Course content

• Climate and social trends that affect the construction industry
• Linking the importance of digitization to improving the sustainability of the construction industry (environment and economy)
• Building information modeling and information management in the construction industry
• Modeling principles, including object orientation
• Properties, definitions
• Intelligence and modeling
• Digital trade processes, importance, and challenges
• Data and information security and data and information quality
• ISO 19650 (standard for managing information throughout the life cycle of a building using BIM)
• Handling of information needs, requirements setting methods, and importance/understanding of different roles, cf. ISO 19650
• Lifecycle-focused requirements/assessment and information management based on the ISO 19650 standard series and the information needs (LOIN) related to subjects/roles
• Data flow, interaction, and sharing of digital construction site information

Learning outcome

After completing the course, students should be able to:

• Explain how climate and societal requirements affect the construction industry, including the implementation of sustainability goals and environmental considerations through digitization and efficient resource utilization.

• Understand the construction industry's necessary digital transformation needs with regard to sustainability and social responsibility.

• Identify the need for building-related information for various analyses and evaluations in the life cycle of buildings

• Grasp the fundamental principles behind building information modeling (BIM) and management and understand the possibilities of digitization and its role in increasing sustainability and economic efficiency throughout a building's life cycle.

• Understand key modeling principles, including object orientation• Understand the way BIM tools work, as well as the opportunities and limitations, as well as apply current BIM tools and selected practical modeling techniques to ensure effective information flow and collaboration processes across various actors in construction projects and management.

• Understand how to facilitate the implementation of BIM in projects and organizations.

• Understand and explain different methods for obtaining and digitizing physical and existing digital information throughout the life cycle of construction works.

• Have advanced knowledge of the structuring and classification of information, as well as the level of accuracy, including the level of detail for various types of building information.

• Understand functional requirements and performance levels in BIM-based work.

• Explain and apply the ISO 19650 standard's utilization possibilities for requirements specifications and information management throughout the life cycle of buildings, facilities, and infrastructures.• Map information needs and specify requirements related to various roles in construction projects, including determining the information needs (LOIN) according to ISO 19650.

• Explain the connection between digital trade, data and information flow, and technological challenges in the construction industry.

• Understand and assess digital trade processes to ensure good information quality and data flow between actors in building and construction projects and related management.

• Be able to relate critically to the assessment of comprehensive data and information security needs, as well as the quality of information that is shared between the actors in construction processes and associated value chains.

• Analyze the construction industry's digital transformation needs in light of sustainability goals and societal requirements and propose measures to integrate this into information management in construction projects.

• Have developed a comprehensive understanding of how digitization can be linked to sustainability in the construction industry, both environmentally and financially, and how this affects the construction industry's practice and future development.

• Understand and use digital information in sustainability assessments and analyses.

Learning methods and activities

Lectures, self-study (literature and professional videos), report writing - both individually and in groups, and presentation in plenary.

Compulsory assignments

• Oral presentation

Specific conditions

Recommended previous knowledge

Basic knowledge of digitization and familiarity with the construction industry.

Course materials

• Borrmann; King; Koch; Beetz (2019): Building Information Modeling: Technology Foundations and Industry Practice, ISBN 978-3-319-92862-3
• Sacks, Eastman, Lee, and Teicholz (2018): BIM Handbook: A Guide to Building Information Modeling for Owners, Designers, Engineers, Contractors, and Facility Managers, 3rd Edition, ISBN: 978-1-119-28753-7
• The SINTEF report. Labonnote, N., Bryhni, A. & Lec, T. C. Digital interaction and data sharing in the building, construction and real estate industry, (2021).
• ISO 19650-1, ISO 19650-2, and ISO 19650-3 Organize and digitize information about buildings and construction activities (effective information management using BIM across projects and organizations). The standards set the framework for how the actors can interact, and information can flow through all phases of a building's life cycle.
• Various distributed notes and available presentations and subject material.