THE STUDY OF BIM ON MINIMIZING THE VIOLATION OF SAFETY RULES IN INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECT
by
Arissa Azreen Binti Mohsin 24494
Dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the
Bachelor of Engineering (Hons) (Civil Engineering)
JANUARY 2021
Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS Bandar Seri Iskandar
31750 Tronoh Perak Darul Ridzuan
CERTIFICATION OF APPROVAL
THE STUDY OF BIM ON MINIMIZING THE VIOLATION OF SAFETY RULES IN INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECT
by
Arissa Azreen Binti Mohsin 24494
A project dissertation submitted to the Civil Engineering & Environmental Programme
Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the
BACHELOR OF ENGINEERING (Hons) (CIVIL ENGINEERING)
Approved by,
(Supervisor: Dr. Ir. Idris Othman)
UNIVERSITI TEKNOLOGI PETRONAS TRONOH, PERAK
CERTIFICATION OF ORIGINALITY
This is to certify that I am responsible for the work submitted in this project, that the original work is my own except as specified in the references and acknowledgements, and that the original work contained herein have not been undertaken or done by unspecified sources or persons.
(Arissa Azreen Binti Mohsin)
Abstract
Since the construction industry has been listed as the highest number of deaths and injury rates among all sectors of the industry, there are many studies that show all these safety incidents can be prevented by safety preparation using Building Information Modelling (BIM) at design and development stages. The number of deaths and injuries could be minimized by understanding and applying safety concern at the pre- construction level. Since safety concerns are a major concern in the construction industry, a lot of safety measures have been taken on construction sites, but only a few of them have been introduced in construction, most of which are only to avoid being punished by the law. Therefore, the aim of this study is to study the importance of BIM on minimizing the violation of safety rules in infrastructure project. Before starting the actual survey, a pilot study will be performed for this questionnaire, verifying its acceptance, which is a mixture of literature review, market studies and comprehensive questionnaire survey. Based on the author's analysis, most of the company and contractor firms have been using and aware with the application of BIM on minimizing the violation of safety rules in the construction which most of them are from underground construction, especially in China. In fact, it will help to reduce injuries of workers and provide a safe work environment as the safety hazard can be recognize during the pre-construction stage where through BIM, all the designer, engineer and contractor can access through this platform together with the subcontractor as it will enhance the project planning. The accuracy and the reliability will be higher as they can have a better understanding of the possible risks that can affect the infrastructure projects together through BIM. From this, it is more efficient to track the progress and identifying the possible hazards at the construction before commencing the work.
Therefore, in this study, it will highlight the importance of BIM on minimizing the violation of safety rules in infrastructure projects.
Acknowledgement
I would like to take this opportunity to express my gratitude and appreciation to several people for their continuous encouragement during my Final Year Project. First and foremost, I'd like to express my gratitude to Dr. Ir. Idris Othman, my supervisor.
His motivation, patience, insightful remarks, useful insights, practical guidance, and never-ending ideas have been invaluable to me in the writing of this study. His extensive knowledge, extensive experience, and technical expertise assisted me in completing this study successfully. Without his support and guidance, this project would not have been feasible.
I would also like to express gratitude to Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS and all of the faculty and staff, especially the members of the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, who contributed to the project's success from start to finish by providing the required academic and technical support. In addition, I'd like to take this opportunity to express my gratitude to my friends for their unwavering support, encouragement, and inspiration during this project.
My deepest appreciation goes out to my loved ones. This Final Year Project would not have been possible to complete without their constant support. Their encouragement enabled me to face the challenges I faced with greater courage, patience, and optimism.
Table of Contents
Abstract ... i
Acknowledgement ... ii
List of Figures ... v
List of Tables ... v
Chapter 1 : Introduction ... 1
1.1 Background Study ... 1
1.2 Problem Statement ... 3
1.3 Objectives... 3
1.4 Scope of Study ... 1
Chapter 2 : Literature Review ... 2
2.1 Introduction – What is BIM? ... 2
2.2 How BIM is related to safety? ... 4
2.3 The importance of safety risk recognition as the first step in pre-construction stage ... 8
2.4 The importance of BIM on minimizing the violation of safety rules ... 9
2.4.1 Collection Centre... 9
2.4.2 Early Warning System ... 10
2.4.3 Monitoring Centre ... 12
2.4.4 Control Centre ... 12
Chapter 3 : Methodology ... 13
3.1 Introduction ... 13
3.2 Data Evaluation ... 13
3.3 Research Methodology ... 14
3.4 Data Collection ... 15
3.4.1 Primary Data ... 15
3.4.2 Main Data ... 15
3.5 Data Analysis Method ... 16
3.5.1 Relative Importance Index (RII) ... 16
3.5.2 Average Index (AI) ... 17
3.5.3 Cronbach’s Alpha ... 18
3.6 Gantt Chart ... 20
Chapter 4 : Result and Discussion. ... 22
4.1 Introduction ... 22
4.2 Respondent’s Description ... 22
iv | P a g e
4.3.1 Pilot Survey Data ... 23
4.3.2 Research Question 1 ...... 24
4.3.3 Research Question 2 ...... 28
Chapter 5: Conclusion and Recommendation ...... 31
5.1 Conclusion ... 31
5.2 Recommendation ...... 32
References ...... 33
APPENDIX ...... 35
List of Figures
Figure 1-1: Fatal occupational injuries for all sectors in Malaysia ... 1
Figure 1-2: Cases of fatal injuries in the construction sector and their causes ... 2
Figure 2-1: The connection between engineering data and safety risks ... 6
Figure 3-1: Research Methodology ... 14
List of Tables
Table 2-1: Altitude fall danger zones and identifying details. ... 10Table 3-1: Cronbach's Alpha Consistency ... 19
Table 3-2: FYP I Gantt Chart ... 20
Table 3-3: FYP II Gantt Chart ... 21
Table 4-1: Other importance of BIM suggested... 23
Table 4-2: Relative Importance Index ... 24
Table 4-3: Rank of the statement based on RII result ... 24
Table 4-4: Analysis Index ... 26
Table 4-5: Cronbach's Alpha Result ... 27
Table 4-6: Analysis Index ... 28
Table 4-7: Cronbach's Alpha Result ... 29
Chapter 1 : Introduction
1.1 Background Study
For a long time, the construction industry has had the greatest number of deaths and injuries of any industry sector in the world. The rising number of deaths and injuries related to the construction is concerning. The deaths and injuries that occur not only give a serious social and economic impact to the society, but it will also result in substantial decreases in projects costs and delay for certain activities for that construction project. Most of the construction management are chasing the project progress and productivity instead of focusing on the safety management which they tend to disregard the safety restriction within the construction process as safety is often seen as an obstructing aspect to the progress and development of the work, and this kind of thought leads to high accident statistics every year.
