PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to identify risk factors in building information modeling (BIM) technology application, analyze the correlation between risk factors, and find the most influential risk factors using interpretative structural model (ISM), put forward a response to targeted suggestions, and provide a reference for widespread BIM technology application.Design/methodology/approachLiterature reviews, ISM, a questionnaire survey and expert interviews were used in this paper. First, the risk factors of BIM technology application and their relationships were determined by consulting the relevant BIM literature. Second, to more intuitively reflect the relationships between risk factors, an ISM model based on expert interviews was established to structure the explanatory relationships and hierarchical relationships between factors. Finally, a questionnaire survey was conducted for relevant practitioners, and a scale was designed to evaluate the risk factors of BIM technology application to determine the risk factors that have a greater impact on implementing BIM technology.FindingsThe root risk factors of BIM technology consist of unclear data ownership, incomplete standard BIM systems, lack of industry insurance, lack of BIM technicians, lack of BIM project practice experience, BIM infrastructure preparation, inconsistent thinking about BIM from project participants, changes in delivery mode and software function problems.Research limitations/implicationsThe risk-sharing of BIM technology and the analysis of responsibilities, rights and benefits of all parties in a BIM project can be used as future research directions to solve higher management problems.Originality/valueThis paper describes the risks of BIM technology application for related researchers and provides another research train of thought for the follow-up studies.

BIM maturity models have become a significant method used to show the development stage of building information modeling (BIM) and to assist in measuring BIM capability. However, most of the existing maturity models focus on the evaluation technology, but the effect of BIM is not only related to technology, and most of them are mostly used for a comprehensive evaluation of BIM capability after the event. In this paper, for the purpose of comprehensive preevaluation of BIM application maturity of the project, considering the temporary characteristics of the project, based on Nolan’s growth stage model, from the perspective of technology, social environment, and project participants, a BIM application maturity model (BIM-AMM) including 10 measurement indicators is proposed. The model integrates the Barrel Principle in accordance with the characteristics of a single project. The conditions of BIM implementation are evaluated in advance, and specific deficiencies of BIM implementation are identified; then, BIM decision-making is determined for the project. Finally, an actual project is taken as the application demonstration case of BIM-AMM, and according to the results, the obstacles faced by the project organization in adopting BIM technology and the improvement strategies are put forward. The research results further expand the BIM maturity research to the early stage of the project and provide new ideas for BIM maturity research.

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