An Investigation Into BIM Based Detailed Cost Estimating .
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Journal of Financial Management of Property and ConstructionFofi naialncAn investigation into BIM based detailed cost estimatingand drivers to the adoption of BIM in quantity surveyingpracticesanMJournal: Journal of Financial Management of Property and ConstructionManuscript ID JFMPC-05-2019-0042.R2Manuscript Type: Research PaperagKeywords:Building Information Modelling (BIM), Cost Estimating, globalcompetitiveness, Quantity Surveying, NigeriartyperofPtoenemdanCoutrns
Page 1 of 24Journal of Financial Management of Property and ConstructionFofAn investigation into BIM based detailed cost estimating and drivers to theadoption of BIM in quantity surveying practicesi naAbstractncPurpose-Although studies have shown the relevance of BIM (Building Information Modeling)in cost estimating process, efforts at investigating BIM based detailed cost estimating amongprofessional quantity surveyors through quantitative approach are scanty. The purpose of thisstudy is to identify and examine the usage of BIM based detailed cost estimating software; andassesses the drivers to BIM adoption within the Nigerian quantity surveying consulting firms.ialDesign/methodology/approach- A comprehensive literature review, pilot study, andquestionnaire survey were adopted. The survey targeted both the BIM users and non- BIM users’quantity surveying consulting firms in Lagos, Nigeria. The data collected were analysed usingfrequency, percentage, mean score, standard deviation, Mann-Whitney test, and factor analysis.anMFindings-The study found that 46.58% of quantity surveying consulting firms are aware of BIMand have adopted it for detailed cost estimating, while 49.32% of quantity surveying consultingfirms are aware but have not adopted BIM based detailed cost estimating, and 4.10% of quantitysurveying consulting firms are not aware at all. Also, the study identified various BIM baseddetailed cost estimating software used in quantity surveying practices and found that Microsoftexcel is often used alongside 3D software; Autodesk QTO, Navisworks, Innovaya composer, andCostX respectively are prevalent BIM software used for detailed cost estimating. In addition, thestudy identified 21 drivers to the adoption of BIM in quantity surveying practices. The result offactor analysis grouped the 21 identified drivers into five principal factors: improved whole lifecycle/design quality; enhanced decision and visualization; cost and time saving; marketing andsupport for quantity surveyor tasks; and government and client pressure.toenemagPractical implication-This study provides significant insight into the application of BIM toquantity surveying consulting practices, thereby enables consultant quantity surveyors to makeinformed decisions to select BIM cost estimating software to suit their practices. Further, thestudy findings can be useful for individuals, clients’ and contractors’ quantity surveyors to befully aware of the opportunities BIM could bring in relation to their service delivery.perofPOriginality/value-Accurate cost estimating, effective cost monitoring and control areessentialelements to a construction project success. This study further emphasized the importance ofBIM to quantity surveying practices, particularly in the area of the detailed cost estimating.Keywords: BIM, cost estimating, global competitiveness, quantity surveying, NigeriaPaper type Research paperdanIntroductionrtyIn order to remain globally competitive, quantity surveyors must be ready to adapt to anyinnovation in the construction industry. In recent times, there has been different innovations inthe construction industry ranging from augmented reality, construction software and dataecosystem, to building information modeling (BIM) amongst others. The evolution of theseinnovations has brought the development of different tools, techniques and software to enhanceproductivity among construction professionals. In the last decade, BIM is one of the technologiestrending in the construction industry (Kulasekaraet al., 2013). BIM is described as a process 51525354555657585960
Page 2 of 24Journal of Financial Management of Property and ConstructionFofproducing, managing, storing, exchanging and sharing building information in an interoperableway (Yan and Damian, 2008). This automation explored by the use of BIM has helped increaseefficiency in cost estimating among others (Afoluhai, 2012).i naDetailed cost estimating is a very important aspect of quantity surveying profession, to beprecise. It is the most essential knowledge a quantity surveying practitioner must possess, eitherworking as a contractor or consultant quantity surveyor. A quantity surveying practitioner mustpossess an excellent skill in quantity take off and building of rates. Ismail (2016) stated that costestimating is the most important quantity surveying skill in determining construction projectcosts. It involves the prediction of the most likely cost of a construction project which dependson a number of variables which are materials, labour, plant, profit and overhead. As a projectbecomes complex, the whole process of estimating becomes enormous and time consuming, andwith