Figure 1-1: Fatal occupational injuries for all sectors in Malaysia
Figure 1-2: Cases of fatal injuries in the construction sector and their causes
Therefore, construction companies develop safety policies, strategies and procedures that provide written safety plans to minimise the incidence and severity of construction accidents. There are several documentations and briefing that they conducted prior to work on the construction project such as safety induction, safety work instruction briefing and toolbox briefing before starting the activity. But all these documentations safety plan and briefing are mostly being conducting during the construction progress.
Various studies have shown that 42-71% of these safety accidents can be avoided at design and development stages through safety consideration which is safety planning using Building Information Modelling (BIM) system. According to Zhang et al., (2013), BIM is an algorithm that analyses a construction model automatically to classify safety hazards and recommend preventive measures in a variety of situations involving fall-related hazards. Therefore, it shows that through this BIM system, it is possible to recognise safety hazards and controlled during the construction planning and design and Khoshnava, Ahankoob et al. (2012) also stated that prior to its actual physical construction, the BIM definition defines the simulated construction of a facility to minimize risk, increase protection, solve out issues, and model and evaluate possible impacts.
1.2 Problem Statement
As BIM for safety or 8D is considered as new especially in Malaysia, therefore, this for this study, the problem statement is as follows:
• What is the importance of BIM on minimizing the violation of safety rules in infrastructure projects?
• What is the perception of construction professionals in Malaysia regarding BIM in controlling the violation of safety rules?
1.3 Objectives
To fulfil the aim problem statement above, this study is focusing on three (3) purposes:
-
• To study the importance of BIM on minimizing the violation of safety rules in infrastructure projects.
• To investigate the level of perception among the construction professionals in Malaysia of BIM on minimizing the violation of safety rules.
This study was specifically conducted for construction professional as the author want to know their opinion on safety in BIM. This is because, we always know that design team are the one who involve and using this BIM to construct the model. Therefore, instead of having design team, we will be having construction professionals to know their idea of BIM on minimizing the violation of safety rules.
1.4 Scope of Study
The aim of this study is to determine the importance of BIM in minimizing violations of safety rules in infrastructure projects. This study will show that the BIM system can be used for more than just producing data-rich models of buildings and structures; it can also be used for safety planning during the design phase of a project, as it will evaluate the construction model's safety risks, which will be used to control the violation of safety rules.
Therefore, to prove the importance of BIM system on minimize the violation of safety rules in this study, the important component of achieving the goal is the participation of people who work in the organization, particularly the organization that implement BIM system in the project and safety precautions in the project since the early stages of the project. For the questionnaire, this study will focus on people who are involved in the organization's safety committee and engineers who are familiar with the BIM system.
Chapter 2: Literature Review
2.1 Introduction – What is BIM?
During the lifecycle of a project, BIM (Building Information Modeling) begins with the creation of an intelligent 3D model and continues with document management, scheduling, and simulation of planning, design, development, operation, and maintenance. The purpose of BIM is to design and capture construction and infrastructure plans. Every detail of a building or infrastructure is modelled in BIM to explore design options and create visualisations, which will allow stakeholders to see how the building or infrastructure will look before it is finished, as the model can be used for analysis. The model can also be used to make construction design papers. The BIM approach makes it easier to create intelligent data that can be used during a construction or infrastructure project's lifecycle.
Plan, Design, Construct, and Operate are the four points of BIM. During the project planning process, combine composition and real-world facts to create contextual representations of the current built and natural environment. Conceptual design, analysis, detailing, and documentation are all part of the design stage. BIM data is used to inform scheduling and logistics during the preconstruction phase. BIM specifications are used to start fabrication during the construction stage. As a result, experts and contractors are informed about project construction logistics in order to ensure the most precise and effective scheduling and execution. BIM information is passed to the operations and management of completed properties at the final level, which is operation.
In the future, BIM data will be used for both cost-effective reconstruction and deconstruction. The United Nations estimates that the world's population will reach 6.7 billion by 2050. Not only to keep up with global demand, but also to help build smarter and more effective spaces, the global AEC industry must look for smarter, more profitable ways to design and expand. BIM not only increases the productivity
of design and development teams, but it also assists them in capturing the data they produce for operations and maintenance. This is why BIM is attracting attention.
BIM is widely used in certain industry such as architecture, MEP (mechanical, electrical, and plumbing), civil & construction, structural and plant. Each industry used BIM in different ways and methods. BIM is used in the architecture industry to help create better design options, improve construction and infrastructure performance, and collaborate more effectively throughout the project's life cycle. While for civil and construction industry, BIM was used to help increase predictability, efficiency and profitability also digitize the construction site and link the project data from design through construction and handover. For structural, it is used to explore how tools for structural design and detailing help to win new business and assist the project delivery.
MEP used BIM to improve the standard of the mechanical, electrical and plumbing design and interact in real time to assist the delivery process of the project and plant industry used it as it is more effective and collaborative operation of the design and installation of intelligent piping, structures, and processes during the project lifecycle and at hand-off. Therefore, this shows that the advantages of using BIM processes improved project management and communication with stakeholders, successful workflows, 3D visualizations, and subsequently improved project performance. As a result, Raza Ul Mustafa, Othman et al. (2018) indicated that joint cross-specialty operations and cooperation can be greatly facilitated, and strategies and designs can be reviewed for veracity and practicality well before the actual implementation process.
