BIM Adoption for effective interface management in Indian construction industries

The contribution of the construction industry towards the development of the economy of an economy is inevitable. Building Information Modelling (BIM) is an emerging information tool that supports interface management in construction projects based on intellectual digital illustration that provides a maximum number of benefits throughout the lifecycle of projects. A country like India has recently adopted the BIM tool, but it is not widely adopted by construction companies. Therefore, comprehensive and systematic analyses are essential for determining the factors influencing BIM adoption. In this study, a proposed model is employed using seven significant factors, namely, Organizational support (OS), Information Quality (IQ), System Quality (SQ), Service Quality (SRQ), usage (U), User Satisfaction (US), and Net Benefits (NB), to analyse the influence of these factors on BIM adoption. An experimental analysis was conducted based on the developed success model and the fitness of the model was estimated. The results of this model suggest that system quality plays a major role in BIM usage. Furthermore, a hypothesis test was performed to analyse the impact range of each independent factor over the dependent factors.


Introduction
The management of construction projects is a critical aspect as it involves multidisciplinary teams that require proper communication and coordination among them. Building Information Modelling (BIM) represents the digital illustration of physical and functional features of a construction that are integrated with reliable information regarding the lifecycle of a building (i.e., planning, design, construction, operations, and facility management) and provides construction data. BIM is the most common and optimal tool for applying construction based on Architecture, Engineering, and Construction (AEC) [1]. To develop rich data, construction projects utilise BIM to support the shift of the AEC industry from vision to realisation [2]. Therefore, BIM can assist in the more significant applications of a customer-centric approach, including customisation and personalisation in the AEC industry. Similarly, it can demonstrate the merits like cost reduction, reduced time consumption, quality increment, greater productivity and on-time delivery [3,4]. Furthermore, the digital representation of data from the complete lifecycle of the building till the final delivery to stakeholders can be managed. In addition, interacting policies, visualisation, construction planning, cost estimation, facility management, forensic analysis, project management and collision detection support throughout the entire project lifecycle can be managed in a similar way [5]. From early 2000s, the BIM has been used in many countries and various institutes have attempted to analyse the status of BIM adoption. Also, several studies have been conducted to determine the factors that promote the adoption of BIM in construction industries in various countries. Hall et al. [6] analysed the barrier for the adoption of BIM in the Small and Medium Sized Enterprises (SMEs) in New Zealand and found that interoperability between software platforms, absence of government mandate on BIM utilization at the project level, high expense for software and lack of client demand for adopting BIM are significant barriers to BIM adoption. Rakib et al. [7] determined that the BIM training for existing non-BIM professionals, efficiency of BIM software and cost are the most factors influencing the BIM adoption in all phases of construction projects in Bangladesh. Nasila & Cloete [8] studied the factors influencing the BIM adoption in the construction industry of Kenya and reported that high cost of buying and updating of software is the main barrier for the adoption of BIM in construction projects. Hatem et al. [9] reported that the lack of governmental initiative, resistance to change and poor knowledge on the advantages of BIM are the primary barriers for the adoption of BIM in construction projects of Iran. Wu et al. [10] reported that the capital-related factors and lack of owner support are the major barriers for the BIM implementation among the construction projects in China. Ahuja et al. [11] explained the status of BIM adoption in the Indian construction industry using the multi-level social construct. However, this study [11] does not report the barriers for