Abstract
Calls for the digital transformation of the construction sector in part revolve around a need for productivity improvements, with a focus upon project time and cost enhancements. The purpose of this work is to provide a state-of-the-art analysis of design management (DM) usually employed to oversee design quality by coordinating design information, typically on behalf of a construction contractor. DM methods, activities, and processes with respect to the potential and underutilisation of building information modelling (BIM) are discussed. A synthesis of recent research efforts is provided identifying further emerging, disruptive, but underutilised digital tools and technologies, which when integrated with BIM, are capable of supporting DM processes. This chapter will aid practitioners and researchers in the design, implementation, and management of digital tools, and provide greater support to the DM function on modern construction projects. It will also be of use to students for a grounding in BIM and BIM-related technologies.
TopBackground
This section discusses the integration of BIM and DM for Digitally-Enabled Design Management. The authors begin discussing the DM discipline before introducing the reader to BIM and providing a discussion on BIM implementation. This is followed by an introduction to IPD and a discussion on the relationship between BIM and DM.
Design Management
DM is an existing and evolving discipline which emerged due to higher use of design and build procurement methods, increasing contractor involvement in the design coordination process. A demand for DM has also emerged as construction processes, buildability and buildings have become more complex (Eynon, 2013).
In a construction project team, DM supports the related Project Management (PM) and Construction Management (CM) discipline. The PM covers budget and programme while the CM predominantly covers health and safety and site operations. DM overlaps with these roles but has its own principal foci of managing design information, providing buildability analysis, and looking at construction strategy, process and cost (Emmitt & Ruikar, 2013). DM consists of the management of “activities, people, processes and resources” (Eynon, 2013, p.2), requiring effective problem solving and communication skills; understood as ‘soft skills’ (Emmitt & Ruikar, 2013; Tvedt et al., 2019) to ensure information flow and efficiency/value in project delivery in line with specified requirements of cost, time and quality (Eynon, 2013).
DM activities (see Emmitt & Ruikar, 2013 and Emmitt, 2016) operate at strategic organisational and project levels and include management, processes, collaboration, coordination and the integration of design and construction disciplines (Emmitt & Ruikar, 2013; Eynon, 2013). DM activities typically consist of (from Emmitt & Ruikar, 2013, p.65):
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Design Review: Pre-construction and construction stage review of design information.
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Coordination: Coordination of consultants’ design information ensuring flow of information.
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Tendering: Managing pre-construction tenders and bids.
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Design Changes: Managing design changes, including approval.
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Requests for Information (RFIs): Managing and submitting RFIs.
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Buildability: Analysing design information to determine buildability and construction process. Considerations include coordination of disciplines and trades, site organisation, health and safety, and efficiencies such as cost.
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Value Management: Value-adding value engineering and innovation.
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Cost Management: Managing and monitoring the cost of design and construction.
Effective DM relies on lean principles (see Emmitt, 2010, p.163) and management methods to identify buildability problems in design information prior to the commencement of construction. Design changes during the construction process can lead to costs and delays. Ensuring the design is correct before construction progresses reduces the risks associated with uncertainty. The design phase is an opportunity to eliminate waste in the construction phase and create value (Emmitt & Ruikar, 2013).
The communication and understanding fostered by construction site meetings can be effective in achieving lean principles for information flow. The project team is temporary, multi-disciplinary, and in constant change. Integrating the project participants requires good management from the outset (Emmitt, 2010).
Key Terms in this Chapter
Trust: The acceptance of vulnerability based on a belief that the other concerning actor will uphold expected standards of conduct or uphold an agreed contract.
Common Data Environment (CDE): A single shared space where project participants can share and access information according to a process (ISO 19650-1:2018). A CDE is usually web or cloud based.
Key performance indicator (KPI): A variable against which to measure a project’s performance.
Parametric: Refers to a BIM whose components/entities are enriched with intelligent properties ( Azhar et al., 2012 ).
Design Management (DM): The management of people, processes, and resources on a construction project to deliver value in terms of cost, time, and quality ( Eynon, 2013 AU224: The citation "Eynon, 2013" matches multiple references. Please add letters (e.g. "Smith 2000a"), or additional authors to the citation, to uniquely match references and citations. ).
Building Information Modelling (BIM): The collaborative process ( Azhar, et al., 2012 ).
Collaboration: Participants from independent organisations coming together to make equal contributions to project activities and deliver outcomes under the management established for a temporary [construction] project ( Emmitt & Ruikar, 2013 AU222: The citation "Emmitt & Ruikar, 2013" matches multiple references. Please add letters (e.g. "Smith 2000a"), or additional authors to the citation, to uniquely match references and citations. ).
Virtual Reality: VR is best defined as “experience of presence in an environment by means of a communications medium” (Steuer, 1995 AU228: The in-text citation "Steuer, 1995" is not in the reference list. Please correct the citation, add the reference to the list, or delete the citation. cited in Boton, 2018 , p. 2). VR is further understood in terms of usability and presence-based variables immersion and interactivity ( Boton, 2018 ).
Industry Foundation Classes (IFC): IFC was developed by buildingSMART ( Sacks et al., 2018 AU225: The citation "Sacks et al., 2018" matches multiple references. Please add letters (e.g. "Smith 2000a"), or additional authors to the citation, to uniquely match references and citations. ) to resolve interoperability problems between different BIM providers ( Azhar et al., 2012 ; see Sacks et al., 2018 AU226: The citation "Sacks et al., 2018" matches multiple references. Please add letters (e.g. "Smith 2000a"), or additional authors to the citation, to uniquely match references and citations. ).
Data: Structured figures, symbols or numbers stored on a computer (Bennett et al., 2010 AU223: The in-text citation "Bennett et al., 2010" is not in the reference list. Please correct the citation, add the reference to the list, or delete the citation. ).
Information: Data presented with meaning to aid decision making (Bennett et al., 2010 AU227: The in-text citation "Bennett et al., 2010" is not in the reference list. Please correct the citation, add the reference to the list, or delete the citation. ).
Interoperability: Automated data exchange and transfer capability without the need for the manual processing of that data ( Azhar et al., 2012 ).
Coordination: The alignment and integration of design information from different project participants.
Process: A structured step-by-step sequence of actions/tasks starting with inputs to achieve given outputs under different defined circumstances (ISO/IEC 19510, 2013).
Building Information Model (BIM): A computerised entity which structures and holds information as a representation of a designed or physical asset (ISO 19650-1:2018).