the growing competition in the industry and the increasing demands of clients for value formoney, accuracy and efficiency, the quantity surveyor competence to carry out estimatingoperations traditionally becomes questioned.Shen and Issa (2010) argued that generating adetailed cost estimate is very important butit is a time consuming task in construction projects.For instance, in preparing detailed cost estimates, most of the time is spent on visualization,interpretation, clarification of drawings, specification information and aggregated quantities oflabour, materials and equipment. As a result of this, cost estimates provided by quantitysurveyors are arguably producing errors and inaccuracies due to unmanageable circumstances.ialncemaganMHowever, BIM has presented to solve estimating operations. For instance, Thurairajah andGruchor (2013) asserted that BIM is crucial when it comes to accurate and reliable costestimating. This is affirmed by Sattineni and Harrison (2014) who indicated that quantity takeoff automation is one of the capabilities of BIM which reduces time and cost required inpreparing cost estimates. In addition, previous studies on BIM have shown that BIM offers abetter advantage by improving the estimating practices that are usually prone to errors (Olatunjiand Sher, 2010; Azhar, 2011; Eastman et al., 2011) among others. For instance, Attar et al.(2013) found that by adopting BIM, 80% reduction in time to prepare estimates and 10% savingson construction cost through clash detection were attainable. In addition, Olatunji and Sher(2015) argued that there are limited empirical tools upon which modern construction estimatingtheories could be based. However, with the emergence of BIM for estimating, there is need forresearch on the advances in BIM (Olatunji and Sher, 2015). This triggered several studies onBIM in relation to quantity surveying practices. For instance, studies like application of 5D BIMincluding its benefits and challenges (see Olatunji et al., 2010; Cheunga et al., 2012; Frei et al.,2013; Wu et al., 2014; Luth et al., 2014; Wong and Yew, 2017; Olawumi and Chan, 2018). Fewstudies focused on the role of quantity surveyors in developing 5D BIM (Smith, 2016; Mayoufetal., 2019). Few studies on BIM education in quantity surveying (see Ali et al., 2015; Babatundeet al., 2018; Babatunde and Ekundayo, 2019). Other studies on BIM enabled estimating (seeOlatunji and Sher, 2014; Olatunji and Sher, 2015) among others.rtyperofPtoenDespite these previous studies, there is limited empirical study on the investigation of the use ofBIM for detailed cost estimating among quantity surveying consulting firms. Since costestimating is a core duty of quantity surveyors and there is a gap in analyzing the factorsinfluencing the adoption of BIM in quantity surveying consulting firms, particularly indeveloping countries. Therefore, this study becomes imperative with a view to identifying andexamining the usage of BIM based detailed cost estimating software and assessing the drivers tothe adoption of BIM in quantity surveying consulting 748495051525354555657585960
Page 3 of 24Journal of Financial Management of Property and ConstructionFofLiterature reviewi naConcept of BIMThe drive to develop 3D modeling arose from the urge to develop accurate construction detailsof building designed in complex form (Boon, 2009). The concept of BIM started in the 1990’sand BIM has presented so many opportunities to the construction industry. BIM has evolvedfrom being just a software to an integrating system. BIM does not present itself as software,instead it is an information technology (IT) solution for integrating software application, and ITtools to design a building in a common platform which is not dependent on the software used(Jayasena and Neddikkara, 2012). The evolution of BIM has caused drastic change in the wayoperations are being carried out in the industry. Olatunji and Sher (2015) stated that BIM storesrobust quantitative and qualitative data. Thus, BIM enables the estimators to export untodedicated platforms for costing, without substantial additional calculations on the quantificationof design attributes.The basic concept of BIM is hinged on the need to provide a platform thatprovides solution to the lapses of the 2D CAD technologies by ensuring a cooperative platformthat brings together all building information in a single file, which can be exchanged and used byall the parties to a project (Abdulahi and Ibrahim, 2016). Several researchers have stated that theconcept of BIM is devoid of a specific definition. For instance, RICS (2012) reported that theconcept of BIM has no accepted definition, as a result of its evolving nature.ialncemaganMKamadeen (2010) described the collaboration of all the features of BIM presented so far as aproblem solving evolution that allows designers to easily optimize designs with analyses,simulations and visualizations which delivers a higher quality construction documentation. Theprominent IT based information system, promotes and integrates the designs, assembles alloperations of the building. The emergence of BIM is a turning point for the built environment,overcoming the barriers faced by all professionals. BIM presents a holistic