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Building Information Modeling for Airports (2016)

Chapter: CHAPTER THREE Adoption and Implementation

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Suggested Citation:"CHAPTER THREE Adoption and Implementation." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2016. Building Information Modeling for Airports. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/23517.
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Suggested Citation:"CHAPTER THREE Adoption and Implementation." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2016. Building Information Modeling for Airports. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/23517.
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Suggested Citation:"CHAPTER THREE Adoption and Implementation." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2016. Building Information Modeling for Airports. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/23517.
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Suggested Citation:"CHAPTER THREE Adoption and Implementation." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2016. Building Information Modeling for Airports. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/23517.
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Suggested Citation:"CHAPTER THREE Adoption and Implementation." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2016. Building Information Modeling for Airports. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/23517.
×
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Suggested Citation:"CHAPTER THREE Adoption and Implementation." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2016. Building Information Modeling for Airports. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/23517.
×
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Suggested Citation:"CHAPTER THREE Adoption and Implementation." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2016. Building Information Modeling for Airports. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/23517.
×
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Suggested Citation:"CHAPTER THREE Adoption and Implementation." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2016. Building Information Modeling for Airports. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/23517.
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23 CHAPTER THREE ADOPTION AND IMPLEMENTATION After an organization determines its end goals for BIM implementation, it develops its adoption and implementation strategy to chart the path for reaching those goals. This chapter provides general information about BIM adoption and implementa- tion across the facility life cycle. Barriers to adoption and implementation optimization are presented. It also provides airport profiles that include experience, expertise, adoption, and implementation intensity over the project life cycle. BACKGROUND BIM Adoption and Implementation BIM adoption generally precedes BIM implementation. The adoption phase begins when an organization decides to use BIM; however, an organization’s adoption does not automatically translate to full-scale support for implementation by stakeholders within the organization. An organization’s adoption of BIM can be simple or quite complex. An approach could begin with a particular technology, such as 3D laser scanning, and the BIM uses associated with that technology (e.g., Existing Conditions Modeling). Adoption could also be initiated for specific business processes (e.g., asset management) or functional areas (e.g., facilities maintenance) within the organization. Adoption may be project-focused or organization-focused depending on its strategy for implementation. For example, cost estimating and construction scheduling are project-level business processes, whereas asset management is an organization-level process. A clear organizational strategy about the purpose and use of BIM can be developed during adoption to guide the subsequent implementation. The strategy first evaluates the existing organizational conditions before proceeding with implementation. Next, the implementation strategy aligns BIM goals and objectives with the organization’s targeted uses and level of desired maturity for each use (Kreider and Messner 2013). The strategy addresses migration from traditional business processes to BIM processes in a methodical way that considers both the internal and external stakeholders affected by the implementation. Massport’s goals are foremost related to institutionalizing the use of BIM technologies (using BIM to facilitate Asset Management), which requires the development of a clear path to implementation that is shared with all stakeholders. To support the effort, it has developed the Massport BIM Roadmap [located in Appendix B of this synthesis report] and a written implementation plan. – Massport BIM Guide (2015) In addition to the level of implementation—project or organization—the strategy also identifies the phases in a facil- ity’s life cycle at which BIM will be used to add value to the owner’s business operations. The detailed implementation plan includes measurable goals that will add value, such as reducing cost across the life cycle. An organization’s implementation plan may include all of the phases with specific value-added activities as shown in the following example: • Planning phase—Conceptualize project, analyze program, and prepare pro forma for “go-no go” decisions. • Design phase—Perform design development and analyze building systems for life-cycle costs and operations processes. • Construction phase—Perform design reviews, coordination, estimating, scheduling, and fabrication for initial cost avoidance. • Operations and maintenance—Utilize record model of building systems and services information for preventative maintenance. • Renewal—Analyze existing conditions for renewal or disposal decisions. – CICRP 2013

