What Does BIM Adoption Mean to Construction Firms? A Case from the Indian Construction Industry

Building information modeling (BIM) is a powerful tool that can greatly enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of construction projects. However, despite its many benefits, the adoption of BIM in India has been slow. Construction organizations are typically project-based, and the decision to use BIM can vary depending on factors such as the contractual arrangement, project requirements, and the capabilities of vendors and subcontractors. Considering these, we identify the different pathways of BIM adoption from an Indian perspective. This study intends to understand how BIM adoption varies from one firm to another from an institutional theory perspective. This is achieved by using an in-depth qualitative case study approach. The results of the study indicate that firms display adoption differently, guided by institutionalized logic. Competence logic and completion logic were some of the institutional logics we observed that influenced adoption. Overall, this research highlights the approaches taken by different construction firms in India towards "BIM adoption" based on the institutional logics that the firms follow and contributes to the institutional theory literature by understanding the interplay between the different logics.