In the BIM era, this is your era

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BIM technology uses new three-dimensional models as carriers for project information, enabling real-time and dynamic adjustments to cost management through visualization. It allows for the more efficient, accurate, and rapid acquisition of various cost-related information, thereby improving the level of cost management and informatization in projects, and holds great practical value. Construction project management primarily consists of three key aspects: cost management, schedule management, and quality management. It spans all stages of project design, implementation, and maintenance. Within these three areas of management, data transmission failures are quite common, and addressing this issue is a major focus in current construction project management. BIM technology, whose full name is Building Information Modeling technology, is a digital modeling technique that is applied throughout the entire project lifecycle. It enables effective sharing of information resources in terms of project cost management, facilitates information transfer at different stages of a project, and supports decision-making as well as collaborative work among various departments. It represents a revolutionary advancement in the field of construction project management. BIM technology uses new three-dimensional models as carriers for project information, transforming cost engineering management software. By enabling visual representation, it allows for real-time and dynamic adjustments in cost management, facilitating the acquisition of various cost-related information in a more efficient, accurate, and rapid manner. This improves the level of cost management in construction projects, enables periodic management of project information, and boosts overall industry efficiency; thus, it holds great practical value. Next, we will start with an introduction to BIM technology and explore its impact on cost management in construction projects. I. Background of BIM Technology: Current construction project cost management has entered a phase of full-process control, with significant pressures related to cost and risk management. Traditional cost management methods are no longer sufficient to meet these demands; therefore, shifting from short-term, practical and planned cost management to detailed full-process management has become an inevitable path for development. The comprehensive management of construction project costs is closely related to the utilization of large amounts of basic project data. To ensure the timeliness and accuracy of data use, it is necessary to continuously advance the automation, informatization, and intelligence of such basic project data. This enables the provision of various information resources that support decision-making throughout the management process, helps to reduce time and financial costs associated with process control, allows for effective monitoring of project progress, and facilitates real-time verification and comparison. The aforementioned development trends and management requirements in the field of construction cost control set higher standards for current whole-process cost management techniques. It is against this backdrop that BIM technology came into being. BIM technology is currently widely used in the engineering sector around the world, and as its application continues to evolve, it has become a key project under China’s 12th Five-Year Plan. The key to applying BIM technology lies in using computer technology to create 3D model databases, which can be adjusted in real time during construction project management. This allows for accurate retrieval of various relevant data, thereby improving the quality of decisions and accelerating the decision-making process. As a result, project management costs are reduced, project quality is ensured, and overall efficiency is improved. The emergence and application of BIM technology have driven the continuous development of engineering software, particularly cost management software. This development has seen a shift from two-dimensional, static formats to three-dimensional, dynamic ones, enabling new breakthroughs in cost management throughout the entire construction process and allowing for more accurate and efficient calculation of project costs. The application of BIM technology in project management has evolved from basic to more advanced levels, enabling it to realize its full technical advantages and maximize its value. Taking the construction industry as an example, its development trend will progress step by step toward achieving the following seven levels of advancement, so as to truly leverage BIM technology to support the overall development of the construction sector. II. Analysis of Issues in Construction Project Cost Management The key components of construction project cost management include quantities, consumption indicators, and price data. The quantity of work is at the core of cost management; the accuracy and speed of its calculation directly affect the quality and efficiency of budget preparation ； Price data covers a wide range of building materials, and prices change in real time due to market conditions, **policies, etc.; as a result, cost control requires a significant amount of work and presents considerable challenges ； Consumption indicators are influenced by local quota regulations, regional productivity levels, and corporate productivity levels; they update slowly, involve many variables, and are difficult to calculate. The formula for managing construction project costs is as follows: Project cost = (Quantity of work * Price data * Consumption rates). In the current field of comprehensive management of construction project costs, there are five main issues that affect the quality and effectiveness of such management: First, there is a lack of close connection between cost management and market conditions, and the limitations of the existing cost management systems and approaches hinder the improvement and development of management capabilities ； Secondly, the calculation of engineering quantities is complex and time-consuming, resulting in large errors that affect the accuracy of project costs ； Third, cost estimation professionals work in isolation; there is little information sharing and limited collaboration, which affects the quality of cost management work ； Fourth, the engineering cost data is not updated in a timely manner, which prevents timely adjustments to both the volume and price of costs; the process is slow and the reliability is poor, further limiting engineering cost management ； Fifthly, multiple pricing in project cost management is difficult to implement, as construction projects are large in scale, have long durations, involve massive amounts of data, and come with high costs. This makes it challenging to ensure the scientific validity of multiple pricing at different stages. Although the cost levels can gradually become more accurate as the process of refinement progresses, the management burden remains high, cost control is difficult, and overspending is a common issue. The above five common problems in the cost management throughout the construction process hinder the improvement of management quality and effectiveness. Therefore, the introduction of BIM technology is necessary to change the current management situation, enable better control of costs and risks throughout the entire process, and support construction project management. III. Advantages of BIM Technology in the Comprehensive Management of Project Costs Compared to traditional methods of project cost management, the use of BIM technology represents a revolutionary change in this field, offering unparalleled advantages. It enhances the efficiency and level of informatization in the project cost management industry, optimizes management processes, and thus boasts significant practical benefits. The application of BIM technology enables the efficient completion of complex, time-consuming, and labor-intensive quantity calculations during the design phase, offering high accuracy and efficiency. The focus of cost management in construction projects shifts to overall cost control throughout the project lifecycle, reducing the need for cumbersome quantity calculations. This also places higher demands on the skills and qualifications of those involved in cost management, which is beneficial for the comprehensive management of construction projects. Next, we will explore the advantages of BIM technology in the overall management of construction project costs. 