24 SFO places great emphasis on organizational development parallel to technology implementation, which is critical in identifying the target systems (identifying life-cycle phases and BIM processes for implementation within each phase) and in gradually building an understanding of the associated standards related to the data resulting from large capital projects and BIM and how they are actually going to be used by the SFO internal stakeholders. – San Francisco Airport Commission Full BIM implementation can take from 1 to 10 years (Penn State 2013). The following activities and associated tasks sup- port successful BIM implementation planning by facility owners (Penn State 2013): • Establish a BIM implementation team – Determine BIM implementation team members – Establish roles and responsibilities – Engage a consultant to assist in BIM implementation as needed. • Design BIM integrated processes – Select a standard method of documentation – Document the organizational structure – Document the current processes – Identify and design target processes – Form clear tasks for transition – Create the overall transition plan for the organization. • Document model and facility data information needs – Determine information needs – Choose a model element breakdown structure for the organization – Determine model needs – Determine level of development – Determine facility needs – Compile organizational information needs. • Determine infrastructure needs – Select software – Choose hardware. • Education and training – Develop an educational program – Develop a training strategy. BIM Adoption Barriers Some common barriers attributed to BIM adoption, industrywide and cited in this study, are related to the following factors (McGraw-Hill 2009; Penn State 2010; Khosrowshahi and Arayici 2012): • Lack of organizational readiness to change • Lack of expertise • Greater system complexity • Lack of system interoperability • Lack of industry standards • Legal issues • Lack of data-storage capacities • Lack of systems to support real-time information for on-site decision making • Prohibitive expenses for software and hardware upgrades. All of these issues are inherent to the paradigm shift related to the emerging technology-intensive approach of BIM. Optimizing BIM Implementation There are various ways to address the barriers to adoption and optimize a BIM implementation program. Some of the meth- ods, which enhance organization readiness, are listed in this section.

25 Breaking Down the Silo Development of Information Within an Organization Commonly, valuable information is housed in various departments across an organization, yet the information is not easily accessible/useable by others outside of a specific department. As an organization discovers these information sources, it is very important that it leverages the data from the sources. This leads to SFO’s emphasis on integration: it is not so much about replacing or overtaking existing systems or databases with BIM, but rather connecting all of the existing sources of information to form a centralized, accessible, and reliable information portal for the organization. – San Francisco Airport Commission Enlist a BIM champion: A champion leads adoption efforts within the organization to ensure that the subsequent imple- mentation phase is successful. The BIM Planning Guide for Facility Owners (Penn State 2013) describes a BIM champion as one who is technically skilled and motivated to guide an organization to improve its processes by advocating adoption, managing resistance to change, and ensuring implementation of a new technology or process. Champions may be designated or they may emerge, but either way, the organization’s champion guides it at the strategic, operational, and tactical level on BIM use (GSA 2009; Suermann and Maddox 2015). Describe the timeline for organizational goals for BIM implementation: An organization’s goals and BIM objectives need to be clearly articulated and specified to occur within a given time frame. Implement a change management plan: A plan for change management is necessary if the process changes associated with BIM adoption are to be realized and improve efficiency. The shift from traditional processes to BIM processes is a cultural change that can be planned for and managed. Respondents to a recent survey ranked change management as the top obstacle for owners (McGraw-Hill 2015). Develop a written BIM implementation plan: BIM implementation will affect both the organization and project opera- tions; therefore, it is essential to have a written plan to help streamline business operations, establish a consistent working environment, and increase the percentage of total work effort that is devoted to value-added tasks (Smith and Tardif 2009). The following elements can support the plan at the operational level (Smith and Tardif 2009): • Ensure data are entered only once during the building or information life cycle by the most authoritative source. • Send and receive data in the most structured electronic form possible. • Integrate data entry and data maintenance tasks into the organization’s business processes. • Collect all relevant information the first time. • Emphasize the value of data collection and data quality. • Adopt open standards. Ensure sufficient computer software proficiency: General computer software proficiency is a necessary skill for personnel; however, the need for proficiency with BIM software will vary based on the BIM use and the tools used to achieve the speci- fied use. For example, use of a design model through a viewer uses more general skills, whereas the use of a record model in its native file format will require the ability to navigate through the model (Penn State 2013). An organization’s technology strategies are to align with the organization’s core competencies (Smith and Tardif 2009). Ensure sufficient database management capabilities: Information is at the foundation of BIM. Having the capability to manage the model data to achieve the intended objectives is essential (Smith and Tardif 2009). Ensure adequate facilities management expertise: Efficiently managing a facility using BIM involves personnel with expertise in managing the building elements and systems. Although standard contract documents require facility data in paper format, with BIM, the facility manager can define the specific information needed to operate and maintain the facility. As a result, it is critical that facility managers possess comprehensive knowledge about the systems and what will be needed to efficiently operate the facility (Kreider and Messner 2013). Develop team organization and management: In general the organization’s BIM team will execute the organization’s stra- tegic plan. At the organization level, the BIM team is to include individuals with background knowledge and experience with “Technology is continuously changing, so it is important for owners to have a BIM Champion that has the expertise to analyze what benefits the specific technologies can bring to the organization.” – Massport

