How to Save Time and Money on MEP Design Solutions without Sacrificing on Quality

Requests for information and construction change orders—often a result of system clashes not identified during the design stage—can seriously set back construction project schedules and add up to significant cost overages.

The expectation of rework has become an expensive industry standard. In 2018, poor project data and miscommunication resulted in more than $31.3 billion in rework. With those types of unexpected charges frequently looming on the horizon, it’s no wonder that many project owners and designers look for low-cost MEP solutions as a way to rein in project costs.

MEP design is hardly the only culprit driving change orders, but it does play a role in the project delay and cost overrun problem. Without a clear sense of the three-dimensional layout of a construction project, identifying the slope of pipes and the precise space available for ductwork and other systems during the design stage can be challenging.

Today, forward-thinking MEP engineers are adopting technology solutions to reduce system clashes before installation contractors ever bid or set foot on the job site. Still, there’s more to be done to streamline this process and ensure that owners don’t have to sacrifice quality to reduce project costs.

Where clashes occur

Some architects are working to streamline the design of buildings by shifting to working in a 3D design environment, using Building Information Modeling (BIM) and clash detection tools to identify problems before materials ever arrive on site. General contractors, too, have responded to new expectations from project owners requiring BIM deliverables throughout all construction phases and have moved toward use of 3D modeling at a more than 70% adoption rate by construction companies.

The breakdown, when it occurs, often comes in communicating across the different platforms used by designers, engineers and contractors. This failure has a critical impact on system coordination. If a design change is recommended by one trade and is not quickly communicated to other disciplines, installation contractors are left scrambling to resolve a workaround in the field, driving schedule delays and additional costs.

As a result of the shift toward 3D design work, many MEP firms have been pushed to operate in a 3D design environment, sometimes with considerable resistance. However, being pushed in that direction only aggravates the learning curve that comes from adopting 3D design tools. Firms that take a proactive approach to identifying ways to more seamlessly design work with their AEC partners are more likely to achieve the time savings and quality improvements that 3D design is meant to realize.

How 3D design improves quality of MEP solutions

Pushing 3D tools to achieve greater quality improvements is the next step for AEC partners. Existing BIM coordination technology works to resolve many of the most common system conflicts before a worker ever steps on-site. Tools such as Autodesk’s Revit software allow MEP designers to work with accurate dimensions on beams, walls and other systems, and see how properly sized pipes and ducts can coexist in that space. Appropriate upfront clash detection can virtually eliminate conflicts on the construction site. What’s more, with today’s BIM options it is possible to store within the model highly precise site data that can further reduce MEP consultant’s and coordinators expensive visits to the job site.

Of course, this intelligence doesn’t only reduce problems with installation and change orders. It can also help MEP engineers develop a more efficient, and higher quality, finished product.

The next step toward improving MEP design outcomes

As BIM adoption matures, particularly among larger firms, more design and construction teams are now looking at how to better utilize their 3D tools. Many firms are moving to cloud-based solutions, like Autodesk BIM360, that bring all AEC partners into a shared workspace. When a change is made to one system, everyone become aware of that change and the need to respond accordingly. Clash detection performed in a shared workspace further reduces the risk of rework downstream.

Schnackel Engineers’ AI-enhanced MEP design software takes this improvement to an entirely new level. Typically, an MEP engineer might design the system in one program, transfer a 2D design into a 3D program, or vice versa; send the 3D model into a clash detection program; then send that clash detected program to the shared workspace for another round of clash detection with all other disciplines. This is a highly inefficient, labor intensive process necessitated by the current limitations of the available programs.

By using AI technology to automate and integrate the process of design and clash detection, designers can further streamline the design process and significantly reduce the time spent identifying the optimum MEP solution. This also builds confidence in the efficiency of the complex designs. Schnackel Engineers’ revolutionary technology was built in-house with the goal of finding the optimal design solution to every MEP challenge, in the least amount of time possible.

Raising expectations for quality

There’s one more area that benefits from the quality improvements that 3D-optimized design offers, and that’s the quality of the relationship between the AEC partners and the project owner. By alleviating a significant source of project frustration, and identifying cost savings through better design as a goal, 3D-optimized design stands to strengthen the quality of the critical relationship between all project partners.

AEC organizations have a choice to make: They can ignore the problem of project delays and cost overruns by continuing to do work the way they’ve always done it, or they can seek to address the construction industry’s chief challenge by pushing the boundaries of design and engineering methodology. Schnackel Engineers has always been on the bleeding edge of this technology revolution, and will continue to lead the way well into the future.

We’ve made our choice. To learn more about how Schnackel Engineers is pushing the limits on what’s possible in MEP engineering, please contact us today.