KSCE Journal of Civil Engineering (0000) 00(0):1-12 Construction Management

Copyright ⓒ2014 Korean Society of Civil Engineers

DOI 10.1007/s12205-015-0677-5 pISSN 1226-7988, eISSN 1976-3808
www.springer.com/12205
TECHNICAL NOTE

The Development Direction for a VDC Support System based on BIM

Tae Wook Kang* and Je Yoon Woo**
Received November 11, 2013/Revised March 25, 2014/Accepted July 24, 2014/Published Online March 23, 2015

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Abstract

A Building Information Modeling (BIM)-based Virtual Design and Construction (VDC) support system is required to satisfy
project order requirements and productivity effectively during building design, construction, and operational phases using BIM
technology. The present study defined the development direction that a BIM technology-based VDC support system should take. To
achieve this goal, we determined the awareness level of the VDC support system of BIM specialists in Korea through a survey and
performed an analysis based on the expected outcome, actual outcome, and hindrance factors. The result of the survey was analyzed
statistically, and different viewpoints were assessed with a questionnaire according to the areas of expertise and the experience of the
respondents. In addition, we analyzed comparisons with field cases and found significant differences in the expected outcome, actual
outcome, and hindrance factors according to the areas of expertise and the experience of the respondents. Based on these results, we
proposed a VDC support system and a roadmap and framework based on the VDC industry maturity model.
Keywords: BIM, VDC, development consideration, roadmap, support system framework
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1. Introduction construction processes, which have been applied in Korea widely,

Virtual Design and Construction (VDC) is the management of
integrated multi-disciplinary performance models of design-
construction projects including building design and construction
projects, work processes, and organizations (Wikipedia, Virtual
design and construction). Building Information Modeling (BIM)
is a modeling technology that represents physical and functional
characteristics of buildings digitally. BIM is an explicit tool to
implement VDC.
Recently, the VDC system, including the BIM technology, has
expanded in Korea and overseas, a development that can be seen
in large-size civil projects in the UK and Qatar, who frequently
use BIM, and in the growing requests for mandatory BIM
scheduling documents in management and maintenance of
facilities. In Korea, the Virtual Construction Research Center
started VDC-related technology reviews and development with
BIM-related projects in 2006, and BIM technology has been
used widely for clash detection in construction projects. However,
it is difficult to improve construction industry productivity without
changing the work environment when only parts of the VDC-
related technologies are applied.
The benefit of VDC can be maximized when information as
detailed as possible regarding construction is available in advance
at the design phase for virtual design and construction. It is
difficult for traditional Design–Bid–Build (DBB) process-based
to consider construction information at the design phase because
DBB-based processes develop a construction model after design
completion. Therefore, it has been requested that construction
processes include construction and management information at
the design phase as implemented in the Integrated Project Delivery
(IPD) mode.
Construction processes can be expanded naturally when their
systems change according to organizational or industrial maturity.
Thus, a method is required to measure organizational maturity
and determine its current status. In addition, the need for library
support should also be addressed to reduce modeling time for a
large number of construction buildings at the design phase.
To increase construction industry productivity with the VDC
system, it is necessary to improve these methods and the
environment for work performance. To achieve this objective,
technology development and application as well as public support
and developments in systems and environments are required. In
Korea, the current BIM roadmaps, instructions, and training
certificate schemes of private institutions and academic societies
have been conducive to BIM-based VDC project orders from
public and private institutions. This technology has been expanded
through private BIM communities and is actively being utilized.
This technology has been employed for simple cases, such as
clash detection through BIM and 3D modeling; Revit, Archicad,
Tekla, Civil3D, and Microstation are recent examples. Thus,

*Member, Senior Researcher, ICT Convergence Lab, Korea Institute Construction Technology, Goyang 411-712, Korea (Corresponding Author, E-mail:
laputa99999@gmail.com)
**Senior Research Fellow, ICT Convergence Lab, Korea Institute Construction Technology, Goyang 411-712, Korea (E-mail: jywoo@kict.re.kr)

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 Tae Wook Kang and Je Yoon Woo

