Integrating construction process documentation into building information modeling

The research described in this paper extends the use of building information modeling (BIM) throughout the construction phase of the project life cycle. The owner is a military base that uses three-dimensional (3D) modeling for underground services and the footprints of the buildings. They were interested in determining the feasibility of capturing the construction process and related documents into a similar format. The research was conducted in parallel with traditional methods. The objectives of this project were to create a 3D as-built model, a four-dimensional as-built model, and attach the construction process information to the model for the owner to use after construction. A literature review indicates that BIM application stops at the preconstruction phase with a limited amount of research regarding data collection of the construction process. Significant contributions include practical 3D data collection methods and extending the BIM software products to accommodate construction process documentation. Results indicate that BIM software is not specifically prepared to accomplish these objectives and some modification to procedures as well as software were necessary for the BIM to capture the construction process documentation.