Building information modelling (BIM) within the Australian construction related small and medium sized enterprises: Awareness, practices and drivers

Review of literature on BIM reveals a bias towards focusing on large companies and overlooking SMEs in Australia. To bridge this gap of knowledge, this study explores the level of awareness, practices and drivers of BIM among SMEs within the Australian construction industry through the lenses of theories of innovation diffusion in construction companies. In so doing, a questionnaire survey was administered and 41 responses received from these SMEs engaged in commercial, industrial and public works. Accordingly, seven face-to-face interviews were conducted to compensate for the small sample size and to expand the survey data in more depth. The findings brought to light that current knowledge of BIM in SMEs is one-sided and negatively biased with a tendency towards highlighting challenges and overlooking the advantages. Besides, a significant association was spotted between the awareness of values of BIM and the practices related with BIM in SMEs. Additionally, the most influential drivers for BIM were turned out to be all associated with economic gains for the business of the companies alongside clients' demands. Furthermore, it was revealed that practices associated with BIM and awareness of BIM are similar across different sizes of SMEs.