Vietnam's BIM Mandate is Coming!!

Great news to close out this year 2022:

Our Ministry of Construction (MOC) has just submitted the National BIM Adoption Roadmap to the Prime Minister’s office for consideration and approval. The roadmap is based on proven benefits and industry readiness toward BIM adoption.

The Roadmap.

Starting from 2023, public construction works from Grade I and beyond, such as buildings above 25 floors or projects over 30,000 sqm GFA, must adopt BIM. In the following year, privately funded projects will have to as well.

For smaller projects in the Grade II category, the mandate sequence will also be the same: Public works from 2025, then private sector to follow in 2026.

Simplified Roadmap	2023	2024	2025	2026
Public	Grade I + Grade Special		Grade II
Private		Grade I + Special		Grade II

Although project owners can decide the level of detail and BIM uses, the BIM model must be part of the authority submission set. It is required to meet the following criteria:

Include primary architectural, structural, and MEPF elements in 3D.
Primary drawings and quantities must be extracted directly from the BIM model.
Details can be made in 2D but shall be included as digital files in the BIM submission.

The authority will eventually apply these BIM models to assist their common government works: feasibility studies, statutory design reviews, construction permits, work acceptance, etc.

A MOC's BIM Steering Committee meeting to discuss the roadmap.

We've learned from other countries, local practices & actual outcomes.

Over the last decade, we’ve studied the UK, Singapore, Malaysia, China & Hong Kong governments' mandates to learn what was done correctly and what needed improvement.

But the roadmap is also based on promising results from dozens of pilot projects since 2018 from both public & private sectors in Vietnam. As the MOC has reported: BIM helped save 15~35% of design time and 12~15% of construction time while streamlining the use of material, machine & labor, leading up to a 12% equivalent of cost saving.

That is why leaders of the local construction industry, especially the private sector, have adopted BIM ahead of the mandate. Top real estate developers now deliberately require BIM as a new gateway to tenderers. At the same time, leading consultants and contractors have no choice but to apply BIM by default for all aspects of design and construction uses when taking on new projects.

A typical project BIM implementation workshop.

What does this mean for Architects, Engineers, and Contractors in Vietnam?

As the mandate moves forward in 2023, Designers, Engineers, and Contractors will need to be prepared for the inevitable changes in their deliverables, skillsets, and processes toward a new landscape of client demands for digital project delivery.

If you have already adopted BIM: Congrats; your conscious decision to do this will be paid off significantly. You now position yourself as a market leader and can take on high-profile projects applied to only BIM-capable companies.

If you have just started adopting BIM: Great; you’ve made the right choice — but prepare yourself to overcome challenges & changes throughout the entire design process. In this early stage, do expect resistance from other stakeholders, productivity loss, and confusion about turning back midway. These are expected and will lead to your “new normal.”

But if BIM is not yet considered in your workflow, let this image below sink in. We have been doing nothing but BIM for the last nine years. We have gone through the trenches and navigated the most difficult BIM adoption challenges for dozens of companies. If you find it difficult and too costly to adopt BIM now, we can share with you what it can cost your company if you do it later. It has never been easier or more cost-effective to adopt BIM now.