PLANNING, MONITORING & CONTROLLING OF A

CONSTRUCTION PROJECT USING INTEGRATION OF PRIMAVERA

& BIM

Project Proposal

submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the award of degree in

M.Tech IN CIVIL ENGINEERING
(Specialization
Specialization: Construction Engineering and Management)
Management

by

ABHILASH VIJAYAN

GUIDED BY GUIDED BY
CO-GUIDED
Dr Narasimha D.S, Ms Ranjini Menon
Menon,
Professor, Faculty
Dept of Civil Engineering Dept of Civil Engineering
SOE, CUSAT SOE, CUSAT

DIVISION OF CIVIL ENGINEERING

SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING
COCHIN UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
KOCHI – 682 022, KERALA

MAY 2019
 DECLARATION

I, hereby, declare that the Project proposal (CEC 3404), which is

presented by me during the year 2019 in Fourth Semester is a course
work, entitled, “Planning, monitoring & controlling of a construction
project using integration of Primavera & BIM”. This is a bonafide work
completed by me in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the award of
degree of Master of Technology (Part-Time), submitted in the Division
of Civil Engineering, School of Engineering, Cochin University of Science
and Technology, Kochi-682 022.

(Abhilash Vijayan)

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 CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that CEC 3404 Project proposal presented on

PLANNING, MONITORING & CONTROLLING OF A CONSTRUCTION
PROJECT USING INTEGRATION OF PRIMAVERA & BIM is a course work
carried out by Mr. ABHILASH VIJAYAN (CE.PG.PT/17/1) in Fourth
Semester for partial fulfillment of award of M-Tech Degree in Civil
Engineering (Specialization: Construction Engineering and Management).

Staff-in-charge Head
Division of Civil Engineering

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 Table of Contents

Title Page No.

Declaration……………….….………………………………………………….…………………i
Certificate…………..…………………………………………………………………………...…ii
Table of contents .........................................................................................................iii
1. INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................. 1
2. LITERATURE REVIEW ........................................................................................ 2
3. NEED FOR PROPOSED STUDY ......................................................................... 7
4. OBJECTIVE AND SCOPE OF STUDY................................................................. 8
5. METHODOLOGY ................................................................................................... 8
6. PLANNING OF WORK........................................................................................10
7. REFERENCES .......................................................................................................11

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1.0 INTRODUCTION
In India, Construction industry is one of the largest contributors to the economy. Over

the last decade, technology has advanced greatly. Every other day, new software is

introduced in the market. Construction planning is a bridge between ideas and

execution. The use of various tools like knowledge-based systems, computer graphics,

and a combination of the two are used in the construction industry. Construction

industry makes use of a variety of software for simplifying their work. PRIMAVERA is

one such software which is used for project scheduling, resource allocation & leveling,

monitoring and controlling. Though all the scheduling tasks and reports can be achieved

through this, it does not provide a 2D or 3D aspect of the components that are built or

managed. To overcome these shortcomings, an integration of the schedule and the 3D

model which is developed in BIM is established. Building Information Modeling (BIM) is

becoming a comprehensive collaborative process in the construction industry. BIM can

create a common language between all parties and system divisions in a project and

make them an integrated team. BIM integrates different disciplines by effective

communication, analyzes the project systems for constructability, estimates the cost

and time of projects at any time using quantity takeoffs, draws a big picture of projects

using visualization and builds collaborative teams. Softwares like Synchro, Visual

Simulation, and Navisworks are used for interlinking of schedules and drawings. This

allows planners to understand a schedule quickly by viewing its buildability on a screen.

The linkage between the scheduled activities and respective drawings in BIM helps in

identifying construction sequences and in detecting logical errors in the project. It helps

in reducing overlapping of activities, rework and provides a better visualization for

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monitoring the progress of a construction project. This project aims to show how this

integration can be accomplished in a live construction project, in this case a hospital

project.

2.0 LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1 PRIMAVERA

For the successful completion of a project, planning and scheduling are two important

factors. The demand of construction industry requires a precise planning, scheduling

and management and resources. Project management software is used as a tool for

managing and organizing work which helps industries to grow in a rapid manner.

Primavera P6 provides project managers a comprehensive tool for one of the most

important aspect in a project- Control. Primavera P6 is a recognized standard for high-

performance project management software. It is designed to handle large-scale, highly

sophisticated, and multifaceted projects. Primavera can easily compare between the

planned progress of construction work and actual progress of construction project.

(Hitanshu et al., 2017)

Benefits:

 Planning, scheduling and controlling from the simplest to the most complex

projects

 Allocate best resources, and track progress

 Visualize and communicate project performance versus the planned

performance.

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  Conducting what-if analysis, and analyzing alternative project plans to increase

speed and efficiency of project execution

 Evaluate risk, identify issues, and determine their impact on projects

 Enable collaboration of projects so everyone on the project team has the details

necessary to contribute to project success.

