Computational workspaces management: a workflow to integrate workspaces dynamic planning with 4D BIM

Abstract

An effective realization of a building construction project -without incurring in congested site areas or decline of productivity- tightly depends on the construction activities planning process that, should consider and manage site workspaces availabilities. In this context, in the past couple of decades many research efforts have been spent in BIM which represents the process of preparation and use of a computer-generated Building Information Model (BIM) even if effective integrated methodologies and models to assist construction workspaces management are still missing in the field. This contribution proposes an integrated model that aims to automate the creation of a building digital prototype, BIM-based, in which real site condition, in terms of workspaces allocation, are fully simulated. The outputs of a built-in algorithm to define the on-site workspaces configuration pattern based on the space syntax analysis together with a second one to automatically model workspaces geometries with minimizes input work are presented. Those algorithm are integrated in a coherent construction workspaces management workflow and tested on a simplified BIM of an industrial building, succeeding to allocate and model 611 workspaces required to construct 98 building items the BIM is composed of.