The application of an integrated information modelling system for the construction industry

The inadequate infrastructure that exists for seamless project team communications has its roots in the fragmentation of the construction industry. The use of disparate computer-aided engineering (CAE) systems by most disciplines is one of the enduring legacies of this problem and makes information sharing and exchange between construction team members difficult and, in some cases, impossible. Further, the lack of effective co-ordination between stages of the construction process, the importance of integrating product and process modelling approaches with a view to developing a integrated modelling system that is applicable to all stages of a construction project’s life cycle, is being recognised. This paper presents a hyper-integrated product and process information modelling system (HIPPY) developed to manage information essential to construction team members on small to medium size building project (SMsBP), in order to establish a controlled information flow. The system framework builds on the concept of a unified relational database, and identifies the information requirements through the use of two established product and process modelling approaches (Ø and the unified modelling language UML), which have been utilised to develop and organise the information - in a hierarchical manner. The proposed integrated information model is demonstrated through the implementation of an integrated prototype system that reveals how the conceptual model (product and process -) relates to practice and presents the benefits that are gained from structuring the information related to construction site operations.