2.2 BIM

BIM (Building Information Modeling) is a 3D model-based process that gives

architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) professionals the view and the tools

to plan, design, construct and manage buildings and infrastructure more efficiently.

‘Building Information Modeling (BIM) is a digital representation of physical and

functional characteristics of a facility. A BIM is a shared knowledge resource for

information. It is a service which forms a reliable basis for decision making during its

life-cycle; defined as existing from earliest conception to demolition.' It consists of

software REVIT, Navisworks, ArchiCAD amongst other software.

Autodesk Revit is a BIM software for architects, landscape architects, structural

engineers, MEP engineers, designers and contractors developed by Autodesk. It helps

users to design a building and structure and its components in 3D, annotate the model

with 2D drafting elements and in accessing building information from the building

model's database. Revit is capable of tools which can plan and track various stages in

the building's lifecycle, from concept to construction and later maintenance and/or

demolition.

Navisworks is a 3D design review package for Microsoft Windows. Navisworks is

primarily used in construction industries to complement 3D design packages (such as

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Autodesk Revit, AutoCAD, and Micro-Station). Navisworks allows users to open 3D

models and to combine them, to navigate around them at that point of time and also

review the model using a set of tools including comments, redlining, viewpoint, and

measurements. A selection of plug-ins enhances the package adding interference

detection, 4D time simulation, photorealistic rendering and PDF-like publishing (Anaya

et al., 2018).

2.2.1 Technical Aspects of BIM

BIM has some specific features that can effectively be used in project management.

These features, which are increasingly developed, can be summarized as follows:

 Clash Detection

One of the common problems of different disciplines’ plans for a construction project is

the geometrical design inconsistencies. This issue happens when there is an overlap

between the plans of different disciplines. Using BIM, it would be possible to bring the

plans together and detect the clashes. Modifying the aesthetic problems is another

possibility of this visual checking (Saeed et al., 2015).

 Constructability

Using BIM, it would be possible for teammates in a project to review and handle

constructability issues and (if needed) promote issues into RFIs. In addition, visual

information can be provided from a vantage point to show the problems. This visual

information accompanying markup allows further investigation for finding solutions and,

thus, mitigates the risks (Saeed et al., 2015).

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 Analysis

Helping the project managers, designers and engineers in doing more analyses and

enabling better decision making is another aspect of BIM. By linking the building

information models to appropriate tools, it would be possible to analyze the energy

consumption of a construction project and then find better solutions such as changing

materials and orientation, mass and space, etc. Moreover, light, mechanical and

acoustics analyses are also available to be performed by BIM (Saeed et al., 2015).

 Time & Cost Estimation (4D & 5D)

Time and cost estimation are other features of BIM which enable project managers to

visualize the construction project at any point in time and have a clear understanding of

project phases. Time and cost estimation, which are generally called 4D and 5D, can be

properly utilized in the first stages of a project and facilitate the decision making process

with minimum cost and time needed. Furthermore, BIM has the capability to simulate

the various alternatives for a construction project and hence helps project managers

and executives to reliably predict the consequences of their decisions (Saeed et al.,

2015).

 Integration

The project team can deal and interact with a unified model when a composite model is

built from an amalgam of various disciplines’ models. Having this capability, and through

the different phases of a construction project, BIM can coordinate the design, analysis,

and construction activities on a project and, therefore, results in integrity of projects

(Saeed et al., 2015).

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 Quantity Take-off

Quantity takeoffs in a BIM model can be very helpful for the project teams and

managers to analyze their decision and have a clear and reliable insight to various

alternatives in the design phase or even throughout the project lifecycle. Since there is a

possibility of integration between the BIM model and a database containing cost

estimation, an accurate estimation can be obtained faster. Moreover, these takeoff

items can be used easily in procurement procedure (Saeed et al., 2015).

 Element Based Models

Since the BIM models generally are composed of objects –and not geometries, such as

line, surface, etc. – the whole model can be divided into a specific number of smaller

objects. This breakdown makes it possible to have a defined and clear scope of

projects. The distinction between the elements will result in a better management

design, estimation and construction (Saeed et al., 2015).

 Collaboration and Team Building

Collaboration and team building is another key factor for BIM success on construction

projects. All efforts made by various specialties on a project are unified and applied to

one model. This results in direct correspondence and team building. All disciplines have

to work on a unified model as a team and have an effective collaboration during a

project using the BIM concept (Saeed et al., 2015).

 Communication

The nature of a unified model to input, modify and analyze the data in BIM models will

improve communication and collaboration between all parties involved on the

construction project including project managers, architects, engineers, and contractors.

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These unique building models facilitate the communication throughout the project and

lessen the disputes between different parties (Saeed et al., 2015).

