In a recent report, McGraw Hill Construction discusses the top causes of uncertainty in construction projects and their effects on the schedule and cost of the projects. Once the top causes were identified, the report dives into ways an entire team from the owner, to the architects and the contractors can improve performance.

A theme throughout the list of mitigation tactics was increased collaboration among the different companies involved in the project including the need for more integration between design and build parties during both design and construction all the way and the use of BIM by all members of the project team instead of just by a single firm.

In addition, the majority of the benefits of using BIM relate to the increased collaboration, reducing uncertainty and ultimately improving the overall project. Below are some of the findings from the study (page 49):

Four out of the top six BIM benefits reported by contractors are related to reducing uncertainty: 

• Reduced errors and omissions in construction documents; 
• Improved collaboration with owners and design firms; 
• Reduced rework; and 
• Better cost control/predictability

The top three preconstruction BIM activities help reduce uncertainty including: 

• Multi-trade coordination;
• Visualization of design intent; and 
• Modeling for constructability evaluation.

The top three construction phase BIM activities also help address uncertainty including:

• Model-driven layout in the field;
• Model-driven prefabrication; and 
• Status/progress monitoring.

In addition, the study cites that from 2009-2012, BIM led to 40 percent fewer claims and litigation and owners are seeing the difference. 93% of project owners who use BIM on their projects reported high satisfaction with the project quality versus non-BIM owners.

To learn more and download the report, click here.

As an ABC member, you can receive exclusive discounts on purchases of recommended Autodesk Design Suite licenses, such as Revit®, AutoCAD®, AutoCAD® MEP, AutoCAD® Civil 3D®, and Autodesk Subscriptions (or Autodesk Subscription Renewals), through ABC’s Project Virtual program. To find out how you can incorporate BIM into your business, visit abcprojectvirtual.com.