Collaborative Role of Sociotechnical Components in BIM-Based Construction Networks in Two Hospitals

Abstract

Building information modeling (BIM)–based construction networks (BbCNs) are teams of specialist organizations working together to execute BIM-related tasks on BIM-enabled projects. Despite the recognized advantages of BbCNs, collaboration among BbCN members remains a serious weakness of BIM-enabled projects. This study compared two highly technologically advanced BIM-enabled hospital projects: one in Norway and one in Australia. Both projects had in common similar technical components, but each settled on a divergent collaborative solution. An extended version of the Leavitt sociotechnical model was used as the theoretical point of departure to inform and interpret the evolution of BbCNs in these two cases. The analysis of the empirical data revealed two emerging collaborative solutions for rectifying misalignment between sociotechnical and technical components of BbCNs during BIM-generated design documentation. The findings confirm that complex projects experience variable numbers of information-sharing participants who depend on and interact with both tangible and intangible knowledge, to varying degrees, over time. Because of these varying interactions, the communication networks on which the project depended must shift to seek realignment among the Leavitt model elements, including actors, tasks, technologies, and systems, within BbCNs. To achieve and maintain effective collaboration within networks, the proactive management intervention of dynamic and evolving requirements and the incorporation of the components of perceptual, attitudinal, and structural influences (PASIs) into BbCNs are of key importance in correcting any misalignments among actors, tasks, and systems.