Tracking MEP Installation Works

Abstract

Previous research has shown that "Scan-vs-BIM" systems are powerful to provide valuable information for tracking structural works (progress, quality, safety). However, the transferability of this capability to other construction areas such as MEP works has not been assessed so far. Comparatively, the construction of MEP systems, in particular pipes and ducts, tends to be more flexible with respect to the positioning of individual components, so that Scan-vs-BIM systems could be defeated when tracking MEP installation works. This paper presents recent results on the feasibility and performance of using a Scan-vs-BIM system to track MEP works. The approach followed is presented and then tested with two real-life challenging case studies were conducted simultaneously but totally independently in Canada and Italy. The results show that, as expected, pipes and ducts tend to be more loosely positioned than structural elements leading to a poorer performance of the Scan-vs-BIM system. Nonetheless, it appears that the system works well to assess the level of conformance of site installation works, providing valuable information for estimating emerging performance metrics like "percent built as-designed". In addition, the proposed system could also be useful to accelerate and thus reduce the cost of delivering as-built BIM models for in the case of new builds.

Construction Progress Monitoring through the Integration of 4D BIM and SLAM-Based Mapping Devices

“…Prompt and accurate monitoring of project performance can provide immediate insight into construction problems, and numerous attempts have been made in recent decades to automate this process [9,10]. Laser scanning, spherical imaging, augmented reality, barcode solutions [11] and sensing technologies are just a few examples of the proposed tracking, measurement and management techniques. Moreover, BIM-based progress monitoring has been investigated to facilitate the automated comparison of the actual state of construction with the planned state for the early detection of deviations in the construction process [12].…”

Indoor Mobile Mapping Systems and (Bim) Digital Models for Construction Progress Monitoring

“…During the last decades the construction industry has implemented different innovative solutions to increase the overall productivity along the life cycle of a project, from design tools like CAD and more recently BIM (Directorate-General for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs, 2021) (Opitz et al, 2014) (Opitz, Windisch, & Scherer, 2014), to the implementation of planning, control and documenting tools that are notably valuable in the cases when the size of a project becomes challenging for these tasks. It has been demonstrated by El-Omari & Moselhi (2008) that 3D laser scanning and photogrammetric technologies can enhance the accuracy and acquisition time in construction sites for progress monitoring and control, both for structures and mechanical, electrical and plumbing engineering (Bosché et al, 2013). Drones and Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), have been used for the task of construction progress monitoring by applying photogrammetric techniques in order to obtain a 3D representation of the construction site to subsequently run a comparison against the corresponding BIM model of the project (Kim et al, 2013), showing that an automated workflow can be implemented in order to increase the efficiency of traditional construction monitoring and reporting procedures (Anwar et al, 2018).…”