Chapter A Blockchain-Based Secure Submission Management Framework for Design and Construction Phases

Abstract

AEC projects generate numerous versions of BIM models during the design and construction phases. This process is complicated by the sheer number of domains in large projects and the interlinkage of BIM deliverables (for example the structural BIM model follows the corresponding architectural BIM model). However, due to the generation of multiple versions and parallel design progress in different domains (especially in large projects), multi-domain delivery teams often fail to access and comply with the latest/required/approved design requirements during the progression of the design phase and complete issue addressing during the construction phase, which creates confusion, may lead to disputes. Moreover, due to the contractual nature of the parties involved data and process security is also very important. Therefore, this research presents blockchain-based secure coordination workflows for effective collaboration, parallel design progress, and issue management among BIM developers from multiple domains. Smart contract logic for facilitating dynamic dependency logic for coordinating linked multi-domain submission over the project timeline is presented. A method to ensure that issues are completely, and timely addressed, and related parties are held accountable for their actions or non-response is presented by integrating a BIM change identifier and blockchain in typical issue management workflows. The method considers collaborative design and issue management workflows for the secure, efficient, and complete design of BIM models. The method is validated using an ongoing large construction project in Hong Kong