Transforming Society Together Through True Information Management

Welcome To The Mindset Reset

End-to-end Information Management – as a service – is driving an evolution in the construction sector. It forms the foundation for the creation of future-shaping Digital Twins that will revolutionise the way we not only work, but also interact with data on a societal basis.

IM from a design consultants’ perspective

The transition to collaborating in the round...from inception to insight

Many businesses are beginning to understand the need to move away from utilising BIM as a data cache or visualisation tool alone. Instead, these forward-looking organisations are embracing the more holistic pairing of Information Management (IM) and Digital Engineering (DE) to achieve what they actually need: a full endto-end, connected strategy from inception to true insight.

The granular application of an integrated Information Management process is of course subjective – and thus will always be up for debate due to the complex variables at play in any given project-specific scenario. However, our collective experiences across multi-disciplinary Sweco delivery teams – along with learnings from our peers and other industries more mature in this arena – have helped us more efficiently shape a holistic framework for project management environments, which we are already implementing on transformational projects where end-to-end (and cyclical) information management is non-negotiable.

As Platinum Sponsors of the BIM Coordinators Summit, we’re championing the belief that integrated Information Management processes lay the foundations for high performing project management controls in the digital era. Sound-tested, end-to-end lifecycle IM workflows are paving the way for the next generation of reliable and accessible project information models which are crucial to informed decision-making and accurate performance monitoring.

This cohesive methodology provides the framework for full lifecycle integrated information management. Ultimately making way for true insights gained by all stakeholders. Many peers and partners share this view, and many clients are embracing it.

But to help these businesses on the journey and educate others to follow suit, we need to do more as an industry to remove ambiguity and mixed messaging around the purpose of efficient IM on an enterprise level. We must also work together – closely and constantly – to achieve the key integrations that will prove essential, between the pallette of digital tools we choose to work with that enable meaningful interpretation and real world utilisation of the information we generate.

The Antarctic Infrastructure Modernisation Programme (AIMP): True Information Management in action

One such integrated IM-dependant project – a core case study of our Client Stage discussions at BCS22 – is the Antarctic Infrastructure Modernisation Programme (AIMP), with Sweco appointed as lead design consultants for all aspects of building and infrastructure design packages.

AIMP, by its very nature, demands accessible, measurable and reliable Information Management at every juncture. It is imperative that we facilitate the collection of accurate and structured project information data, deliver it to the right people at the right time – enabling confident decision-making by all project stakeholders in one of the most challenging project locations on earth.

The high-level internal project management environment opposite illustrates the process Sweco’s Special Interest Projects team follow – and continually assess/improve for AIMP. While bespoke to the unique needs of the British Antarctic Survey, the overarching logic and methodology reflects our core integrated approach to all projects which require effective, accurate IM throughout their lifecycle(s).

Considering (and connecting) all the elements of this process – versus the fragmented, disjointed partitioning of each stage that still prevails in many quarters –allows us to maximise the opportunity to capture true project information from the point of project inception with minimum additional effort. Above all, early and ongoing discussions held between project teams allow all stakeholders to:

✓ Identify the purpose and intent behind all forms of information to be generated during the lifecycle of the given project.

✓ Identify the right people, processes and tools that will enable effective cohesion.

✓ Plan systems integration for seamless flow of information between multiple project environments.

✓ Implement exceptional reporting mechanisms weaved into your systems integration model.

✓ Introduce a robust Learning Management System that will empower the project teams to grow alongside the needs of the project.

Where integrated, full lifecycle IM is critical in Antarctica:

Improved workforce H&S and culture

– on a large framework such as AIMP, using proven information management methodology enables the careful forward planning in all areas of design, construction and handover processes which ultimately empowers our workforce with the most cutting edge technology and knowhow to confidently deliver to our client’s needs. With the added bonus of efficient construction risk management that ensures the health & safety of our teams on the ground.

Improved compliance & enhanced collaboration – our Common Data Environment (CDE) is the focal point of the project information and enables effortless team coordination. It allows project managers to effectively strategise and implement collaboration among various team members with efficient distribution of project activities. This helps to establishing a framework for remote working, regardless of time zones.

