Building Information Modeling for Quality Management

Ying-Mei Cheng

Department of Civil Engineering and Hazard Mitigation Design, China University of Technology,

56 Hsing-Lung Road, Section 3, Taipei, 116, Taiwan, R.O.C.

Keywords: Quality Management (QM), Quality Control (QA), Building Information Modeling (BIM), Revit Application

Programming Interface (API), Virtual Reality (VR).

Abstract: Building Information Modeling (BIM) has grown tremendously and used in each stage of construction project

life cycle. This research focus on integrating BIM with quality management for innovative development and

improve performance efficiency of the quality management system in the construction stage. First, this study

proposes an application framework for BIM in the AEC (Architecture/Engineering/Construction) filed.

Basically, this framework emphasizes the application of different BIM models with different special

requirements during different phases of the project life cycle. Second, based on this framework, a QC (Quality

Control) model system prototype is established. The QC model is utilized in the construction stage with

Autodesk Revit API (Application Programming Interface) to code the add-ins, which can record onsite quality

defects immediately and display the 3D elements of these defects. Moreover, users can also print the QC

reports with this system or use A360 to produce the panorama or stereo panorama to check the positions of

the onsite quality defects using mobile devices. The system efficiently documents construction quality defects

while improving communications regarding quality information.

1 INTRODUCTION

Generally speaking, the nature of construction

involves lengthy construction period and multiple

interfaces. Therefore, the graphic information that

needs to be documented, revised, shared and

transmitted are vast and complex. Inadequate or

insufficient data transmission often leads to project

failure. Changes occurred or derived from the site

during construction, in particular, may lack efficiency

due to limitations of time and storage if information

is shared through paper copies only. On the other

hand, science and technology is advancing with each

passing day. To most people, Building Information

Modeling (BIM) was only a name representing a

state-of-the-art concept few years ago. Now, it is

popular and often applied in the

Architecture/Engineer/Construction (AEC) field. The

research of Singh (2017) indicates that in the US,

72% of the construction firms are believed to be using

BIM technologies for significant savings on project

costs. The NBS sixth National BIM Report 2016 from

the UK states that BIM adoption in the UK had

reached 54%, and over 80% of those surveyed by the

NBS are expected to have adopted BIM in 2017.

According to a McGraw Hill Construction Report on

BIM, 90% of project owners in Germany either often

or always demand the use of BIM. Meanwhile, 78%

of the contractors are using BIM in South Korea.

France decided in 2014 that it would develop 500,000

houses using BIM by 2017. The development of BIM

signals the presence of new possibilities for the

construction industry. BIM has countless advantages.

It detects design conflicts quickly, creates consistent

construction messages and it is compatible with 4D.

The addition of cloud and big data, and integration of

the virtual and real world are bringing tremendous

impact to the operation of the traditional construction

industry.

This study focuses on the application of BIM on

quality management. Achkar (2016) mentioned that

the core concepts of quality management include

quality control, quality assurance and communication

protocol. The communication protocols encompass 1)

Organizational structure and responsibilities of

project stakeholders; 2) Communication channels; 3)

Frequency of information exchange. Lee et al. (2014)

indicates that the Quality Assurance (QA) and

Quality Control (QC) tasks to be conducted onsite

include the review, testing, inspection, quality control

Cheng, Y.

Building Information Modeling for Quality Management.

DOI: 10.5220/0006796703510358

In Proceedings of the 20th International Conference on Enterprise Information Systems (ICEIS 2018), pages 351-358

ISBN: 978-989-758-298-1

351

documentation and record keeping in the file

management system. It is evident that construction

companies need to deal with the onsite tasks

involving certain degree of complexity in order to

reach higher quality. Hence, project efficiency can be

enhanced on site with sufficient tools and support.

Therefore, it is crucial to promote the utilization of

BIM in the construction stage, combine it with quality

management to develop innovative approaches and

improve performance efficiency of the quality

management system.

Public works in Taiwan adopts the Three-level

Quality Management System (TQMS) as a

framework for quality management. TQMS

encompasses three levels, the first is quality control

(QC), the second is quality assurance (QA), and the

third, quality audit. A more efficient application of

TQMS is also an important issue that is worth

exploring. To achieve such efficiency and improve

performance, this research proposes an application

framework for applying BIM in the AEC field,

especially in quality management. Meanwhile, a

quality control system prototype (QC model) for

Revit system is developed with a focus on the first

level of TQMS - QC for contractors.

2 LITERATURE REVIEW

The development of BIM is maturing in recent years.