Fig. 1. Relationship between VDC and BIM

workers and engineers in the field have pointed out the need to
improve workforce training in VDC-related technology, BIM
libraries, compensation systems for project orders, and construction
process systems.
Accordingly, many researchers have studied BIM education or
library development, but most have failed to identify its impli-
cations through comparative analysis of all factors from an integ-
ration perspective. In addition, few studies regarding the obstacles
facing VDC support system development in the public domain
have been conducted.
The VDC support system, which is based on BIM technology,
is necessary to satisfy project order requirements and productivity
during the design, construction, and operation phases.
The VDC support system consists of engineering decision
making including BIM, 4D (schedule), and 5D (cost) simulation
and analysis functions, and a business performance matrix analysis
function. It would be beneficial to have construction information
modeling at the design phase through BIM technology for
simulations that can construct a building virtually and review
problems. Since the dimension of construction information is
added to 3D shape in BIM, 4D and 5D functions included in the
VDC can be supported. Figure 1 shows this well.
In this study, obstacles to supporting the VDC system in the
public domain are analyzed, and support system development is
considered. The VDC support system consists of the components
listed in Table 1. Among them, the BIM Library, BIM information
classification system, and BIM quality validation system are
directly related to BIM.
The scope of this study is limited to identifying the direction
for the VDC support system through gap analysis between more
advanced nations and Korea regarding the above components,
the expected and actual outcomes of the VDC, and analysis of
obstacle factors.
To achieve these goals, a survey was conducted to determine
the awareness and seek the advice of BIM specialists in Korea.
Questionnaires were subsequently created to determine the
expected outcome, actual outcome, and obstacle factors; these
were distributed three times to practitioners. The results of the
survey were statistically analyzed to determine differences in the
viewpoints of the respondents, workers, and engineers, based on
their areas of expertise and experience. The analysis demonstrated
that significant differences existed in the expected outcome,
actual outcome, and hindrance factors according to these areas
and experiences. Based on this result, VDC support system
development was discussed.
2. Study Methodology
The present study compared and analyzed the VDC system to
ensure that its development proceeds in the right direction on a
national level. To identify the development direction in a practical
work environment, research was conducted as follows:
1. We conducted an analysis and comparison of previous stud-
ies of the BIM technology-based VDC system.
2. We interviewed experts in BIM-based VDC project perfor-
mance to create an awareness survey at the national level.
Through this process, the direction of the survey was identi-
fied, providing a foundation for the development directives

Table 1. Analysis of the Study Trend

Category Description
Roadmap to develop and apply the VDC support system to the overall Architectural, Engineering, and Construction
VDC roadmap
(AEC) industries step-by-step.
VDC maturity and perfor-
VDC maturity and performance evaluation tools required to develop the VDC roadmap step-by-step.
mance evaluation tools
BIM Library Standard library for standardized information recycling and securing work productivity in BIM.
BIM information classifi-
BIM object information classification system for rapid information searching and classification by users.
cation system
A system required to execute the VDC process effectively, which should provide the following three VDC execution pro-
cesses as institutionalized guidelines.
VDC process execution
1. An execution process required for planning and delivering for the building project.
system
2. An execution process required for building information modeling.
3. An execution process required for building information operation, management, and utilization.
BIM quality validation A system to validate whether the results of BIM have errors or omissions to assure error-free utilization of the BIM infor-
system mation.