BIM adoption. Ahuja et al. [12] studied the factors that affect BIM adoption among the Indian architectural firms. Hire et al. [13] reported that the absence of knowledge about the advantages of BIM, hesitance to learn the process and change from conventional techniques, absence of a national driver for BIM adoption, variation in BIM readiness among project teams and purchase of software are the significant barriers in the Indian construction industries with the aspect of site safety applications. Kolaric et al. [14] analysed the utilization of BIM in the Croatian construction industry and reported that the high cost of software and hardware, lack of consultant's assistance and inadequate BIM knowledge of civil engineers are barriers for the BIM adoption. An existing literature on the BIM adoption is very extensive; however, still some deficiencies exist. It is evident from the past studies that that they analysed the barriers of BIM adoption from a particular point of view. Although, the BIM has been introduced for a considerable time, the depth of its popularization is not enough in developing nations like India. Likewise, there is a lack of comprehensive research on barriers to BIM adoption in the Indian construction industry. In recent days, the Indian construction industry is facing various difficulties. The lack of guidelines and low utilization of technology are some of the shortcomings, as described by Planning Commission of the country. The Indian construction sector is confronted by numerous issues, including time overruns, cost overruns, misunderstanding among stakeholders and skill deficit. Generally, design in the construction sector has consistently depended on 2D drawing. Because of the complexity in design, construction and operation, this outdated technique is not viable any more. The projects often experience adversarial relationship, high inefficiency rate and low productivity rates resulting in increased cost and time overruns. BIM is expected to improve the circumstances for the betterment of project delivery. Despite the potential advantages of the BIM, its implementation rate was slow owing to various barriers. Therefore, a comprehensive and systematic analysis was conducted to determine the factors influencing BIM adoption in the Indian construction industry. Also, a fitness model was developed to discover the impact of various factors on adopting BIM tools for better interface management. Here, the OS, SQ, IQ, SRQ and U parameters over the US and NB are analysed. Then, the various benefits of the BIM in construction projects with the help of model fitness by attaining different metrics such as GFI, NFI (Normed Fit Index), AGFI (Adjusted Goodness of Fit Index), RMSEA (Root Mean Square Error of Approximation) and RMSR (Root Mean Square of Residuals) are analysed. Furthermore, the performance analyses of adoption of the BIM tools in the construction industries are performed. The management of construction projects has become more complex and larger in scale owing to advances in technologies, work culture and operations. The projects are outsourced to numerous parties with different backgrounds and workculture. Each party is answerable to develop one or more project components or systems. Although these systems and components have been developed independently, many share GRAĐEVINAR 75 (2023) 3, 211-223 BIM Adoption for effective interface management in Indian construction industries a standard interface. Therefore, proper integration is essential. Poorly managed interfaces result in several interfacial issues, such as coordination problems, design errors, system failures, and other construction conflicts. Interface management is the inspiration for organising a fancy project into various interface points, thus managing all the responsibilities, communication and coordination of the project. Lin Yu-Cheng [15] identified the utilisation of a BIM approach to reinforce construction interface management through a case study. This research aimed toward tracking and managing interface events using 3D interface maps integrated into BIM. In addition, the event of a BIM-based interface management system for engineers boosts interface information sharing and efficiency tracking in construction projects. The results indicate that the proposed Con BIM-IM system is an efficient and user-friendly platform for construction interface management, such that users can track and manage interfaces virtually.

