The Challenge
Delivering a 15-storey, MEP-intensive hospital wing posed a significant challenge. Hospitals inherently require complex MEP systems, including HVAC, plumbing, electrical, and fire protection installations, all of which must seamlessly integrate within a confined space. The client's primary concern was to ensure that these intricate systems would not clash during construction, as clashes could lead to costly delays and disruptions, thus impacting the hospital's opening schedule. The goal was to complete the project ahead of the prescribed timeline without compromising on quality or compliance with healthcare construction standards.
Our Solution
Understanding the complexities involved, we proposed a robust Building Information Modelling (BIM) approach to mitigate these challenges. Our team deployed advanced clash detection and coordination strategies in the design phase, leveraging BIM technology to create a comprehensive 3D model of the building infrastructure. We utilised Revit software to build precise models for each MEP system and employed Navisworks Manage for thorough clash detection. By simulating different scenarios, we identified potential conflicts early and collaborated closely with architects, engineers, and contractors to resolve these issues virtually before they could affect actual construction.
To ensure the highest level of coordination, we established a collaborative project environment, allowing all stakeholders real-time access to the models. This facilitated seamless communication, enabling swift decision-making and adjustments whenever needed. Additionally, our experienced BIM consultants conducted regular BIM strategy sessions to keep the project on track, regularly reviewing the models to safeguard against design disparities.
Key Features
- Advanced Clash Detection: Utilising Navisworks for effective identification and resolution of clashes.
- Collaborative BIM Environment: Enabled real-time updates and stakeholder collaboration, enhancing project transparency.
- Integrated MEP Modelling: Detailed Revit models for HVAC, plumbing, electrical, and other MEP systems.
- Proactive Problem-Solving: Early identification of issues and iterative model updates ensured alignment with the project timeline.
- Efficient Stakeholder Communication: Continuous engagement with construction and design teams to maintain progress.
Results
The implementation of BIM transformed the project's delivery, culminating in the completion of the hospital wing six weeks ahead of the original schedule. The clash-free design not only expedited construction but also significantly reduced potential risks and delays associated with late-stage design conflicts. By preventing clashes before they occurred in the physical build, the client avoided costly on-site modifications, optimising resource allocation and expenditure.
Furthermore, the success of this project showcased the efficacy of BIM in handling large-scale MEP-intensive projects. This accomplishment reinforced the client's confidence in adopting BIM for future construction endeavours, particularly in high-stakes environments like healthcare infrastructure. The on-time project delivery ensured that the hospital could quickly begin serving its community, ultimately enhancing patient care and operational efficiency far sooner than anticipated.
Technical Approach
Healthcare construction operates under a uniquely demanding set of coordination requirements: the density of MEP services in a hospital — typically three to four times higher than in a comparable commercial building — means that ceiling voids, risers, and plant rooms must be modelled at a level of precision that forgives no approximation. For this project, we modelled all MEP systems to LOD 400, including hangers, supports, and access panels, to ensure that the coordination model reflected the actual installed condition rather than a simplified representation.
The technology stack centred on:
- Revit MEP 2024 for discipline-specific modelling, with separate federated files for HVAC, electrical containment, sprinkler, medical gas, and drainage — six MEP models in total, in addition to the architectural and structural host models
- Navisworks Manage 2024 with 14 custom clash test sets, each targeting a specific discipline pair (e.g., HVAC primary ducts vs. structural beams, electrical trays vs. sprinkler mains, medical gas pipework vs. all other services) to generate focused, actionable clash reports rather than undifferentiated noise
- Autodesk BIM 360 (now ACC) as the common data environment, enabling all eight discipline teams to access the latest federated model without manual file distribution
- Revit Worksharing Monitor to manage concurrent authoring sessions, with a model health check script run every 48 hours to detect and resolve orphaned worksets or corrupt elements before they propagated
- COBie data schema for structured asset data capture embedded in Revit parameters from the outset, ensuring that the handover dataset for the hospital's CAFM system was built progressively during design rather than retrospectively assembled at practical completion
A bespoke Dynamo script automated the extraction of all MEP element invert levels and ceiling clearances, populating a shared parameter visible in the federated model. This gave the structural engineer a live view of headroom constraints at every point in the ceiling void without needing to open the MEP discipline models directly.
