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The construction industry, often recognized to be the least digitalized sector, is set to embrace digitalization at its core to limit the impact caused by the novel Coronavirus pandemic. With the AEC industry at a pivotal stage of digital transformation, countries are leveraging technology to maintain a global competitive advantage in infrastructure development, contributing to robust national growth and development. It is in these unprecedented times; that the AEC stakeholders need to be ‘GEOBIM ready’ to unfold and accelerate digitalization in the industry – to bring in what is being called the new normal in the construction sector.
In Geospatial Media’s recently released, GEOBIM Market in AEC Industry report is the GEOBIM Readiness Index-2020 (GBRI-2020). The index is a strategic tool devised based on the GEOBIM Maturity Model to quantitatively and qualitatively measure and assess the level of GEOBIM preparedness of 25 countries – while establishing the role of technology providers in offering GEOBIM solutions, and the policy framework mandated by the respective governments for improving digitalization in the AEC industry. Policymakers and decision-makers, technology providers, and the user communities (architects, engineering, contractors, and consultants) of respective countries can use the index to understand how GEOBIM-ready their country is and how they fare in comparison to their counterparts. GBRI-2020, thus, establishes, the United States of America (USA), the United Kingdom, Germany, Sweden, and China as the leading GEOBIM-ready countries.
The USA has undertaken a heterogenous approach in securing BIM mandate through several large agencies, which is crucial for a diverse country where a one-size-fits-all solution is regressive for GEOBIM technology adoption and advancement of BIM implementation. This organic growth (despite a non-available national mandate), has seen a surge in this decade, with the majority of E&C firms utilizing GEOBIM solutions in their projects. One of the first countries to establish the National 3D-4D BIM Program in 2003, in the USA the national guidelines provide support and resources for ongoing capital projects to incorporate 3D, 4D and BIM technologies, BIM data in asset and facility management, and the use of the spatial data and 3D laser scanning in construction projects.
The United Kingdom and other European countries, such as Sweden, and Germany follow the USA in GEOBIM policy readiness having established a set of policies, and BIM Execution Plan (BEP) to holistically implement collaborative 3D BIM and BIM Level 2 in public construction projects. United Kingdom’s strategy, ‘The Government Construction Strategy 2016-2020’, Germany’s Road Map for Digital Design and Construction; France’s Digital Transition Plan for Buildings (PTNB) – Plan Transition Numérique dans le Bâtiment; and Spain’s National BIM Plan are few of the critical policy mandates aiding BIM implementation.
China is the undisputed leader in GEOBIM adoption across the construction lifecycle. The engineering and construction (E&C) firms are self-reliant and autonomous in the adoption of integrated GEOBIM solutions duly augmented by 4IR technologies and immersive solutions. From a maturity model perspective, many of the E&C firms have transitioned from Level 2: Collaborative model to Level 3: Connected Environment model. An analysis of the case studies by the leading E&C firms of China, such as Beijing Construction Engineering Group, the China State Construction Engineering Corporation (CSCEC), China Railway Construction Corporation, etc., highlights the use of digital twin solutions, bidirectional mixed reality design, Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) solutions, LiDAR, immersive solutions (AR/FR), DfMA, modular construction, among other technologies across the construction workflow across majority of projects.
From the other GEOBIM ready countries, such as Norway, Germany, the USA and the United Kingdom, the use of integrated geospatial and BIM solutions is higher across the plan and design phase and significantly stable across the construction and operations and maintenance phase. These countries are also gradually transitioning from Level 2 to Level 3 of the GEOBIM Maturity Model owing to strategic innovations and offerings in GEOBIM solutions and subsequent policy mandates. It is noteworthy, in emerging countries, especially South-Asian economies such as India, Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines, the adoption of CAD is still at its peak, BIM is gradually gaining traction, and GEOBIM solutions are only best understood as a concept.
Also read: GeoBIM in DfMA – industrialization of construction in times of Covid-19
The USA is home to the most significant hardware and software enterprises, consultancies, and system integrators in the GEOBIM technology ecosystem. The majority of the innovative and revenue-generating companies who are offering geospatial and BIM solutions such as Trimble, Autodesk, Esri, Archibus, among many others, originate in the USA. Over the past decade, the USA has seen an uprise in the number of companies offering innovative construction software solutions owing to the existence of an enabling ecosystem to foster new ventures – not only offering BIM solutions but also emerging technologies like AR/VR, Drones, 3D Printing, and advanced ERPs to boost operational efficiency by minimizing wastages, accidents and errors. The increasing interest of Venture Capitalists (VCs) to the GEOBIM segment is also one of the reasons why the USA is the most GEOBIM ready country in terms of industry offerings.
In emerging economies like India, Indonesia and Malaysia, the development of technology products is fundamentally weak, and new venture creation in these regions is quite insignificant as compared to the advanced economies. For integrated GEOBIM solutions, these countries rely significantly on the solutions developed and provided by the distributor, and reseller networks of the larger GEOBIM companies of the West. Further, these regions are highly dominant in service companies instead of product/solutions ecosystems.
Also read: What’s trending in AEC+Geospatial in 2020?
The AEC industry is wrestling with the pandemic’s repercussions at the highest level as the industry dynamics is set to change. The time is ripe for the construction industry to take bold moves, especially concerning technology adoption, to reap the maximum rewards. Many of the AEC industry stakeholders of North America, and in some places of Europe can mitigate the risk of COVID-19 due to the radical use of GEOBIM solutions off and on-field; however, in Asian-economies, construction workflows have come to a standstill with a deep realization of the need for being digitalized. As countries began to understand and adapt GEOBIM specialization to thrive and survive; policymakers, decision-makers, users, technology providers and investors can strategically align their priorities, and strategies to be GEOBIM ready.
To know more in detail about the methodology and the ranks of the 25 countries on each sub-pillar of the GEOBIM Readiness Index-2020, please refer to the GEOBIM Market in AEC Industry Report.
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