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 The Development Direction for a VDC Support System based on BIM
Fig. 2. Research Flow
of the VDC support system. The survey content excluded
Industry Foundation Class (IFC)-based information stan-
dardization, which has been actively studied, and it included
the awareness of the gap between Korea and more advanced
nations in seven items: a roadmap for VDC system support,
maturity model and performance evaluation tools, BIM
library support systems, an information classification system
for BIM interconnection, a plan for performing the national
BIM process, a BIM model validation systems, and VDC
center development for continuous institutional support.
3. We interviewed practitioners, such as architects and engi-
neers, who had worked on VDC projects. These interviews
were statistically processed, permitting us to identify the
expected outcome, actual outcome, and obstacle factors for
VDC support system development.
4. We identified and considered the results of the experts and
workers, in light of VDC support system development.
Figure 2 is a study flowchart that describes our study
methodology.
3. Related Studies and Development Trend
3.1 Analysis of the Study Trend
The representative study trend in relation to our study was
analyzed.
1) An investigation of the BIM application roadmap was ordered
by the Public Procurement Service of Korea for public procure-
ment systems, studies of policy application and enforcement, and
measures for work standards development were found (building
SMART, June, 2010).
2) We located a study of the roadmap proposal for BIM
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application in civil engineering, but it is only a conceptual frame-
work which is based on road sectors (Kim et al., 2012).
3) Among BIM maturity and performance evaluation measure-
ment tools, the NBIMS I-CMM of the U.S. is widely known; it
uses weight-assigned evaluation criteria to develop tools that
determine BIM maturity level (McCuen, 2008).
4) A VDC Scorecard was developed by the Center for Integrated
Facility Engineering (CIFE) Center of Stanford University and
commercialized recently under the name of bimCORE; it permits
project customers as well as design and construction companies
to receive trusted advice throughout the world; and it is a system
that optimizes technical performance and project performance
in all phases, from feasibility studies to facility maintenance
(bimSCORE, 2011).
5) There were studies of the development of BIM performance
evaluation tools (Kang, 2013) and 6) architectural design work-
based information utilization level measurement model (Choi, 2013).
This model is not mature enough to overcome the lack of
databases and reliability; it only provides evaluation criteria.
7) Regarding the BIM library, a study was conducted on
mechanical equipment (Kim, 2010).
8) We also looked into investigations of project management
(Jeon, 2011); 9) maintenance (Kim, 2010); 10) information
standardization (Lee, 2011); 11) implementation methods (Cho,
2012); 12) BIM library ecosystem development (Chung, 2013);
and 13) BIM library development for green building assessment
(Hong, 2013).
14) Regarding the information classification system of BIM
information utilization, we referred to a study on classification
measures for building parts and elements (Kang et al., 2009),
which also partly touches on the BIM library and 15) construc-
tion information classification analysis (Moon, 2013)
16) A case study and research exist on overseas BIM performance
planning requests (Yun et al., 2011); 17) BIM capability evaluation
of design organization (Lee et al., 2011); and 18) the BIM maturity
matrix (Succar, 2010).
19) Regarding BIM model quality validation, we consulted an
investigation of quality validation measures (Seong et al., 2010);
20) one containing quality validation case studies (Jeong et al.,
2010); 21) another of quality management criteria and development
(Choi, 2011); and 22) one on guidance for quality management
(Yu, 2013).
The study was divided into categories to analyze the study
trend as shown in Table 2. The study phases for the VDC support
system in each row of the table were defined as a phase of
foundational study in which the study of concepts/needs/obstacle
factors is conducted, a phase of technology/implementation
study, in which technology is developed and applied, a phase of
standard/guidance study, in which technology is complete and
standardization and guidance are produced, and a phase of case
analysis study, in which technology is applied in the field, and
lessons from it are obtained. The component category of the
VDC support system in the left column of the table was limited
to the scope of this study, which were the VDC roadmap which
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 Tae Wook Kang and Je Yoon Woo
Table 2. Analysis of the Study Trend
Foundational
Category
study
VDC roadmap 1), 2)
VDC maturity and performance evaluation tools 5)
BIM Library 11) 12)
BIM information classification system 11) 15)
VDC process execution system
BIM quality validation system 19)
is a framework of the VDC support system, VDC maturity and
performance evaluation tools that can set milestones in the roadmap
and verify success or failure, a BIM library that can reduce
workload and standardize BIM modeling, a BIM information
classification system which is essential for information verification
and searches in terms of BIM information recycling, a VDC pro-
cess execution system which is needed to execute and manage
VDC in terms of project levels, and a BIM quality validation
system that can inspect the quality of BIM models after delivery
to the project customer.
The VDC support system study trend is summarized in Table 2.
The following can be deduced from Table 2.
First, many individual studies are conducted without considering
maturity. The quality validation system, process execution system,
and the library should be studied by taking the maturity of each
nation’s construction industry into consideration. Second, the
BIM library and information classification system are commonly
related; hence, many contents overlap. These related contents, all
of which are required for BIM information reutilization, are
limited in existing information classification systems. Third, in
the case of the library, many studies are related to technology
development which is dependent on specific modeler techno-
logies, since configuration information modeling differs among
modelers; this feature leads to diverse storage and utilization
structures that are limited by specific technologies. In order to
generalize further the reutilization scope of the library, a study of
the measures for separation and utilization of configuration and
attribute information is needed.
3.2 Main Overseas Trend Analysis
Regarding the VDC support system, the following includes the
main overseas trend analysis.
The B/555 Committee of the UK has developed a construction
information exchange method that includes national standards,
drawings, and documents based on computer modeling, and it
has undertaken activities based on ISO international standards.
The B/555 BIM roadmap is characterized by a defining framework
in which guidelines, classification systems, and library systems are
related through the national construction industry maturity model. In
relation to the standards of B/555 BIM roadmap, the application
levels for enforcement of drawing creation guidelines (BS 1192-
5:1998, ISO 13567-2), project delivery systems, library systems,
information classification systems (Uniclass), information security
systems (BS 7799-2, BS ISO/IEC 17799:2000) are determined
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Standard/ Technology/ Case analysis
Guidance study Implementation study study
3) 4) 6)
10) 7), 8), 9) 13)
10) 14)
17) 18) 16)
21), 22) 21) 20)
according to the industrial maturity level, which is well advanced and
systematic (Building Information Modeling Working Party, 2011).
For the study of the BIM library, the national BIM library of
the UK was accessed (BIM Library, 2013); its foundational
libraries are available on its web site. The original files and
manuals, including the most widely used modeler and IFC files
and web services for catalog searches, are provided (http://
www.nationalbimlibrary.com/). In Melbourne, the Australian
and New Zealand Revit Standards (ANZRS) has been published
by the Revit Technology Conference (RTC) in 2009 in order to
define various practical working requirements for construction,
structures, facilities, and electricity as well as family parameter
types and names for each sector (ANZRS, 2013).
The study of the information classification system, which is the
core of information reutilization within the VDC support system,
was conducted in many nations taking the BIM library develop-
ment and future utilization into consideration in each. The
representative classification system is the Uniclass classification
system developed by the Construction Project Information
Committee (CPIC) in the UK It is based on the classification of
ISO TR14177, which mainly provides construction information.
Furthermore, COBie, which was developed to support information
exchange from the viewpoint of facility management, supports
process-based representation modes that add the information of
participating project stakeholders during the design, construction,
and post-construction phases; it manages data with a spreadsheet
format and creates data through the Model View Definition
(MVD) conversion in the IFC.
As for the study of the VDC performing instruction, the U.S.
General Services Administration (GSA) has developed 3D and
4D-BIM programs since 2003 and has requested that all the
designers submit BIM-formatted documents and not existing
design drawings from late 2006. In addition, the GSA guide was
developed for the purpose of facilitating the application of BIM
adoption by other federal institutions. It deals with overall content
such as modeling, facility management, energy performance, and
operation. Senate Properties in Finland has developed the Senate
Properties Guide which aims to provide common work methods
and application criteria for BIM introduction and application in
construction project activities and flows. The BIM guideline of
the Department of Veterans Affairs of the U.S. differentiates
building objects based on Omniclass. In the American Institute
of Architects (AIA) Document E202 (2008), an information
level is divided into LOD100 to 500 for modeling.
KSCE Journal of Civil Engineering
 The Development Direction for a VDC Support System based on BIM