2.2 How is BIM related to safety?
In the last two decades, approximately 26,000 construction workers have died on the job in the United States, which equates to about five construction worker deaths per working day (Zhang, Teizer et al. 2013). The detection of all possible hazards in a construction project, as well as the decision to choose appropriate safety measures, is widely considered to be the primary component of safety planning, and how to handle such a phenomenon during the development of building or infrastructure design is a complex matter (Getuli, Ventura et al. 2017). When safety planning is done separately from project execution planning and construction methods, a problem arises. However, when safety planning includes multiple parties without a collaborative approach to design, critical problems can arise. As contended by Asadzadeh, Arashpour et al.
(2020), construction safety preparation can be described as a two-step phase consisting of the detection of hazards and the decision to choose the best possible safety measure before the construction task starts.
The solution to the agonizing problem of construction safety could be BIM technology.
According to Al-Ashmori, Othman et al. (2020) in their study revealed that knowledge of and application of BIM advantages may significantly improve the efficiency and performance of the project. It can be risky to work in construction field. Regardless of the steps that have been taken, there will still be injuries. In such situations, in attempt to shed some light on the circumstances in which the accident took place, BIM may be the best options. All project-related data can be easily recognizing the errors that contributed to the accident in that regard. Therefore, BIM is considered as a suitable platform for safety planning because through BIM, multiple parties such as designer, engineer, and contractor can access through this program including the subcontractor as it has the ability to improve building or infrastructure performance, improve teamwork and knowledge sharing among team members, and promote construction- related tasks which can minimizing the errors and misinterpretations between them as it can greatly enhance project planning and create improved coordination between the various sides of the project. Consequently, this will ensure the accuracy and reliability.
It is now understandable that BIM can have a better understanding of the possible risks that can affect a building or infrastructure project. The massive amount of data in
combination with the unhindered exchange of information between the various parties makes it possible to track the progress of the project more effectively. That can greatly assist in identifying the numerous on-site hazards. In a few terms, the less security risks can occur, the better the teamwork and project planning is.
According to Li, Yu, et al. 2018, BIM has become the main construction management platform in the construction industry due to its convenient multi-dimensional visualization, interactivity, and awesome sharing feature. Engineers can store and share engineering data in the BIM cloud. Additionally, since it has an interface feature, the platform can automatically extract internal and external engineering data. The most consistent and objective basis for assessing construction project safety risks is engineering data expressed in BIM models. This BIM model not only identifies risks for on-surface structures, but also risks for underground structures tilting, cracking, or collapsing, underground pipeline leakage or fracture, and current structure protection risks, which are all categorized as geological hazards because they include geological stratification, hydrology, and special geological distribution information. The expertise of BIM models, which is conveyed in an engineering language, can only be understood by trained experts in the relationship between safety risks and engineering information. To link engineering data extracted from BIM models to safety risks in the knowledge database automatically, the engineering data must first be translated into a programming language that the BIM system can understand.
Figure 2-1: The connection between engineering data and safety risks
Before using BIM to identify safety hazards, the engineers were given instructions on risk assessment and risk management, according to Li, Yu et al. (2018). There are several methods that were used especially for the underground construction which are geotechnical parameters and vulnerability index calculation via the development of the interaction matrix. Through this, the engineers were able to identify dangerous areas that were simply geotechnical hazards. Other than that, the severity and frequency of risk propensity events suggested by risk impact factors have also been calculated. By doing this, only the open-cut style underground station verified the model. Instead of using traditional method in this modern era, it is better to catch up with the current technology as it can ease all the related parties in this construction industry on minimizing the violation of safety rules in infrastructure projects by using BIM. Many countries have already implemented and begun to use BIM in their construction projects, such as state-owned investment projects and large public construction projects. Since 2011, BIM technology has been required by the state of Wisconsin and Taxes (Fountain, 2016). According to Doumbouya et al., 2016 certain Nordic countries, such as Norway, Finland, and Germany, have used BIM systems in approximately 70% of their construction industry, putting them ahead of other developed countries. According to Zhang et al., 2016, more than 500 collision points were detected through collision detection in the Xi'an metro construction project, where China Railway Design Institute integrated BIM platform-based pipeline and
infrastructure. This shows that BIM can recognize and identified the hazards that might occur in the construction project. Another example of a similar situation encountered by another construction project is the Shanghai metro project, which uses BIM for pipeline accident inspection and large-scale equipment installation to efficiently improve construction efficiency (Qian and Lin, 2016). As a result, it demonstrates that the BIM system can reduce the number of incidents that can occur during a construction project. It is possible to effectively monitor safety risks in construction projects by utilising the benefits of BIM technology. As argued by Kamaruzzaman, Chan et al. (2016), it proved that BIM, recognized as one of the most prominent characteristics that is rapidly changing the construction industry, is worth investigating and can effectively improve a safer workplace by enhancing communications, reducing mistakes by incorporating BIM architecture and collaboration functionality.
2.3 The importance of safety risk recognition as the first step in pre- construction stage
Architects, engineers, and contractors are interested in using visualisation software such as BIM because these tools have enormous potential for safety design and accident prevention (Alizadehsalehi, Yitmen et al. 2020). Major security advantage will be achieved if the BIM technology is applied at the early stages of the project.
Most literature and guidelines regard risk identification as an important stage and the first step in risk management. As a result, safety risk identification at the pre- construction level is important to identify potential hazards and enforce mitigation measures (Li, Yu et al. 2018). To put it plainly, engaging in the 'security by design' principle is a brilliant idea as through this process, it can be sure that many safety bottlenecks can be avoided from the beginning of the process. As designing through BIM, a 3D model of the construction project can be constructed and through this 3D model, it can show that it may lack some of safety factor. Therefore, by reading BIM models, experienced experts or engineers may identify them because there are relationships between engineering data and safety risk awareness. BIM-based safety planning being part of the standard construction planning process, according to Zhang, Sulankivi, et al. (2015), and it is a future goal that could lead to major improvements in security industry best practices. BIM-based modelling can help with safety understanding and communication when used during the engineering design and construction planning phases.
