A WORKFLOW FOR BIM TO ENHANCE CONSTRUCTION SAFETY PERFORMANCE

Abstract

Safety is a significant issue affecting the workers in the construction industry. In an attempt to improve safety performance, the Singapore Government has mandated the Design for Safety (DfS) to reduce construction safety risks at the design stage. BIM was introduced to improve the productivity in the construction industry in Singapore. One measure mandated by the Singapore Government was for the e-submission of BIM models for approval. However, even with efforts made in BIM and safety, the construction industry has not yet fully exploited the benefits of BIM especially BIM with construction safety. It is essential for an organisation to know the potential of BIM in construction safety to better collaborate with Designers. Through literature review, the current state of the industry’s safety performance and BIM use were identified. A questionnaire survey was conducted, and the results analysed to show that BIM, in addition to close collaboration between Contractors and Designers can enhance safety performance. This study focuses on the benefits and issues of BIM implementation, construction safety, and the potential of the combination of both aspects in the improvement of construction safety performance. This study analyses the perception of BIM implementation in construction safety, barriers to the implementation of BIM and the collaboration between Contractors and Designers. A conceptual process was then proposed to encourage the use of BIM for safety in construction projects. The process focuses on the collaboration of Contractors and Designers in the design stage and the flow of knowledge into the construction stage to ensure that the safety performance is maintained at all phases of the construction.