En granskning av den svenska prefabricerade småhussektorns användande av BIM-teknik

Sammanfattning: Introduction (and purpose) – Since the 1970s, digital development and modeling has improved from simple digital illustrations of a building to advanced software, such as Building Information Modelling (BIM), that allows contractors to easily collaborate on a shared model. These advanced modelling systems create the opportunity to optimize planning as well as produce a higher quality product by modelling how all the various parts of a build work together and decreasing the number of potential errors that occur on-site. To better understand how BIM can improve production, this study aims to investigate the current use of BIM and potential areas of opportunity within the prefabricated housing construction sector. Method – Data was collected through semi-structured interviews with five employees of five separate companies active in the Swedish production industry of single-family houses. Additional data was collected through a survey that was shared with a total of 17 companies, three of which partook in the survey and shared it with the companies’ employees. Results – The interviews and surveys revealed limited use of BIM technology in current developmental practice, although the company representatives still expressed interest in future technological advancement. The company representatives endorsed the ability to automate work processes in both the planning phase as well as the production phase as the greatest reason for expanding future usage. The survey revealed interest in using BIM technology to provide the opportunity to reduce the number of mistakes that occur between different contractors, where collisions may occur between unique models that have not been integrated by a single system. Analysis – According to the interview respondents, the use of BIM technology could create opportunities for businesses to remain relevant by more easily integrating future technological developments. In addition, the use of BIM technology can attract new, competent personnel. The possibility of using cloud-based BIM allows a greater degree of customer involvement in projects. However, the economic value of BIM implementation is not clear as changing established work processes may require new procedures in the company. Therefore, changing to a BIM-based work system may not be economically advantageous to companies that already have a working business model. Discussion – While indicating an interest in future development using BIM, this study revealed currently limited use of BIM technology in prefabricated housing companies, where companies currently dedicate various amounts of recourses for its technological development. A larger, randomized sample would allow for a more generalizable idea of BIM use, as this study’s results could be biased by including opinions only of those who chose to respond from a limited number of companies. The volunteer method of data collection may have skewed results, as people who choose to respond often have strong opinions about the topic. However, using a mixture of interviews and surveys did allow collection of both qualitative and quantitative data and provided an initial look into current opinions about BIM as well as areas where participants believed it could help in production, even if it is not currently in use.