Using BIM as a Tool to Teach Construction Safety

The advancement of computer technology allows the construction education to exploit the various teaching strategies. Unlike other engineering subjects, teaching construction subjects often requires media beyond traditional class room environment that would enable the creation of field-like construction atmosphere. Construction visualization allows students to exercise and experience various field settings that are too difficult to deliver using traditional teaching approach. This paper aims at describing an attempt to develop and implement building information modelling (BIM) as a platform for teaching construction safety. Using BIM technology students can learn various aspects of safety in construction, which are typically hidden from project documents. Visualization features in BIM are utilized by students to help them identifying potential hazard, unsafe acts, and unsafe conditions in a simulated construction project. The result shows that students are more aware and capable to identify any potential hazard and related safety regulations of construction plan and design pertinent to specific site conditions than that if they were only equipped with a set of construction drawings and specifications.