Framtidens VVS-konsult : En utvecklad användning av BIM inom VVS-branschen genom en adaptering av Knowledge Management

Sammanfattning: As a result of the need for the construction industry to become more and more efficient, this sets new requirements for an increased digitalization of the construction industry as a whole. As consultants are considered a crucial role in the early stages of construction projects, this requires a deeper understanding of the role of consultants in the early stages of construction projects and their further development. Previous studies indicate that increased knowledge and skills can be seen as barriers to further development, mainly in the industry but also in most organizations. This study aims to investigate the barriers that are considered to exist in the Swedish construction industry for increased use of building information modeling (BIM), by highlighting the barriers' links to the HVAC consultant's work and the implementation of knowledge management (KM). This has resulted in the questions 1) What are the barriers to a developed use of BIM in the HVAC industry? and 2) How can KM enable a developed use of BIM in the HVAC industry? The study's theoretical and empirical data collection has consisted of a systematic literature study and semi-structured interviews with plumbing consultants, a supplier, an industry organization and a plumbing expert. The barriers that inhibit a developed use of BIM and adaptation of KM are knowledge and skills, political commitment, unified view of BIM, client's attitude towards BIM, absorptive capacity (ACAP) and culture. The HVAC contractor needs to adapt KM and improve its ACAP in order to increase the level of knowledge within the organization and maintain competitiveness in the market. Adaptation of KM at the HVAC contractor also contributes to an increased level of knowledge in the construction industry as ACAP enables internal and external knowledge sharing. To enable an adaptation of KM, there is a need for a culture that promotes collaboration, trust, learning and the development of BIM in the industry. This requires a cultural change and an active leadership to create common norms, an acceptance of new solutions, a call for development, values that encourage knowledge sharing, a strategy for training, education and mentoring, and a call for daring to try new solutions.