Evaluating the Effectiveness of Building Information Modeling (BIM) and Virtual Reality (VR) in Understanding Mechanical, Electrical, and Plumbing (MEP) Blueprints

9 pages•Published: December 11, 2023

Abstract

The application of Building Information Modeling (BIM) and Virtual Reality (VR) has been explored within the context of the Architectural Engineering and Construction (AEC) industry to enhance visualization and communication among stakeholders. VR applications have extended into the AEC educational environment as a learning tool to aid students in better visualizing and understanding the project. This was done to mitigate the shortcomings of traditional 2D plans that are not as readily understood. The existing literature indicates that teaching Mechanical, Electrical, and Plumbing (MEP) plan reading with BIM/VR support has been explored minimally and qualitatively. The authors of this paper aim to fill this gap and present a quantitative study of BIM/VR applications in assisting MEP plan reading. In this study, the participants who are sophomore level students with minimal experience with BIM/VR and MEP systems were split into control and test groups, respectively. The effectiveness of learning was assessed statistically through pre-training and post-training quizzes. Furthermore, both groups were asked to complete a Likert scale questionnaire to evaluate their attitudes toward BIM/VR applications at the end of the study. The results show that BIM/VR integration significantly improved the performance of students.

Keyphrases: Building Information Modeling, Mechanical Electrical and Plumbing, Plan Reading, Virtual Reality

In: Tom Leathem, Wesley Collins and Anthony J. Perrenoud (editors). Proceedings of 59th Annual Associated Schools of Construction International Conference, vol 4, pages 399--407

Links:	https://easychair.org/publications/paper/C94t
	https://doi.org/10.29007/ch2n