DIGITALIZATION IN CONSTRUCTION � A STUDY ON THE USE OF DEFECT MANAGEMENT APPLICATIONS

Abstract

Digital Construction has become trendy worldwide to tackle the issues of tight labour and low productivity. Embracing the use of construction management applications could help the industry to do better with respect to both profitability and performance (Lindsey, 2001). Numerous research studies have proven that the use of advanced industry-specific technology in the areas of design, construction and site inspection, could help the building to be constructed faster, at a lower cost and of higher quality arising from improved defect detection and inspection (Heesom & Mahdjoubi, 2004). With a strong governmental push for digital construction, many building companies have incorporated applications such as Building Information Modelling into their planning and design processes (Building and Construction Authority, 2010). However, there seems to be an apparent reluctance among the stakeholders to incorporate applications into the defect management process. A research gap was also found in both the international and local context with regards to understanding the perspectives of building professionals on defect management applications. This dissertation will examine the perception of building professionals towards the use of defect management application by analysing the factors that influence their mindsets. A combination of two research methodologies was employed to achieve the research objectives. Surveys were conducted to investigate the general perspective in the construction industry towards defect management application. A case study was presented to showcase a practical scenario of the adoption of defect management application and draw out learning points and best practices. The findings indicate that while the stakeholders are confident about digital defect management, there is a lack of awareness about defect management application in Singapore. It is identified that the key factors that influence the mindset of respondents are cost and their lack of knowledge for it. Finally, action plans targeting the various stakeholders in the construction industry were recommended to push the adoption of the defect management application.