Big Data in Building Information Modeling Research: Survey and Exploratory Text Mining

Building Information Modeling (BIM) has rapidly grown from merely being a three-dimensional (3D) model of a facility to serving as “a shared knowledge resource for information about a facility, forming a reliable basis for decisions during its life cycle from inception onward” [1]. BIM with three primary spatial dimensions (width, height, and depth) becomes 4D BIM when time (construction scheduling information) is added, and 5D BIM when cost information is added to it. Although the sixth dimension of the 6D BIM is often attributed to asset information useful for Facility Management (FM) processes, there is no agreement in the research literature on what each dimension represents beyond the fifth dimension [2]. BIM ultimately seeks to digitize the different stages of a building lifecycle such as planning, design, construction, and operation such that consistent digital information of a building project can be used by stakeholders throughout the building life-cycle [3]. The United States National Building Information Model Standard (NBIMS) initially characterized BIMs as digital representations of physical and functional aspects of a facility. But, in the most recent version released in July 2015, the NBIMS’ definition of BIM includes three separate but linked functions, namely business process, digital representation, and organization and control [4]. A number of national-level initiatives are underway in various countries to formally encourage the adoption of BIM technologies in the Architecture, Engineering, and Construction (AEC) and FM industries. Building SMART, with 18 chapters across the globe, including USA, UK, Australasia, etc., was established in 1995 with the aim of developing and driving the active use of open internationally-recognized standards to support the wider adoption of BIM across the building and infrastructure sectors [5]. The UK BIM Task Group, with experts from industry, government, public sector, institutes, and academia, is committed to facilitate the implementation of ‘collaborative 3D BIM’, a UK Government Construction Strategy initiative [6]. Similarly, the EUBIM Task Group was started with a vision to foster the common use of BIM in public works and produce a handbook containing the common BIM principles, guidance and practices for public contracting entities and policy makers [7].