A Bim-Based Tool For Formwork Management In Building Projects
Abstract
Formwork represents between 35% and 60% of the total cost of the structural framing of a concrete building and is always part of the critical path of a project. Worldwide, Building Information Modeling (BIM) has been growing rapidly for building projects. However, modeling temporary structures using BIM is not a common practice. Current formwork management practices rely on the use of traditional tools like CAD, PDF editors and spreadsheets. A BIM formwork model during the preconstruction stage can provide a powerful tool for decision-making in formwork management (i.e., selecting formwork system and formwork supplier, and defining quantities to procure formwork systems). Relying only on rough cost estimates and field experience related to formwork can lead to overestimating formwork budgets, renting surplus formwork, and paying for additional formwork elements/systems that are in jeopardy of being lost, damaged or even stolen. A review of the state of art, the state of practice and the results of survey used to gather data from AEC practitioners regarding formwork management preferences indicated that: (1) BIM formwork modeling with level of development (LOD) 100 and 200 is the preferred approach by practitioners, (2) renting formwork is the preferred mode, considering the contact area of the system instead of renting pieces of formwork, and (3) the use of traditional tools like CAD, PDF editors and spreadsheets involving minimum level of automation is the general practice in formwork management. Based on these findings the thesis focuses on the design, development, and testing of a BIM-based formwork management tool. The BIM-based tool has two phases: Phase 1 the automation of BIM formwork modeling based on the contact surface of building elements and populating BIM parameters related to formwork (formwork types, formwork weight, productivity, and timing) in the input BIM model, and Phase 2 the use of the resulting BIM model developed in Phase 1 for formwork management tasks (i.e., quantity takeoffs, formwork demand profiles, cost analysis, estimation of Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) such as the reuse factor and formwork efficiency, and tracking formwork removal). The tool was tested on two case studies (a 20-story building and a 5-story building) both with 80 work zones and 46,650 m2of floor-built area. As expected, the KPI values for both case studies were similar since both buildings have similar modular architectures. The BIM-based tool for formwork management presented in this thesis provides the following advantages: (1) Implemented independently of the formwork systems or formwork provider selected, (2) Time savings attributed to automation of repetitive tasks in Revit and focusing on modeling formwork surface contact area (instead of modeling all formwork components), and (3) Reduction in human error since the BIM processes (formwork modeling, parameters management, and exchange of data between different platforms) are automated, reducing or eliminating the need of manual entry of parameter values or manual 3D modeling.
Degree
M.Sc.
Advisors
Abraham, Purdue University.
Subject Area
Design|Civil engineering
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