How Does BIM Software Improve Team Communication Across a Capital Project?

September 18, 2024 | 5 min read

Nearly half of all U.S. employees report that their productivity is limited by poor communication. In corporate business, this can mean missed deadlines and low employee morale. But in the world of construction, poor communication across a capital project is often more serious: it can create rework, upset stakeholders, and even compromise workforce safety.

Digital transformation across construction can help address those communication gaps. With building information modeling software, teams can consolidate digital knowledge and resources within a single, shared model, dramatically improving team communication, collaboration, and efficiency.

What is BIM Software?

BIM software is a digital tool that helps teams design, construct, and manage buildings by creating detailed 3D models. It brings together data from various disciplines, like architecture, engineering, and construction, to ensure every single project stakeholder is working from the same model. By providing a centralized platform for information, BIM streamlines workflows, reduces errors, and improves decision-making throughout a building’s lifecycle.

Here are some of the key benefits of BIM software for teams and projects:

Streamlined construction: BIM enhances efficiency by facilitating seamless communication and collaboration among project stakeholders. Working from a unified model minimizes delays and reduces the chances of mistakes.
Cost reduction: By identifying design conflicts early, BIM helps prevent costly rework. Accurate material and resource modeling also minimizes waste, optimizing project budgets.
Better project visualization: Detailed 3D models offer a clearer view of the final outcome, improving alignment with clients and aiding early decision-making.

BIM software also allows all stakeholders equal, real-time access to the same information, improving transparency and reducing misunderstandings throughout the project. This benefit gives every project contributor up-to-date access to important project details, ensuring alignment across teams from the design phase through to construction.

Overcoming Data Silos: Unleashing BIM for Team Communication

One of the biggest challenges in capital projects is a data silo — when information is trapped within specific departments or teams, making it difficult to share and communicate effectively. Whether you’re building a single-story restaurant or a multi-floor data center, BIM software helps eliminate this issue by creating a shared environment where all project data is stored and managed centrally. This shared environment ensures that everyone has access to the most up-to-date information, reducing the risk of miscommunication and the errors that follow.

Delayed information sharing is another significant problem — one that BIM software can help resolve. When communication channels are slow or inefficient, the right people don’t get the necessary information at the right time. This delay can halt progress, causing workflow bottlenecks, unless your project operates with BIM software that helps digitize shared knowledge across systems.

This form of knowledge digitization breaks down data silos in ways that provide complete access to all the data a contractor or engineer will need. For example, BIM software enables electrical engineers to access resource and process data for HVAC and plumbing systems, allowing all parties to plan ahead, minimize resource downtime, and avoid any time constraints. BIM software also brings BIM coordination and clash detection capabilities to the table, which help further improve cross-system collaboration by resolving issues in the design and early construction phases.

How Does BIM Streamline Team Communication and Efficiency?

With the help of the right BIM software, capital project teams can have informed conversations about construction progress, all based on the same, up-to-date set of notes. Without disparate spreadsheets or outdated materials lists, all engineers and contractors can confidently operate with the same, complete information.

With every project contributor on the same page, BIM software delivers its real cost-saving benefit: limited rework. In an industry where 30% of all work is rework, stakeholders are tightening their budgets — and their expectations — for each project. BIM software provides powerful clarity into project data, potential clashes, and opportunities for cost savings — everything stakeholders need to see when greenlighting a project or gauging progress.

Establish a Single Source of Construction Data Truth

BIM software serves as a single, central source of truth for all project data, giving every team member access to accurate, up-to-date information. This form of centralized data management eliminates the risk of working with outdated or incorrect data, reducing errors and rework.

With the right BIM solution — and the right service provider to help you translate it — your team can:

Access real-time updates on project progress, keeping everyone on the same page.
Quickly identify and resolve issues through collaborative tools like clash detection.
Enhance decision-making with accurate data and visualizations, maintaining open, honest channels of communication with stakeholders.

If you’re ready to strengthen communication across your next capital project, VIATechnik can help. Our global BIM consulting team already helps businesses in every industry integrate BIM and VDC technologies for the highest levels of accuracy and project efficiency. We prioritize your vision and tailor our BIM strategies to resonate with your project’s unique requirements and goals.

Connect with VIATechnik today to learn how you can improve communication across your capital project through custom BIM software and leading BIM services that work as hard as you do.