a groundbreaking method that integrates people, systems, and business structures and practices in a collaborative process to eliminate waste and maximize efficiency across the project life cycle, is a new paradigm in the industry. BIM operates as software and a strategy to foster the integration of stakeholders’ responsibilities on a project. Geometry, geographical links, geographic information, building element quantities and qualities, cost estimates, material inventories, and project schedule information may be easily retrieved. It becomes an easy way to show the project life cycle and work scopes.
Small and medium-sized firms are the backbone of the economy, but they have been on the losing end in the digital world for the longest. While building information modeling is gaining prominence among large companies, SMEs are hesitant to adopt the technique. For a company to adopt the method in the UK, there are protocols to be followed. The UK national building information model standard project committee is responsible for these protocols and standards. The body defines BIM as a digital representation that serves as a dependable foundation for decision-making throughout the project’s life cycle. Building information modeling allows the( AEC) to envisage what will be created in a virtual environment, allowing them to spot design and construction concerns (Ibrahim & Al-Kazzaz,2021). The standards used in BIM include; BS EN 19650-1, which interprets the concepts and principles necessary for buildings and civil engineering works ., BS EN 19650-2 is required for the delivery of assets, BS EN 19650-3:2020 is used in the operational phase of the project, BS EN 19650- 5:2020 essential for information management and security. The building information model covers all the crucial elements of a project life cycle, from design to guarantee. These standards provide essential information for the construction industry’s success globally and locally. They also support the organizations and individuals to understand the principles around building information modeling and ensuring continuity of the project. Since the modeling provides a detailed virtual presentation of the structure, the AEC finds implementation sustainable and productive. These construction standards around design and engineering have been linked to low carbon emissions, especially in these times when every industry is cautious about climate change and environmental requirements. The united kingdom prides itself on achieving a competitive advantage in the construction industry. The national and global infrastructure thrives when the technology used is environmentally cautious. Its direct and indirect levers impact growing economies, and the standards and protocols are easy to interpret for provider companies.
The project life cycle
The project life cycle outlines the steps necessary to complete a project. The life cycle is vital in the construction industry because it helps the project manager ensure milestones are met in time to reduce delays and turnover.
The initiation stage is the first step of a project’s life cycle. In this stage, the AEC visualizes what should be accomplished by the project. The project sponsor is identified, and the strategic objectives are aligned.
The planning stage is the center of the project’s activity building information is presented so that the shareholders can get guidance on how the project will be undertaken. All the project deliverables and requirements are defined, and a schedule is created. The team is allowed to analyze any defaults or mistakes that can sabotage the quality of the building.
The implementation stage, also called the execution stage, is where the plan design is implemented. It is considered the most extended phase because the project plan is put into an actual project(Wuni & Shen,2020). Every schedule and template designed in the planning phase are pût into action with the help of building information modeling. Project managers are responsible for resolving any hurdles that may arise.
The performance and monitoring stage is used to check that all the quality measures are met. The project managers need to approve that the metrics used are within the scope. The correlative action ensures that the planned performance tallies with the desired outcome.
The closing stage is the last activity in the project cycle. It involves many formalities like the overall success level report to the project sponsor, handing over information, and the sign-off. After all these reports are signed, the staff and equipment are released, and stakeholders are informed of the closure of the project.
Drivers/Enablers and Challenges/Barriers of Using BIM For SMEs
Although the BIM technology came with many solutions to the construction industry, SMEs are still presented with hurdles. SMEs are often underrepresented in BIM studies. Most nations are gradually adopting BIM technology, although at a slow pace. Developed countries have developed a concentrated effort to boost SMEs. In most developing nations, the technique is infancy (Oteng et al., 2018). The AEC sector is also gradually d-adopting the method, although most developing countries face the challenges of corruption, Time and expense overruns, project delays, project abandonment, and disagreements. With inadequate to no AEC organizations to unite and help them overcome the challenges, adoption becomes an individual business rather than a group compared to developed countries. Lack of knowledge and government assistance has also contributed to the slow adoption in these countries.