26 BIM to create and execute the organization’s BIM strategy (Kreider and Messner 2013). At the project level, the BIM team is to include representation from diverse disciplines and life-cycle phases. Frequently, BIM projects go bad when consultants and owners think they can execute BIM without expertise. To mitigate risk, it is vital that the owner selects consultants that have actual BIM expertise and experience, not just proficiency in 3D modeling. It is also beneficial for the owner to scrutinize BIM service providers so that it is not “sold a bill of goods.” – Iron Horse Architects Ensure adequate team members’ experience with BIM: A team member’s experience with BIM provides the team with support to accomplish the BIM objectives and provide the necessary competencies to facilitate the team’s workflow (Kreider and Messner 2013). AIRPORT EXPERIENCE—SURVEY RESULTS AND CASE EXAMPLES Adoption and Implementation An important element of evaluating current state-of-the-practice in BIM for respondent airports is to determine levels of adop- tion, implementation, and engagement. Survey questions were designed to gather information based on self-assessment that will feed a number of approaches (three of which are listed below) that, although somewhat subjective, cumulatively provide insight about the level of BIM adoption and implementation at the airports (Jung and Lee 2015): 1. Level of engagement (McGraw-Hill 2014) 2. Jung and Lee approach (2015) 3. Number of BIM uses (Penn State 2010; Kreider and Messner 2013). Each method evaluates various attributes, as described in this section. Level of Engagement Approach: This approach uses a methodology for quantifying the level of BIM engagement based on an organization’s experience, expertise, and implementation (McGraw-Hill 2014). It can be expected that each airport has a unique BIM operation. However, based on the information gathered through responses to the questions, it is possible to determine an index of current level of engagement to gain insight about relative BIM engagement for responding entities (McGraw-Hill 2014). Years using BIM informs the experience metric. The following descriptions are used for self-assessment to inform the expertise metric: • Beginner user—1 year or less of experience, BIM implementation on less than 15% of projects • Intermediate user—2 years of experience, BIM implementation on 15% to 29% of projects • Advanced user—3 years of experience, BIM implementation on 30% to 59% of projects • Expert user—4 or more years of experience, BIM implementation on 60% or more projects. The implementation metric is described by the following: • Light implementation (projects using BIM less than 15%) • Medium implementation (15%–29%) • Heavy implementation (30%–59%) • Very heavy implementation (60% or more). The index has a range of 3 points (representing low engagement) to 27 points (representing very high engagement). The weighted scoring system distributes the maximum of 9 points for BIM experience of 5 years or more, 10 points for expert user designation, and 8 points for very heavy implementation, resulting in the following engagement designations (McGraw-Hill 2012):

27 • 27 points: “Very High” • 19 to 26 points: “High” • 11 to 18 points: “Medium” • 10 or fewer points: “Low.” Table 4 shows the results for study participants. Two of the eight airport respondents and all of the AEC respondents exhibit high or very high BIM engagement. TABLE 4 RESPONDENTS’ CURRENT LEVEL OF BIM ENGAGEMENT Organization Years Using BIM Level of Expertise Level of Implementation BIM Engagement Index Description Airport 1 5 Expert Very heavy 27 Very high Airport 2 3 Advanced Heavy 24 High Airport 3 8 Intermediate Medium 18 Medium Airport 4 1 Intermediate Heavy 14 Medium Airport 5 2 Intermediate Medium 13 Medium Airport 6 1 Beginner Light 6 Low Airport 7 1 Beginner Light 6 Low Airport 8 1 Beginner Light 6 Low AEC 1 7 Expert Very heavy 27 Very high AEC 2 7 Expert Very heavy 27 Very high AEC 3 7 Expert Very heavy 27 Very high AEC 4 7 Intermediate Medium 23 High Source: McCuen and Pittenger (2015). Jung and Lee Approach: This approach incorporates evaluation of the potential and maturity of BIM to assess associated technology adoption patterns in a specific industry, such as airports (Jung and Lee 2015). This section presents survey results about adoption status for the various life-cycle phases to assess respondent state of the practice. The following question was used in this study to capture each organization’s self-assessment about these stages for the various life-cycle phases: What do you consider the adoption status of BIM to be in your organization for each of the fol- lowing life-cycle phases? Please assign (check) a status level of 1–5 for each phase according to the following adoption stages and descriptions: Stage 1—Interested in adopting BIM, but not yet adopted Stage 2—Beginning the process of adopting BIM Stage 3—Integrating BIM adoption with existing operations, discovering barriers to adoption Stage 4—Completing BIM adoption—overcoming barriers to adoption Stage 5—Completed adoption—realizing benefits of BIM adoption Based on this methodology, the five “stages” of adoption can be classified into maturity phases of BIM adoption referred to as “Early” (Stages 1 and 2), “Moderate” (Stage 3), “Mature” (Stage 4), and “Very Mature” (Stage 5). Survey results for the 12 respondents are shown in Table 5. The results show that adoption is not as mature in the operate and maintain and renew and decommission phases. Although the survey results contain a few anomalies, which are inherent in self-assessment, these results are generally consistent with the results in the previous tables in this chapter and in the previous chapter.

