Identification and comparison of LCA-BIM integration strategies

With increasing use of BIM (Building Information Modelling) in the design of construction projects, opportunities arise to integrate Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) in early design phases efficiently with minimum additional burden for the design team. Different levels of integration can be envisaged, ranging from a BOQ export (Bill Of Quantity) based on the BIMmodel to import in native LCA-software, up to a real time LCA-calculation within the native design environment, giving real time feedback on design decisions, or alternatively utilizing the standardized BIM-information exchange format IFC. Based on the evaluation of existing tools, this paper focuses on the possible workflows for the integration of LCA and BIM. A comparative analysis between these different information flow structures exposes their advantages and disadvantages, depending on the design phase they are used in and the availability of generic, product-specific or manufacturer-specific LCA-data.