BIM in Canada accepted by Construction Community

The technical community comprising of engineers, architects, construction consultants, and contractors are ready to accept BIM in Canada. Due to this reason, Canada has made significant progress in implementing BIM in recent years. However, operational plans and national policies are still lacking.

BIM acceptance in the AEC industry of Canada has increased manifold. Additionally, it is receiving acknowledgment in terms of particular technical legislation and the introduction of digital technologies.

Statistics indicate how important design, construction, and real estate are to Canada. The construction industry accounts for 7% of the country’s GDP and 7% of employment, with an annual turnover of more than 290 billion dollars. This is a great share of the country’s economy covered by the Construction Community and Industry which makes BIM in Canada necessary.

The community of Canadian architects, engineers, construction companies, house owners, and operators (AECOO) is ready to make the transition to digitalization in construction, but institutions are not. This is where the process of full adoption of BIM in Canada is suffering a setback. But one point is noteworthy, although the rate of BIM adoption is low in Canada, it is not having any statutory or regulatory restriction.

Let us have a quick check on a few more statistics – 

• BIM in Canada is already being used by 31% of businesses and organizations on a regular basis.
  • Do you want to join this league? 
• Integrated techniques are used by 29% of respondents using traditional systems and BIM in Canada.
  • Want to go for 100% BIM adoption? 
• Traditional methods are still used by 21% of respondents.
  • If you are here, you need BIM Awareness.  

Although these findings are very encouraging, the most intriguing feature to note is that no institutional policy for BIM in Canada is established, nor have any requirements for its implementation in public works been established.

Only a few public initiatives exist in the country today using BIM in Canada:

• Alberta’s infrastructure department proposed a pilot project for the Royal Alberta Museum.
• Société québécoise des infrastructures have developed a number of small pilot projects.
• Saskatchewan’s Government completed an IPD (Integrated Project Delivery) project for a hospital on behalf of the Five Hills Health Region.

Despite the fact that several countries across the world have defined various public policies aimed at implementing BIM collaborative processes, yet, many other government agencies are well behind.

The absence of a government strategy in the nations, not taking BIM seriously, has a number of negative implications:

• There is a price to be paid for maintaining the status quo. Inefficient papers (projects/policies) are squandering a tremendous opportunity. This amounts to a yearly loss of billions of dollars.
• Environmental rules that limit the building industry’s ability to be more sustainable, as well as the inefficient use of resources during the construction process, have a negative impact on our environment.
• In one of the most significant economic sectors, such nations have risks of losing their position in terms of innovation and competitiveness on a national and international scale. While other countries spend on research, development, and innovation, these countries show less support in this area.

According to industry insiders, all nations of the world need to focus on three main areas in order to achieve meaningful changes in the construction business:

• A national BIM strategy.
• Specific “open” standards.
• A BIM commission that establishes regulatory responsibilities.

Some commercial and public institutions, such as colleges, ministries, construction industry representatives, and technical professions, are beginning to work together to achieve these three goals.

If you are thinking to make BIM part of your construction projects and processes, you need expert support. Email us at info@bimpactdesigns.com for assistance.