Information system success model
An ISS model (Information System Success Model) is an information system approach that explains the details of different dimensions of various success factors with the help of the evaluation by the information system. McLean and DeLone developed this method in 1992 [16]. The feedback of the system has been gradually improved by various researchers. The ISS model has been used in several research papers for contemporary analyses. Notably, in 2003, the authors McLean and William DeLone modified their old model and formulated an improved ISS model that focused on service quality, information quality and user satisfaction.

Organizational support
The organizational support represents support from the construction industry for BIM tool usage. Shang and Shen [17] presented an emerging Information Communication Technology (ICT) that enhances collaboration in various project extensions in BIM. The authors described the development of the Building Information Modelling accomplishment of association from technical, organizational support, process, and legal objectives, and identified the critical success factors (CSFs) of BIM based on recent releases. Ruoyu et al. [18] presented the BIM implementation scenario from developed countries to other developing countries as a global movement. The research roughly selected 94 Chinese BIM experts to examine BIM practice and its related concepts for performing the survey using the questionnaire method. Errors in design and consequent construction restoration were considered the best advantages of using BIM. Beliz and Karahan [19] investigated the CSFs of BIM implementation, identified 16 factors under five categories, and analysed BIM implementation based on project characteristics.

Information quality
Information quality (IQ) refers to the status of information, which means that the system can reserve, reform, and generate information. Evaluated using information systems, IQ is one of the furthermost mutual dimensions. IQ influences user satisfaction with the design and intentions of the user to customise the system. Davis [20] suggested that information technology explains perceived benefits, perceived comfort of practice, and user acceptance. The study proposed and confirmed new scales for two specific variables: perceived usefulness, ease of use of perceived and user approval. Magid et al. [21] developed an integrated conceptual model using a microcomputer approach. Using the technology acceptance model, they examined the influence of external factors on the user acceptance of microcomputer technology. Zuppa et al. [22] explained the shortcomings of many solutions in the construction industry and suggested building information modelling (BIM). This study proposed a broad definition of BIM through a survey of AEC experts by identifying the perceived effect of BIM on the success of building projects. BIM has been continuously perceived as a tool in the survey results for AEC work to remove errors and increase the productivity, safety, schedule, quality, and cost of construction projects. Papadonikolaki [23] researched BIM connected to the internal and intermediate organizational conditions of BIM operations. Based on this study, cross-cultural case sampling can be performed, which increases the global gains of traction. It is to be noted that the functionality of BIM is continuously transitioning.

System quality
In an information system, an organisation's overall quality is one of the most commonly evaluated dimensions, along with information quality. The system quality indirectly affects the extent to which the system can deliver benefits through intermediate relationships, use of intentions and user satisfaction structures. This paper proposes the development of CSFs for BIM adoption that can be further developed in the AEC industry. Seongah et al. [24] suggested the favourable conditions for AEC participants in Korea by assessing BIM. An effective BIM adoption strategy was developed by gathering the actual BIM user intentions for critical projects in the Korean AEC. AEC companies worldwide are still developing BIM to increase competition. Tsai et al. [25] presented a CSFs development method for evaluating BIM adoption.

Service quality
According to the quality of service, information systems can be provided along with the quality of the information and system. The application objectives and user satisfaction with the system are directly affected by the quality of service, which affects the net benefits of the system. Jiule et al. [26] presented the quality GRAĐEVINAR 75 (2023) 3, 211-223 Sindhu Vaardini Umaapathy, Shanmugapriya Sundarrajan of information, system quality, and external services on the BIM satisfaction of the user. They explored the influence of these factors on BIM adoption. The main contributors to this work were the quality of information, top management support, and external services, which have an evocative influence on the BIM satisfaction of the user. Yaakob et al. [27] classified CSFs of BIM usage into four categories: technology, organisation, process and legal. The technology category showed the factors that included software and service compilations and various protection models for information and data.

User satisfaction
Information systems are directly related to the net benefits from user satisfaction. User satisfaction denotes the degree to which a user is happy or satisfied with an information system, and is instantly concocted by system usage. Structural equation modelling (SEM) with an acceptance model for BIM was proposed. Roky and Meriouh [28] formulated a userevaluated industrial information system (XPPS) for IS success depending on the Mclean and Delone model. They tested that model through a quantitative study using data collected in a questionnaire, following a hypothetical-deductive method. Their study revealed that the response rate was less than 30 %, the number of responses was low, and the success of XPPS for a sub-evaluation. Seulki et al. [29] presented an acceptance of BIM in construction, and 114 questions were retrieved. The hidden meaning of non-significant hypotheses must be investigated by identifying the sub-factors of the hypotheses and sub-factor relationships.

Net benefits
The net benefits of an information system can provide a significant worth of the technology to its users or the base company. The net benefits of the system are concocted by its usage and user satisfaction with the system in the ISS success model. The benefits of the system are related to user satisfaction and the application of a user's purpose. Liao and Teo [30] analysed the adoption of BIM in construction projects in Singapore, and their CSFs were analysed. The main objective of this research is to identify the implementation of BIM by identifying critical success factors and exploring the relationship among the essential elements of success. Based on the research-specific activity for the enhancement of BIM implementation, evidence for PLS-SEM analysis, CSF groupings, and a project management team need to be identified. Memon et al. [31] presented a novel method for BIM for construction design. They described that BIM provides all essential information for any project before it is constructed and designed digitally. The low-rate value of the BIM process in the construction industry was revealed. Applications of BIM include improving schedules, drawing coordination, controlling time, cost reduction, and a single detailed model. The limitations of BIM include enhanced collaboration, which requires coordinated drawing and interoperability. Khosrowshahi and Arayici [32] presented a BIM implementation to create a road map for the construction industry in UK. They failed to clear something that prevented or simplified the enhancement of maturity, and the other side needed to streamline their work.

