The informed use of BIM by a project team is part of a collaborative process. Such co-operative working is conducive to a less adversarial culture to projects and, potentially, to the avoidance or early resolution of disputes.
In spite of early fears, the use of BIM should assist in avoiding disputes. Some commentators believe the use of BIM might increase the number of claims against professionals. The reasoning is that the BIM models create an audit trail of information that highlight a consultant’s deficient inputs, giving clear evidence for a claim.
This argument is counter-intuitive: that transparency of responsibility itself would lead to a higher likelihood of claims suggests that it would be preferable for responsibility to be clouded.
The reality is different. No professional is keen on having claims against him or her, but we do not set out to avoid responsibility for our mistakes. Instead, working as a partnering team should include identifying and resolving problems together to avoid disputes.
Project teams will all pull in the same direction with a shared timetable. Fouquier/Flickr
BIM assists in this. In the pre-construction phase BIM requires the proper time-tabling of pre-construction phase inputs. If all the team signs up to such a timetable, it becomes a key management tool to avoid problems.
Collaborative BIM is about communication. A protocol on inputs encourages clear communication across the project as a whole. Those of us who have had the misfortune to have been involved in disputes know they can be caused by poor lines of communication. The need for communication becomes even greater when a problem arises.
If BIM is part of a collaborative project, the team should consider at the outset what the next step should be if a problem is identified. My experience is that contractual escalation provisions (where disputes are identified and named individuals are required to meet within a short timescale to discuss the issues) can ensure blockages are dealt with before disputes are entrenched.
The insurance market’s response to BIM has been positive. This has not been achieved by professional indemnity insurers requiring their clients to draft exclusion clauses into their appointments. Instead, there appears to be recognition that BIM encourages processes and behaviours that help to avoid some costly disputes when the project gets on site.
Assad Maqbool is a partner specialising in projects and construction at Trowers & Hamlins
