University PhD Research Studentship
School of Engineering and Built Environment
Reference Number: SEBE_BK_2015_2
Studentship Project Title: Integrated 3D Laser Scanning and BIM for the Development of Accurate AsBuilt Building Information Models
Applications are invited for a full-time PhD research studentship at Glasgow Caledonian University within
the School of Engineering and Built Environment. The studentship is for a period of three years, subject to
satisfactory progress and provides payment of tuition fees at the UK/EU rate plus an annual stipend of
£14,800 [please note that students from outside the EU are required to pay the difference between
International and EU fees, currently this would amount to £7,100 per annum]. The successful candidate
will carry out up to 6 hours of academic-related work per week as part of their research training.
Research Discipline
Built Environment
Research Theme
Urban Environments
Efficient Systems
Research Project Summary
Background: It is well established that the as-designed model (typically BIM these days) is not a true reflection of the built
asset at the handover stage simply because of change requests, lack of precise implementation of the design intent and
several other issues which creep into the construction of a building. Therefore, when the building is about to be handed
over, there inevitably are discrepancies between the as-designed and as-built information models. There is no effective
method of capturing the as-built information and integrating it with the as-designed information model at the moment.
However, more recently, 3D laser scanning technology has been gaining ground for capturing as-built information.
Although this is an encouraging development, there are several challenges that need to be overcome before the laser
scanned data can be mapped seamlessly on to the as-designed building information model. These challenges arise due to
several reasons. Some of the key reasons are (1) gaps in the point cloud due to occlusions etc. in the building geometry,
(2) mapping each element in the point cloud with the corresponding element in the as-designed model, (3) working out a
way of recognising the discrepancies between the corresponding elements in the point cloud and the as-designed model,
(4) a way of adjusting the as-designed model to eliminate the discrepancies etc. These key issues are in addition to the
challenge of data cleaning of the massive amount of data contained in the point cloud.
Relevant Research: Development of accurate as-built information model is an active area of research in different parts of
the world. The most active groups are based in the USA and more latterly Cambridge University. The PI has strong links
with the Cambridge group as well as the leading US group based at Carnegie-Mellon University. The proposed work is a
follow on from the state-of-the-art developments in these groups.
Methodology: The methodology adopted for this work will be a positivist approach and will consist of a series of
experiments by way of prototype development to implement and validate the algorithm(s) developed for achieving the
objectives of the project. The main tasks to be performed will be (1) to identify features to be used in mapping building
components embedded in the point cloud with the corresponding ones in the as-designed BIM, (2) identifying the
discrepancies between the corresponding components, (3) making the appropriate changes in the as-designed
components to eliminate the discrepancies, (4) develop an algorithm to automatically/semi-automatically do the three
tasks (1), (2) and (3); (5) implement a prototype to validate the algorithm. A lot of material already exists for tasks (1), (2)
and (3) but this work will carry out an evaluation of the existing body of knowledge in these areas to develop its own
framework for developing accurate as-built information models.
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Supervisory Team
Professor Bimal Kumar
Dr Warren Chan
Dr Ioannis Brilakis (Department of Engineering, Cambridge University)
Staff Contact
Professor Bimal Kumar, b.kumar@gcu.ac.uk, +44 141 331 8522
How to Apply
Applicants must hold the equivalent of at least an Upper Second or First Class Honours Degree in a
construction and/or computing-related discipline from a recognized institution. A background in
Building Information Modeling and some computer programming experience although not essential will
be preferred.
Applicants should complete the University Research Application Form, available here:
Please send the form, stating the studentship project title and reference number, with a CV, copies of
academic qualifications, references, and any other required documentation to:
researchapplications@gcu.ac.uk
The closing date for applications is Monday 13 April 2015
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