28 Number of BIM Uses Approach: The correlation between frequency of BIM uses and level of implementation has been explored as “another potential index for understanding the BIM adoption level” (Jung and Lee 2015). Essentially, the assump- tion is that an organization that exhibits a greater status of BIM implementation also adopts and employs a greater number and variety of BIM uses. The output from the three assessment techniques measuring proficiency, BIM adoption, and use of BIM across life-cycle phases (BIM Engagement, Maturity, and Uses, respectively), which were subsequently analyzed, are listed in Appendix A. An Airport BIM Activity Index was created to assess relative robustness of the respondents’ BIM programs based on BIM activity, noted as “Very High,” “High,” “Medium,” and “Low.” These results were introduced in Figure 3 in the introduction chapter and subsequently used in respondents’ comparisons. This methodology allows for the capture of BIM activity in both project-based and organization-based implementations, which is not fully addressed by any of the individual approaches. TABLE 5 LEVEL OF BIM ADOPTION FOR RESPONDENTS BIM Adoption Phases Early Moderate Mature Very Mature Interested Beginning Integrating Completing Realizing benefits Number of Respondents Plan 1 2 3 1 5 Design 0 4 1 2 5 Construct 1 2 1 2 6 Operate/Maintain 3 2 2 4 1 Renew/Decommission 2 3 2 1 0 Source: McCuen and Pittenger (2015). The survey results provided the approximate percentage of total facility area currently modeled in BIM for responding airports. Most of the airports have about 25% of facilities modeled, whereas one airport reports 75%. This is consistent with survey results related to the level of BIM adoption by life-cycle phase. More than half of the respondents reported being in the completing or realizing benefits stage of BIM adoption in the planning, design, and construction phases. Modeled facility area and information are increasingly expected as projects are planned, designed, and constructed using BIM. The operate/ maintain phase lags in the overall level of adoption reported, with only one airport reporting that it is realizing benefits. To realize benefits (e.g., to transition from adoption to implementation) at the operate/maintain phase, a facility model is needed. As other airports transition, the percentage of facilities modeled will increase. Airports also provided the BIM method used to model existing facilities. Half of the airports reported having existing facilities for which the design originated in BIM, which indicates either that BIM deliverables were part of the project require- ments or possibly that the design team delivered the model as a standard practice. Laser scanning is a modeling method that generates a point cloud of the existing facility from which a record model can be generated as an authoritative source of infor- mation about the facility elements and systems. Modeling from an existing digital drawings import or from existing printed construction documents can provide the same information for operations and maintenance as laser scanning, but with less initial cost. However, modeling from drawings is time consuming and may result in a higher net modeling cost in the end. Survey results indicate a preference for more efficient approaches to modeling existing facilities. Figure 10 shows that half of the airports and most of the AECs have a written implementation plan in place to guide their organizations’ implementation efforts. For the airports, results correspond with their BIM activity levels: those with a written plan have the highest levels of activity. Two of the airports with a written implementation plan are just beginning to imple- ment it. The remaining respondents reported that they have executed at least 75% and up to 100% of their plans. More than half of the respondents (five airports, two AECs) also have an internal BIM guide (custom or standardized) to assist new BIM users. ANC is finalizing its organization-centric BIM standards. However, finding guidance has been challenging, as avail- able standards are commonly project-centric, developed by consultants with the aim of assisting owners in effectively implementing BIM uses important for design and construction such as Design Review, Clash Detection, 3D Coordination, and Digital Fabrication.

