The turning point: MEP contractors as the key to achieving lifecycle BIM

Abstract

Developments in the construction industry across a number of countries over the past decade suggest that the use of Building Information Modeling (BIM) is becoming the norm for the design and delivery of projects. As BIM increasingly enters a broad range of domains within the built environment, the importance of Specialist Contractors-and in particular MEP Contractors-as part of these developments begins to show. MEP Contractors form a crucial link in the information-chain to achieve life-cycle BIM. This paper investigates the shift to the role of MEP Contractors in the context of BIM. It analyses the structural changes within the contracting professions, and it highlights the impact of BIM enabled MEP Contractors on the construction industry as a whole. The paper scrutinises this development by example of the BIM-MEPAUS initiative of the Australian Air Conditioning and Mechanical Contractors’ Association (AMCA). Accounts from BIM-MEPAUS illustrate the raise of the BIM-enabled MEP Contractors and thereby act as a reference for other international industry groups who may wish to follow their example.