For instance of a situation in construction site, there might be a way to construct the framework of a building from the inside instead of the opposite direction. That could protect the on-site workers from an unsafe fall. Being able to simulate every single phase of construction will bring significant value to the effort to make the construction site safer. "Virtual safety tours" are a powerful feature that could be widely used in construction. This would allow virtual navigation around the construction site and a simple way to locate and eventually escape any dangerous circumstances. In addition, it is simpler for you to test various scenarios and come up with the most effective safety strategy possible. On this basis, you will later establish priceless protection protocols for the individuals who work on site.
According to Li, Yu, et al. (2018), some Nordic countries, such as Norway, Finland, and Germany, have used BIM tools in nearly 70% of their construction industry, far ahead of other developed countries. Many studies have taken safety factors into account by using BIM in the early stages of designing and planning, and some construction projects have taken the initiative to create interactive virtual environmental modelling to conduct training for workers on topics such as scaffolding fall hazards. Through this process, they developed scaffolding selection and inspection procedures to visually detect unsafe scaffolding conditions. While some of other researchers have applied BIM modelling to structural safety and productivity analysis during the process of design. Lee et al., introduced a formwork layout module and demonstrated the construction of a framework using BIM which contribute to reduction in workload compared to 2D-based drawing.
2.4 The importance of BIM on minimizing the violation of safety rules
2.4.1 Collection Centre
According to (Yu, Gao et al. 2016), BIM information collection center is mainly responsible for the information on the acquisition and construction site safety guidance, and for other on-site construction and mechanical marking of its real-time location to assess which is in the danger zone, such as the scaffolding and false work area of the materials yard and models, depending on the degree of hazard of the work area as the degree of risk-site construction environment is higher if the level is high.
Therefore, this shows that BIM was not only able to design and capture building and infrastructure plans, but through its collection center it also will be able to know the level of the danger and hazard of the area that will affect the field workers. Field workers are classified into general workers, skilled workers, and three kinds of groups of maintenance workers as different construction area allows employees to join different types of construction and touch hazardous areas due to different types and different circumstances. Cases of falls from a building protection case height and specifics of detection are shown in Table 1.
Table 2-1: Altitude fall danger zones and identifying details.
2.4.2 Early Warning System
As mentioned by (Yu, Gao et al. 2016), They want to decide if the workers in hazardous areas also need to organize the role of the space workers in the BIM information collection center for hazardous areas delineated site premise. In order to achieve human and mechanical positioning, it is therefore important to incorporate an early warning model positioning module. There are four elements of early warning systems include signal reception, signal transmission, signal input and statistical anomalies. Signal receipt means that when the data processing module reaches a certain limit to discover the position coordinates of workers to the dangerous area boundary distance, the module will give a warning label to the worker identification number worn, after receiving the signal, the warning module will start the programmed. Signal transmission means the identification number of the alert module, the number corresponding to the label sound and light alarm, sensing workers' risk is received. It applies to whether the feedback signal is to leave the hazard zone after the staff have received a warning signal. If the signal stop reacting and vice versa, alarm module will transmit to management staff, including an officer location, and number
of details which it will be easy-to-manage security inspectors that have been sent to the scene to view the situation. In the meantime the early warning module will continue to send an alert signal to the label, and the label will replied before the staff in the hazard zone have responded which it has the ability to detect it before others are aware with the situations. Violation statistics imply that the immediate danger zone violation would be reported once when staff got an alarm signal not left, to display the associated penalty points.
(Liu, Wu et al. 2015) stated that early warning module includes data receipt, launch, input on information and statistics. Reception is the computer-processed label feedback information, which it will found that the distance of staff from the dangerous area boundary is 0, so the early warning module tag information will be sent, and the early warning module will receive the information immediately after launch. After receiving the hazardous information, they need to refer to the early warning information launch module, fire alarm information, and the corresponding label tags such as a prompt response, which employees can be interpreted. Information input applies to employees who are out of the hazard zone after receiving the warning information. If workers escape the risk zone, the alarm signal interrupts the early warning module and, conversely, sends this information to managers to search the processing scene for management personnel. Statistics of violations relate to the workers received warning information that failed to leave the danger zone in due time, were reported in violation and managers will manage the workers to recognize the safety consciousness of workers on the construction site, and aimed at enforcing the safety education.
BIM are very effective on handling danger situation that occur on site where it will sent the early signal for us to aware of the situation that are happening and all the workers will be able to leave the danger area immediately. Hence, the number of accidents happen on construction site can be reduced and the workers can do their work in a safe environment without worried about their safety. But this does not mean that they can do their construction activity without complying to any safety rules.
2.4.3 Monitoring Centre
Yu, Gao, et al. (2016) found that as a monitoring center, BIM conducts real-time monitoring and data transfer to secure days generated by the control center, primarily on the construction site, in order to efficiently increase the level of on-site safety management. According to the division law, data center real-time monitoring array, the construction site for hazardous areas as well as job arrangement points for construction equipment, stacked points and field supplies, all hazards can be identified to detect the early warning system and danger signals to do the necessary treatment.
By monitoring the construction site, it will be able to detect the hazardous and danger area which preparation to counter the situation can be done and trained to the workers.
If any danger situation suddenly occurs, the construction workers will be prepared and know well how to handle such situations without feeling any fear.
2.4.4 Control Centre
As studied by (Yu, Gao et al. 2016), The Control Center will track the transition of consolidation of the data center and statistics will be collected in the statistics report on the day of unsafe conduct and incidents by written form to sign and confirm the construction site and rectification details notes to the safety control center, and then in each operating cycle weekend, all field protection situations entered the database in the form of a push message to the owners, so that they can access real-time details on the construction safety construction site in order to follow-up work on construction safety as a reference guide which through that data, they will be able to provide the safety guideline for all the people who work on site to handle that unsafe behavior and accidents in the future.