Love et al. (2014) mentioned that BIM can improve

the quality of design information and interoperability;

reduce construction costs and tendency of changed

orders; assimilate project systems, data and teams;

and enhance whole life-cycle asset management. Lee

et al. (2014) claimed the collaboration, coordination

and communication in horizontal construction

projects may benefit from the application of model-

driven approaches to QA/QC. Quantity evaluation is

the subject of multiple studies, including Cheng,

2013; Monteiro and Martin, 2013; Wei et al., 2017.

Wang et al. (2014) developed a systematic approach

to conduct fitness review for BIM model using

predefined standards, and built a system prototype to

demonstrate the functions of flight path control. Chen

and Luo (2014) established a product, organization

and process (POP) data definition structure to explore

the advantages of using 4D BIM on quality

applications in accordance with construction codes.

Lin et al. (2016) provided a BIM-based Defect

Management (BIMDM) system by onsite quality

managers during the construction phase.

Additionally, some researchers discussed the

applications of cloud technology to address the large

exchange of information and data. Jiao et al. (2013)

presented an integrated cloud AR framework that

consists of a cloud BIM engine, a cloud BSNS

application, and an online AR system. Kivimäki and

Heikkilä (2014) proposed a new approach in which

3D design surfaces are established and kept on a

central collaboration cloud system. Ding and Xu

(2014) proposed a BIM cloud storage system, which

greatly improves collaborative work while effectively

reducing costs at the same time. Afsari et al. (2016)

provided a comparison of current cloud-based BIM

interoperability architectures. Juan and Zheng (2014)

presented a cloud service model and a cloud-based

Open BIM building information interaction

framework, and further illustrates the architecture of

cloud deployment pattern and the information

interaction process

3 APPLICATION FRAMEWORK

OF BIM IN AEC

Cloud is critical in the AEC field because of effective

and efficient exchange of information throughout the

project life cycle. Basically, cloud service is divided

into public, private, and hybrid cloud based on

security levels. There are also three additional types

of cloud services: 1) Software as a Service (SaaS):

The cloud service providers supply a cloud platform

from which users may rent or use the software

service. A typical example would be Autodesk 360.

2) Platform as a Service (PaaS): Services are

delivered by a cloud provider in the form of hardware

and software tools. The provider also hosts the

hardware and software on its own infrastructure.

Salesforce.com's Force.com is an example of

common PaaS vendors, while Amazon Web Services

(AWS) Elastic Beanstalk, Appear IQ, Google App

Engine and Heroku are examples of PaaS platforms

for software development and management. 3)

Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS): The hardware,

software, servers, storage and other infrastructure

components are all hosted by a third-party provider

on behalf of its users. In addition, the provider

maintains the users' applications and handles tasks

such as system maintenance, backup and resiliency

planning (TechTarget 2017). The criteria for

determining the cloud service include corporate

resources and needs for security and reliability.

In order to thoroughly implement the concept of

BIM, the revision, exchange, and sharing of related

data should be updated immediately through the

cloud

services. The focus of this study is the

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352

Figure 1: Application Concept of BIM in AEC.

application of BIM on quality management.

However, the model and data transfer process during

a project life cycle using BIM is discussed first to give

readers an overview about the applications in quality

management.

Figure 1 illustrates the application framework of

BIM in AEC. Starting from the top left, BIM

engineers finish the initial BIM model (major model)

and upload it to the cloud. During the project life

cycle, the AEC participants in different phases can

download the major model for modification or

revision according to their special requirements. For

example, during the design phase, designers places

more importance on environmental analysis or

visualization, while onsite engineers focus more on

the 4D or quality management function during the

construction phase. Different considerations would

prompt the AEC participants to develop different

models (application models) based on the major

model. In order to ensure that the initial information

obtained by all AEC participants in different stage is

correct, the major model cannot be revised arbitrarily.

Hence, when the AEC participants want to share the

information on their application models, they have to

upload the model to other storage space (as shown on

the top right of Figure 1). Users and authorization to

revise within this domain would differ from that for

the major model. Of course, the AEC participants can

provide feedback on related information to the major

model in a timely manner. Major “models” referred

in Figure 1 take into account the different versions of

major models which encompass new information as

time progresses. The different versions provide

efficient tracking and review late on.

4 BIM FOR TQMS

TQMS clearly delineates the responsibilities of the

owner and contractor. All project participants must

follow TQMS when performing operations public

works related tasks unless otherwise specified. It

includes three levels:

 Quality control (first level): Contractors are

responsible for quality control.

 Quality assurance (second level): Project

owners conduct construction quality assurance.

 Quality audit (third level): Public Construction

Commission (PCC) or Government authorities

are in charge of quality audits.