Usage
The purpose for which an information system is used and the usage of the existing system are well-determined structures in the information system literature. System usage and usage intention in the ISS Model are affected by information, organisation and quality of service. System usage is intended to affect user satisfaction with the information system and their usage intentions. Along with user satisfaction, system use directly affects the net benefits it can provide. Zhikun et al. [33] suggested that building adoption by architects by crucial factors in a Chinese study by giving increased attention to BIM through the benefits of various stages of building life cycles. This effectively simplifies the implementation of BIM. The main objective of this study is to consider the mechanism of BIM adoption by designers. The group stated the failure of their paper was that owing to time and resource limitations, only one AEC architect was selected as a research participant. Wang and Chien [34] presented the planning and scheduling of projects using BIM in the Australian construction industry. BIM has also been widely used to discover the most common purposes of utilising BIM tools for simulations, visualisations and progress tracking. It is easy to create and manage BIM Improved management, interoperability enhancement, and facile user interaction are essential for improving project planning and scheduling efficiency using BIM tools. Ireneusz & Pękala [35] compared the traditional design with the design of the modern building information tools. They explained the definitive design history and development of civil engineering. The model was developed based on DeLone and McLean's updated ISS model [16]. However, the proposed framework depends on the organizational support, quality of service, system quality, information quality, user satisfaction, usage and net benefits of BIM. Based on the study by Jiule et al. [26], the role of the organisation and its support plays a vital role in the usage of BIM. Hence, organisational support was included in the model to identify the impact of OS on BIM usage. The conceptual framework of the factors affecting BIM user satisfaction and net benefits is shown in Figure 1.
individual visits and the Google form format was shared via email to collect their responses. Individual visits are applied to three companies: Studio Parametric, L&T and SPCL. These three organisations primarily utilise BIM 360, Revit and Navisworks as BIM tools for construction.  Figure 2 presents the methodology used in this study. The data were collected using primary and secondary data collection methods. A questionnaire-based survey was used to collect primary data, and the questionnaire was developed using published research articles such as those by Rouibah et al. [ Table 2.

Measurements
This section explains the measurements obtained from the questionnaire analysis and the scale of each factor. Here, factors such as OS, SQ, IQ, SRQ, U, US, and NB were estimated by utilising reflective indicators with five scale points: strongly disagree, disagree, neutral, agree, and strongly agree. Factors such as OS, SQ, IQ, SRQ, U, US, and NB contain one to five sub-factors which are denoted as OS1-4, SQ1-4, and others. The factor OS was developed based on the existing related work by Shang and Shen [17] and Ruoyu et al. [18]. The factor SQ was developed by Seongah et al. [24], and the related work by Davis et al. [20] was helpful in creating the factor IQ. Similarly, SRQ and BIM usage (U) elements were developed by Jiule et al. [26] and Wang and Chien [34]. BIM user satisfaction was obtained from the study by Seulki et al. [29]. Finally, the factor NB was taken from the related work by Liao and Teo [30], and the formed factors were altered to be applicable to the field of BIM adoption. The seven factors were constructed against the 0.4 thresholds and the element which qualified against the loading requirement was also investigated by utilising data from 257 valid questionnaire responses.

Data analysis and results
The data analysis process was performed based on structural equation modelling with the help of AMOS. There is no assumption of data distribution and a small sample size, and the evaluation and hypothesis test is performed by utilising SPSS-AMOS. A total of 257 valid questionnaire responses were used for the data analysis process, gathered from individual visits and Google Forms.

