BIM Standard in Off-Site Construction

Abstract

Building information modeling (BIM) is rapidly gaining acceptance as the preferred method of communicating the design professional’s intent to the owner and various stakeholders. These data-rich models can be used effectively by other members of the design team to coordinate the fabrication of a building’s different systems. This has innumerable advantages in off-site construction domain including speed, economy, sustainability, and safety. However, the ultimate success of BIM will in part depend on the ability to capture all relevant data in the BIM model and to successfully exchange data between different project participants. This demand plus a desire to avoid claims have indicated the need for a common standard to enable BIM to be the legal construction model. This standard forms the foundation for accurate and efficient communication and commerce that are required by the off-site construction industry. This study reviews the current state of BIM standards and its impact on off-site construction. The investigation also addresses the challenges related to advancing the national BIM standard such as the following: What information would be contained in this standard regarding the unique aspects of modeling off-site fabrication? And how can the industry succeed in formulating the functional provisions required for establishing and implementing BIM standard in off-site construction domain. In particular, it addresses the BIM standards, specification process, such as developing the Information Delivery Manual (IDM), the Model View Definition, and the Industry Foundation Classes implementation. The paper proposes an IDM that provides concrete description of building construction processes, the requirements for information to be provided to enable processes to be carried out successfully, and the expected end results of the processes. The research also addresses both challenges as well as opportunities for advancing BIM standards in off-site construction.