OpenBIM provides extensive support across different phases of a project's lifecycle, promoting the seamless exchange of information across various applications. It has been applied in advancing offsite construction by optimizing the design and streamlining the prefabrication process. With growing academic and industrial interest in offsite construction, the Hong Kong government has policies to encourage the adoption of offsite prefabrication and the use of prefabricated steel reinforcement components.

In this webinar, the speakers will present an openBIM-based approach which integrates clash-free design optimization with automation in prefabrication, using steel reinforcement as an illustrative example.

This approach includes an IFC-based integrated workflow that improves interoperability between BIM software, structural analysis programs, and rebar optimization plugins. Provided the workflow, the designed BIM model can be conveniently used in supporting the element connectivity analysis and optimizing the clash-free layout of steel reinforcement. To bridge the gap between rebar design and prefabrication, the proposed openBIM approach further leverages the Information Delivery Manual (IDM) to determine the specific information and data exchange requirements for rebar fabrication. Model View Definition (MVD) and an extended IFC schema, based on IFC4Add2, are proposed to represent the required attributes and entities for rebar fabrication. The extended IFC schema is then mapped with rebar precast data format (BVBS), enabling the generation of machine codes for automated cut and bent rebar production. This openBIM approach aids in seamless data transformation across different platforms, facilitating automation in design optimization and enhancing productivity in prefabrication.

Speakers

• Professor Jack CHENG

Associate Head and Professor, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, HKUST

Associate Director of GREAT Smart Cities Institute, HKUST

Director of Building Information Modelling (BIM) Lab, HKUST

• Professor Vincent GAN

Assistant Professor, Department of the Built Environment, National University of Singapore (NUS)

Speakers Biography:

Professor Jack CHENG

He is currently the Associate Head and Professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Associate Director of GREAT Smart Cities Institute, and Director of Building Information Modelling (BIM) Lab at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST).

His research interests include BIM, digital twin, IoT, artificial intelligence, construction robotics, blockchain, construction and facility management, smart and low-carbon buildings, and construction digitalization. He has led a number of research projects in smart buildings and construction. He is an author of over 300 international journal and conference publications.

Prof. CHENG is currently the Chairperson of CIC Committee on BIM and Construction Digitalisation, a CIC Council Member, Director of the Hong Kong Green Building Council (HKGBC), and Editorial Board Member of several international journals. He is a Past President of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) Greater China Section, Past Chairman of the Autodesk Industry Advisory Board (AIAB), and Past Honorary Treasurer of the Hong Kong Institute of Building Information Modeling (HKIBIM). He is a Fellow Member of HKICBIM, Professional Member of HKIBIM, CCBM, CCBC, and Certified Carbon Auditor Professional (CAP). He has received the Construction Industry Outstanding Person Award in 2019 and Young BIMer of the Year in 2014 from CIC, and a few research and paper awards in international conferences.

Professor Vincent GAN

He is an Assistant Professor in the Department of the Built Environment at the National University of Singapore (NUS). He was a Research Assistant Professor at Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Visiting Lecturer at Imperial College London, Guest Lecturer at University College London, and Visiting Academic at Purdue University. At NUS, he serves as Deputy Director of both the Centre for 5G Digital Building Technology and the Centre for Project and Facilities Management.

His research focuses on AI, digital twin, and robotic automation technologies for autonomous building and infrastructure management, covering areas such as robot-assisted scanning, scan-to-BIM, and generative AI for building optimisation. He is the PI/Co-PI of numerous research and industry consultation projects. Prof. GAN has authored over 60 peer-reviewed scholarly publications in renown journals and international conferences. He has received several international awards and honours in recognition of his research, notable among these are HKIE Structural Excellence Awards, Grand Award for OpenBIM/OpenGIS, Best Paper Awards (ICCBEI2013, ICCEPM2017/2020, IPC2020), and Autodesk BIM Award.

Should you have any queries, please contact Ms. Julia LI (email: dthub@cic.hk).

Remarks: An electronic copy of CPD attendance certificate will be issued to participants with over 80% attendance within one month after the live webinar. Any attendance on replay sessions after webinar will not be considered for CPD attendance certificate.

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