An investigation of barriers to the application of building information modelling in Nigeria

Abstract

Purpose The utilisation of building information modelling (BIM) technology is rapidly increasing among construction professionals across the world. Notwithstanding, recent studies revealed a low level of BIM implementation in the context of the Nigerian construction sector. Moreover, previous studies have established that BIM application comes with its share of various barriers. Therefore, this study aims to carry out an on-site survey on barriers to the application of BIM on construction sites in the Nigerian construction industry. Design/methodology/approach An extensive review of literature on BIM barriers was conducted, from where 33 factors were identified as significant BIM barriers peculiar to the developing countries. A questionnaire was developed and distributed to the targeted respondents, who are practicing professionals in the Nigerian construction industry, based on the identified barriers. The data collected were analysed by using both descriptive and inferential statistics. Findings The principal component analysis revealed that 27 barriers were peculiar to the Nigerian construction industry. The “lack of familiarity with BIM capacity, habitual resistance to change from the traditional style of design and build, and poor awareness of BIM benefit” were identified as the three most critical barriers hindering BIM application on construction sites in the Nigerian construction industry. Practical implications This study reveals key information on the peculiar barriers to BIM application in the Nigerian construction industry. The avoidance of these barriers will not only assist various construction stakeholders in the successful implementation of BIM application on a construction project but also promote information management systems and productivity within the construction industry to a great extent. These will further improve post-construction activities. Originality/value This study provides a substantial understanding of BIM state of the art in the context of barriers hindering BIM application on construction sites in the Nigerian construction industry.

Influence of Information and Communication Technology Application in Construction Jobsites: A Systematic Review and Bibliometric Analysis

“…In general, studies on BIM use at construction sites have focused on simplifying the construction process and expanding the value of capital. Various authors (Amuda-Yusuf and Mohamed, 2015, Agostinelli et al, 2019, Hamzeh et al, 2019, Hong et al, 2019, Shigaki and Yashiro, 2021, Bolsunovskaya et al, 2021, Toyin and Mewomo, 2023a have described BIM features, benefits, and challenges such as better understanding of the project, updated production information, improved project coordination, reduced risk of errors, cost/benefit ratio, poor usability of the BIM, lack of trust in the BIM, and need for training and support among others. Notwithstanding, suggestions on some initiatives to better utilize the BIM model have been made, such as better training, more details in BIM, change of attitude, better location of BIM stations, and better-protected devices.…”

Exploring the application of BIM in Tanzanian public sector projects using social network analysis

“…, 2022); the factors the influencing the capacity of organizations to implement BIM (Yusuf et al. , 2022); the barriers to BIM implementation (Toyin and Mewomo, 2022); the barriers and strategies to BIM implementation (Babatunde et al. , 2021); the impact of barriers on the level of awareness of BIM (Olanrewaju et al.…”

“…These works have investigated BIM adoption and implementation from different and in some cases overlapping perspectives. These have included works that explore the drivers to BIM implementation (Olanrewaju et al, 2021;Vigneshwar et al, 2022); the factors the influencing the capacity of organizations to implement BIM (Yusuf et al, 2022); the barriers to BIM implementation (Toyin and Mewomo, 2022); the barriers and strategies to BIM implementation (Babatunde et al, 2021); the impact of barriers on the level of awareness of BIM (Olanrewaju et al, 2022); the status of BIM in a given developing country (Oyuga et al, 2023); the status, benefits and barriers of BIM (Acheng et al, 2022) and factors influencing the adoption of BIM among small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) (Saka et al, 2022). Analysis of the works that have reported the BIM benefits reveals the functions that were perceived as advantageous by practitioners practicing in developing countries.…”

Overview of BIM contributions in the construction phase: review and bibliometric analysis

“…Kivits and Furneaux's (2013) findings disclosed that BIM adoption had shaped the AEC construction process through "collaborative engineering knowledge management, designed to facilitate sustainability and asset management issues in design, construction, asset management practices, and eventually decommissioning for the AEC industry". The AEC is encouraged to continually invest in digital capabilities such as BIM to uninterruptedly improve productivity and effectiveness through improved collaboration at every stage of the construction lifecycle (Toyin and Mewomo 2022b). Duarte-Vidal et al (2021) studied the "Interoperability of Digital Tools for the Monitoring and Control of Construction Projects" during the construction phase.…”