The e-Plan Check, which is widely known as a study of the
BIM validation support system, is an automation regulation check
system and a part of the e-submission system. This system was
developed by the collaboration of 16 institutions, including the
Ministry of Construction and Transportation of Singapore, to
examine 4 related regulations, including facility installation, disability
accommodations, and building fires. AutoCodes, which was
recently developed in the U.S., aims to support fast planning
review from various aspects using automated software tools,
such as the Solibri Model Checker (SMC) to examine quality,
consistency, and safety criteria.
The nations that operate the most systematic BIM technology-
based VDC support system are the UK and the U.S. The UK has
developed legislation for VDC system support and B/555, which
is the British Standards Institution (BSI) Committee, and has
implemented a BIM roadmap strategy. Based on this roadmap
and maturity model, components for the VDC support are
configured and developed as a framework. The U.S. has developed
the guideline of the GSA, while the private sector has established
related technologies to apply BIM. Singapore has quickly adopted
the system. In contrast, Korea has not considered the maturity
model required for VDC system application. Even if a roadmap
has been proposed, no systematic development has been done.
4. Main Body
4.1 Interviews with Experts
To examine the technological gap between Korea and other
advanced nations regarding effects and obstacle factors of the
BIM-based VDC support system, a survey was conducted for a
month in May 2013 with 19 experts who have experience and
related research and field skills. Among them, 14 responded. The
experts were selected through a purposive sampling process in
consideration of recommendation of the related stakeholders and
industry reputation by dividing them into government, industrial,
and academic fields to guarantee representation as much as
possible. Note that those who responded to the survey had at
least 15 years of experiences in the building industry and at least
7 years of BIM execution and research.
Here, more advanced nations refers to those that produce
tangible productivity effects through BIM-based VDC, develop
and employ systematic roadmaps, and enact and support legislation
for VDC system assistance. Experts who were interviewed
included professors of buildingSmart Korea, the Korean Institute
of BIM, the construction companies that use BIM, and officials
and managers of companies that conducted BIM-based VDC
pilot projects in the recent construction undertakings of Korea.
The affiliations of the experts who participated in the survey are
summarized in Table 3 by government, industry, and academia.
VDC development is divided into the phases of starting VDC
in the public domain, planning, pilot application, practical appli-
cation, and expansion to the private domain.
The difference of awareness of the application levels of the VDC
between the more advanced nations that developed the VDC
legislation and the roadmap for the VDC in Korea is shown in
the following Table 4.

Table 3. Classification of the Affiliations of the Survey Participants

Government or public institutions
Three government organizations:
M- Government Organization, L-
Public Corporation, and H- Cor-
poration
Industry Academics Research institutions
Five companies: Construction Economy
Six universities professors from Two research institutions of K-
Research Institute of Korea, building
S- Uni., Y- Uni., C- Uni., K- Research center and R- Research
SMART Korea, S- company, SS- company,
Uni., D- Uni., and C- Uni. center.
and D- company

