BIM‐models of bridges in the operational phase: use cases, phase model and reference architecture

For several years, the use of the BIM method has been mandatory for public new construction and replacement projects of the transport infrastructure in the Federal Republic of Germany. As a result, about 20 use cases (UC) for the application of digital models have been defined. Most of them focus on the planning and execution phase. Despite the importance and long duration of the operational phase, there are isolated definitions for use case for operational phase and therefore underrepresented in the overall context. Moreover, none of the published use cases so far consider the specifics of bridge structures. For this reason, a further definition of specific BIM use cases for the operation of bridge structures is needed. In this article, BIM use cases for the use of digital models of bridge structures in the operation and maintenance phase are defined based on a qualitative empirical study. First, the current state of the art is elaborated by means of a literature analysis. Based on this, a expert interviews are conducted and systematically evaluated. The BIM use cases for operation are derived from the results. In addition, requirements and artifacts are defined. This results in a further specification of the use of BIM models in the operational phase of bridge structures and promotes the digitalization of maintenance management.