The construction industry is becoming increasingly demanding as we try to confront the challenges that the world is facing. The many benefits of Building Information Modelling (BIM) are becoming more apparent to stakeholders, who are turning to this and other new technologies in an effort to meet the demands of the industry.
Game engines have also drawn the attention of researchers in the construction field, as they provide ways to achieve immersion in visualization due to their compatibility with mixed reality technologies, ubiquity as they offer multiplatform deployment, and high-quality graphics among other characteristics. Game engines have been used to deliver software solutions faster and cheaper by taking advantage of the available resources that they include regardless of the developer's programming experience.
Integration of BIM models and game engines has been previously studied and its proposed applications are many, from mixed reality architecture visualization to utilization of BIM models as game content, which brings the possibility of using real world-based game scenarios able to take advantage of all the information contained in them.
Discrete Event Simulation (DES) techniques have been widely used in the construction industry context. Evaluating and experimenting with what-if scenarios regarding construction methods or resources management and isolating the impact of a single delay-causing factor are only two examples of its applications. However, it has been argued that due to the way DES models show their results, they have not yet been fully embraced as a valuable tool by stakeholders in the construction industry.
In this paper, we present a DES model of a construction activity integrated with a BIM model within a commercial game engine in an effort to present the DES results in a human navigable 3D environment.
The model allows the user to visualize how the duration and cost of a single construction activity is affected by different resource allocation and task hierarchy scenarios in an interactive way.
The main purpose of this research is to explore the possibility of using this integration as the core of a serious game for construction management education. In addition, we intend to provide an alternative way to study construction activities digitally.
Analysis, simulation and sensing , Building Information Modeling (BIM)
Integration_of_Building_Information_Modelling_and_Discrete_Event_Simulation_within_a_Game_Engine.pdf 