 Forensic analysis:

A building information model can be easily adapted to graphically illustrate potential

failures, leaks, evacuation plans, and so forth (Salman et al., 2011).

 Facilities management:

Facilities management departments can use it for renovations, space planning, and

maintenance operations (Salman et al., 2011).

2.3 4D Construction Phasing

Construction planning is an ongoing effort to manage the progress of a construction

project and react accordingly – dynamically adjusting to the “situation on the ground”.

By adding schedule data to a 3D building information model, we can create a 4D

building information model, where time is the 4th dimension.

4D models include planning data such as the start and end date of a component and

their criticality or slack. As a result, a 4D building information model provides an intuitive

interface for the project team and other stakeholders to easily visualize the assembling

of a building over time (Autodesk et al., 2007).

3.0 Need for the proposed study

The current day demand of construction industry requires a highly accurate planning,

scheduling and management of the process of the project which can enable the overall

optimization of the cost, time and resources. There is immense pressure on the project

managers to cut short the delivery times and thus the current scheduling and progress

reporting practices are in need of substantial improvements in quality and efficiency.

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Hence the use of software for the purpose of planning, scheduling, monitoring &

controlling has increased considerably.

4.0 Objectives and Scope of study

Case Study: Construction of New Block for Taluk Hospital, Chirayinkeezhu,
Thiruvananthapuram.

 To develop the BIM model of the proposed building in REVIT software from the

available CAD drawings.

 To develop the Level 4 construction schedule of the project using Primavera P6

software.

 To link the schedule with BIM model using Synchro/Naviswork/VICO software

and develop the 4D model.

 Creates update to the Primavera P6 schedule by entering percentage progress

of each activity and generate the updated schedule

 To create 3D view of the project progress at each stage of updation preferably

end of every month.

5.0 Methodology
Methodology adopted:

Step 1: Creating REVIT drawings

The model of construction project is created using REVIT.

Step 2: Preparing WBS.

A Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) is prepared to make project control effective and

manageable.

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Step 3: Initiating scheduling process

Primavera P6 software will be used as the scheduling tool. The project will be

scheduled based on the activities identified in the WBS described in Step 2. This tool

will be used to schedule the project showing the start and completion dates, locating the

critical path(s), showing the sequence and inter-relationships between the activities.

Step 4: Linking REVIT model & Primavera schedule.

After creating drawings in REVIT, softwares like Synchro/Visual Simulation (by

Innovaya) are used to integrate the REVIT drawings with Primavera project plan. It uses

the Revit application programming interface (API) to export the Revit model to the

Innovaya file format. The model is then imported into Visual Simulation.

Step 5: Create updates to PRIMAVERA P6 schedule.

The percent complete information on the activities will be entered in the database. This

information will be used to calculate the percent complete for each activity. The percent

complete information will be transferred with the help of custom run time application to

PRIMAVERA P6 every time a progress evaluation is made and the application is run.

PRIMAVERA P6 runs to generate the updated schedule network. The updated

schedule will show the progress of all the activities as of the new date of the update

(e.g. at the end of every month or daily updates) and the percent complete information.

Step 6: Showing progress of project in 3-dimensional view

As the project moves forward and the more and more data are updated a user can

visually associate model objects and scheduled tasks. For example a user can click on

a building object in the 4D visual environment and see its associated task highlighted in

the Gantt chart or vice versa. The users can also have a visual view of how a project

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appears during the various stages of work, for example a user can ask Revit to show all

the building components which are to be completed by a particular date.

Step 7: Preparing report as per required format.

The progress of work will be shown in graphical format and in different colors. The

amount of work done on the various activities will be seen in 3D view. The project will

be updated as progress information becomes available and the corresponding

primavera schedule is sent to Visual Simulation. The updating will be done with the help

of a custom runtime application.

6.0 Planning of Work

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7.0 References

1. Anaya, S.M., Sawant, P.H., (2018): ‘Monitoring & Controlling of a Construction

Project Using Integration of Primavera and GIS software’; IJCMS. 7, 50-55.
2. Alex Bradley, Haijiang Li, Robert Lark, Simon Dunn, (2016): ‘BIM for
Infrastructure - An Overall Review and Constructor Perspective’;
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.autcon. 2016.08.019, 139-152
3. Autodesk. (2007): "BIM and Project Planning," www.autodesk.com/bim, 1-6.
4. Saeed Rokooei (2015) : ‘Building Information Modelling in Project Management:
Necessities, Challenges and Outcomes’; Procedia-Social and Behavioral
Sciences , 87-95
5. Salman Azhar, (2011),: ‘Buiding Information Modelling- Trends,Benefits,Risks
and Challenges for the AEC Industry’; Leadership and Management in
Engineering 11(3), 241-252
6. Hitanshu Saini, (2017): “Project Management in Construction Using Primavera”;
International Journal of Civil Engineering and Technology, 8, 538-549

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