The digital divide between large corporations and SMEs explains the underrepresentation seen in most research studies on the perspective of SMEs. The integration of SMEs into the large companies has also fragmented the AEC fragmented industry. Most sites don’t take the innovation leap because they consider it hazardous to their comfort zones. Defined with greater flexibility, limited resources, and a small number of employees, SMEs prefer small to modest, highly flexible projects(Saka & Chan, 2020). BIM adoption among SMEs will help them be more accessible, and their tasks will be manageable since BIM is attributed to operational efficiency.
Most SMEs that haven’t adopted the BIM technique has lost competitiveness because of inadequate knowledge of implementation resources and market share. There have been notable BIM awareness, acceptance, implementation, and government assistance in the UK. The influence has been beneficial to the same architectural business (Vidalakis et al., 2019). The willingness to share information, financial incentives, competition pressures, and collaboration have been key priorities in adopting BIM. The united kingdom maintains a socio-technical process influenced by relative advantage and compatibility. Several characteristics boost adoption among SMEs, including organizational size, readiness and top management support, technical confidence, and normative force.
The innovation diffusion theory delineates innovation in stages that include awareness, interest, adoption, implementation, and confirmation for BIM adoption. Reza Hosseini et al . (2018)argues that factors influencing its invention include compatibility and relative advantage. Technological backgrounds determine the chances of an SME adopting BIM, and the organization’s failure should be embraced since the normative forces are isomorphic pressure on the organization. Normative force and compatibility are significant antecedents mediated through perceived ease of use and perhaps perceived utility.
On the flip side, BIM technology, environmental framework, and level of organization are suitable for some implementation because they will boost their businesses from the inefficient, traditional strategies and help them bank to competitiveness and market share (Burgess et al. 2018). The SMEs’ organizational characteristics and contextual aspects allow them to fully participate in BIM training and adoption to boost the business and ease their work of keeping extended documentation and easy ways of establishing any miscommunication during the planning stage.
External drivers heavily depend on the internal factors against several existing innovation studies that disregard their effect. In innovation, both internal and external factors significantly benefit from the foundations of creativity, communication, and sociology. The irrational neglect of innovation theories has led to overlooking the key elements contributing to the invention, such as the construction industry (Al-Saeed et al., 2020). There is a significant connection between the company size and adaptation of innovation like the building information modeling. Large corporations are bound to invest more than small and medium-sized enterprises. This fact may vary depending on the competitiveness in the market and the market niche. Government influences on BIM adoption by reducing interest rates or giving financial incentives to SMEs can encourage them to adopt the technique quickly. Sometimes if the legislation passed wants pure adaptation for a business to run, there are no other alternatives. Any developed country has embraced BIM technology because it iscanolve many redundancies.
The role ôf a BIM manager ensures that the construction team implements all the planned deliverables to the desired outcome by ensuring that all standards and protocols are followed. By applying the BIM and digital protocols during the construction(implementation stage) and design(planning stage), the manager coordinates with the AEC personnel to ensure good results during the handover(closing stage). The BIM manager should always oversee the use of the BIM techniques and ensure that all the guidelines and protocols are clear to the team. Sometimes problems may arise during construction (Hosseini et al., 2018). The bim manager is responsible for executing different alternatives by authorizing the next step or solution for the problem. A manager has to run a range of tasks from information technology that the BIM relies on to support the performance and monitoring phase to achieve quality.
Every critical step in the project needs a manager’s guidance. With the change of skills from the BIM model to an actual plan, a manager should strategize communication, ensure all the requirements are on the site, and provide seamless collaboration with the human resource. There are many daily activities to carry out, including conflict resolution. Sometimes a project sponsor might come up with potential improvements for the project, and in this case, the BIM manager will need to code the changes and communicate them to the AEC team. In every phase, a decision needs to be made, and the BIM manager needs to pick a decision that will make the project progress in time and achieve the required outcome that promotes efficiency (Baldwin, 2019). In these times of civilization, architecture is the center of all digital innovation, and every BIM manager meeds architectural and digital skills to compete. BIM generates representation away from 2D and toward 3D modeling, which may now be improved in various ways beyond CAD (Computer Aided Drafting). Multiple developments, such as 3D photorealistic representations and immersive VR experiences, progressively aid the sector.
