INNOVATION IN COLLABORATION FOR BELGIAN BUILDING PROCESSES MRS. NELE BOUSSEMAERE

Today in many of our neighbouring countries ‘working together in integrated project teams’, using groupware and BIM, is the future way of process thinking in the building practice. Everyone is convinced that ‘teams outperform individuals’! Especially when diverse skills, judgement and experiences can enhance the project’s outcome. This paper contains the first phase of a comparative study of IPD processes, ways of enhanced collaboration and communication between the different stakeholders in the supply chain of projects abroad, to solve the problems occurring in traditional construction processes used in Belgium. Before the search for solutions can start several questions need an answer first. ‘Which types of building processes are being applied in Belgium today? From which problems do stakeholders suffer? Do all stakeholders understand the problems? Why do Belgians keep following these traditional processes? Are they already aware of the progress in innovative processes made in our neighbouring countries? Is there economical, professional, legal or political support for them?