BIM Capability Audit of Contracting-Based Organisations

The UK government set up a BIM Task Group in 2011 to provide guidance and support to the industry. This paper reports on BIM Capability audits that were undertaken on two contractor-based organisations to assess their level of readiness to implement BIM level 2 and to highlight training and upskilling needs. The audits were undertaken using a detailed set of 80 questions covering technology, workflows, processes and business strategies. Follow up interviews were undertaken to clarify any ambiguities in the responses received. A vertical cross section of each organisation was audited in order to provide a fully representative sample of the companies as the implementation of BIM will have an impact on the whole business model of the firms. The organisations had differing aspirations and timescales for the implementation of BIM and to some extent this was demonstrated by the outcome of the audits. The results were found to be consistent with the findings of another major similar HS2 upskilling study which the authors were also involved in.