Table 4. Gap Awareness of each Item Compared to Advanced Nations

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 Tae Wook Kang and Je Yoon Woo
Regarding the awareness of VDC application between Korea
and other advanced nations, our results showed a gap in all the
items; in some items, a large gap was found. To compare the
difference in detail, a model of a VDC development level was
defined on the basis of a maximum score of 10. In this model, the
difference of the VDC application level was calculated as a
weight per application level phase.
ω = {0,2,4,8,10} ω = Weight per step
f(ω, n, i) = (ωi+1)×ni
n=5 f(ω, n, i) = Weight per step in consideration of fre-
s= ∑ f ( w, n, i ) quency
i=1
s = Total weight in consideration of frequency
n=5
t = ∑ ni t = total frequency
i=1
ρ = s/t ρ = VDC development level
The result of the gap awareness assessment is shown in
descending order: VDC roadmap, process execution system,
information classification system, quality validation system, maturity
and performance evaluation system, and library, beginning with
the largest gap. In particular, the VDC roadmap, process execution
system, and information classification system had the largest
gaps when compared to the advanced nations; these are the items
that require the most improvement.
The BIM library and performance evaluation system were
regarded as useful in the application phase by some in Korea, but
the gap with the more advanced nations was much as 3.9. In
particular, the BIM library and performance evaluation system
are quite important because they are related to design productivity
and quality and the maturity model during roadmap development.
Therefore, support systems for them should be developed at the
national level by reviewing the practical working environment in
detail.
Considering that the most advanced nations have developed
five-year programs to reach the expansion phase, Korea lags more
than two years behind in VDC development. This gap indicates
that Korea is less competitive in BIM-related projects both at
home and abroad. As large construction projects such as overseas
projects of C and Q more often require mandatory BIM execution
planning, this awareness gap could be a major factor to decrease
the bidding competitiveness of construction companies from
Korea who compete with other companies in foreign nations to
get overseas projects.
4.2 Interview with Practitioners
To analyze the expected outcome, actual outcome, and obstacle
factors of the VDC system expressed by the practitioners, offline
Table 6. Importance and Urgency of Public Support for the VDC System
−6−
Table 5. Gap Awareness of each Item Compared to other Advanced
Nations
and online interviews were conducted for 3 weeks from 15 June
2013 using surveys based on job categories and other the items.
The survey results were analyzed statistically to find significant
differences by jobs.
In the survey to find awareness of the practitioners, data from
47 of 52 respondents (those with missing data were eliminated)
were analyzed (offline responses, 41; online responses, 11). Jobs
were divided into 5 categories: policy/administration, delivering/
management, construction, design/engineering, and CM/research/
development/consulting in order to determine the difference
between groups who were deemed to be in positions to negotiate
the VDC process.
Of the 5 job categories, design/engineering accounted for
42.6%, which was the largest proportion, while construction
accounted for 6.4%, the smallest proportion. Among the respon-
dents, those with more than 20 years of job experience accounted
for 31.9%, the largest proportion. The proportion of those with
less than 10 years of job experience equaled 48.9%, nearly half
of the total respondents. BIM project experience of 1 ~ 4 years
accounted for 66%, and the rest, who had less than 1 year of BIM
experience, accounted for 42.6%.
Since the survey consisted of a 5-step Likert scale, the present
study items with a median value of greater than 3 were considered
as important factors. Based on this criterion, a t-test was conducted.
Tables 7, 8, and 9 show that 7 items in the expected outcome, 2
items in the actual outcome, and 9 items in the obstacle factors
were statistically significant (p = 0.05).
As shown in the tables, the actual outcome differed from the
expected outcome while using the BIM-based VDC system. Only
Q6a and Q6c were evaluated as positive effects, with p = 0.05,
when using the VDC system. Based on the above results, the
expected outcome of VDC was high; however, because of various
obstacle factors, the experts were aware of utilization only in the
improvement of constructability using 3D model visibility and
clash detection.
An additional t-test was conducted to determine the difference
of awareness between delivering/management and construction,
KSCE Journal of Civil Engineering
 The Development Direction for a VDC Support System based on BIM

Table 7. Expected Outcome of the VDC

Table 8. Actual Outcomes of the VDC

Table 9.Obstacle Factors of the VDC

which were part of negotiations. The result showed that the
delivering/management job category scored 2.75, while construction
scored 1.0 in the current public support level questionnaire (Q4c);
thus, they had a significant difference in p-values of 0.002. This
result indicated that those who were in the construction job
category felt the need for public support because of the heavy
costs of infrastructure development and VDC training. Regarding
this cost, interviews were conducted with BIM practitioners of S-,
SS-, D-, and G- companies, which have more than 500 employees
in the building industry, to determine the cost of education,
Software (SW) and Hardware (HW). The result showed that the
average education cost per person at the early phase was 4.38
million KRW per year including SW/HW purchase cost for a
BIM manager and 9.63 million KRW for design modeling
practitioners. This result indicates that about 1 billion KRW will
be spent, assuming that this initial cost is invested for 100 design
modeling practitioners. In fact, G Company, which is an archi-
tectural design office, disclosed in the interview that the company
invested in VDC-related costs for more than 50% of employees
in the design division who received VDC-related education. The
practitioners who responded to the interview expressed that the
learning cost for the related technology was high and emphasized
that high-end SW and HW was too burdensome, and asked for
more government assistance.
In order to uncover the average difference of the detailed
questionnaires among the job categories, an ANOVA was con-
ducted. The analysis showed that question Q7c, which asked the
difficulty of making use of previous construction work experience
while performing BIM, revealed a significant difference among
the job categories with p = 0.007. The average values were

