CC Sep-Oct 2023

INDUSTRY focus
Constructability
DBM Vircon uses its design engineering experts and the latest technology to transform standard
structural designer's production models into fully connected LOD 400 models. David Chadwick reports
The most common refrain in the
construction industry, whether you
are involved in a major
infrastructure project or a small-scale
housing development, is to get your
planning done early and to involve all
stakeholders in the process. A simple
statement of the obvious, but the ability
to explore all aspects of a project and
identify potential issues early on and then
take steps to mitigate or eliminate their
effect pays massive dividends in the long
run, and improves the ability to keep
projects on schedule and within budget.
Whilst it may be a basic truism in
planning, for many reasons contractors
often pay lip service to the principle and
go for the most cost-effective or
cheapest options - and generally suffer
the consequences. In fact, as DBM
Vircon suggest, early connected models
can result in more accurate and detailed
designs for bidding, can tighten and
reduce bids by up to 5% to 10%, and can
reduce costs of steel by up to 10% due to
accurate procurement and reduced
waste. The cost savings may even
continue after contracts are awarded, as
projects move forward and RFIs and
other expensive interruptions to the
schedule are eliminated.
I spoke to Andrew Bellerby of DBM
Vircon about the importance of effective
pre-planning on both major infrastructure
projects and commercial developments,
the problems that arise from inadequate
planning, and how his company's
expertise has been used to eradicate
them. A global construction company
headquartered in Australia, DBM Vircon
provides professional expertise and
guidance on using the latest
technological advances in digital
engineering to assist clients and
contractors through all stages of a
project, from concept design to
completion and operation. The company
supplements its technical expertise with
visualisations, virtual and augmented
reality tools, and asset model
maintenance to facilitate a client's
involvement in the process, clarify
complex details and to enhance the
creative aspects.
Pre-construction planning is just one
element among several digital
engineering modules which the company
offers. It addresses the common problem
that Design-Bid-Build projects come up
against, based, as they are, on 'value
engineering', which is described as 'a
systematic, organised approach to
providing necessary functions in a
project at the lowest cost, promoting the
substitution of materials and methods
with less expensive alternatives, without
sacrificing functionality'.
With tight budgets and cash shortages,
the rising cost of materials and shortage
of experienced labour, the natural
inclination of companies is to pare costs
and resource requirements to a
minimum. The obvious corollary to that
is that essential elements of the project
are overlooked.
WILL IT WORK?
The most obvious of these, Andrew
suggested, is 'constructability'. Is the
structure capable of being fabricated and
erected as the architect and the structural
designer envisage? Pre-construction
planning allows stakeholders to focus on
design development, using DBM Vircon's
integrated design-detailing to ensure that
the proposed structure, or steelworks,
can be easily fabricated and erected with
as little wasted material as possible.
The pre-planning process enables
project managers to pinpoint the small
details that are frequently overlooked
during standard planning meetings, such
as the clearances required to install
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September/October 2023