Data Reliability in BIM and Performance Analytics: A Survey of Contemporary AECO Practice
Publication: Journal of Architectural Engineering
Volume 29, Issue 2
Abstract
As awareness around building energy consumption increases, practitioners are encouraged to consider performance aspects regarding the built environment more closely and find ways to improve its efficiency. Improvements in building information modeling (BIM) and building performance simulation (BPS) tools present opportunities to facilitate information communication with a wider range of stakeholders. The building sector can benefit from the integration of performance informatics; however, there has been limited success in utilizing available technologies that promote data integration and management in favor of enriching our knowledge and understanding of buildings as artifacts of information. This phenomenon was investigated by conducting a survey, together with a review of relevant literature, to depict the relevant challenges and opportunities for the architecture, engineering, construction, and owner-operated (AECO) industry, as it undergoes digital transformation, as well as the working practices that have formed around them. It is argued that the current tools available to practitioners do not support effective data serialization between design and analytics processes, affecting the collaboration between team members. Finally, a series of functional goals are proposed to support a higher level of reliability in the ways information is mobilized, by rethinking the technologies and methods for organizing information systems.
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Acknowledgments
This material is based on work supported by the US DOE’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) under the Buildings Technology Office Award Number DE-EE0008680. The authors thank Professor Sonit Bafna and Ph.D. student Zachary Lancaster, for their advice and support with the statistical analysis of the survey, as well as Goel Supriya, Sarah Mokhtar, Zachary Lancaster, Yasser El Masri, and Alexandra Lipezker, for piloting the survey before deployment.
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Journal of Architectural Engineering
Volume 29 • Issue 2 • June 2023
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© 2023 American Society of Civil Engineers.
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Received: Apr 25, 2022
Accepted: Dec 14, 2022
Published online: Feb 9, 2023
Published in print: Jun 1, 2023
Discussion open until: Jul 9, 2023
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