Author: Janine Smit (Janine Smit Editorial Services) for University of Pretoria, Faculty of Engineering, Built Environment and Information Technology
PRETORIA – South Africa’s built environment professionals, who are at the forefront of reshaping the landscape of African cities, gathered for the annual BIMHarambee Africa recently hosted by the University of Pretoria’s Faculty of Engineering, Built Environment and Information Technology and BIMcommUNITY.Africa.
The theme of this year’s conference was: “Fit for BIM? People + Business”. It attracted industry professionals from all the disciplines within the private and public built environment industry, from architects to construction managers, quantity surveyors and city planners, who were keen to collaborate and learn about incorporating building information modelling (BIM) into their work to achieve sustainable planning, management, construction and infrastructure development. Building information modelling (BIM) is a collaborative process for creating, managing and storing information relating to a construction project.
“BIMHarambee 2024 is not just an event; it is a movement towards embracing innovative technologies and methodologies that will lead us to build for tomorrow today,” said Dr Calayde Davey, a senior lecturer at UP’s Department of Architecture who coordinated the conference. “We are committed to fostering education and skills development to ensure that our workforce is equipped to meet the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead.”
Dr Davey chaired a panel presentation to illustrate the various work stages of a project that follows a BIM approach, in which teams from different disciplines involved in a built project embrace technology and collaborate across different workspaces.
This professional workflow is based on the newly developed BIM standard (SANS 19650), which is the South African National Standard for managing information about buildings and civil engineering works using building information modelling to ensure consistent and effective information exchange throughout an asset's lifecycle.
The African built environment sector is increasingly reliant on digital technology for design simulation and management. This is the cornerstone of a BIM approach. As such, industry professionals need to be proficient in the use of digital tools, methodologies and skills to drive innovation and efficiency.
People, processes and technology
As BIM is focused on people, processes and technology (in that order), the conference was structured according to these essential elements.
The presentations on the first day focused on people in BIM. Topics included career paths in BIM, the power of instructor-led training, the roles and responsibilities of the members of a BIM team, and how organisations go about getting employees to be BIM fit. Delegates were reminded that the BIM revolution has not led to a shortage of jobs, but a shortage of skills. It was therefore important to emphasise what upskilling and training for a BIM-fit organisation looks like in the short, medium and long term.
The second day focused on the business of BIM, and some case studies were presented to illustrate BIM in action. Topics related to the business of BIM included the BIM organisation, the challenges and opportunities that come with embracing digital transformation in the built environment, establishing a BIM workflow to enhance the design, construction and operation of projects, and determining the critical steps to create a reliable dataset.
Presenting the organisational requirements for BIM-fitness, Dr Davey and Laetitia van der Merwe, lecturers in the University’s Department of Architecture and Construction Management, explored how a proactive organisational culture is vital for successful digital transformation in the built environment. They highlighted the importance of embracing innovation, fostering digital literacy and encouraging collaboration to seamlessly integrate new technologies.
Embrace innovation, foster digital literacy, encourage collaboration.
Dr Laetitia Van der Merwe conducted an extensive study on organisational structure and culture in the South African property sector and the results were presented at the BIM Harambee. "Results confirmed that while the property sector is lagging behind other sectors in digital transformation, many property developers and investors, commercial property financiers, and real estate agencies in the South African property industry are well prepared and ready to get 'Fit for BIM." Drs van der Merwe and Davey recently published an article on organisational structure and culture in digital transformation.
This was followed by a panel discussion on how to build a BIM-fit organisation. Delegates gained first-hand insights from leading South African digital built environment businesses on their transformative BIM journey. The panellists revealed the skills they had acquired and the strategic investments they had made to successfully integrate BIM into their operations.
Three case studies were presented on the final day of the conference to illustrate BIM in action. Thomas Fuller, development manager at the JT Ross Property Group, unpacked a project that aimed to achieve a net-zero carbon footprint by following a BIM methodology. Melvern Govender, a quantity surveyor with the City of Cape Town, illustrated the City’s evolution towards BIM integration. Dr André Broekman, Astrid van der Laan and James Abrey from the infrastructure, engineering and advisory practice, Zutari, described the integration of computational design practices with BIM to develop customised tools and scalable data pipelines to deliver value-added services across large-scale projects. Their presentation featured a multi-bridge modelling project as an example of adopting a BIM philosophy.
Creating BIM-fit organisations
Ensuring that organisations in the built environment are fit for BIM requires an integrated digital ecosystem that captures the entire infrastructure development process in a real-time virtual collaborative space. This incorporates the full project life cycle − from conceptualisation, through the project’s design and development, to its construction and maintenance. BIM-fit organisations are agile, have a learning mindset and are open to change.
BIM-fit organisations are agile, have a learning mindset and are open to change.
Transitioning from traditional design and construction practices to digitally integrated environments requires a comprehensive shift in an organisation’s practices and approaches. Organisations transitioning into being BIM-fit need to keep these top-of-mind:
Digital transformation is a journey, not a destination, which requires planning, care and consideration.
Change requires patient learning – for everyone. It is not just about adopting new technologies, but about fundamentally reshaping the organisation’s operations, self-perception and engagement with partners.
Transformation must be kept incremental and relevant to the organisation. The organisation’s digital transformation must be aligned to its unique needs and objectives.
BIM managers must prepare and equip their teams with the necessary skills to effectively navigate and utilise digital tools.
“Digital transformation is a team sport. In the built environment, it will never displace traditional work, but will greatly enhance it,” Dr Davey said during her closing remarks.
“We don't have all the answers, but we invite everyone interested to join the digital built environment discourse and lead where they can contribute the most – whether they are new to the industry or seasoned professionals, digital information work is the essential work.”
Digital transformation work is the essential work.
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