Supply chain integration with BIM: a graph-based model

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to propose a methodology to integrate the construction Supply Chain (SC) through the application of Building Information Modeling (BIM) and Supply Chain Management (SCM). It features a renovation case as a proof-of-concept. After analyzing the relevant gaps in the literature, the research followed a modeling approach. The proposed model merged product-, process- and organizational models in a graph-based model to represent and analyze a BIM-based SCM project. Presently, the information flows of the construction SC are vague. BIM is an aspiring integrator of information flows for construction. The proposed model for SC integration with BIM, offers an approach to identify the project complexities in relation to organizational structures, roles and interactions and integrate the industry. Currently BIM-enabled SCM is not very widely applied in the industry. However, the authors report the increasing interest of most construction stakeholders to engage in the application of the two, after acknowledging the benefits from the individual approaches. Since this combination is quite rare, the research uses a retrospective real-world case study of a SC project with an imaginary application of BIM. Thus far, there is no formal model to represent the interactions of the SC actors along with BIM. The unique combination of a product and a process model, i.e. BIM, with an organizational model aims at integrating the information flows of the SC. The proposed model aims at analyzing and supporting the BIM-enabled SCM in Architecture Engineering and Construction.

Publication
In Structural Survey Journal, now named International Journal of Building Pathology and adaptation (IJBPA)
Dr Eleni Papadonikolaki
Dr Eleni Papadonikolaki
Associate Professor in Management of Engineering Projects

Researcher and consultant at the intersection of management and digital economy