Implementation Highlights
The project's coordination process was structured around a rolling two-week clash resolution cycle. At the start of each cycle, we published an updated federated model and ran all 14 clash test sets. The resulting clash report — typically 300 to 500 items in the early stages of the project — was triaged by priority: hard clashes in critical areas such as the operating theatres and intensive care unit were assigned for resolution within 48 hours; soft clashes and access-clearance issues were addressed within the two-week cycle.
The operating theatre floors presented the most concentrated coordination challenge. Each of the four theatres on floors 8 through 11 required a fully validated ceiling plenum that accommodated laminar flow HVAC units, medical pendant drops, electrical busbar trunking, and sprinkler coverage — all within a 600mm void height. Achieving this required three complete redesign iterations of the HVAC distribution layout on those floors, each driven by clash detection findings. The third iteration produced a zero-hard-clash result and was subsequently fabricated off-site, arriving on site as pre-assembled duct sections that were installed without modification.
The off-site fabrication of ductwork sections was itself a direct consequence of the LOD 400 modelling approach. Because the model included hanger positions and bolt-hole locations, the ductwork fabricator could manufacture from the model data without producing separate fabrication drawings — a process that the fabricator reported saved approximately three weeks of drawing production and review time on their side.
Measurable Outcomes
The six-week early completion had direct financial consequences for both the client and the hospital operator. The client's contract included a milestone payment tied to the hospital wing's commissioning date; receiving this payment six weeks early improved their cash flow by approximately £2.3 million. For the hospital trust, the early completion allowed the wing to open six weeks ahead of the planned service start date, enabling the trust to begin generating clinical income from the new facilities sooner than budgeted.
Clash-related cost avoidance was significant. On a hospital project of this scale, a hard clash discovered during construction — requiring one trade to stop work, another to modify an installed system, and the structural ceiling to be temporarily removed — typically costs between £15,000 and £45,000 depending on severity. The coordination process identified and resolved 847 hard clashes in the model before construction began. Even at the conservative end of that cost range, the potential on-site rework cost avoided exceeded £12 million.
The COBie-structured handover data was accepted by the hospital trust's CAFM team without the usual remediation period. On comparable NHS projects without structured BIM data capture, the CAFM data remediation process typically takes three to six months post-practical-completion. On this project, the CAFM system was populated and verified within four weeks of handover.
Why This Approach Worked
The success of the coordination process came down to one structural decision made at the start of the project: making clash resolution a contractual obligation rather than a best-endeavours courtesy. The BIM Execution Plan, agreed and signed by all discipline leads at project inception, established that no discipline could issue fabrication or construction information unless the relevant portion of the model carried a zero-hard-clash status in the latest coordination report. This meant that clash resolution was not treated as an optional quality activity but as a gate that blocked the programme — giving every discipline lead a direct commercial incentive to engage promptly with clash resolution requests.
This contractual framing, combined with the two-week rolling cycle and the live BIM 360 environment, created a coordination rhythm that the project team described as the most effective they had experienced. By the time the project reached the complex operating theatre floors, the team had ten weeks of established coordination practice and trusted each other's model quality — a level of collaborative confidence that only comes from sustained shared experience.
Speak with our BIM Consulting team at Adyantrix to find out how we can support your next project.
Work with Adyantrix
If you are looking to tackle a similar challenge, Adyantrix has the expertise to help across the full project lifecycle. Our BIM consulting practice covers BEP authoring, ISO 19650 strategy, and CDE implementation. Our clash detection & coordination practice covers multidisciplinary coordination and conflict resolution. Our construction documentation practice covers coordinated drawing packages, schedules, and handover packs. Our Revit family creation practice covers parametric Revit content built to project and manufacturer standards. Get in touch to discuss your requirements — no commitment required.
