An Automatic Process for the Application of Building Permits

Building Information Modeling is an essential element for the digitization of the construction industry and forms the basis for the exchange of model-based data. In order to exploit the full potential of digitization, it is necessary for all stakeholders to operate digitally and avoid media discontinuities and format changes. A particular part in this process is given to the building authority, which has to examine and approve every application for a building permit. Our long-term goal is to automate the approval process in Austria; to reach this goal, we investigate which tasks have the highest potential for automation. We address this research question by interviewing the main stakeholders, by evaluating the tasks for the ability to automate them, and by clustering them in order to identify common subroutines and algorithms. As a result, we identify eight algorithmic tasks that can be automated and that are a part of every approval process, and we implemented these algorithms to prove the automation concept. This proof of concept is the basis for future automation steps in the processes of building authorities, whose implementation requires not only changes in the technical but also in the social, societal and political environments.