THE IMPACT OF BUILDING INFORMATION MODELING (BIM) ON LABOUR PRODUCTIVITY AND SITE SAFETY IN SINGAPORE �S CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY

Abstract

The productivity rate for construction industry in Singapore has been low due to the nature of the construction industry which has been traditionally regarded as labour-intensive and fragmented, rendering the sector to be less effective and efficient. In addition, the fatality rate for construction sector remained high, which posed safety concerns. Where productivity and safety on site are valued and cannot be compromised, efforts to improve both parameters have been put in place in Singapore. However, there is a lack of means in assessing labour productivity and safety level on site that can decrease the behaviours of completing work in expense of safety, and vice versa.

This study hence identifies factors which affect labour productivity and safety on site, particularly in the local context. It also forms the relationship between productivity and safety, as well as evaluates how the implementation of BIM can result in positive benefits in the interest of labour productivity and site safety.

Through design of survey questionnaire and various analyses, data was analysed using various statistical methods. The results subsequently proved the statistical significance of identified factors affecting labour productivity and safety, which aided in the development of proposed assessment framework.

The proposed model is divided into three parts, Assessment Framework I, II and III. It measures the level of management and implementation of the identified factors, which forms an approach to ensure high level of both safety and productivity performance on site with the aid of utilizing BIM technology. Recommendations are also provided for the better usage of the proposed Assessment Framework.