Identification of Critical Success Factors (CSFs) of BIM Software Selection: A Combined Approach of FCM and Fuzzy DEMATEL

The architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) industry has seen a significant rise in the adoption of Building Information Modeling (BIM) in the last few years. BIM software have launched with numerous robust capabilities and features to satisfy the ever-demanding needs of the AEC industry. Various factors are associated with the selection of BIM software depending on a company’s requirements and constraints. BIM software selection is a daunting process as most AEC industries are unaware of the factors to consider when making this important decision. This study focuses on identifying the critical success factors (CSFs) and their interrelationship for efficient BIM software selection. For this research, a questionnaire was developed and disseminated in two stages in India, the United States of America (U.S.A.), Germany, and the United Kingdom (U.K.). In the first stage, a total of twenty-six identified CSFs were analyzed with the factor comparison method (FCM) to identify the top fifteen CSFs. Subsequently, the identified top fifteen CSFs were further assessed by implementing Fuzzy DEMATEL to categorize them into cause-and-effect groups based on respective influence strength, depicted with a causal diagram. Out of fifteen CSFs, five and ten factors were grouped into the cause group and effect group for BIM software selection, respectively. The most important factors were identified as software functionality, BIM adoption strategies and processes, interoperability, staff competencies, BIM standards and regional regulations. The outcome of this research can help BIM user companies improve their BIM software selection framework and decision-making process during purchasing software.