Challenges of Adopting Building Information Modelling (BIM) Technology amongst SME’s Contractors in Malaysia

BIM is a modelling technology consisting digital tools that can be used in project planning, design, monitoring and control, to ensure efficiency in construction project delivery. In Malaysia, the Government has made several initiatives to promote BIM so that it could be used widely by the construction professionals to enhance the construction industry practices. However, the implementation of BIM in Malaysia has faced some challenges especially amongst smaller size construction companies. Although several initiatives were extensively fostered, the reluctance of implementing BIM amongst SME’s contractors still exists. Therefore, the aim of this study is to explore the challenges of BIM adoption amongst SME’s contractors in the Malaysian construction industry. A survey using questionnaire was conducted to identify the challenges and the results were analysed by adopting descriptive analysis and Average Index using IBM SPSS Statistic 23. The findings from the survey revealed the cost issue as one of the major challenges in adopting BIM amongst the SME’s contractors in Malaysia. To invest for BIM technology, high cost is needed for BIM software and hardware installation, proper training of staff to use BIM platform, and specific certification and license requirement. This study is significant in terms of getting input on the current BIM adoption amongst the construction players focusing on the SME’s contractors which could be used as a reference point and benchmark towards BIM development in the Malaysian Construction Industry.