Virtual Middle East BIM Summit: Your ten-step guide to BIM adoption

BIM needs to be implemented throughout the supply chain for it to reach its full potential. The lack of homogeneity of BIM adoption among SMEs is not just their responsibility, but a lack of influence from major firms too. All major constructions projects in the UAE are BIM mandated, and SMEs fall under the category of sub-contractor and sub-consultants. Major firms in the industry need to mandate BIM from their side throughout the supply chain, and in this way, SMEs that form a significant part of that sector are thereby forced to implement the technology.

Internally, within their organisation, SMEs need to realise that if they don’t make the change now, they will be left out of the market. They need to understand the change they are seeing with respect to a boom in digital construction and digital design in almost all major projects in the Middle East. Ways to address this is, post-pandemic, SMEs can think of outsourcing or a collaborative environment in which five to ten entities/organisations can join forces to form a BIM team. This will serve their project needs and the requirement to implement BIM in their workflow.

Recently Dubai, represented by Dubai Municipality (DM), has been chosen to host the UAE Chapter of buildingSMART International. buildingSMART is an international organisation which aims to improve the exchange of information between software applications used in the construction industry. It has also developed Industry Foundation Classes as a neutral and open specification for BIM. UAE is the first country in the region to host a branch of this global industry body. DM has established a working group to publicise and deploy BIM implementation in the industry, and this will be mandated within six months. Hence, governments are working from their side to make a difference in the market, and have started to discuss the right steps to mandate BIM.

The construction industry’s most commonly faced issue is rework, leading to potential loss of money and delays. This traditional way of thinking has to change, because, in this way, we have less time in coordination and producing 3D drawings leading to more delays at work-sites. This also increases the execution time. If we were to change our mindset and implement BIM from stage one, more time could be taken to coordinate and create a virtual building, and will lead to less execution time. Stakeholders must find an equilibrium in this regard.

We have discussed that governments are supporting and spear-heading BIM adoption, as well as major industry players, are also involved in its implementation, yet the involvement of small companies in BIM-adoption is considered inadequate. Besides already discussed challenges, it has been found that many popular BIM platforms are not designed to suit the specific needs of SMEs. As part of UBA, we have proposed to DM and Ajman Municipality to have an incentive for SMEs that will encourage them to implement BIM. Since they cannot afford expensive licences, BIM platforms can be persuaded to provide free licences for a few years, and then once these small firms are accustomed, they can start to charge them. These are steps that will take time, but the way forward is to think smart and implement new methodologies and move away from a traditional way of working.

What is VDC? Virtual design is a way of management – it is the management of integrated multi-disciplinary performance models of design-construction projects, including the product, work processes and organisation of the design, construction, and operation team. BIM is part of VDC, but VDC is not just about BIM implementation. VDC looks at planning, cost-utilisation, coordination among other processes in a 3D environment. VDC also emphasises collaboration and integrated working, and we need to focus on this terminology. BIM is frequently a valuable part of VDC but will soon be outdated, hence we need to think about digitisation based on transformation.

Since our initiative began – UBA is the first BIM association in the UAE and the Middle East – we have participated in mandating BIM for Ajman Municipality, we have reviewed the BIM mandate for the Ministry of Infrastructure Development, and have made several market surveys for BIM implementation in Saudi Arabia. Our long term vision is to raise the BIM maturity level in the region to cope with the digital construction revolution worldwide as well as bench-marking and organising frameworks. Non-profit organisations such as UBA has the potential, but we need to start the drive in order to have the right product at the end of the day.

UBA’s aim is to introduce the DAECO (digital architecture, engineering, construction and operation) framework, which will integrate project management principles and all its stages within BIM and VDC for better management, exchange and usage of information. We have started to create this with the Society of Engineers – UAE (SOE-UAE), and they are responsible for these guidelines and the implementation of the DAECO framework. We are collaborating with Dr Saeed Al Dhaheri, president of the Digital Engineering Chapter (DEC) at SOE-UAE to create BIM standards and templates, and accelerate and deploy BIM implementation. Established a few months ago, DEC’s primary mission is to build a smart, sustainable built environment, by accelerating BIM and leveraging smart cities and intelligent technology.

BIM is step zero; then there is city information modelling (CIM), which is for an entire city. We need to utilise this to have a smart and sustainable environment. 10 years back, when BIM started, we tried to implement technologies such as drones and geographical information system (GIS). Now, we need to think about how to implement it in the right way – it’s not enough to label yourself as a prominent contractor who uses drones. Organisations and entities must look at technologies and see if they are mature enough to be implemented and if they are being utilised for the right kind of structure or environment.

Companies must implement BIM without external influence. They have to understand that sooner or later, it will be mandated in the built environment and they need to think beyond client submissions and should adopt new initiatives for the interest of the project and to benefit the industry as a whole. In terms of workforce, companies must look at hiring young graduates who are aware of current trends and are willing to shift from the traditional way of doing things. Of course, they must be trained by experienced mentors, but the benefit of hiring new minds are unparalleled.