The following text is an open-ended discussion on interoperable and integrated models of housing delivery. I discuss the use of digital technologies, and barriers faced by industry to improve quality while increasing productivity.
The meaning of interoperable is that various parties can work together and transition information, materials, and project states to one another without the loss of time and information. Integrated processes bring all the parties to the table and work through solutions together. The issue I’ve encountered is that most people can agree that integrated solutions do provide higher quality outcomes but whole project is more fragile and requires a large degree of trust. If a particular set of functions is performed by one party in a unique way when that party departs from the process it will be hard to replace that party with another. We don’t see integrated project delivery being widely adopted because of this fact.
Another barrier to seeing this method of housing delivery is the way housing is typically procured. A Design-Bid-Build process is the most common form of housing delivery method which explicitly builds in a separation between design and construction. Quality suffers because of the disconnect between construction knowledge and design intent.
Much has been done to work through these difficulties and the use of the BIM process is a excellent solution to create a more interoperable process. Constructors and Designers can work together on the virtual representation to produce construction drawings that reduce construction related issues to virtually zero. The analysis focusses on large elements (structural, ventilation, plumbing) and tight spaces where numerous services weave together. By solving the issues where items clash, creating space for installation, and numerous other coordination issues in the virtual space huge sums of money and sqft’age is saved.
Interoperable processes come from integrated discussions.
The most important and difficult discussions is that these interoperable processes are a result of an integrated process. You need multiple parties to agree upon when, where, what and why needs to be exchanged. These discussions hard at the heart of the struggles of the housing delivery process. There are again numerous barriers that we could explore here:
- Resistance to change “we have always done it this way”
- Quickly evolving technology “Does it actually work?”
- Large fluctuation is energy and material costs “Lets use this instead”
We have mostly smaller companies that are great a delivering quality work but are fixed in either working in particular silos. When we consider a new technology like ground source heat pumps to make this work well, we need plumbers, electrical engineers, mechanical engineering, energy modellers, envelope specialists, concrete specialists, soil specialists, landscaping, and architects to develop a solution that work. This then needs to be installed by trades across different disciplines. Widespread adoption of ground source heat pump technologies is therefore lacking even though they are one of the best heating/cooling solutions if you have the appropriate soil conditions.
Reducing the effort to participate in interoperable delivery
Much of the issues stem from the fact that participating in this interoperable process has a high cost. To purchase the licensing of the BIM software, to train the staff to contribute, interrogate, and the time commitment is too much. Those that are trained with the tools in school gain experience in a world where this is not standard practise – YET. At least that was the prevailing notion. My discussions with professionals in 2025 have shown a shift as of the last 2-3 years here in the Greater Vancouver Area. Trades, engineers, and architects are currently actively working with digital tools to manage their designs. And, with the economic downturn we are currently experiencing more people will look for high productivity and develop new skills. My sense this will drive more people to look to these solutions as they demonstrably make buildings designs higher quality.
The model outcomes are great but the time commitment to operate the technology is huge. Most of these tools still have numerous bugs and crash often which often requires individuals to build up experience and develop work-a-rounds. Model loading times are not insignificant. On a single project it can take one to 24hr’s to load small to larger models. This prevents people from shutting down the model and saving the work. When the model is not saved for a while and it inevitably crashes, multiple days of work can be lost. Needlessly to say this causes a lot of inefficiencies and frustrations with the users. This seems to be unsolvable problem for the foreseeable future.
Once a team has committed to using a single tool everyone also needs to buy in to using that software solution, but also often to a specific version of the software solution. While software solutions change each year, design teams will commit to a software version for the 3-5 years of design. They miss out on newer features and functionality that these tools bring which may improve loading times and workflows. Another small enhancement is that software vendors have been enhancing standardization by improving IFC export functionality.
Moving toward a Design-Build-Operate process
The owners, clients, and operators are marketed to, but their needs are often ambiguous. Certain qualities of a home, corridors, and common spaces are assumed in a certain form to be desirable. Some form of hypothetical demand spec is often taken by “what-currently-is-selling” and designers-builders work toward this. Here the idea of interoperable and integrated is quite powerful. The integrated process brings those future residents to the design table, enables them to voice their needs, and when that building is built, they occupy a space which is fit for them. Again, it makes sense when you have a party that knows their own needs, but this is often still hard to define for most and not static.
Adaptable design is a form of an interoperable system where we can use the space and change it fit the needs of the current occupants. Alter it to grow with the clients needs. This does require a level of standardization that might not be profitable. IKEA comes to mind where fittings, screws, and other components are standardized to make everything from kitchens, bathrooms, and furniture. A commitment to a single company might not be the best strategy, but those adaptable system will probably always come with some form of patents.
To deliver great results we need an efficient upfront process
I’ve expanded the concept of interoperable and integrated to touch on numerous parts of the building delivery process. Delivering quality will always require cooperation, planning, and a process.