Integrating work sequences and temporary structures into safety planning: Automated scaffolding-related safety hazard identification and prevention in BIM

Abstract Construction remains as a hazardous industry that can expose construction workers to fatal accidents and illnesses. With recent advances in BIM technology, project information in BIM can be analyzed in the early design and planning stages to address potential safety issues. However, despite the impact on safety and productivity of the entire construction project, temporary structures, such as formwork and scaffolds, are often omitted from drawings or BIM. In practice, it is challenging to consider temporary structures in current manual jobsite safety analysis which is time-consuming and error-prone. As a result, in construction plans, potential safety hazards related to temporary structures are unknowingly created which need to be identified and prevented during the construction phases. Focusing on scaffolds, this research integrates temporary structures into automated safety checking approach using BIM. A safety planning platform was created to simulate and visualize spatial movements of work crews using scaffolding. Computational algorithms in the platform automatically identify safety hazards related to activities working on scaffolding and preventive measures can be prepared before the construction begins. The algorithms were implemented in a commercially available BIM software as a plug-in and validated with a real-world construction project. The results show that the algorithms could identify safety hazards that were not noticed by project managers participating in the case study project. The simulated results are visualized in the developed safety planning platform to potentially facilitate early safety communications.