BIM-Based design coordination for china’s architecture, engineering and construction industry

Abstract

Building Information Modelling (BIM) has become one of the most recognized technologies for the Architecture, Engineering and Construction (AEC) industry in recent years. It brings an innovative revolution for the industry to substitute traditional two-dimensional (2D) drawings by using digital three-dimensional (3D) modelling. This is definitely a significant progress to the building design phase, which is the initial and crucial stage of a construction project lifecycle. Currently, most Chinese AEC firms are still using a conventional building design process that has some serious issues including lack of communication, technological constraint and complex system. These issues can result in lots of design mistakes and mismatches, which will lead to a series of consequences such as resource waste, cost increase, schedule delay and lots of rework. Therefore, BIM provides a satisfying solution with its powerful software support and modern concept. It not only can help China’s AEC firms to implement design visualization and synchronization, but also can promote multi-disciplinary coordination. This paper aims to review the current situation of China’s BIM and its application in the project design phase, and then use a scientific research methodology to explore a BIM-based design coordination framework for China’s AEC industry in the future.