Investigation into the current stage of BIM application in China’s AEC industries

Building Information Modelling (BIM), the movement in the architectural, engineering, and construction (AEC) industries worldwide, is pushing AEC firms to adopt BIM technologies in multiple engineering design fields and project management. China, the world’s largest AEC market, is currently undergoing a growing demand on BIM utilization along with recently published governmental policies to enhance the BIM adoption. Despite the general trend of BIM implementation, there are some challenges of implementing BIM in China’s local AEC industries. This paper is aimed at investigating the current stage of BIM practice in China. Through literature review of BIM application in China and overseas, followed by a questionnaire-based survey to an international engineering firm in China, both qualitative and quantitative information has been collected to analyse the local BIM practice, the benefits and barriers of implementing BIM, and the future of BIM in China. The findings of the investigation provide the vision of BIM development in the next five to ten years in China, and recommendations on future BIM implementation