3.1 Introduction
Chapter 3: Methodology
In order to achieve the research's objectives, the method used to perform this study will be addressed in this section of the paper. The discussion of these considerations led to a clearer understanding of the research approach's appropriateness and ability to provide satisfactory answers to the study's questions. The compilation and review of survey data would assist in the collecting of important data.
3.2 Data Evaluation
Several activities will be carried out, and the study will be done with the desired outcomes. There are seven (7) primary tasks in the development of this project, which are as follows: -
1) Analyze previous BIM-related articles to gain a better understanding of the relevance of BIM in safety.
2) Develop a few questionnaires for respondents as part of a survey.
3) Collect the information (Primary data collection through Pilot Survey & Main data collection through Questionnaire.
4) Record the data acquired from the respondents.
5) Data Analysis & Discussion
6) Recommendations are written based on the data.
7) Final report writing for Final Year Project (FYP)
3.3 Research Methodology
This process begins with the gathering of background information through the preparation of a literature review, which examines how BIM relates to construction safety and the importance of safety recognition during pre-construction design.
Through this stage, it was defined on the basis of what the others learned by observing the analysis. The research questionnaire will then be prepared based on these considerations, importance lists and the objective of this project to meet the expectation goal. A method 'Pilot survey' or known as exploratory survey will be used for the questionnaire which all the question will be answered by various industrial professionals for analysis and input. The data processing stage will be used to refine the questionnaire based on the feedback and suggestions received from respondents. To know the application of BIM in minimizing the violation of safety rules in infrastructure projects, online and field surveys will be conducted. The aim of conducting such a survey is to verify the results of the literature review. To gain valuable information and arrange the conclusion in a more practical way, quantitative methods were subsequently used to interpret the results collected from the survey.
Primary Data Collection
• Pilot Survey
Main Data Collection
• Questionnaire
Data Analysis
• Relative Importance Index (RII)
• Average Index (AI)
• Cronbach's Alpha
Figure 3-1: Research Methodology
3.4 Data Collection
3.4.1 Primary Data
As this is a small-scale methodological inquiry, a pilot survey will be conducted for this primary data to ensure that the adopted methodology and measures are appropriate before the survey is conducted on a large scale. It is usually done to reinforce and strengthen the main survey before moving on to the more advanced data collection techniques, such as survey analysis. It gives researchers the opportunity to edit, analyze their study, and resolve any difficulties where, when implemented on a broad and costly scale, can affect the outcome of the study. The pilot survey can be used to estimate the amount of time it will take to complete the survey or to calculate the most efficient sampling unit size. It was conducted on a sample of primary respondents who later replied to the main survey. The final set of questionnaires will be revised after the respondents' suggestions and comments on the first draft of the questionnaire have been received, and the final set of questionnaires will be sent to the respondents for their responses. The questionnaire was divided into three sections: the first section, 'A,' inquired about the respondent’s background information, the second section, 'B,' inquired about the importance of BIM in minimizing violations of safety rules in infrastructure projects, and the third section, 'C,' inquired about the respondent's perception of BIM in minimizing violations of safety rules.
3.4.2 Main Data
In this report, there will be only one approach used to collect information on the importance of BIM on minimizing the violation of safety rules in infrastructure projects, which was questionnaires. The collection of data was based on qualitative analysis concerned with evaluating the objective theory proposed. It is known to be the predominant method of data collection for questionnaires. The survey questionnaire will be an online survey via "Google Forms". The respondents that involve in this questionnaire will be from
could recognize the importance of BIM in minimizing safety violations and how they felt about BIM.
3.5 Data Analysis Method
Data analysis is the method of analyzing data to carefully analyze each aspect of the collected or provided data using logical and analytical analysis. It is also one of the several steps that are taken when a research survey is carried out. Data is obtained from different sources related to the subject of study. When the data is gathered, it is then processed and analyzed to conclude or to make result. The information obtained will be reviewed to decreasing the probability of a certain decision.
There are three methods that will be used throughout this data analysis which were: -
• Relative Importance Index (RII)
• Average Index (AI)
• Cronbach’s Alpha
3.5.1 Relative Importance Index (RII)
This approach would quantify the relative importance factor that adds to the importance of BIM in minimizing violations of safety rules in infrastructure projects. The Relative Importance Index will be generated using a five-point scale ranging from 1 (extremely disagree) to 5 (strongly agree) for each factor (RII).
The Relative Importance Index (RII) Formula: -
𝑹𝒆𝒍𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝑰𝒎𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝑰𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒙(𝑹𝑰𝑰) = ∑𝑤 𝐴𝑁
3.5.2 Average Index (AI)
The study of this approach was based on the questionnaire's rating scale. The factor that has led to BIM 's importance in minimizing the violation of safety rules in infrastructure project that have the highest Average Index score means that the factor is the most effective. It will make it easier for the author to understand by this approach the perceptions and experience of respondents who have encountered or have the knowledge associated with this study.
The Average Index Formula: -
𝑨𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒂𝒈𝒆 𝑰𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒙 (𝑨𝑰) = ∑(𝛽 𝑥 𝜂) 𝑁
3.5.3 Cronbach’s Alpha
Cronbach’s alpha, α or known as coefficient alpha is a well-recognized method of measuring the internal consistency or reliability that Lee Cronbach developed in 1951. The alpha coefficient of Cronbach is the outcome of an internal consistency or reliability test. The alpha coefficient value of the Cronbach is between 0.0 and +1.0, the higher the internal consistency of the alpha value of Cronbach when it is nearer to 1.
The Cronbach’s Alpha Coefficient: - N x C̃
𝛼 = ṽ + (N − 1) x C̃
Rule of Thumb for Results: -
For dichotomous questions (i.e. questions with two possible answers) or Likert scale questions, a thumb rule will be applied for interpreting alpha which is:
Table 3-1: Cronbach's Alpha Consistency
3.6 Gantt Chart
Table 3-2: FYP I Gantt Chart
No Activity (FYP I)
2020
Sept Oct Nov Dec
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 1. Title Selection
2. Preliminary Research Work/Literature Review 3. Preparation for Interim Report
4. Proposal Defense Presentation 5. Submission of Draft Interim Report 6. Submission Final Draft of Interim Report
Table 3-3: FYP II Gantt Chart
No Activity (FYP II)
2021
Jan Feb March April
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 1. Finalize the questionnaire and interview question
2. Distribution of Questionnaires 3. Collection of Questionnaires
4. Identifying and Planning for Interviews 5. Data Analysis
6. Submission of Progress Report 7. Submission of Draft Final Report 8. Submission of Dissertation (soft bound) 9. Submission of Technical Paper
10. Oral Presentation
11. Submission of Project Dissertation (Hard Bound)
Chapter 4: Result and Discussion.
