Evaluating 4D-BIM and VR for Effective Safety Communication and Training: A Case Study of Multilingual Construction Job-Site Crew
Effective safety management is a key aspect of managing construction projects. Current safety management practices are heavily document-oriented that rely on historical data to identify potential hazards at a construction job site. Such document-bound safety practices are prone to interpretative and...
| Main Authors: | , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2021-07-01
|
| Series: | Buildings |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2075-5309/11/8/319 |
| _version_ | 1797524541126213632 |
|---|---|
| author | Muneeb Afzal Muhammad Tariq Shafiq |
| author_facet | Muneeb Afzal Muhammad Tariq Shafiq |
| author_sort | Muneeb Afzal |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Effective safety management is a key aspect of managing construction projects. Current safety management practices are heavily document-oriented that rely on historical data to identify potential hazards at a construction job site. Such document-bound safety practices are prone to interpretative and communication errors in multilingual construction environments, such as in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Applications of Building Information Models (BIM) and Virtual Reality (VR) are claimed to improve hazards identification and communication in comparison to 2-D static drawings by simulating job-site conditions and safety implications and thus can interactively educate the job-site crew to enhance their understanding of the on-site conditions and safety requirements. This paper presents findings of a case study conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of 4-Dimensional (4-D) BIM and VR in simulating job-site safety instructions for a multilingual construction crew at a project in the UAE. 4-D BIM-enabled VR simulations, in lieu of the Abu Dhabi Occupational Safety and Health Center (OSHAD) code of practice, were developed and tested through risk assessment and safety training exercises for the job-site crew. The results showed a significant improvement in the job-site crew’s ability to recognize a hazard, understand safety protocols, and incorporate proactive risk response in mitigating the hazards. This study concludes that 4-D BIM-enabled VR visualization can improve information flow and knowledge exchange in a multilingual environment where jobsite crew do not speak a common language and cannot understand written safety instructions, manuals, and documents in any common language due to linguistic diversity. The findings of this study are useful in communicating safety instructions, and safety training, in the UAE, as well as in international projects. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T08:57:57Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-e63735da8f4043199e0dc5f143ea750a |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2075-5309 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T08:57:57Z |
| publishDate | 2021-07-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Buildings |
| spelling | doaj.art-e63735da8f4043199e0dc5f143ea750a2023-11-22T07:00:19ZengMDPI AGBuildings2075-53092021-07-0111831910.3390/buildings11080319Evaluating 4D-BIM and VR for Effective Safety Communication and Training: A Case Study of Multilingual Construction Job-Site CrewMuneeb Afzal0Muhammad Tariq Shafiq1Department of Architectural Engineering, College of Engineering, United Arab Emirates University, Al Ain 155551, United Arab EmiratesDepartment of Architectural Engineering, College of Engineering, United Arab Emirates University, Al Ain 155551, United Arab EmiratesEffective safety management is a key aspect of managing construction projects. Current safety management practices are heavily document-oriented that rely on historical data to identify potential hazards at a construction job site. Such document-bound safety practices are prone to interpretative and communication errors in multilingual construction environments, such as in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Applications of Building Information Models (BIM) and Virtual Reality (VR) are claimed to improve hazards identification and communication in comparison to 2-D static drawings by simulating job-site conditions and safety implications and thus can interactively educate the job-site crew to enhance their understanding of the on-site conditions and safety requirements. This paper presents findings of a case study conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of 4-Dimensional (4-D) BIM and VR in simulating job-site safety instructions for a multilingual construction crew at a project in the UAE. 4-D BIM-enabled VR simulations, in lieu of the Abu Dhabi Occupational Safety and Health Center (OSHAD) code of practice, were developed and tested through risk assessment and safety training exercises for the job-site crew. The results showed a significant improvement in the job-site crew’s ability to recognize a hazard, understand safety protocols, and incorporate proactive risk response in mitigating the hazards. This study concludes that 4-D BIM-enabled VR visualization can improve information flow and knowledge exchange in a multilingual environment where jobsite crew do not speak a common language and cannot understand written safety instructions, manuals, and documents in any common language due to linguistic diversity. The findings of this study are useful in communicating safety instructions, and safety training, in the UAE, as well as in international projects.https://www.mdpi.com/2075-5309/11/8/3194D BIMsimulationmultilingual work environmentvirtual reality (VR)building information modeling (BIM)safety training |
| spellingShingle | Muneeb Afzal Muhammad Tariq Shafiq Evaluating 4D-BIM and VR for Effective Safety Communication and Training: A Case Study of Multilingual Construction Job-Site Crew Buildings 4D BIM simulation multilingual work environment virtual reality (VR) building information modeling (BIM) safety training |
| title | Evaluating 4D-BIM and VR for Effective Safety Communication and Training: A Case Study of Multilingual Construction Job-Site Crew |
| title_full | Evaluating 4D-BIM and VR for Effective Safety Communication and Training: A Case Study of Multilingual Construction Job-Site Crew |
| title_fullStr | Evaluating 4D-BIM and VR for Effective Safety Communication and Training: A Case Study of Multilingual Construction Job-Site Crew |
| title_full_unstemmed | Evaluating 4D-BIM and VR for Effective Safety Communication and Training: A Case Study of Multilingual Construction Job-Site Crew |
| title_short | Evaluating 4D-BIM and VR for Effective Safety Communication and Training: A Case Study of Multilingual Construction Job-Site Crew |
| title_sort | evaluating 4d bim and vr for effective safety communication and training a case study of multilingual construction job site crew |
| topic | 4D BIM simulation multilingual work environment virtual reality (VR) building information modeling (BIM) safety training |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2075-5309/11/8/319 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT muneebafzal evaluating4dbimandvrforeffectivesafetycommunicationandtrainingacasestudyofmultilingualconstructionjobsitecrew AT muhammadtariqshafiq evaluating4dbimandvrforeffectivesafetycommunicationandtrainingacasestudyofmultilingualconstructionjobsitecrew |