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 Tae Wook Kang and Je Yoon Woo

delivering/management, 4.50; construction, 5.00; CM/research/
development/consulting, 4.29; design/engineering, 4.25; and policy/
administration, 3.17; these findings reveal the diverging perspec-
tives of the practitioners of construction and delivering/management
and those of design/engineering, which reflects the current situation
in Korea, where those who order for projects or construction
companies do not rely on BIM-based design documents because
of the many discrepancies found in them when they are applied
to projects.
On question Q7b about the compensation system among the
obstacle factors of delivering/management and construction, which
are in a negotiating relationship, respondents answered 3.50 for
delivering/management and 4.67 for construction, with p = 0.046;
this result indicated a significant difference and the need for an
immediate improvement in the compensation system for BIM-
related project orders.
On question Q7f about the lack of a library, construction and
design/engineering, which were also in a negotiating relationship,
answered 5.0 for construction and 3.70 for design/engineering, a
difference in p-values of 0.000. This result reflected the current
situation in which design documents are used in bidding documents
to achieve the lowest bidding price on the basis of quantities and
quotes during the project deliver process; they subsequently
degraded the engineering quality required for construction and
were rechecked by the construction company with a BIM-based
shop drawing. In general, when construction companies do shop
drawings, construction issues are reviewed during BIM-based
construction coordination meetings. If problems such as collision
detection between the objects in 3D, 4D models are found, and
the modeling is processed until the next construction coordination
meeting. Under this circumstance, the lack of a library can cause
additional time delays and cost increases related the modeling
process.
This is one of the major obstacles to increasing construction
productivity because it delays rapid comparisons and decision-
making. Since this study is related to the direction of development
for a VDC support system in Korea, this study did not include a
survey of overseas researchers who have little knowledge about
the related regulations or systems. However, this study result was
provided to six researchers and practitioners from the USA, the
UK, and Japan who have experience relevant to this study over 5
years, and the following feedback was given:
First, a delivering process such as IPD has been adopted by
some projects recently in the private sector in the VDC execution
process system. However, they said that legal matters including
copyright issues with content created in a collaborate manner
have not yet been resolved. Feedback from the UK mentioned
that the UK has provided an institutional basis for a contract to
progress as an open-book type form the time of the delivering
process, and the construction company participates in the early
design phase and shares the benefit generated from the VE
(Value Engineering). However, researchers from Japan answered
that Japan has not yet provided institutional requirements for
VDC.
Second, regarding the VDC maturity and performance mea-
surement tools, most researchers shared the need for tools but
also mentioned the difficulty of developing an evaluation index
such as the Key Performance Indicator (KPI) from the viewpoint
of project stakeholders. For example, since some of the evaluation
indexes are inversely proportional between stakeholders, an
appropriate negotiation is needed for measurement at the
organizational aspect. This issue is also related to the method to
determine the weight of the evaluation indexes fairly. As another
difficulty, how to collect the evaluation index data, could also be
an issue. If the evaluation index data is misused against
organizational evaluation, objective data cannot be collected. In
particular, if public institutions utilize such data negatively for
contractor evaluation, this negative data will be hidden, which
will have an adverse effect on the expansion of the VDC system.
Third, the feedback showed that although the classification
system plays an important role in information search, it is not
easy to use it in practice. In a private sector, either a simplified or
detailed classification system is used depending on the project
characteristics, which was also similar abroad. Thus, if the need
for information utilization for the private sector emerges in the
public sector, a guideline is needed to map the classification
system used in the private sector appropriately to that used for a
public sector.
4.3 Considerations
Once the results of interviews and surveys with experts and
practitioners were analyzed, they were considered for the
development of a VDC support system, as shown in Table 10.
4.3.1 VDC Roadmap
1. Systemization: Currently, since no governmental organiza-
tion is involved in roadmap development, conflicts of inter-
est can occur among actors, resulting in difficulties in reaching

Table 10. Considerations for the Development of the VDC Support System
Item Considerations upon development Related obstacle factor
VDC roadmap Systemization and feasibility Q7b, Q7i, Q7a
VDC maturity and performance evaluation tools Reliability, subjectivity, efficiency, and viewpoint Q7c, Q7h
BIM library Payment system, standardization, and ecosystem Q7b, Q7f, Q7g
BIM information classification system Consistency, expandability, compatibility, and practicability Q7d, Q7e
VDC process execution system Objective and delivering system Q7e, Q7g
BIM quality validation system Clarity, criteria setup, and feasibility Q7e