view of a project frominception to completion even before it is actualized, thereby enabling remedial action to be takenfor any identified risk.fPtoenBIM based detailed cost estimating softwareBIM is not a software as described by various researchers but there is a software that is BIMbased that helps integrate project data into a single file. BIM based estimating is described as aprogrammed progression that involves adapting data, exporting, and linking data with theirrespective unit cost. This process is different from the conventional approach to estimating(Ashworth, 2010). The manual process of carrying out these activities ranges from taking off upto preparation of draft bill of quantities. The integration of activities by BIM-enabled estimatinghelps in narrowing the operations of detailed estimating, thereby reducing the toilsomeoperations carried out in the manual method (Ashworth, 2010). However, many researchers havesuggested that BIM enabled detailed estimating requires adequate knowledge and skills that aredifferent from the traditional method. BIM based detailed cost estimating providessupplementary solution to the traditional and 2D CAD method. The unique feature of BIM baseddetailed cost estimating over traditional approach to estimating is the automation process. Thecapability of BIM based detailed cost estimating is its ability to automate the quantificationprocess thereby overruling the enormous process in traditional estimating approach leavingample time for the estimator to review and use his experience on the estimates 42434445464748495051525354555657585960
Page 4 of 24Journal of Financial Management of Property and ConstructionFofThe use of detailed cost estimating does not automatically produce an estimate since estimatesare not a function of the quantities generated automatically.Autodesk (2007) and Eastman et al.(2011) identified three approaches to carrying out BIM for detailed cost estimating software asfollows:i na ncExportation of quantities generated to estimating software: In this context, quantities areproduced in the 3D BIM extracted into estimating software (spreadsheet) where unit ratesare built and inserted to generate an estimate. Moses and Hampton (2017) stated thatimporting quantities from a BIM environment to estimating software involves selectingelements as a group or individually. The limitation of this approach is that there is nosingle database as to the applications used, which cannot link directly to BIM software.Examples of such applications include MS excel. For instance, Eastman et al. (2011)found that most BIM based estimating softwareis capable of exporting thequantities to aspreadsheet, thus enables the quantity surveyors to start the pricing. The quantitysurveyors consider quantities that have been exported to MS Excel format assufficient fortheir work in BIM (Eastman et al., 2011). Similarly, Hardin (2009) claimed that it isinefficient to export the quantities if the BIM model and the spreadsheet are not linked ina way that the latter is automatically updated with the changesto the former.ialemaganM Linking BIM based software to estimating software: This entails the use of BIMestimating software directly linking to the BIM software. Eastman et al. (2011) statedthat Tocomanilink estimating software can be plugged directly into design based softwaresuch as Revit. The plug-ins automatically generates quantities and the design tools aidsvisualization relating it with the estimate. Other examples of this softwareare Innovaya,Timberline etc. This approach also allows any quantities not generated automatically tobe seen and imputed manually. Quantity take-off approach: This involves the use of quantity take off features that importdata from the model depending on the level of the information provided by the model andalso allows manual amendments to be made to the take-offs to the users’ preference.Jiang (2011) stated that QTO processes can be finished automatically and categorizedbased on the information level on the object model, after the QTO changes can also bemade manually. Examples of this software are Autodesk QTO, Exactal QTO, Vicoamong others.perofPtoenThe BIM based detailed cost estimating software identified in previous studies are summarizedin Table I.rty Insert Table I danAs indicated in Table I, BIM based cost estimating software varies in their functionality andworking processes. For instance, the choice of BIM based detailed cost estimating software to beused depends on the needs of the user, availability in the market, the configuration, availabilityof experts, complexity, amongst many others. It is important to present an overview of howdifferent BIM based estimating software can facilitate quantity surveyors’ detailed costestimating process. Therefore, few of the identified BIM based cost estimating software (seeTable I) are briefly discussed as 48495051525354555657585960
