Ricardo Codinhoto

The progressive paradigm shift in the preservation of built cultural heritage has led experts in the field of heritage conservation to move from a curative to a preventive approach. In view of this, digital methodologies such as HBIM (Heritage Building Information Modelling) and DT (Digital Twin) technology are an important alternative. In this sense, this article presents the results of a doctoral thesis, which aimed to demonstrate the possibilities of HBIM-DT, proposing a Facilities Management (FM) model for the preventive conservation of Modern heritage. The research methodology is pragmatic in nature and relies on an inductive theoretical approach. The methods for testing and evaluating involve mixed methods, and a multiple case study was defined as the research strategy. The cases chosen are examples of Brazilian Modernist architecture in the city of Rio de Janeiro: the Gustavo Capanema Palace, the Arthur Neiva Pavilion and the FGV Complex. The research includes document analysis and classification of corrective maintenance services, supported by HBIM-DT solutions, for heritage preservation, as well as recognition of aspects related to FM for information management of historic buildings. Finally, the HBIM-DT management model for Modernist heritage is presented, based on the mapping of critical services and activities.

Inadequate infrastructure and low-quality public spaces in Social Housing Projects (SHP) negatively affect residents’ well-being, compounded by a lack of participation that prioritizes cost reduction over user needs. Evidence-based design, common in healthcare, can improve SHP quality by integrating evidence into design processes, but its use is limited. This paper presents a study on evaluation methods, highlighting the recommended types of methods for participatory design processes and decision-making involving multidisciplinary stakeholders. A workshop with practitioners and academics examined the design and approval processes of SHPs, revealing issues such as market-driven priorities, unclear regulations, and insufficient collaboration, thus highlighting the need for more transparent and evidence-based approaches. A literature review also identified tools to align design decisions with user needs, but issues such as complexity, lack of knowledge, costs, and cultural barriers hinder their implementation. The research emphasizes the need to adapt these tools to the SHP context, fostering evidence integration and collaboration in housing projects.

Estudos sobre a implementação do BIM indicam que a falta de qualificação profissional é uma barreira à implementação do BIM. No entanto, apesar da aprendizagem colaborativa contribuir para a remoção dessa barreira, há poucos estudos que exploram essa abordagem. Este artigo aborda esta lacuna, por meio da análise dos resultados de um programa baseado na abordagem da aprendizagem colaborativa para implementação do BIM em uma pequena empresa de projetos de engenharia. O método de pesquisa baseia-se em pesquisa-ação envolvendo análise documental e grupo focal. Como instrumento de aprendizagem, a pesquisa focou em aprendizagem de BIM em equipes em projetos reais. Os resultados, únicos em relação a aprendizagem e BIM, corroboram pesquisas anteriores em outras áreas em que o engajamento dos indivíduos é crucial à construção da cultura e do conhecimento. Os resultados demonstram que a abordagem de aprendizagem colaborativa é um importante instrumento pedagógico para ação mediada, influenciando em mudanças culturais necessárias à implementação do BIM.

Advancing digitalisation and sustainability is a worldwide priority for the construction sector. With intertwined agendas, digitalisation enables the achievement of sustainable outcomes. That is the case of EU initiatives exploring building information modelling (BIM) as a facilitator to circular economy (CE). Thus, standardising BIM implementation through the ISO 19650 information requirements represents a stepping stone towards CE and achieving better sustainable outcomes. Concerning standardisation, a unified digitalisation vision is under development for the European public sector as part of the European Green Deal. However, the EU has already identified that the proposed digitalisation approach had limited effect on extensively achieving sustainable outcomes. Among the issues is the high complexity that hinders small to medium-sized enterprise (SME) construction organisations from contributing. This problem is exacerbated by the limited amount of published scientific research evidence explaining how SMEs incorporate resource-hungry digital processes into their resource-limited business models. Therefore, to understand better the digitalisation for sustainability success cases within European SMEs, this paper presents the results of a state-of-the-art literature review of academic articles, followed by a state-of-evidence review of grey literature. The focus of the review is Dutch small architectural practices (SAPs). The results highlight the importance of project information requirements for SMEs and the multifaceted digitalisation challenges experienced by SAPs and building design SMEs. This paper also suggests future research areas focusing on innovation realisation.

The digital transformation of operation and maintenance (O&M) activities has been guiding the facilities management sector towards a strategic role focused on the performance of businesses and sustainable use of natural resources over assets’ lifecycles. Despite the application of information and communication technologies (ICTs), such as building information modelling (BIM) and the Internet of Things (IoT), demonstrating potential for improving such practices, evidence related to its implementation process from an FM professional’s perspective is still much needed to unlock billions of USD trapped in inefficient and fragmented processes. This research seeks such evidence by characterising current and potential applications of BIM and IoT-based solutions for FM, specifically on maintenance services. This exploratory research is based on a multiple case study where three universities’ FM sectors were investigated. Data collection and analysis included semi-structured interviews, focus groups, and inductive content analysis. By considering technology as a scaffold to enhance human activities, the investigation provided a deep understanding of technological, procedural, and policy issues in implementing BIM and IoT-based solutions in FM activities and their related benefits and limitations. Clarifying the necessary resources for such implementation could support FM sectors and organizations in justifying human and financial investments and planning the gradual digital transformation of services.

Building Information Modelling (BIM) has been extensively studied and applied within the AEC sector, particularly in design and construction. In recent years, Facility Management (FM) processes are becoming more digitalised, thus requiring effective BIM-FM integration. BIM adoption in many countries, such as the UK, Italy and Brazil, has been publicly driven. Generally, adoption was targeted at design and construction implementation, with little effort in framing public action for FM implementation. The lack of an integrated approach for BIM-FM implementation resulted in numerous bespoken implementation approaches that mimic the private sector and hinder knowledge exchange. Therefore, there is a need for assessing and amalgamating knowledge about BIM-FM for public organisations. This research aims to leverage knowledge about BIM-FM in the public domain by analysing and classifying articles published between 2010–2021. The research was carried out through a systematic review and comparative thematic analysis investigating the use of BIM for different public buildings (e.g., schools and hospitals) and the implementation for FM purposes. Research results outline prevalent trends and areas of research from three perspectives: people, process and technology. Results show an increasing number of publications about BIM-FM. However, the divide between BIM-FM for public and private organisations is unequal. BIM-FM research for public organisations is still limited and lacks standardisation. This state-of-the-art review makes an incremental contribution to knowledge by identifying progress, gaps and new industry directions on the subject matter.

Reactive maintenance (RM) is a core service of the operation and maintenance (O&M) phase, the most prolonged and costly within the building lifecycle. RM is characterised by inefficient asset information and communication management, impacting critical FM problems and users’ experience. Building information modelling (BIM) and Internet of things (IoT) has enabled the development of digital twins, moving facilities management (FM) from a reactive approach towards a predictive one. Although previous studies have investigated the application of such technologies to FM, there is a lack of understanding on procedural issues related to its implementation in FM and RM. This research aimed to characterise strategies and decisions involved in prototyping a BIM and IoT-based smart-lighting maintenance system and identify its potential impacts on universities’ maintenance processes. The adopted research strategy and data collection methods involved prototyping, questionnaires, and interviews. The results show a high level of complexity in converging maintenance needs and technological abilities for FM and the importance of procedures and standards at organisational and industry levels. Moreover, it evidenced that the automation of functions and the centralisation of information enabled by BIM and IoT can optimise service provision, generate environmental and efficiency gains, and improve users’ safety and satisfaction.