Design into construction
Design Coordination and Collaboration in the Construction Phase
June 2011 - October 2011
The use of design-generated data and digital tools and processes in the construction phase of a project has a significant impact on project delivery. The attention of industry and academia on integrated project delivery notwithstanding, efforts have been geared mainly towards use of digital data in the design stages of the project. DIRC research has previously investigated the use of technology and data in the project/asset life cycle, from the design phase to operations and maintenance. Our findings indicate research questions that can be fruitfully investigated by focusing on the use of design-generated digital data in the construction phase. This has the potential benefit of further linking the improvements to work processes in the design stages with the construction phase, towards a step change in overall project delivery.
Research Objectives
The main aim is to learn lessons on "Coordination and collaboration issues in the use of design-generated data and the supporting digital infrastructure during the construction stages of the project". Some of the research questions to be asked include:
- How is design-generated data used in the construction phase?
- How are tools and processes interconnected with existing construction practices in the use of data?
- How can resource and temporal challenges related to digital ways of working be resolved?
Research Method
The approach for this study is that of engaged scholarship with industrial collaborators. Ethnographic methods will be employed, on a number of case studies of major construction project. An on-going major rail construction project, which had been studied at the design phase, will be the main case study. Primary data collection methods are interviews with key project participants from various disciplines and observations of coordination activities at the project site and firms' offices. The capture of visual images and video recordings will augment data collection.
Output
The research findings have been discussed with industrial participants through a feedback workshop. A paper is currently submitted for journal publication.
More Information
Research team: Dr. Nurain Hassan Ibrahim and Prof Jennifer Whyte.