1. Improve the accuracy and efficiency of quantity calculation. As the basis for cost management and budget preparation, quantity calculation can benefit from the automatic calculation capabilities of BIM technology compared to traditional manual calculations or those using 2D software. This technology enables more objective and efficient calculations, allows for accurate measurement of both regular and irregular structures using 3D models, and facilitates real-time calculation of volume reductions in 3D models. As a result, it ensures better efficiency, accuracy, and objectivity. The application of BIM technology has reduced the complexity associated with quantity calculation in project cost management, saving human resources, material resources, and time. This enables cost engineers to focus more on high-value tasks such as risk assessment, cost estimation, and preparing more accurate budgets. For example, in the case of a resort landscape project at a marine park in a certain area, where the existing buildings in the park are to be transformed into resort facilities, it is necessary to add, remove, repair, or replace the existing equipment and fixtures. By using BIM technology to create 3D models, it becomes possible to conduct more effective analysis and design work regarding issues such as pipeline conflicts, sunlight exposure, and landscape elements. The greatest advantage of BIM technology in cost management lies in the estimation and verification of project quantities. Once a 3D model is created, specific project data can be generated automatically. By comparing these data with those from 2D design reports, it can be seen that data discrepancies are significantly reduced. The reason for such discrepancies is that in 2D drawing calculations, there is a possibility of repeated calculations for engineering projects that span multiple drawings; in area calculations, the area of vertical surfaces may be overlooked; and in linear length calculations, only the projected length is taken into account. All of these factors can affect accuracy, whereas the use of BIM technology can effectively eliminate these deviations. 2. Strengthen cost control throughout the entire process. A well-planned approach during the management of construction projects can yield better results with less effort. The use of BIM technology to create 3D models provides a better, more accurate, and more comprehensive data foundation, which is useful for formulating and managing plans related to funding, manpower, materials, and equipment. BIM models can assign time information to quantities, showing the quantities and costs associated with different time periods. This facilitates the preparation of various plans, enables rational resource allocation, and thus helps in formulating and implementing cost control plans during the project management process. It also aids in organizing tasks efficiently and making optimal use of human, material resources as well as financial costs. 3. Controlling design changes: Design changes are a common occurrence in construction project management, and dealing with them represents a challenging task that requires significant effort within the control process. Applying BIM technology can first effectively reduce the occurrence of design changes, by using 3D modeling collision detection tools to lower the frequency of such changes ； When a design change occurs, the changes can be entered into the relevant models, and automatic adjustments to these models allow for updates to the quantity of work required, thereby avoiding errors resulting from repeated calculations. Providing designers with direct feedback on the cost changes resulting from variations in the engineering quantities after design modifications helps to better understand the changes in the design plans as well as the associated cost changes. It enables comprehensive control over the various impacts caused by design changes, improves the level of management of construction project costs and cost control capabilities, and helps to avoid waste and rework. 4. Facilitates the accumulation and sharing of historical data. After a construction project is completed, storing and reusing numerous historical datasets presents a significant challenge. The use of BIM technology facilitates the accumulation and sharing of such historical data. When faced with similar engineering projects, these reference data can be promptly utilized. The application of information with high reference value—such as construction cost indicators and material quantity indices—is beneficial for the review and estimation of future projects. It also helps enhance a company’s overall capability in managing construction costs throughout the entire project lifecycle, as well as its core competitiveness. 5. It facilitates cost management throughout the entire project lifecycle. Cost management in construction projects spans five key stages: decision-making, design, bidding, construction, and settlement. The management at each of these stages serves to enhance the investment efficiency of the project. By utilizing BIM technology, its advantages can be harnessed to provide better support for cost management at all stages of the project. During the decision-making phase, BIM technology can be utilized to access data from previous engineering projects in order to estimate and review the costs of the current project as well as to determine the total investment required for it. By leveraging historical project models for the estimation of the current project, the accuracy of the design work can be improved. During the design phase, the historical model data from BIM technology can be utilized for limited-design approaches. Once the criteria for limited design are established, cost estimation data from similar projects can be used as a reference; this not only enhances the depth and accuracy of the estimations but also reduces the amount of calculation required, thereby saving labor and material costs. After the project design phase is completed, BIM technology can quickly generate an estimate of the model and verify whether it meets the requirements, thereby achieving the goal of controlling the total investment and maximizing the value of design constraints; this holds positive significance for whole-process project cost management. During the bidding phase, the application of BIM technology under the bill of quantities bidding model enables the efficient, rapid, and accurate determination of the quantities for the project under bid in a short time. Especially construction companies, faced with tight bidding deadlines, can use BIM models to quickly and accurately verify the quantity lists, which are difficult to check item by item, thereby reducing calculation errors, avoiding project losses, and completing the bidding process with high quality. Cost control during the construction phase involves a long duration, heavy workload, and numerous variables. The collision detection capability of BIM technology can reduce the number of design changes. Conducting drawing reviews before actual construction helps to minimize design-related issues as well as problems that arise during construction, thereby reducing the need for changes and rework. The 3D models developed using BIM technology facilitate the coordinated allocation of financial, human, and material resources during the construction phase, as well as the review and payment of progress payments. It enables rapid adjustments to costs in response to any changes that occur during construction, allowing for the determination of project costs based on time, work processes, and areas involved. This approach supports precise cost management throughout the entire construction process. Finally, during the settlement phase, the BIM model can provide accurate settlement data, improving the pace and efficiency of settlement while reducing financial disputes. In summary, the application of BIM technology in project cost management can significantly enhance the efficiency and level of informatization in this field. It helps to optimize management processes, enable accurate and efficient calculation of project costs, facilitate better control over costs throughout the entire project lifecycle, improve handling of design changes, and make it easier to accumulate and share historical data. These advantages make BIM technology highly valuable for project cost management, and it is worth promoting widely.