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 The Development Direction for a VDC Support System based on BIM
agreements and inefficient investing. A long-term roadmap
should be developed based on a national VDC driving sys-
tem, and a VDC framework should be advanced in which all
interested groups share the roles.
2. Feasibility: The new roadmap should not be ignored by
industry. Thus, it must be formulated based on industry matu-
rity in Korea. Each phase in the roadmap should be inter-
related to the maturity model and to performance evaluation
tools for improvement and overcoming obstacles.
4.3.2 VDC Maturity and Performance Evaluation Tools
1. Reliability: More information must be accumulated on per-
formance measurements so that reliable numerical values
are reflected in the evaluation. To this end, database con-
struction should be considered.
2. Objectivity: Measurable items, such as scheduling, quality,
cost, safety, and waste materials, should be set as the evalua-
tion criteria, and performance comparisons among organiza-
tions or projects should be based on quantitative
deliverables.
3. Efficiency: Quantitative measurements should be limited to
core performance indexes, such as re-work rates and design
revision rates, which are measureable outside the process.
4. Viewpoint: Performance evaluation indexes can differ for
participating stakeholders, such as project buyers, design-
ers, and construct companies. For example, if a specific
performance evaluation index is high, a project order may
benefit but other stakeholder may not. Thus, appropriate
incentive levels should be considered to minimize this ine-
quality.
4.3.3 BIM Library
1. Compensation system: Public support and licenses should
be given to workgroups or companies that have invested
time and money voluntarily on library development.
2. Standardization: The objective and scope of the BIM should
be set clearly in the public domain and, accordingly, the
common attribute of the library cores should be standard-
ized. Measures are required for order, type, and model con-
figurations in relation to the library attribute dictionary.
3. Ecosystem: Practical engineering information should be
considered during library development. The library develop-
ment system must be developed in relation to the real prod-
uct specifications of representative engineering companies
based on the type of work. The library should be developed
and distributed by vendors and suppliers themselves rather
than the government.
4.3.4 VDC Information Classification System
1. Consistency: While designing the high, middle, and low
concepts that comprise the information classification sys-
tem, Mutually Exclusive, Collectively Exhaustive (MECE)
criteria should be met, and a high concept should contain a
low concept. The number of inclusive low concepts should
Vol. 00, No. 0 / 000 0000
be similar, and the view of information seen from the high
and low concepts should be the same. The definition of the
concept should be clear; thus, dictionary definitions for the
information classification system are required.
2. Expandability: A structure should be expandable in practice,
and the expansion method for each class should be presented
in detail.
3. Compatibility: The information classification system should
be compatible with international standards and applicable to
the BIM. To this end, an automated mapping tool for an
information classification system based on mapping rules
should be provided.
4. Practicability: The information classification system should
be applicable to practical work up to a certain level.
4.3.5 VDC Performing Process
1. Objective: While applying the VDC process, its utilization
objective should be clarified and, accordingly, the Level of
Development (LOD) of each phase of a project should be
determined.
2. The current project delivery system should be improved
step-by-step in order to reflect construction information in
the design phase in advance and the appropriate compensa-
tion due to information modeling. For example, the applica-
tion of special regulations, such as an Early Contractor
Involvement (ECI), can be added to turnkey delivery, which
is applicable under the current situation. Moreover, the
improvement of the operational methods of organizations
that do project delivery system is necessary.
4.3.6 BIM Quality Validation System
1. Clarity: The target and objective of BIM-based validation
should be clearly defined. As for BIM model utilization and
application objectives, detailed methods and criteria for mod-
eling should be clearly presented, and additional criteria for
project types should be applied. It is also necessary to deter-
mine which part is subject to automated or manual valida-
tion.
2. Criteria setup: It is reasonable that common quality valida-
tion criteria should be presented by the government, while
validation per project type should be conducted by project
customers.
3. Feasibility: Maturity levels start with a low level of quality
validation. The step-by-step strengthening of quality valida-
tion will be considered as the system is developed in the
future.
Based on these considerations, a VDC industry maturity model-
based roadmap and framework are proposed as shown in the
following Fig. 3. According to the roadmap timeline, the common
components of the framework to be developed should depend on
the maturity level. Contingent on the project type, common
components should be tailored, thereby utilizing them in light of
the project order environment. The Return On Investment (ROI)
and the core performance index of a project obtained by the
−9−
 Tae Wook Kang and Je Yoon Woo

