Building Information Modelling Uptake by Small to Medium-Sized Contractors: A Change Management Perspective

Building Information Modelling (BIM) is not popularly used by small to medium-sized enterprises (SME) in the Australian construction sector. While the strengths and benefits of adopting BIM were well documented, previous studies rarely delved into explaining why many SMEs resist changing their practices. This paper adopts a qualitative approach and presents a review study that seeks to identify the resistive factors of BIM adoption among SMEs contractors. A comprehensive review on the secondary sources was conducted to reveal the roots of resistance and explore the change management theories and techniques they can apply to facilitate the BIM adoption and implementation process. It is found that ‘company buy-in’, ‘educational’ and ‘resource’ factors are the most common resistive barriers. In addition, two change management techniques, namely Process Orientated System, and Manage, Change and Dependency (MCDP) Toolkit are suggested to help SMEs to take their first steps to embrace with the use of BIM.