Structural model goodness of fit analysis
The factors utilised for the proposed work were formed as a confirmatory factor analysis with the help of SPSS-AMOS and validated the goodness of fit of the structural model. Here, the integrity of the model fit is validated by seven standard model-fit measures: goodness-of-fit index (GFI), degrees of freedom (df), adjusted goodness-of-fit index (AGFI), comparative fit index (CFI), normalised fit index (NFI), root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA) and root mean square residual (RMSR). The recommended values for these model-fit measures and the model-fit values obtained are listed in Table 3.

Table 3. Model-fit values of the structural model
The results obtained for the model-fit measures of the structural model achieved the recommended values, except for the NFI value. The recommended value for the NFI must be greater than 0.9, and the obtained value is 0.774. However, the structural model was a fit because other model-fit measures achieved their recommended values.

Convergent validity
Convergent validation was performed by determining the value of composite reliability (CR) and factor loading. The value of composite reliability for the validation of convergence must be above 0.7, and the average variance extracted (AVE) must be above 0.5. The obtained factor loadings, composite reliabilities, and t-values are listed in

Discriminant validity
The discriminant validity of the latent constructs is examined by investigating the cross-loading values given in Table 5, and the correlations of the constructs are compared in Table 6. From table 5, the dependent construct variables US-4 and NB5 have the highest mean values, and it is clear that the respondents accept user satisfaction (US4). Similarly, the independent construct variable OS3 has the highest mean value that attributes the necessary organizational support [17,23].
IQ3 has the highest mean value, which indicates the necessary information quality of the data.

Discussions
From the analysis, OS, SQ, IQ, SRQ and BIM U played a significant role in BIM US and NB. Here, all factors significantly impact the dependent facets. SQ highly influences BIM U compared to OS, IQ and SRQ. This outcome was in line with Zhang et al. [42], who reported that system quality affects BIM U in construction organisations in China. For instance, utilising high-quality employees and selecting projects requiring BIM is helpful in enhancing the competitiveness of the organisation. It can further improve production efficiency, increase organizational income, and promote the BIM adoption process better and faster. BIM U highly affects BIM US compared to SQ, IQ and SRQ. This will increase the confidence in the application of US as a factor for BIM success. BIM U have both negative and positive effect on the user satisfaction [26,43]. High user satisfaction may be accomplished with a high BIM U and low complexity. It was found that the effect of BIM U on NB was greater than that of BIM US on NB. Overall, BIM U strongly affects BIM user satisfaction and net benefit. It is demonstrated that the use of BIM software increases BIM user satisfaction and net benefits. Therefore, the proposed method for obtaining BIM usage strongly affects BIM user satisfaction and net benefit.

Conclusion
Demand for BIM and related software has gradually increased worldwide. The adoption of BIM is in the beginning stage in developing countries as compared to developed countries. In some countries, BIM implementation does not yet exist at the national level, whereas EU countries have been utilising BIM for more than 10 years. The growth rate of BIM adoption in India is much lower than that in Europe and other Western countries. Despite its positive effect on productivity, BIM adoption still experiences some barriers. This study analysed the factors influencing the adoption of BIM software in the construction industry using an extended model developed by Wang and Liao [44]. The factors affecting BIM software adoption were derived, and a background survey was conducted on the adoption of BIM software. The seven significant factorsorganizational support, system quality, information quality, service quality, BIM usage, BIM user satisfaction, and net benefit-were considered and framed as questionnaires to validate user responses. Finally, 257 responses were collected from various construction industries through individual visits and the Google form. Based on these answers, confirmatory factor analysis was performed using SPSS-AMOS. The experimental results prove that users are satisfied with the adoption of BIM using the proposed model. From the final hypothesis results, we concluded that the usage of BIM strongly affects BIM user satisfaction and net benefit. These net benefits have a significant impact on the proper management of various interfaces in a project. Hence, the adoption of BIM significantly influences the interface management of construction projects for better project performance in terms of time, cost, quality, safety and productivity. The major limitation of this study is that the model was applicable only to the Indian context. Furthermore, this study will be extended to European and Western countries.