Process of BIM application in the pre-construction phase for industrial building projects in Ho Chi Minh city

Abstract

Building Information Modeling (BIM) has been applied to construction projects in Vietnam for the last decade. Many domestic and foreign studies have investigated and assessed the benefits and difficulties of using BIM throughout the project life cycle. However, improving the applicability of BIM has always been a significant challenge for the construction industry. This study aimed at surveying and proposing the process of applying BIM to factory projects which were delivered by means of the D&B method. Through a questionnaire survey and interviews with BIM experts, this study found the three most significant benefits that BIM has brought to the factory construction project; that was, quick visualisation of design ideas, early detection of conflicts among design drawings, and a short period of design. In addition, this study also proposed a detailed process for applying BIM to the pre-construction phase of a D&B-based factory project (referred to as D&B - BIM). The strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT) of the process were also analysed in this study. This process has been determined to have potential applications in real-world projects by experts.