BUILDING KNOWLEDGE MODELING: INTEGRATING KNOWLEDGE IN BIM

Fragmentation of construction information has been challenging in the AEC/FM (Architectural, Engineering, Construction, and Facility Management) industry for a long time, and caused significant difficulties of information management. This fragmentation is also reported to be a major contributing factor to loss of knowledge. Several methods and tools have been developed to solve the problems of fragmentation and mitigate loss of knowledge. Building Information Modeling (BIM) has emerged as one of the tools, and is mainly intended to build a repository of shared digital building information models. In the meanwhile, to increase the productivity and efficiency, knowledge management (KM) plays an important role in construction lifecycle processes by managing the corporate knowledge, which provides organizations with competitive advantage. However, current BIM models are information-centric with little focus on knowledge modeling. Similarly, BIM and the process to transform construction information into knowledge are isolated, causing a major drawback in harvesting the vast amount of potential knowledge from models. Therefore, there is a fundamental need to embed knowledge modeling within BIM and the resulting models. Currently, very little known research has been conducted in this area. The paper aims to highlight the importance of Building Knowledge Modeling (BKM) and to explore and outline the possibilities and approach to knowledge modeling integration within BIM. It conducted an integrative and comprehensive review of literature and the state-of-the-art of BIM and KM, including developments and current status of BIM and KM implementation and industry adoption, as well as other related topics. The critical factors and key benefits associated with BKM implementation are also highlighted. The paper concludes by proposing the development of a framework and its constituents to facilitate BKM. Recommendations are also formulated for future research directions in this area.