With the technology and science development, the projects are becoming more demanding; professions are becoming increasingly specialized, which is reflectied in the increasing number of participants involved in the planning process and the increased amount of information that forms the project documentation. The process of designing an object is no longer linear, but it is becoming an iterative and interactive process of work, where the synchronous co-operation of different disciplines is required. Processes of communication between the participants involved in the planning and construction process will have to be adjusted, due to ongoing changes, improvements and adjustments of the projects.
New technologies that could improve the processes of presentation and transmission of information, started to emerge on the market. An example of such technology is the usage of virtual reality, which serve as a complement to the existing 3D BIM-models.
The aim of this master thesis is to define critical points of the currently established methods of creating and sharing information and proposing alternative solutions that could help improve communication in construction projects. We proceed from hypothesis that the use of virtual reality could help to overcome communication barriers and resolve problems that occur as a result of misinterpreted, used and transmitted information. By optimizing the use of information and communication technologies, it would be possible to improve the processes of creating, sharing and exchanging project documentation.
The hypothesis was confirmed theoretically, by means of a literature study and practically with the conducted survey of Slovenian construction sector (evaluation of different presentation methods) and by use of VR within one of the interantional companies. It was found that virtualization visualization enhances the intelligibility of presented data (compared to 2D plans, 3D models), while the traditional methodst still represent the highest level of usability of presentations. The advantages and disadvantages of VR usage within the AEC and the guidelines that could contribute to the successful development and integration of tools in the coming years were defined at the end.
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