Page 5 of 24Journal of Financial Management of Property and ConstructionFofNavisworks: This is a BIM based detailed cost estimating software developed by Autodesk forthe review of project and administration for professionals and stakeholders in Architectural,engineering and construction (AEC). According to Finances online (2019), there are twoversions of Navisworks: Navisworks manage and Navisworks simulation. The Navisworksmanage has more sophisticated coordination, clash detection, 5D analysis and simulation whilethe Navisworks simulate specifies on reviewing and disseminates project information throughthe 5D analysis and simulation. The features of Navisworks to detailed cost estimating include:clash detection, quantification, coordination of data, model simulation and analysis, modelreview, project viewing, IFC file reader among many others (Finances online, 2019). Inaddition, it presents a lot of benefits which are reduction in cost; the Navisworks clash detectionfeature helps to streamline work flows which in turn help to reduce overspending and also savestime. Another benefit of this software is coordinated data; this software helps to integrate projectdata into a single model file which in turn saves time. It detects clashes which reduce the timethat would have been taken to carry out this task manually.i naialncanMInnovaya Composer: Innovaya composer is an auxiliary tool designed for Autodesk Revit andAutoCAD for architecture, mechanical, electrical, and plumbing (MEP). According to Innovaya(2011) Innovaya composer is designed to exploit the intelligent objects in the buildinginformation environment. This invention has changed the way professionals in the builtenvironment carry out their duties and alongside enhance the communication between the team,planning, project estimating and quantity take off. Innovaya Composer imports data from Revitand exports the model into an INV file which can be read by Innovaya applications such asInnovaya Estimating and Innovaya Quantity Take off. The features of Innovaya composerinclude; automatic quantity generation, drag and drop quantity generation, coordinated objectquantities, intelligent change management, quantity report to MS Excel, interactive 3Dvisualization, support for effective team communication, automatic quantity extraction, item takeoff.fPtoenemagBIM measure: This software is a product of the Causeway Computer Aided Take-Off (CATO)suite. It is an advancement of the CAD measure which has additional capabilities to visualize 3Dmodels and utilize the data available in BIM mode for quantification. The features of thissoftware are such that it enables users integrate various models and files into a single file andalso the incorporation of BIM
working as a contractor or consultant quantity surveyor. A quantity surveying practitioner must possess an excellent skill in quantity take off and building of rates. Ismail (2016) stated that cost estimating is the most important quantity surveying skill in determining construction project costs.
BIM adoption. The global status of BIM varies from developed to developing. The BIM implementation in Africa depends on the country. In Nigeria, the level of BIM awareness is high in but there is a very slow level of BIM skills; meanwhile, South Africa is facing huge challenges in BIM awareness (Matarneh et al., 2015). The application of BIM
projects. The BIM 360 platform contains many products and modules that enable you to manage your projects. This course covers many of the modules in the BIM 360 Docs, BIM 360 Design, BIM 360 Coordinate, and BIM 360 Build products. Topics Covered: Understanding the purpose of Building Information Modeling (BIM) and how it is applied
implementation in less BIM-mature counterparts considering the local BIM climate; 4) this initial framework could be further expanded into future study from BIM climate to BIM culture within the organizational context. Literature Review Knowledge system within BIM management
BIM levels within the BIM community. These levels start from BIM level 0 and include 2D, 3D, 4D, and 5D (Lorek, 2021). These are also referred to as maturity levels which correspond to level of information exchange in the construction sector. "2D BIM is a digital geometric model that constitutes an X and a Y
BIM Execution Plan (BEP) that can respond to the specific needs of the project. Facilitate information and provide guidance on BIM requirements, processes and procedures to the Contractor staff and each of the Subcontractor BIM Coordinators. Notify the BIM Support Group of any information request regarding BIM.
the professionals. Thus BIM awareness and competence among professionals has become a useful baseline measure of BIM readiness. In order to ascertain BIM readiness within the Seychelles construction industry, this study investigated the level of BIM awareness and level of BIM competence among construction professionals.
2. 2014 Building Information Modeling (BIM) Survey The NAHB BIM survey is a bi-annual report written by the NAHB Economics and Housing Policy Group. The survey assessed participants' familiarity with BIM and use of BIM features among single and multifamily builders and de-signers, focusing on the number of firms using BIM and how they were using
Smithsonian Facilities requires that a BIM Project Execution Plan (PxP) be developed for project employing BIM. The " SF BIM Execution Plan - Framework Document" has been developed as a template by Smithsonian Facilities to assist project teams developing BIM execution plans , consistently across all S F BIM projects.
