No abstract

This paper presents a new lean BIM-based production system to face productivity deficiencies in construction. To prove whether the current situation can be improved, the aforesaid production system is designed to assess the hypothesis that a true integration of BIM functionalities with the Last Planner System will contribute to a more efficient project delivery. Although beneficial synergies of BIM and Lean have been widely described and acknowledged in research, previous work has not fully addressed the stated hypothesis, since it has only provided frameworks on how to use BIM and the Last Planner System in parallel. The core of the here-proposed lean BIM-based production system is the linkage of BIM objects at data processing level with the Last Planner System routines making use of digital Kanban boards. The production system will also be extended by cost control aspects of the Earned Value Management approach and thus represents the basis for a complete construction management system with respect to quality, schedule and costs. This paper discusses the first concepts of the new lean BIM-based production system and introduces an information system integration model as a starting point for future software development activities.

In order to efficiently transform business processes (such as product design, product engineering, production, logistics, sales, deliveries, etc.) into digitally automated processes, new concepts have been introduced in both the manufacturing and construction industries. Under the term Industry 4.0, promising possibilities for high-performance production processes are emerging based on e.g., digital twins and cyber-physical systems. However, the construction industry lags behind in adapting these ideas, and is still facing severe productivity deficits. This paper addresses these deficits by assessing the hypothesis of Building Information Modeling—as the digital twinning methodology in construction—representing a key driver for digital automation and thus enabling more productive processes. To this end, we apply a design science research approach to develop artefacts using computational methods for the automation of business processes in a configure-to-order industry partner. The evaluation is done in the context of a pilot project together with this industry partner. The findings obtained in the pilot project revealed time savings in the phases of bid estimation and work preparation. Based on the findings, the applicability and utility of the suggested approach are discussed and allow for the conclusion that Building Information Model data can usefully streamline and automate many processes at the interface between design and production, if structured and preprocessed purposefully.