Risk management is an integral part of any construction project. It’s a process that identifies potential risks and develops strategies to mitigate or prevent them from occurring. But managing risk isn’t just about avoiding negative consequences — it’s also about finding hidden opportunities you utilize for the good of the project. As such, understanding how to reduce risk is essential for any construction project to succeed.
Fortunately, technological advances have made it easier for the construction industry to manage risk more effectively. Building information modeling (BIM) and virtual design and construction (VDC) are powerful tools that can reduce risk throughout all project stages, from design and planning to construction and operation.
But before we go into the nitty gritty of how BIM and VDC can help reduce risk, let’s review what each term means. BIM is the process of creating and managing information within a 3D building model.
By using 3D CAD models to represent a building or structure’s physical and functional characteristics, BIM enables teams to create a digital representation of the project before construction and implementation. It is the process of creating and managing information within a 3D building model.
On the other hand, VDC is the process of using a BIM model to plan and coordinate a construction project. This technology uses BIM models as a framework to create a virtual environment that allows team members to simulate and analyze various aspects of the project.
Now that we’ve reviewed the basics, it’s time to dive deeper into the subject of risk reduction in construction projects.
Importance of risk reduction in construction projects
Risk reduction is an important part of any construction project. After all, the fewer risks present during a project’s development, the less likely costly mistakes or delays will occur.
With the annual cost of construction injuries in the United States estimated at over $11.5 billion, and the additional millions of dollars construction companies lose to missed project deadlines and errors requiring change orders, the importance of risk reduction cannot be overstated.
Furthermore, putting together a construction team is like assembling a small army. General contractors have major obligations to stay in compliance with unions, local governments, and specific client standards. They have to meet all these requirements while planning and coordinating projects that often take years to complete while keeping everyone on the job site safe in the process. It takes a high level of strategy and project intelligence to pull projects off successfully.
Using BIM to coordinate and plan projects can remove the majority of this inherent risk because it allows contractors to plan and simulate their projects virtually before building the real thing. Risk reduction techniques can help ensure a safe construction site that benefits on-site workers and the people who will eventually live and work in the building.
Another important reason for implementing risk reduction in construction projects is cost savings. As the saying goes, “time is money;” the more time it takes to complete a project, the more it will cost.
Using BIM to plan and coordinate a construction project addresses these issues by allowing the design team, construction professionals, and mechanical, engineering, and plumbing (MEP) contractors to communicate effectively and visualize projects before they’re built. Take this a step further with a dedicated BIM manager who can monitor the project’s progress and provide guidance on how to mitigate any potential risks.
How BIM and VDC reduce project risks
Using BIM and VDC on construction projects has many benefits, but one of the most important is reducing risk. Here are six specific ways BIM and VDC can help to reduce risk on a construction project:
1. Enhanced coordination
BIM’s clash detection capabilities allow for enhanced coordination throughout a project, streamlining workflows and mitigating potential issues with a collaborative approach. Using Autodesk’s suite of applications, including AutoCAD, Revit, and Navisworks, project stakeholders can virtually walk through the BIM model, identifying conflicts between different trades early in the preconstruction phase and minimizing the need for rework.
Additionally, multidisciplinary BIM coordination allows the merging of digital models from various disciplines, facilitating collaboration and ensuring a shared understanding among stakeholders, ultimately leading to improved project outcomes and reduced change orders.
2. Predict Future Building Performance
Construction project visualizations, digital twins, and virtual reality simulations are essential components of BIM, since these digital representations predict the performance of buildings before they’re constructed. Visualizations involve creating a 3D model of the building, enabling stakeholders to visualize the design. On the other hand, simulations replicate real world, on-site scenarios, such as testing a building’s behavior during an earthquake.
By utilizing BIM technologies and virtual design and construction (VDC), contractors can generate 3D models and simulate the impact of nature (including seismic events) on a planned structure, allowing for better prediction of the building’s resilience against natural disasters as well as its overall performance throughout the entire project life cycle.
Data collected during construction projects can also be used for efficient maintenance and asset management, reducing operational risks and ensuring the building is well-maintained over its lifetime through life cycle analysis. This provides a comprehensive view of the cost associated with the building over its entire lifetime, highlighting areas where potential risks could arise.
3. Improved Project Accountability
Platforms like BIM collaborate Pro, Solibri, and Revizto come with issue management features that help with transparency. When there’s a clash between elements, they allow you to assign a responsible party to review and resolve the issue, and let project members communicate within a single platform where everyone can see and track issue progress.
These platforms also report on the total number of outstanding clashes left on a project and can reveal hot spots in the building where the most intense issues are occurring.
4. Quantification and estimation
BIM models are extremely helpful for quantification and estimation, as they provide teams with a comprehensive view of every element in their project. Teams can use this information to quickly and accurately calculate the required materials, labor costs, and other associated expenses.
On a typical construction site, up to 30% of building materials end up as waste. That’s likely because project owners usually over-buy material and have to warehouse some as a result. This heavily impacts the construction budget both from the material costs and estimated fee from various vendors who are charging more than they sold for inflated material quantities.
BIM and VDC can also prevent other types of cost overruns and budgetary uncertainties. Cost overruns happen when the budget doesn’t cover all of the expenses associated with a project. Accurate quantification and estimation are essential for ensuring projects stay on track and within budget.
5. Construction sequencing and logistics planning
Construction sequencing is a process that involves planning the different steps of a project to ensure it is completed efficiently and on time. This includes assigning tasks to specific individuals or teams and scheduling deliveries of materials and other items related to the project.
You can also use BIM to simulate each step of the construction process. Imagine erecting a building on a crowded city block and having to plan out where you’re going to store cranes, material deliveries, and other equipment. And what if a key part of your construction schedule occurs during a cold winter when your soil will likely freeze and compromise the integrity of your foundations? You can use the BIM model to analyze these potential challenges and come up with solutions ahead of time.
A well-designed construction sequence model can proactively detect possible conflicts and accurately estimate how to finish a construction project within the allocated budget and time frame. BIM and VDC provide various tools to help teams create, visualize, and optimize their construction sequence, making it easier to identify potential issues and plan an optimized workflow.
6. Improving safety and progress documentation
The physical on-site work a project needs, the less risk it poses to human workers, and BIM models can reduce the need for on-site physical construction. You can even use them to pre-manufacture materials and automate component installation via robots with greater precision.
For example, The Tesla Gigafactory project included five structures, spanning 3.5 million square feet, with 32,000 tons of structural steel and 2,500 tons of rebar, all orchestrated via a BIM model. This model enabled the generation of steel and rebar shop drawings, streamlining the pre-manufacturing process. All five building frameworks were delivered within an impressive seven months after Tesla’s initial contact with GPLA, showcasing BIM’s efficient automation and construction precision.
You can also use BIM models to train workers by simulating installation methods so they can use virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) tools offsite to practice on-site techniques. Documenting project progress is easier and more precise, too, when you incorporate tools like Spot the robot and drones for construction site photography and monitoring. These machines can take a series of pictures throughout the site via scheduled daily routes.
The transformative potential of BIM and VDC in risk mitigation
BIM and VDC technologies have the potential to profoundly revolutionize how we manage construction projects.
With accurate, real-time visualizations of each project phase, teams can effortlessly identify and mitigate potential risks while capitalizing on any available opportunities. These advanced technologies empower teams to successfully execute their tasks with greater efficiency and success.
If you have any questions about BIM or its implementation, our experts can answer a wide spectrum of questions about BIM and VDC standards.
