About the project
CoDEC is a CEDR (Conference of European Directors of Roads) funded project that is aiming to understand and develop practical ways to connect Asset Management Systems with Building Information Modelling (BIM) for the European Road Authorities, in particular with regards to freeing and enriching data flow to and from Asset Management Systems (AMS).To develop the solution, CoDEC is first focusing on developing a Data Dictionary for both legacy data in AMS and the new data types generated from scanning and sensor systems, on three key asset type; Road, Bridge and Tunnel.
The Data Dictionary will constitute the base for integrating the European Road OTL with Asset Data. CoDEC will then demonstrate the process for integrating the Asset Data using the Data Dictionary and European Road OTL through three pilot projects. We will create Open Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) as a “set of clearly defined methods of communication subroutine definitions, communication protocols”. The APIs will help in integrating data to and from various sources through linked data/ semantic web technology. This will provide CEDR with a practical and systematic approach that can be implemented across Authorities’ to connect their Asset Data with their BIM Platform, and vice-versa
The project is being led by TRL, in collaboration with BEXEL, ZAG, FEHRL, LNEC, Belgian Road Research Centre and Royal HaskoningDHV.
The challenge
The highways industry is only just waking up to the benefits of applying BIM principles and tools in the Operational Phase of the asset lifecycle. Most Authorities find that the “Information flow” between the Construction Phase and the Operational Phase is not as effective as it should be to get the best value out of BIM. Current asset management systems in use by CEDR members are not interoperable or fully connected, making it difficult to integrate with other data/systems. The need is to free asset data from individual applications and integrate with data from other various sources.Our approach
CoDEC will run three Pilot Projects, with the aim of researching and developing real, practical methods, tools and processes for implementing BIM principles in the European Highways industry. The result of these pilot projects will be shared with CEDR members for further trialling and implementation.Pilot project 1 (Tunnel)
CoDEC is working with Belgium NRA as an Implementation Partner for this Pilot Project. This will demonstrate the process of linking data from different sensors data that is used in operation and maintenance of Tunnel asset into BIM platform. Type of data we intend to include for this Pilot Project are: Tunnel inventory data, Traffic (from installed detection loops), Incident data (from cameras), Air ventilation data (from ventilation sensors), Air quality data (from installed sensors).Pilot project 2 (Bridge)
CoDEC is working with Dutch NRA as an Implementation Partner for this Pilot Project. Data for this Pilot Project will be from 25 de Abril Bridge in Portugal. This will demonstrate the process of building a connection of data from Bridge AMS and BIM platform. Type of data we intend to include for this Pilot Project are: Bridge Inventory Data, Inspection Data and Structural Health Monitoring System data from sensors (displacement, rotation, acceleration, stress, temperature, video camera)Pilot project 3 (Road)
CoDEC is working with Finland NRA as an Implementation Partner for this Pilot Project. Data for this Pilot Project will be from TRL’s test bed for Smart Mobility Living Lab (SMLL) based in Greenwich. This will demonstrate the process of building a connection of data from Road AMS and BIM platform. Type of data we intend to include for this Pilot Project are: Road Inventory Data, Road Condition Data, Road Marking data (retroreflectivity), Street Lighting Data (brightness), Traffic and Accident data, other data from sensors: Air quality, Noise data between AMS and BIM platform.The results
A successful project will include
- Formation of stakeholder group
- Identification of legacy datasets across European NRAs that might be usefully mapped into BIM
- Creation of a European Data Dictionary to describe key asset types for legacy datasets, and potential new datasets generated by new and emerging asset data capture technologies such as 3D scanning
- Demonstration of applied BIM principles using existing datasets and AMS
- Development of tangible tools such as software protocols (e.g. APIs) to connect data across software systems
Curation of a roadmap for alignment of the highways industry and software providers with recommendations to CEDR members for implementing BIM principles in a targeted manner.
The project is expected to last two years, publishing its findings in late 2021. For upto date information about the project please visit www.codec-project.eu
