The main objectives of the UK Government's Construction Sector Deal are to build better homes and infrastructure projects that are more efficient, smarter and safer while reducing emissions and providing cleaner air at the same time. Over the past few years, some of these requirements have already been successfully addressed thanks to the application of the very latest advancements in collaborative 3D design and digital data management known as Building Information Modelling (BIM) across engineering and construction companies in the UK. However, the remainder of the supply chain which includes subcontractors, manufacturers, fabricators and trades people are still relying mostly on paper-based processes and 2D engineering drawings to deliver projects that have already been designed in 3D.
Particularly, the management and installation of reinforcing steel (rebar) which is a significant structural part of all concrete pours on any major project is complex with many parties and stakeholders. At each stage in the supply chain, steel is transferred from one company to another what may result in the loss of material identity and the use of material of dubious or unknown origin, and hence of unknown properties and performance. This requires effective management of the supply chain if construction projects are to be delivered on time, on budget and to the required quality with reliable estimation of the amount of embedded carbon within.
Such complexities, combined with the ongoing pandemic, provide a need for digital innovation and optimisation solutions. Therefore, our aim over the next 6 months is to establish the feasibility of a digital management of reinforcing steel testing, tracking and tracing as well as validation/assurance of designed versus delivered rebar in construction that will be driven by the existing 3D models from structural engineering all the way to robotic-driven fabrication and digitally verified installation on site.
"Rebar 4.0: Supply chain made smarter" embraces a collaborative approach from all stakeholders in the reinforcing steel value chain to digitise the whole process. It enables digital compliance checking and delivers a true digital twin representation of the built environment for handover.
AEC Delta Mobility
192,746
2019-02-01 to 2020-07-31
Collaborative R&D
"Our project will define a new open-source ecosystem developed in collaboration with internationally recognised engineering practices and construction firms, and standardisation support from the UK BIM Alliance and Building Smart International.
The project will deliver an open specification and an open-source reference implementation for data exchange in Architecture, Engineering and Construction (AEC) but also support further development of paid for services to drive adoption, commercialisation and long-term support of this technology. Our unique approach is expected to streamline the design process for manufacturing, reduce delays and thus directly increase productivity on a wide variety of multidisciplinary projects. This solution will help engage manufacturers in the early design stages and result in the increased pre-manufactured value of build assets across the construction sector.
We aim to iron out the manufacturing process at the earliest possible stages of the design phase by streamlining the data workflow so that everyone involved from the consultants to the manufacturers can access the same data from a single source.
Accessing required data is currently difficult due different parties involved in a single project using different file formats. Companies also depend on a single supplier for products and services which can lead to financial losses, especially if something is no longer needed over the course of a construction lifecycle. Open standard Industry Foundation Classes aimed for interoperability, but that is not suitable for manufacturing or large-scale architectural and infrastructure projects.
To address the above issues, we propose a novel open-source micro-services online framework that will enable the industry to exchange individual object-level changes across various applications, regardless of data format. Instead of exporting a whole file over and over again, our aim is to stream individual design changes to whichever application is conformant with our newly proposed _""AEC Delta Mobility""_ specification.
To achieve this, we will:
1. Define a new common interchange schema that is open and shared across various systems;
2. Specify a new technology so that different architecture, engineering and construction applications can communicate easily over the Internet;
3. Validate the proposed specification by creating a working reference implementation that connects open-source Speckle Works and 3D Repo with proprietary systems.
This will create an ecosystem with in-built security specification to ensure encrypted data transmission and authorship verification. The entire system will be tested on three live construction projects in the UK with project partners BuroHappold, Rhomberg Sersa, HOK and Atkins."
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