Building Information Modelling (BIM) Adoption and Implementation: Interaction Between BIM Specialists and Non-BIM Specialists in Vietnam

Abstract

Building Information Modelling (BIM) offers a digital platform for the integration of all project related information to facilitate effective communication vital to the success of construction projects. Recognising the importance of BIM in construction projects the Vietnamese government issued a mandate in 2016 requiring all public and “first category” projects (buildings which are 20 floors and greater or with a floor area greater than 20,000 square metres) to be implemented using BIM by 2021. This mandate and its implementation provide the context for this research.

This study introduces the combination of Diffusion of Innovation Theory (DOIT) and Activity Theory (AT) as a theoretical framework to investigate the current implementation of BIM in the Vietnamese context. Using a qualitative approach, 17 case studies from medium to large sized Architecture, Engineering and Construction (AEC) firms were studied to present a comprehensive understanding of the current status of BIM practices in the construction industry in Vietnam.

The units of analysis for this study were BIM specialists and non-BIM specialists working in the case studies as their roles are essential for the appropriate use of BIM in projects. 67 semi-structured interviews were used as the main instrument to collect data from these specialists. The data was analysed using a thematic analysis method aided by qualitative analysis software NVivo.

An interpretive framework combining DOIT and AT was used as a lens to identify the main themes of this research. The identified themes (i.e. the major findings) were then developed and reported including perspectives of BIM and non-BIM specialists on the BIM profession, the collaboration using BIM and the responses to contradictions emerging during BIM collaboration activities.

The significant contribution of this study arises from the development and application of the combined DOIT and AT framework which potentially assists the Vietnamese Government and AEC firms to examine BIM interactions in the context of recent BIM mandate. Many sources of conflicts during BIM interactions could be well defined under the lens of the framework and this creates conditions for planning BIM mediation. This study also contributes to research methodology as it applied the systematic combining research process (i.e. abductive approach) in which the initial theory (e.g. DOIT) is not fixed but evolves through on-going case analysis, the revision of literature and the combination with other theory (e.g. AT). In addition to the popularly inductive or deductive approach, abductive approach provides a more creative and flexible mode to gain insights of empirical phenomena and their contexts, in particular the issues on innovation adoption in fast moving digital era.