ICE Yorkshire and Humber Awards 2020

Earlier this year, I was nominated for the Sir John Fowler Award at this year’s ICE Yorkshire and Humber Awards for my undergraduate dissertation which examined the challenges facing SMEs in meeting the the UK Governments 2016 BIM Mandate. I didn’t win, but I receive a Certificate of Commendation.

This was a great achievement for me and also for Leeds Beckett University, thinkBIM and YORhub, all of whom contributed to the research. For my undergraduate dissertation to be nominated alongside a HS2 Impact Assessment, which is part of a multimillion pound project, demonstrates the effort and commitment from all those involved.

The results from the dissertation succeeded in identifying some of the challenges facing small companies in adopting BIM and showed that smaller companies find BIM harder to adopt than larger companies.

Construction is one of the major contributors to the UK economy but typically it has been characterised by low productivity, low margins and poor investment into research and development. Construction is also one of the least digitised sectors, with digital transformation being a focus for the industry, demonstrated by the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) focus in recent years on digital transformation and smart infrastructure. This was only highlighted on the evening of the ICE awards, with Paul Sheffield, the president of the ICE, highlighting the digitisation of the build environment.

Building Information Modelling (BIM) is one of the main ways in which digital technology is changing construction. The UK Government identified this and implemented its 2016 BIM mandate to increase efficiency and address its targets of reduced carbon emissions, faster project delivery and reduced project costs.

There are around one million SMEs in construction, 90% of construction projects are carried out by SMEs and SMEs are also key to offering a broader choice for clients. SMEs are integral to the industry.

Yet, the study found that SMEs are less likely to have adopted BIM and less likely to have adopted it to a higher level. The diagram below shows a comparison of BIM maturity between SMEs and large organisations utilising elements of Arup's BIM maturity measure.

The government has moved its attention away from BIM Level 2 and is focusing on digital development through bodies such as the Centre for Digitally Built Britain (CDBB) and initiative such as The National Digital Twin. There is potential for SMEs to be left behind as the industry develops, reducing choice in the market and losing the independent advice that SMEs offer.

The diagram below shows respondents selection of challenges faced in using BIM, comparing SMEs and large organisations. The main challenges found for SMEs were that there was a lack of client demand, not all members of the project team are embracing BIM and there is a difference of understanding between the project team members.

In general, SMEs were found to identify with more challenges than larger organisations. It was also noted there are disparities of BIM knowledge between the different regions of the UK, with the Yorkshire and Humber region having less understanding and awareness of the mandate compared to those demonstrated in UK wide surveys.

Nearly all respondents who had used BIM on a project see the benefits. These benefits include improved coordination, structured information and effective visualisation. However, the cost of BIM was an issue. Costs include paying for relevant software, hardware and the cost of training. For some smaller companies, the initial investment in BIM is high and does not offer an immediate return, as it takes time for people to become proficient in BIM software.

The research presented findings on BIM adoption and the challenges faced by SMEs in complying with Government’s 2016 BIM Mandate and it provided a good base for future researchers to identify ways in which these challenges can be overcome, increasing BIM adoption within SMEs and closing the digital divide between SMEs and larger organisations.

After completing the project I still felt more research was needed and this led me to commit to five further years of academic study. As part of my professional doctorate at Leeds Beckett University I will be looking at the digitisation of small construction companies.

Five other undergraduate dissertations were also completed in 2019 by Leeds Beckett Students, in collaboration with thinkBIM and YORhub, with more due to be completed in 2020. These are part of an ongoing relationship which shows what can be achieved through collaboration between academia and industry.

If you are interested in finding out more about Leeds Beckett University’s current research into BIM or my ongoing research into the digitisation of small construction companies, please get in touch.

As a specialist BIM Consultant at Turner & Townsend, I also work directly with clients to specify their BIM and data requirements so they are able to get the best out of their build asset. Please contact me for further information on Turner & Townsend's role in digital construction.