Developing Building Information Modeling (BIM) Guidelines for Campus Planning and Facilities Management at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI)

Padhye, Purvashri V

Etd

Developing Building Information Modeling (BIM) Guidelines for Campus Planning and Facilities Management at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI)

Public

The development of Building Information Modelling (BIM) guidelines for campuses and universities has evolved on a case-by-case basis and there is no standard format in the development of these guides. There are however, common elements in these guidelines. This study reviews the applications of Building Information Modeling (BIM) from the perspective of owners of higher education campus facilities and proposes a structured approach to develop documented guidelines to assist the owner’s staff in the use of BIM, primarily with existing facilities. More specifically, this study proposes a set of guidelines to assist the Facilities Management department at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) in using BIM for their existing campus facilities. Since 2005, WPI has been using some components of BIM in the design and construction of new facilities and has extended BIM uses to support facilities and space management in some of the existing buildings. Some positive experiences and benefits have been derived from these applications, but to date no formal and systematic approach has been established in documenting and organizing processes for the different BIM uses on campus. The objective of this research project is to conduct an extensive review of documented approaches and guidelines for BIM uses developed by other universities and incorporate the different experiences with the use of BIM at WPI to create a set of formal guidelines exclusively for WPI for the efficient implementation of BIM in future design, construction, renovation, facility, and space management of a facility. The research collected information from the WPI Facilities Management department through surveys and interviews, to better understand the current issues associated with facility management and space planning. A case study analysis that involved the use of 3D Building Information Models of several buildings on the WPI campus was performed to validate the possible use of the BIM in the efficient delivery of information for new and renovation projects as well as for its ability to benefit in the space planning process. Existing documented guidelines developed by five other universities that have pioneered the development of their guides were also reviewed to determine common elements in their BIM-based practices and to incorporate these when applicable into the BIM guide for WPI in such a way that will effectively contribute to the BIM adoption and standardization of procedures reflecting the unique characteristics of this institution. This study identifies the benefits of utilizing BIM and standardization through the BIM guide primarily for existing construction and facilities management. The attempt to identify commonalities and standard pieces to develop a BIM guide for WPI will help improve overall operational efficiency and productivity of the organization. This provides a unique opportunity to be engaged in the process of standardization, using existing content as a reference to achieve harmonization of concepts, terms, definitions and the overall structure or framework that the documented guide is delivered within. The outcome is a WPI-BIM guide which will help assist facility owners in developing an overall BIM strategy that supports the organization’s core goals, develops the necessary contract conditions, and generates implementation plans to successfully execute BIM within the organization.

Creator