Towards BIM-based Maintenance of Elevator Systems: A Process-based Approach for Information Requirement Definition

Abstract

Building information modelling (BIM) plays a pivotal role in the construction industry’s digital transformation. Effective implementations of BIM-based processes during building operations, however, remain limited. One reason for this is a lack of guidelines or templates for the early definition of information requirements for BIM-based processes. The present study proposes a process-based approach for the definition of information requirements for the BIM-based maintenance of elevator systems to address this research gap. The methodology applied for this study involves literature research, literature analysis and an expert interview. As a result, a total of 14 process steps were developed to derive 37 information requirements, leading to the following observations: (1) most of the derived information requirements are static asset data; (2) the derived information requirements are neither specific to an industry nor building context; (3) a considerable proportion of the derived information requirement coincides with asset information. The results contribute to the body of knowledge by proposing and elaborating an approach to independently define information requirements for BIM-based processes in building operations in general and by providing the first iteration for the BIM-based maintenance of elevator systems in detail. Three further research directions are proposed based on the study results: (1) further analyses to define which information should be handed over in a BIM; (2) the development of generalized, industry-independent information requirements for basic information requirements; (3) the development and application of exchange information requirements (EIR) based on the study results.