4.1 Introduction
In Chapter 4, all data collected and evaluated from the questionnaire will be discussed.
To address the intent of this report, Introduction, Respondent's Description, and Response to the Project's Purpose will be the three main parts of this chapter. The goal of this questionnaire was to discover the following:
• What is the importance of BIM on minimizing the violation of safety rules in infrastructure projects?
• What is the perception of construction professionals in Malaysia regarding BIM in controlling the violation of safety rules?
4.2 Respondent’s Description
The respondent survey was conducted during FYP 2 (January to March 2021). For this questionnaire, the respondents are from one of the ongoing infrastructure projects where they are mostly from the operation, M&E and safety department who joined this survey. For this pilot survey, 6 feedbacks were received while for main data survey,53 feedbacks were received, and all questions were answered perfectly. These surveys were carried out with the help of staff members who were either directly or indirectly known to the author. These staff who volunteered to answer the questionnaire are either currently working on an infrastructure project or have prior experience working on one. All these respondents' personal information will be kept private, as specified in the survey form's terms and conditions before they agreed to participate in the survey.
4.3 Respond Towards the Purpose of This Project 4.3.1 Pilot Survey Data
As mention before, Pilot Survey were conducted in a small scale, where only 6 people were involved in this survey. The purpose of this pilot survey was to know, other than research that have been conducted through research paper, from their point of view as an experience person in construction industry, what are the other importance of BIM on minimizing the violation of safety rules in infrastructure projects. Below is the result from pilot survey that have been conducted: -
Table 4-1: Other importance of BIM suggested.
Importance of BIM Number of people suggested
Hazard Stimulation 3
Managing and communicating construction safety plans
1
Safety Tracking 1
Smarter Risk Prediction 1
As previously mention, there are 4 importance of BIM where it was found from the research paper which are collection center, early warning system, monitoring center and control center. Instead of only having the information based on the research paper, the author wants to know about others opinion on the importance of BIM. Therefore, the 4 importance of BIM that was suggested by them were included in the questionnaires for main data.
4.3.2 Research Question 1
The importance of BIM on minimizing the violation of safety rules in infrastructure projects.
In research question 1, Likert scale questions were given to the respondent to know their opinion on the statement stated to know which one of the statements is more preferred by them as importance on BIM on minimizing the violation of safety rules based on their experience and knowledge in this field. Below are the results for each test that have been conducted: -
Relative Importance Index
Table 4-2: Relative Importance Index
No Statement RII
1 Collection Centre 0.574
2 Early Warning System 0.596
3 Monitoring Centre 0.558
4 Control Centre 0.521
5 Hazard Stimulation 0.698
6 Safety Tracking 0.687
7 Smarter Risk Prediction 0.672
8 Managing and communicating construction safety plans 0.687
Table 4-3: Rank of the statement based on RII result.
No Statement
1 Hazard Stimulation 2 Safety Tracking
3 Managing and communicating construction safety plans 4 Smarter Risk Prediction
5 Early Warning System 6 Collection Centre 7 Monitoring Centre 8 Control Centre
The relative importance index (RII) method was applied in this research question 1 to classify and ranking the importance of BIM on minimizing the violation of safety rules in infrastructure projects. Through this method, it shows that hazard stimulation was the most important factor that was preferred by the respondents as the importance of BIM on minimizing the violation of safety rules in infrastructure projects. Basically, Hazard stimulation is a
building mechanism that can be accelerated and rendered safer by adding significant value to the construction site by using BIM to perform virtual navigation around the site to identify problems and avoid hazards that are most likely to occur. Different hazardous conditions may be evaluated in order to establish a safety plan and build instructions for staff, making the engineers' and safety team's jobs easier. Therefore, this is the reason why it is most preferred by them as most of the other factor were conducted during the planning stage where before the construction activity was started as most of them were involved during construction phase started, therefore for them hazard stimulation would be preferable. Having hazard stimulation as the most voted statement does not mean that other factors are not the importance of BIM.
Others are also considered as importance of BIM where safety tracking is a place that BIM can store data on all materials, workers, and construction processes in order to monitor their protection. Complex situations gain access to data such as worker injuries in the workplace, workplace congestion, equipment, and material issues, which are captured by technology through sensors and tags. All of the data or information obtained is used to track safety models in the BIM Coordination Service. It will show how to use BIM to manage and communicate building safety plans for the following activities:
safety railing modelling, formwork plan with integrated fall prevention, and design for safety model testing. BIM-based safety demonstrations are a valuable tool for discussing and communicating safety concerns with the project team on the jobsite. Finally, using BIM in the early stages of design to include safety measures would result in smarter risk prediction. The concept of safety by design will help to prevent constraints from the start. Installing a chimney on a roof, for example, should be achieved from the inside rather than the outside to stop staff falling. The other four factors which are collection center, early warning system, monitoring system and control center was already being discussed in literature review.
Average Index
Table 4-4: Analysis Index
No Statement Analysis Index
1 Collection Centre 2.868
2 Early Warning System 2.981
3 Monitoring Centre 2.792
4 Control Centre 2.604
5 Hazard Stimulation 3.491
6 Safety Tracking 3.434
7 Smarter Risk Prediction 3.358
8 Managing and communicating construction safety plans
3.434
Totally Disagree Disagree
Neutral Agree
Strongly Agree
Based on the table above, it shown that the overall result of this average index is mostly in the range of neutral as it has the average index range from 2.5 to 3.5. This shows that the respondent has neither a positive response nor a negative response. As safety in BIM was considered as new where today the most sophisticated BIM can go up to 8D which means that the 8th dimension is about security on the project site where it embedded manuals and emergency plans which causes it prevents security issues (8D=
Safety). Therefore, some of them might be new to this where before there were only familiar with 3D, 4D, 5D, 6D and 7D which consists of visual, time, cost, operation, and sustainability.