Quality control is the most essential and urgent

element in TQMS. Contractors may prevent wasted

time and resources on redoing or re-inspecting the

work with proper quality management at this level.

Figure 2 shows the TQMS structure and the

performance process with BIM. The engineers in

construction companies can upload the Quality

Control Model (QC Model) to the clouds of project

owners or government authorities, who can then

check the quality and ask the contractor to submit

related reports. The following chapters provide in

depth discussions on construction quality defects, the

development of application model (QC model) during

the construction stage, and the protocol for QC

modeling with a case study.

Building Information Modeling for Quality Management

353

Figure 2: Application Concept of BIM in TQMS.

4.1 Construction Quality Defects

Construction Quality defects are often derived from

poor workmanship or inadequate site supervision. Be

it existing and latent, construction costs would

increase as a result due to project delay, loss of

productivity and material costs. The worst case

scenario could even threaten building safety, leading

to bodily harm and property damage. Common

construction quality defects include: 1) Poor quality

control system: The authority or supervisory agency

does not have an inspection system in place or does

not fully implement such system. There is insufficient

documentation for the supervision, audit or inspection

process and results as well as the tracking records for

improvement. The construction company does not

effectively implement quality control on a voluntary

basis or not complete the self-checklist. 2) Poor

construction quality: Such defects include inadequate

concrete mixing and rebar spacing. The focus of this

study is to apply the BIM models toward the

construction quality defects. According to the quality

inspection scoring reports from the Public

Construction Surveillance Unit of PCC, subjects

related to quality management include concrete,

rebar, steel structure, formwork, environmental and

ecological conservation, earthwork, regular

construction, onsite management, and lastly,

inspection and review system. This study focuses on

building QC models for common structural defects

found in reinforced concrete, rebar and formwork, for

instance. The defects are listed in Tables 1. The “no#”

column indicates numbers corresponding to the

original point system form.

4.2 QC Model

The QC model provides a new platform for recording

the building quality defects on site. Database

development

of the model incorporates the three-

Table 1: Construction Defects.

No#

Construction Defects

5.01.01

Concrete

Cold joints/ Honeycombs/ Pinholes/

holes/ Blowholes

5.01.02 Drying shrinkage

5.01.03

Finished concrete surface are non-

com

liant

(

vertical/ horizontal variance

)

5.01.04 Debris are left on the concrete surface

5.01.05

Expansion joint/ Movement joint is

inadequately placed, constructed, not installe

5.01.06 Bursting during concrete pouring

5.01.07 Hi

h-Flow Concrete se

ation and bleedin

5.01.08

Sedimentation of aggregates in Self-

Compacting Concrete

5.01.99 Other construction defects

5.02.01

Rebar

Main rebar/ Stirrups binding is non-compliant

5.02.02

Incorrect rebar size/ quantity/ spacing/ No

detail drawin

5.02.03

Inadequate lap length/ Column rebar

con

estion due to s

licin

5.02.04

The hook has inadequate angle or length for

strai

ht extension

5.02.05

Not using spacer and cushion blocks, and the

rotective covers are non-compliant

5.02.06

Not installing starter bars/ Not leaving

adequate length/ Spacing is too large

5.02.07 The spacing is too tight (less than 25mm)

5.02.08

No strengthened rebar at openings or corner/

Proportion is non-compliant

5.02.09

The beam-column connector anchor is not

curved beyond the center of the beam

5.02.10

The anchorage of beam's rebar does not exceed

15 cm

5.02.11

Serious corrosion/ Oil stains or concrete

residue on the surface

5.02.12 The weldin

of steel ca

e is non-com

liant

5.02.13 The coupler is poorly installed or highly rustic

5.02.99 Other rebar defects

5.03.01

Formwork

Overused/ Does not meet s

ecifications

5.03.02

Not organized/ Not finished with concrete form

oil/ A

lied with

oor

ualit

black oil

5.03.03 Leakage of concrete grout

5.03.04 Brace/Horizontal or Diagonal Lacing defects

5.03.05 Tilted formwor

5.03.06

Opening/Embedded conduits are not properly

installe

5.03.07 Not cleaned/ No access o

enin

is installe

5.03.99 Other formwork defects

schema architecture while Microsoft Access and

Visual Studio C# are used to code the API of

Autodesk Revit and to build the quality system

prototype. The three-schema architecture was

developed by the ANSI/X3/SPARC Standards

Planning and Requirements Committee in 1978. It

incorporates

three levels, as shown in Figure 3

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354

Figure 3: Three-schema architecture.