Fig. 3. Conceptual Diagram of the VDC Industry Maturity Model-based Roadmap and Framework

maturity model and the performance evaluation tools should be
stored in a database so that this information can be utilized for
effective decision-making in the future for orders from the project
customer. In this case, a roadmap timeline was set as a five-year
program as an example, but this should be determined through a
consideration of the VDC industry maturity model and the local
and international situations
Table 11 shows the maturity level definitions in relation to the
roadmap.
Table 12 shows the expected goals (Level 5) for each
component of the VDC support system proposed in this study.
To make the proposed roadmap feasible in practice, a systematic
analytical approach of the expected outcome and obstacle factors
is required for executing each phase of the maturity model,
according to the national construction industry level. The continuous
development, maintenance, and expansion of the components in
the framework are also required. To this end, a driving organization,
such as the VDC supporting center described in Table 13, should
be established.
5. Conclusions
In the experts' gap awareness compared to other advanced
nations, the gap with the more advanced nations was much as
3.9. Considering that the most advanced nations have developed
five-year programs to reach the expansion phase, It means that
Korea lags more than two years behind in VDC development in
case of five-year development program about BIM-based VDC
support system.
The statistically analyzed results demonstrate that the
importance and urgency, expected outcome, actual outcome,
and obstacle factors significantly differed based on job

Table 11. Maturity Level Definitions

Maturity
Process Level of information model reutilization
level
Without construction information modeling process, Utilization of 2D CAD or computer graphics with limited information
Level 1
work progresses according to project circumstances exchange via drawings
BIM object modeling is used but only for alternative plan review or clash
Modeling process is determined and used as per organi-
Level 2 detection in securing constructability for individual organization or compa-
zation
nies.
National level VDC standardized process is developed 4D/5D in relation to construction are utilized in decision-making during the
Level 3
and tailored according to the needs of each organization construction phase.
Based on the BIM, the information model is used for facility management;
Based on the standardized process, construction infor-
Level 4 operational management, including energy management; and performance
mation is managed and integrated by BIM
improvement; and the results are stored in the VDC performance database.
At the national level, a VDC system is established, and the ROI is estimated
Best practices are accumulated, and their processes are
Level 5 according to the core performance index via the VDC performance database;
utilized per project type
the mining of information required for decision-making is undertaken

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 The Development Direction for a VDC Support System based on BIM

Table 12. Expected Goals About each Component

Component Expected goal of Level 5
VDC maturity and perfor- Regarding all VDC projects, a KPI required from the viewpoint of project stakeholders is defined, while the KPI is man-
mance evaluation tools aged by a DB, and the required ROI is estimated through the DB, thereby mining information for decision making.
Attribute information required from the viewpoint of project stakeholders is standardized and included in the library. The
BIM library
license of the library is legally arranged so that business can be conducted through the library market.
A BIM information classification system is developed and used to search rapidly for information required for quotations,
BIM information classifi-
maintenance, operations, and construction via the BIM objects. A mapping guidance like OmniClass is defined, thereby
cation system
securing compatibility with other international standards.
VDC delivering, BIM, operation, and management process execution systems are produced so that instructions for each
VDC process execution
phase and organizational system for management of the execution results are provided systematically to support them in
system
the industrial fields.
BIM quality validation A quality validation system is provided to check whether required information is correctly modeled for project stakehold-
system ers and that it supports this system in the industrial fields.

Table 13. Role and Details of a VDC Supporting Center

Role Details
Supporting the VDC performance of public project customers. Concentrating on easy application of the VDC system for
Environmental support
project environment.
The VDC center drives BIM guideline consulting for public projects (BIM goal definition, BIM execution plan, BIM IT
Public consulting infrastructure, etc.), BIM quality review service, capitalization of BIM best practice (BP) in the public domain, and BIM
library development.
Through the adjustment of roles of public and private organizations, a synergy effect is achieved. Practical technology devel-
Adjustment of roles
opment and application are handed over to the market, but they focus on foundational environmental development. Finding
between public and pri-
the best practices and supplying them to the market and driving pilot projects in areas where legislative improvement is
vate domain
needed.

categories. In example, those who were in the construction References

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heavy costs of infrastructure development and VDC training. In
Q7b (No compensation system; 4.34), Q7c (Difficulty in using
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3.68) related obstacle survey, there are the difference and
negotiation relationship depending on the job category statistically.
To develop BIM-based VDC supporting system, these negotiation
relationships should be considered. This finding permitted us to
identify the following items for the development of a VDC support
system: systemization, feasibility, reliability, objectivity, efficiency,
compensation system, standardization, ecosystem, consistency,
expandability, compatibility, practicability, objective, delivery system
improvement, clarity, and criteria setup. Finally, this paper
proposed the concept of a VDC industry maturity model-based
roadmap and framework which has the core components such
as VDC maturity and performance evaluation tools, BIM
library, BIM information classification system, VDC process
execution system and BIM quality validation system.
In the future, the components of the framework of the VDC
support system will be detailed further by bringing together the
opinions of experts and organizations.
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