Increased resilience & cost-efficiency –efficiently produced BIM models enable improved information productions rates. This boosts our productivity with better project insights, whether during the design & construction process or operations of the built asset.

Accurate construction planning through efficient clash and risk management – our models enable constructability meetings to monitor the progress of the project and maintain full control over the project and the team working on it, thus increasing its safety for both our team and our client. Project managers are able to assess when to book equipment, buy materials, hire specialists, coordinate among different activities, plan for a proper sequencing of events, and much more.

Assessing the asset data requirements for the FM teams – our models play a crucial role during the design and construction phases where asset data sets are generated, validated against client requirements and tested in the clients CAFM system to ensure the handover information being generated meets the client’s requirements.

Not just best practice, but better practice

Again, on a micro level there will always be discussions and opinion. But in keeping the full lifecycle front of mind from the outset, and continually building on our learnings within that mindset, we believe that all successful projects focus on the basic fundamentals of:

People – ensure our teams are capable, competent and compliant. Facilitate this through the deployment of a competency framework and a supporting Learning Management System (LMS).

Area of focus: One team ethos: health and wellbeing, independent learning, standards methods and procedures.

Process – Be clear about the principles for delivery, that these principles are understood across the team, that new team members are inducted into the team and become familiar with the principles swiftly.

Areas of focus: Clear outcomes, realistic planning, prioritising people, managing complexity and risk; learning from experience.

Tools – The right authoring, checking and validation tools to efficiently manage the creation of project information. A common set of information production methods and procedures the whole project aligns with, central to collaborative working practices.

Areas of focus: Common Data Environments, discipline-specific authoring tools, opensource data formats to enable integration, automation of repetitive content generation, automation of seamless data validation, Learning Management Systems.

Scrutiny – using integrated Information Management processes to build in automated monitoring and reporting mechanisms. This crucially enables accurate and spontaneous regular performance checks at all levels. Create a hierarchy for reporting and responsibility, hold responsibility at the lowest effective level, this will offer greater agility.

Areas of focus: the correlation between project cost and lean delivery, exploiting new and emerging technologies to add value for money; releasing benefits from innovation both in construction and technology; using shared and open data to drive performance.

Transforming society together

In summary, while we are doing lots of things well, the step change will come when we collectively do them within a Common Data Environment, within a circular methodology.

Our vision at Sweco is to build the industrywide capability to create intuitive Digital Twins that have the capacity to inform decision making through automated reporting, using the very best of Artificial Intelligence. This will unlock powerful collaboration and lead to true insight. We believe the magic lies in connecting the people, processes and tools already (and yet to be) at our disposal, with a common language and approach to integration that enhances both the quality of information and its management.

To discuss true Information Management –what it is and how Sweco’s multi-disciplinary teams and digital transformers can help you access it with full lifecycle design consultancy – contact megha.nagendrawells@sweco.co.uk

Megha Nagendra Wells, Technical Director (Information Management) in Sweco’s Special Interest Projects team

“I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to join our peers and partners on the Client Stage at the BIM Coordinators Summit 2022, as we discuss and debate the transition to full lifecycle information management. From project inception through to true insight, how should we go about connecting people, processes and tools as part of a ‘mindset reset’ that will unlock the digital transformation our clients are increasingly asking for?”

Now you could be forgiven in asking yourself what has this title got to do with the BIM Coordinators Summit. The title is in reference to all the information we literally have at our fingertips but cannot see and as a result fail to utilise, take full advantage of and ultimately lose out on the myriad of benefits it could deliver.

Digital information is essentially the wavelength of construction but is currently beyond the ability of the majority of the construction workforce because they lack the opportunity, skills and digital vision to detect, interpret and use in their work.

In a traditional industry like construction, we spend too much time and effort focused on the ‘bricks and morter’, on the small slice of construction that we can physically see and not on the wider integration of all the stages of construction and utilising the digital tools and the common language that would deliver a wider spectrum of innovation, reduced carbon content, increased competitiveness and enhanced skills.