The construction industry has a massive gap in skilled workers with productivity rates of 1 percent. Through the help of artificial intelligence and robotics, BIM has ensured reliable real-time centralized data. The national building specification of the UK argued that the technique had provided an increase in productivity and delivery through early detection of clashes.
In recent years technological advancements in the construction sector have attracted innovation and collaboration among the AEC and various stakeholders. BIM has played a massive role in achieving efficiency, but there is a need for further advancements like artificial intelligence, data analytics, and cloud computing. , In the UK, various bodies like the NBS and digitally built Britain need to advance BIM in technology and security. The future is automation, and since there is a gap in the skilled workers, BIM should be improved to robotics. Robots can assist in calculations and estimations and replicate the virtual model to the actual model (Makabate et al., 2021). As a result, the construction industry will achieve better facilities.
The replication idea that is advanced BIM should be a baseline for data management, protocols, and procedures. Currently, BIM can store and retrieve data, but it can not link the planning stage with the closing stage. This work has often been left in the hands of a BIM manager. Since human is an errors, there is a need for accuracy. The ability of technology to solve complex architectural defects like wrong estimations has been remarkable (Merschbrock et al., 2018). Initially, any wrong calculation could drag the process because the construction plan had to be redone. Still, with technology, the AEC team can detect an inconsistency and replan without starting the plan afresh.BIM has opened a technology field that needs further investigation to increase collaboration, effectiveness, and cooperation.
Most governments haven’t cooperated with SMEs to train and encourage them to adopt BIM. The adoption process has been slower than anticipated in developed and developing countries (Awwad et al., 2020). Governments need to invest in SMEs in the construction sector to improve the facilities and encourage global competition. For instance, the UK 2011 ensured that all built structures need to have a BIM standard. With limited to no faults, buildings are bound to last longer than when they are built without the BIM technique.
SMEs need to benefit from the BIM solutions like shorter time in the implementation stage, avoidance of faults, and project delays. With all stakeholders able to access information, any updates can be reviewed quickly (Awwad et al., 2020). When everyone has access to the same data, significant cross-checks are no longer essential. Traditional cost estimations and price adjustments can be time-consuming and, as a result, delays during the project. Using the BIM solutions lile optimization that is accurate allows instant updates to the project budget. Property developers can collaborate in evaluating the design environment and create an environmentally cautious building development. With a virtual model, it is easy to determine the exact amount of supplies or equipment required allowing stakeholders to save more money that could be used on miscellaneous expenses. Eco-friendly projects reduce the amount of garbage at a building site, decreasing harmful hazards that could affect the human capital at the site.
The several roadblocks to BIM adoption and implementation are obstructed by lack of training, huge implementation expenses, and lack of in-house knowledge. The demand for contractors with BIM knowledge is on the rise, with many governments opting to sign contracts with BIM-equipped companies. BIM is becoming a standard in many developed countries like the UK, the USA, and Europe. Companies that have not implemented are being left behind (Young et al., 2021). There is a fair assumption that tremendous progress has been made with expanded capabilities in the project lifecycle implementation stage.
In conclusion, BIM has proved to be a revolutionary technology in construction. It has bridged most inefficiencies suffered by the industry and stakeholders in the past. The construction industry is making progress by reducing delays and faults that could lead to losses and poor quality outcomes. SMEs are the new infants in the room, but they will be able to participate in global competition with their baby steps. The willingness to share information, financial incentives, competition pressures, and collaboration have been key priorities in adopting BIM. Building information modeling has impacted the small and medium-sized firms in the construction sector. The construction sector has been looking for techniques to lower project costs, improve productivity and quality, and speed completion. Construction stakeholders will have to adapt to remain competitive. The construction industry has been slow to adapt. Increased use of BIM and new technology could aid in the resolution of some of the industry’s issues.
References
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