29 Adoption Barriers Balfour Beatty Construction (BBC) has observed that BIM often generates interest among owners. Consultants, contractors, and vendors are quick to sell BIM, but one of the biggest barriers to BIM adoption is that owners do not know whom to trust. There- fore, the company spends time educating owners about BIM and demonstrating the technology to them. For example, on a recent nonairport project, an owner requested that the company demonstrate the uses of BIM on a small pilot project on its campus so that it could educate itself on the value of BIM. It has been observed that when owners understand BIM, they want to use it. Massport’s BIM Implementation Plan and Internal BIM Guide At the time of this writing, Massport’s BIM Guide was available at http://www.massport.com/business-with-massport/capital- improvements/resource-center/. Massport’s BIM Implementation Plan (Guide) includes the following: • Massport’s BIM vision and value proposition • Collaboration for Lean BIM projects • BIM execution planning and BIM uses • Appendix that supports model content and development • Data standards, modeling, and construction documentation requirements • Development and submission of model and contract documents. Massport is finalizing its internal BIM Guide that will provide assistance to personnel in managing BIM-enabled projects. Different roles require different levels of understanding and training related to BIM and BIM tools. For example, unlike the project manager, the director does not need to know how to run clash detection, but needs to understand the value of BIM in delivering a project. For the BIM/GIS teams, the Guide answers the questions (1) what do we do with the model after the consultant delivers it, and (2) how do we use the model? FIGURE 10 Survey results for BIM implementation plan. BBC also noted that, from a contractor’s perspective, the biggest challenge of working with airports on BIM-supported projects is that they are generally not structured in a way that is conducive to BIM. Commonly, there is limited cooperation between departments or there is resistance to expanding the IT infrastructure needed to support BIM. Survey results, consistent with literature, cited BIM challenges related to system complexity, implementation duration, silos of information, and general lack of guidance for airports.

30 It is critical to have a senior-level BIM advocate. Hiring experts (internal staff or consultants) to facilitate implementation is also vital for realizing the benefits of BIM. – Denver International Airport Optimization Seventy-five percent of the organizations (five airports, four AECs), most of which are classified as having advanced or inter- mediate levels of BIM implementation maturity (as noted in the previous chapter), report having a BIM champion in upper management. The one exception is an airport that is in the beginning phase of implementation. The 25% that do not have a champion are the remaining airports that currently have beginning to basic levels of implementation maturity. However, all respondents noted the importance of having a BIM champion in an effort to optimize BIM implementation. The following list shows, in descending order, the importance attributed to each optimization (organizational readiness) issue: • BIM champion • Organizational goals for BIM implementation • Team members’ willingness to adopt BIM • BIM implementation plan • Computer software proficiency • Team organization and management • Team members’ experience with BIM • Database management capabilities • Change management plan • Facilities management expertise. The goal of the SFO BIM Implementation Program is to eventually have the verified, virtual representation of the airport’s infrastructures (i.e., converted models and related data), which will be used to support all airport operations, especially in facilities maintenance, throughout the life cycle of the infrastructures. – San Francisco Airport Commission All of the issues were considered moderately to very important by at least 75% of respondents. Besides having a BIM cham- pion, having an implementation plan that outlines organizational goals and the team members’ willingness to adopt BIM were considered most important. Having database capabilities, a change management plan, and facilities management expertise were considered the least important, although at least half of the respondents thought they were important or very important. Anchorage International Airport reports that the value of its BIM champions at the various organizational levels is to pro- vide an understanding of the value that BIM can bring to specific internal stakeholders (e.g., reducing facility management’s workload associated with searching plan sheets to locate asset information). San Francisco Airport Commission Champions (the airport director, COO, and deputy director of design and construction) initiated its organization-centric BIM implementation.

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TRB's Airport Cooperative Research Program (ACRP) Synthesis 70: Building Information Modeling for Airports summarizes current state of the art and practice for Building Information Modeling (BIM). BIM is a digital representation of a facility’s physical and functional characteristics. BIM offers tools that allow airport decision makers to understand all components of a facility—their location, and their attributes, both graphically and systematically—to minimize the total cost of owning and operating an airport facility.

The report provides a snapshot of experiences related to the emergence of BIM in North American airports. In addition to the report, a PowerPoint presentation details use-cases of BIM at airports.

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