Cronbach’s Alpha
Table 4-5: Cronbach's Alpha Result
No Statement Variance
1 Collection Centre 0.794
2 Early Warning System 0.773
3 Monitoring Centre 0.806
4 Control Centre 0.692
5 Hazard Stimulation 0.816
6 Safety Tracking 0.849
7 Smarter Risk Prediction 0.834
8 Managing and communicating construction safety plans
0.736
N, Number of respondents 53 C, Average covariance between the items 0.119
ṽ, Average variance 0.293
Cronbach’s Alpha 0.973
From the result, it shown that the result of Cronbach’s Alpha is 0.973 where it is considered as excellent internal consistency. High value indicate that the information gathered are reliable and consistent so that it could not be questions by others.
4.3.3 Research Question 2
The level of perception among the construction professionals in Malaysia of BIM on minimizing the violation of safety rules.
In research question 2, Likert scale questions also were given to the respondent to know their perception of BIM on minimizing the violation of safety rules in infrastructure project. In this research question, only analysis index and Cronbach’s alpha method will be used. Below are the results for the test that have been conducted: -
Average Index
Table 4-6: Analysis Index
No Statement Analysis Index
1 Do you aware that BIM is able to minimize the violation of safety rules in infrastructure project?
3.226
2 Do you think that safety aspect in BIM is important and needed in infrastructure project?
3.245
3 Is it helpful if using BIM in minimizing the violation of safety rules in infrastructure project?
3.358
4 Do you think that detecting the risks and hazard using BIM is easier compared to detect it manually
3.340
5 Do you think BIM can replace safety plans? 2.358
Totally Disagree Disagree
Neutral Agree
Strongly Agree
Based on the table above, it shown that the overall result of this average index is mostly in the range of neutral as it has the average index range from 2.5 to 3.5. Only one of the results for a statement ‘Do you think BIM can replace safety plan?’ was in range
of disagree as it has the average index from 1.5 to 2.5 This shows that the respondent has neither a positive response nor a negative response for the first four question while for the last question, most of them are not agree with the statement. So, based on the result it concludes that most of them are aware with the function of BIM in term of safety. The reason why most of the respondents were not agree with the last questions which related to the safety plans is because even BIM can detect all the hazard, safety plans still needed because safety plan is a document that sets out the procedures, rules, and regulations that will be enforced to keep workers safe during the construction process. The manual sets out guidelines for responding to safety accidents, such as rescue operations, emergency medical services, and post-incident evaluation procedures, in addition to concentrating on preventing injury. While the construction safety plan should be developed before the project begins, it should be a flexible document that can be easily modified as the project evolves, or new hazards emerge on the job site. Therefore, it shows how important safety plan is in the construction.
Cronbach’s Alpha
Table 4-7: Cronbach's Alpha Result
No Statement Variance
1 Do you aware that BIM is able to minimize the violation of safety rules in infrastructure project?
0.794
2 Do you think that safety aspect in BIM is important and needed in infrastructure project?
0.773
3 Is it helpful if using BIM in minimizing the violation of safety rules in infrastructure project?
0.806
4 Do you think that detecting the risks and hazard using BIM is easier compared to detect it manually
0.692
5 Do you think BIM can replace safety plans? 0.816 N, Number of respondents 53 C, Average covariance between the items 0.061
ṽ, Average variance 0.100 Cronbach’s Alpha 0.988
From the result, it shown that the result of Cronbach’s Alpha is 0.988 where it is considered as excellent internal consistency. High value indicate that the information gathered are reliable and consistent so that it could not be questions by others.
Chapter 5 : Conclusion and Recommendation
5.1 Conclusion
From the study, the importance of BIM on minimizing the violation of safety rules in infrastructure projects was found. Through the research that have been done, there were a lot of importance of BIM that was highlighted on the research paper which most of the importance that was mention in the article are about the safety prevention during planning stage of the project using BIM. By conducting the pilot survey for the people who are from operation, M&E and safety department of an ongoing infrastructure project, another four importance of BIM on minimizing the violation of safety rules in infrastructure project were suggested by them based on their opinion.
The suggested points then were included in the main survey to know which one will be the most importance of BIM on minimizing the violation of safety rules in infrastructure project. Based on the result, it shows that hazard stimulation ranks the first. This is because safety is very important in every construction project. Even before starting any activity for that day, a toolbox briefing will be conducted where safety aspect will be emphasized. Therefore, hazard stimulation using BIM would be very helpful in the construction project and preferred by them as it can analyze the hazard through virtual navigation around the site where any issues regarding safety can be detected through it and mitigation measures can be taken. Sometimes, even safety walkabout session was already conducted, there might be one or two things that they overlooked. Thus, through hazard stimulation using BIM we can widen our visual towards safety aspect and possible hazard that are possible to happen.
Based on the result also it shows that the respondents are aware with the function of safety in BIM where from the average index analysis result, they are mostly in the range of neutral which considered as either a positive or a negative response. As safety in BIM is considered as new, which is known as 8D, maybe it will take sometimes for them to be familiar with this new version on BIM as they might need to take a practice course on BIM.
For the conclusion, they are several importance of BIM on minimizing the violation of safety rules in infrastructure projects which are hazard stimulation, safety tracking,
warning system, collection center, monitoring center and control center. Besides, the author also can conclude about the respondent perception on BIM on minimizing the safety rules in infrastructure projects. As most of the respondent have less than 2 years’
experience in BIM, therefore their knowledge in BIM is limited as 8D or safety in BIM is new and that is why most of the result are in the range of neutral. Hence, the objectives of this research are achieved.