Construction is the world’s largest industry, comprising 13 percent of global GDP however it is also one of the least innovative sectors, productivity growth in construction registers at a mere 1 percent over the past 20 years. Many sectors are enjoying the resultant benefits of technology deployment however it is still lagging within the construction sector and as a direct result the construction worker has become more ‘blinkered’ to the benefits of digitalisation and big data. This disconnect is manifested in lower productivity, higher costs and increased inefficiencies across the entire built environment value chain, for construction to become inherently innovative it must realise the benefits of digitalisation, and provide the workforce with access to the skills that will stimulate and empower them to engage, communicate and deploy these skills of the digital process.

Digitalisation is a game-changing strategy that is empowering the construction sector to thrive and deliver the expertise for sustainable construction. There is a direct correlation between digitalisation and energy efficiency and the ARISE project is building the digital scaffold that will ensure the built environment is best placed to achieve this digital efficient success by upskilling the workforce.

Digitalisation is the process whereby the constriction sector can get everybody onto the same page and enable communication across the entire construction supply chain. It provides a connectivity that embraces all forms of communication between all the stages of the construction process enabling standardisation, communication and transparency.

Digitalisation is currently changing the face of the construction industry, enabling companies to engage in the transformation process and to avail of the ensuing opportunities. Those who fail to engage will fail, it is that simple. Data is being generated throughout the construction process and presents tremendous value that

What is it that we cannot see?

needs to be captured; those with the capability and capacity to do so will thrive. All companies must develop a mechanism of dealing with the levels of data that they are faced with and provide their workers with the skills to interpret and utilise this information, in order to engage, companies must get the basics right, upskill their staff and give them the tools to deliver, this is essential to take advantage of the opportunities and succeed.

BIM is one of the critical tools in today’s toolbox. It is a system for handling data that allows all users from across the construction value chain to manage construction, reduce waste, decrease downtime and importantly increase energy efficiency at each and every step in the construction process. In short BIM is the language of construction and all workers must develop a basic command of the language.

In the ARISE project digitalisation represents this learner process or journey, one which individuals and companies embark upon with BIM as one of the digital vehicles or tools utilised.

Key in the definition is the use of the word process, digitalisation doesn’t happen overnight, it is a journey that takes time. The digital tools developed in the ARISE project are enablers for the user to engage with at a time and pace that suits them and prepares them for the journey of change that will transform their company. The user is introduced to a suite of digital tools in the new digital built environment where their old paper based information is converted into a digital value or format i.e. the information remains the same but is transformed into a different ‘language.’ Information as data is gathered and enables the user to make informed analysis and choices about the work.

ARISE is working within the built environment assisting companies to engage, start and to continue their digital skills journey, helping workers to translate their knowledge into action and increasing the digital skills of the construction sector in an environment where efficiency, sustainability and competitiveness are significant global factors.

A digitally educated workforce is one that has had the ‘blinkers’ removed and is sufficiently agile and informed to utilise all of the information available to them. They are able to take the BIM data to manage every step in the construction process and ensure sustainability, efficiency and environmental effectiveness.

A digitally informed and empowered construction workforce will drive innovation and growth in the sector and ensure that the sector can adapt, modernise, embrace new technology and truly adopt digital working as the new standard. They will help their companies and the sector to overcome inherent resistance to change and shape the sector to overcome current hurdles and prepare for future growth. The benefits of digitalisation for the construction sector have been well documented but the starting point in this journey and to ensure the benefits are sustainable is to empower and upskill the workforce to build better and build greener.

Digital skills and tools such as BIM provide the sector with the ability to measure, monitor and analyse the impact of our construction in every step of the value chain.

One of the greatest challenges facing the construction sector is that of skills shortages. These shortages are manifested in both lack of new entrants to the sector and the under utilisation of those already working in the sector. The pool of skilled personnel is getting shallower as more demands are made on the current workers. Digitalisation enables the sector to ‘deepen’ the skills pool, by ensuring all the inhabitants of the pool are better equipped, informed and have the necessary tools to do the jobs more effectively and more efficiently and therefore achieve enhanced productivity both qualitatively and quantitively.

Tools such as BIM and other digital transformation techniques will enable the construction sector to become more visionary and overcome the current obstacles that are hindering innovation and increased employment and enjoy the full benefits of a better enabled, equipped, and loyal workforce.