Is Your MEP Design Damaged by Bad Content?

In the construction industry, decisions based on incorrect information have far-reaching consequences. That a MEP design can be damaged by bad content isn’t breaking news, of course, but consider: A recent global Autodesk study on the repercussions of data errors in the construction industry shows that, in a single year, “bad data may have caused $1.8 trillion in losses worldwide and may be responsible for 14% of avoidable rework.” In the UK, research from the Get it Right Initiative (GIRI) indicates that the true figure may be as much as 21% per annum.

With slim margins and more pressure than ever to deliver projects on time and on budget, the degree of financial loss is a stark reminder of the importance of up-to-date and accurate content. Good data ensures that the virtual objects in a BIM model behave just as they will in the real world. Bad data is like a virus: it spreads throughout projects and infects all processes that rely on accurate content. How can we plan, model, or estimate if we aren’t certain that our foundation is solid? How can we prevent that our MEP design is damaged by bad content?

3 Key Points About How MEP Design Can Be Damaged by Bad Content

• Bad data in construction caused approximately $1.8 trillion in losses globally in a year.
• MEP design can be undermined by five types of bad content: Inaccurate, Outdated, Incomplete, Irrelevant, and Redundant.
• Utilising accurate and up-to-date content is crucial for efficient project management, enhanced collaboration, and reduced rework.

Why Outdated Content Can Damage Your MEP Design

One of the outcomes of rapid technology adoption in the construction industry is the sheer amount of data generated throughout the project lifecycle and the speed with which it changes. 

While construction information is exploding, many construction companies still collect and manage data using manual processes. For them, the norm is that a certain amount of their content is bad content, derived from inaccurate, outdated, and/or incomplete information as well as irrelevant or redundant input. 

What’s worse, when problems bubble up from these errors (which usually happen on site) even more manual processes are required to determine accurate items, dimensions, and prices. All this rework takes up significant time and resources that could otherwise be spent on revenue-generating activities. The result is usually a considerable deficit to a company’s bottom line — as well as its image.

Which Types of Bad Content Can Damage Your MEP Design?

There are different types of bad content that can damage your MEP design. Especially when you look at the multitude of variables that you use. But what do we actually define as bad content for a MEP design? Bad content for MEP Design can be summarised in 5 categories – Inaccurate, Outdated, Incomplete, Irrelevant and Redundant. Even though it might sound that inaccurate data is the worst enemy of a MEP design, the other categories play an important role as well, as they manipulate the outcome similarly.

• Inaccurate: Content is gathered with good intentions, but mistakes are made in the process. Here we can think of a wrong data entry, which might be just an error in copying numbers at the beginning of the project. 
• Outdated: The information is no longer up-to-date. Especially with the constant changes during a project, it can be hard to keep up with the development, and it is easy to forget a change that has been made by a team member. 
• Incomplete: Some content elements are missing. This can lead to serious implications, as some calculations might be wrong or missing certain variables. If the software does not warn you about the incomplete dataset, even simple calculations might be wrong.
• Irrelevant: The material doesn't serve its primary objective. Adding irrelevant data can lead to severe delays in a project as it might be difficult to exactly find the relevant data or errors in the dataset. 
• Redundant: Repetitive instances of incorrect content can also lead to more mistakes. Especially, when you think about long and similar calculations, it is easy to overlook wrong numbers. Keeping your project slim helps to prevent a damaged MEP Design.

Design More – Manage Less

The ability to use up-to-date content throughout the construction process is no longer a luxury; it is now a requisite and primary source for competitive advantage. How you use content is directly correlated to the quality of your estimates, decision-making, and project management capabilities. When designers, engineers, and contractors adopt a strategy to utilise current and reliable content, they can focus on what they're good at — construction design and implementation — and avoid costly delays and rework.

A recent global study by Dodge Data & Analytics found that contractors that implement precise BIM — using a foundation of current and reliable content — experience an array of additional critical benefits: Better design quality and client satisfaction, a higher rate of smooth and successful projects, and improved win rates. An externally managed, always up-to-date option, then, seems like a no-brainer.

Consistency When Collaborating on Projects

Upon adopting a strategy to use good content, it’s also important to ensure that the whole project team can access it and that it can be updated and made instantly available to everyone. It should not matter whether they are in the office or in the field. Integrated distribution tools make efficient collaboration easy by ensuring that everyone shares the same information, all the time. The outcomes of this combined strategy are clear: Standardisation across the organisation, enhanced collaboration, improved decision-making, less re-work in the office, and even less rework in the field — all leading to efficiencies that improve your bottom line.

Trimble Can Help to Prevent a Damaged MEP Design by Bad Content

Choosing technology that delivers reliable product content — regularly updated and verified by manufacturers — will deliver significant and measurable value to your business. We at Trimble stand ready to help you. 

MEPcontent is the world’s largest BIM library, with up-to-date content from more than 630 manufacturers and millions of brand- and part-specific MEP objects that you can filter by country. Trimble Connect is an integrated distribution solution that gets the right data to the right people at the right time.

If you work in Revit, watch the video below to learn how Stabicad for Revit can improve your design quality whilst saving you time and money. Thanks to a range of productivity tools, comprehensive multi-region compliant integrated calculations, and direct access to MEPcontent, it makes it easy to prevent a damaged MEP design by bad content.