Figure 4: Relationship between information requirements and system requirements.

Figure 5: Data flow diagram.

Building Information Modeling for Quality Management

355

(Hansen, 1992), to build the information system. The

content is as follows:

 External Level: Figure 4 shows the relationship

between information requirements and system

requirements. The detail of information

requirement is shown in Tables 1.

 Conceptual Level: This stage focuses on

attaching quality parameters to the BIM

elements. Element ID in the BIM model is the

critical key. Table 2 shows the quality

parameters added in Revit for the QC model

with additional QC parameters added. Figure 5

shows the data flow diagram.

 Internal Level: Microsoft Visual Studio C# is

used to write the API of Autodesk Revit and

this study will focus on walls to build the

system prototype.

Table 2: Quality Parameter type.

Paramete

Type

Date Strin

Floo

Inte

–

wayGri

String

–

wayGri

String

Quality Defects String

Picture #no Inte

4.3 Application

A case study is adopted to build the revit model and

introduce the operational environment as well as the

process of QC model. The project, CEO, is adopted

to test the QC model system prototype. CEO, a

project with 5,438 square meters of construction area

and 31,623 square meters of total floor area, is located

in Linkou, New Taipei City, Taiwan. It is a RC

structure with 4 stories underground and 12 stories

above. The construction budget is approximately

NTD $1,200,000,000 and the main structure was

completed in 2014. Figure 6 shows the Revit 3D

model for the case (major model).

When the user starts Autodesk Revit, the CEO

model appears on the center of the screen, which

shows that Quality Information on the ribbon top.

The functional structure of QC model is shown in

Figure 7. Click on Quality Information, and push

buttons for Basic Attributes, Browse, Export

appear, so does the Split push button with Concrete

construction defects, Rebar construction defects

and Formwork construction defects. When using

the system for the first time, users must start with the

Add New push button in Basic Attributes to add

attributes to the quality of an element. The attributes

will be added automatically in Properties Palette (as

Figure 6: CEO Revit 3D model.

shown in Figure 7 with green block). The user can use

the Split push button based on actual conditions to

correspond to the actual quality defects (as shown in

Figure 7 orange block). After selecting the defect, the

system will highlight the interior and exterior of the

wall in red and record the defect in the attribute of

Quality Defect. Click on the particular element,

followed by clicking the Quality Attribute push

button under Browse, and the dialogue box will

appear the quality defects of the certain element (as

shown in Figure 7 blue area block). BIM engineers

may upload this QC model to the cloud anytime

during construction and provide real-time

information to those who need it. The quality attribute

information added is tied to the Revit database, and

therefore, users can export the added quality

information with the Revit database for analysis.

Finally, users can print QC reports as shown in the

yellow block in Figure 7. The reader can refer to the

research by Cheng (2017) to gain deeper

understanding of the operation details of QC model

system prototype.

Additionally, the QC model can produce virtual

reality images through related technique to improve

communication efficiency among the engineers.

Figure 8 illustrates the process. The engineers adjust

the position to be displayed in the Revit software, and

then upload to Autodesk® A360 rendering to produce

the panorama or stereo panorama. When the image is

completed, the QR code for the linked video is

displayed with the result, which users can scan to

browse the panorama on a mobile device and to check

the positions of the quality defects.

5 CONCLUSIONS

This study proposes a framework for application for

BIM

in the AEC field. During the study, BIM is

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356

Figure 7: QC Model functional structure.

Figure 8: QC Model vs. A360.

incorporated to demonstrate its ability to record and

examine construction defects for contractors. A

quality system prototype is established using

Autodesk Revit API to code the add-in, which

displays 3D elements with onsite quality defects. In

addition, engineers may upload the quality defect

models they wish to share to the cloud for those who

need the information. At the current stage, this study

only focuses on the discussion of building the quality

management system prototype for walls. Subsequent

studies may explore other elements, such as

earthwork and environmental defects, or applications

in infrastructure. With endless potential, the effective

integration of BIM with construction management

Building Information Modeling for Quality Management

357

such as cost, safety and so on may lead the future

efforts. With the development of VR (Virtual

Reality), AR (Augmented Reality), SR

(Substitutional Reality), and MR (Mixed Reality),

future studies may also focus on techniques that

deliver quality defect information realistically in the

virtual world.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

This study was financially supported by Ministry of

Science and Technology, R.O.C. (MOST 105-2221-

E-163-001). The author would like to thank Tony

Hsu, President of ArcArtConstruction and Huan-

Chang Tseng, senior engineer with

ArcArtConstruction. Without their valuable

contributions, this research would not have been

possible.

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