5.2 Recommendation
In order to have a better understand in this study, the author had come out with the following recommendations: -
➢ Author strongly recommends conducting the survey together with the design team to know their perspective and opinion on the suggested points on the importance of BIM on minimizing the violation of safety rules in infrastructure projects. This is because most of the construction projects in Malaysia that implement safety through BIM are during planning stage. Therefore, if in the future research, that would be good if there are some representatives from the design team as they can guide or show how BIM is related with safety using the software.
➢ Author strongly recommends conducting a simulation in BIM software regarding hazard simulation. As due to time limitation, it is not possible for the author to conduct the simulation.
➢ Author strongly recommends finding a respondent that have experience with BIM more than 2 years as they are more expert in this field. This is because most of the author respondents have less than 2 years’ experience so their knowledge on BIM is not as what the author expected.
➢ Author strongly recommends that in the future, if BIM will be fully utilised for safety purpose, the workers still need to have the knowledge on the safety like the current procedure which they need to attend safety induction. This is because we cannot 100% depend on the technology as sometimes error might occur.
References
1. Getuli, V., et al. (2017). "BIM-based Code Checking for Construction Health and Safety." Procedia Engineering 196: 454-461.
2. Li, M., et al. (2018). "An automated safety risk recognition mechanism for underground construction at the pre-construction stage based on BIM."
3. Zhang, S., et al. (2013). "Building Information Modeling (BIM) and Safety:
Automatic Safety Checking of Construction Models and Schedules."
Automation in Construction 29: 183-195.
4. Liu, H., et al. (2015). "Research on Integration System of Construction and Safety Monitoring Based on BIM and RFID " 7 2: 114-117.
5. Yu, Y., et al. (2016). "Research on safety management of building construction based on BIM and Internet technology " 7 3: 119-124.
6. Al-Ashmori, Y. Y., et al. (2020). "BIM benefits and its influence on the BIM implementation in Malaysia." Ain Shams Engineering Journal.
7. Alizadehsalehi, S., et al. (2020). "The effectiveness of an integrated BIM/UAV model in managing safety on construction sites." Int J Occup Saf Ergon 26(4):
829-844.
8. Asadzadeh, A., et al. (2020). "Sensor-based safety management." Automation in Construction 113.
9. Kamaruzzaman, S. N. B., et al. (2016). "How can BIM support Construction Safety Management? Development of SIM." MATEC Web of Conferences 66.
10. Khoshnava, S. M., et al. (2012). "Application of BIM in Construction Safety
": 155-160.
11. Li, M., et al. (2018). "Methodologies of safety risk control for China’s metro construction based on BIM." Safety Science 110: 418-426.
12. Raza Ul Mustafa, M., et al. (2018). "Development of BIM-Based Safety Management Model Focusing on Safety Rule Violations." MATEC Web of Conferences 203.
13. Zhang, S., et al. (2015). "BIM-based fall hazard identification and prevention in construction safety planning." Safety Science 72: 31-45.
APPENDIX
QUESTIONNAIRES
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QuestioDno you think that they are the importance of BIM on minimizing the violation of safety rules in infrastructure projects?
1
1
C.ollection Centre *
Mark only one oval.
1 2 3 4 5
Totally Disagree Strongly Agree
Pilot Survey
I am final year undergraduate students pursuing Bachelor of Civil Engineering (Hons) from Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS which currently doing a Final Year Project titled "The Study of BIM on Minimizing The Violation of Safety Rules in Infrastructure Project".
The purpose of this study is to highlight the importance of BIM on minimizing the violation of safety rules in infrastructure projects. Your participation will greatly contribute to the success of the survey. I am deeply appreciate your help in participating in this survey, and your responses will remain private and will be used strictly for academic purpose only.
Thank you.
*Required
Collection Centre
Collection Centre is mainly responsible for the information on acquisition and construction site safety guidance, and for other on-site construction and mechanical marking of its real-time location to assess which is in the danger zone, such as the scaffolding and false work area of the materials yard and models, depending on the degree of hazard of the work area as the degree of risk-site construction environment is higher if the level is high. Therefore, this shows that BIM was not only able to design and capture building and infrastructure plans, but through its collection center it also will be able to know the level of danger and hazard of the area that will affect the field of workers.
Early Warning System
In order to achieve human and mechanical positioning, it is therefore important to incorporate an early warning model positioning module as it is easier to decide whether the workers are in hazardous areas which will required to organize the role of the space workers in the BIM information collection center for hazardous area delineated site premise.
3
M.onitoring Centre *
Mark only one oval.
1 2 3 4 5
Totally Disagree Strongly Agree
C4.ontrol Centre *
Mark only one oval.
1 2 3 4 5
Totally Disagree Strongly Agree
Monitoring Centre
BIM performs real-time monitoring and data transfer to secure day created by the control center, mainly on the construction site, so that the level of on-site safety management can be effectively improved. By monitoring the construction site, it will be able to detect the hazardous and danger area which preparation to counter the situation can be done and trained to the workers.
Control Centre
The Control Center will track the transition of consolidation of the data center and statistics will be collected in the statistics report on the day of unsafe conduct and incidents by written form to sign and confirm the
construction site and rectification details notes to the safety control center
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Early Warning System * 2
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1 2 3 4 5
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Question 2
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Forms
Other than the points stated before, from your points of view, what are the other importance of BIM on minimizing the violation of safety rules in infrastructure 5. projects? *
G1.ender *
Mark only one oval.
Male Female
Prefer not to say
2
A.ge (years old) * Mark only one oval.
21 - 30 31 - 40 41 - 50 51 - 60
Survey Form
I am final year undergraduate students pursuing Bachelor of Civil Engineering (Hons) from Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS which currently doing a Final Year Project titled "The Study of BIM on Minimizing The Violation of Safety Rules in Infrastructure Project".
The purpose of this study is to highlight the importance of BIM on minimizing the violation of safety rules in infrastructure projects. Your participation will greatly contribute to the success of the survey. I am deeply appreciate your help in participating in this survey, and your responses will remain private and will be used strictly for academic purpose only.
Thank you.
*Required
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SECTION A Details of the respondent