Scan-to-HBIM-to-BA-to-FEM workflow for structural interventions: Integrating HBIM, building archaeology, and structural analysis to preserve archaeological remains

The conservation of archaeological heritage requires robust digital approaches capable of managing fragmented geometries, stratified structures, and heterogeneous materials while supporting reliable structural assessment. Despite the growing adoption of Heritage Building Information Modelling (HBIM), its integration with finite element analysis (FEM) remains limited by fragmented workflows and weak interoperability between modelling and simulation environments. This study introduces an integrated scan-to-HBIM-BA-FEM workflow that explicitly incorporates Building Archaeology (BA) as a rule-based interpretative framework. Unlike conventional approaches, BA is not treated as a descriptive layer but as a generative system that informs geometric reconstruction, semantic structuring, and structural idealization. This enables the development of HBIM models that preserve both metric accuracy and historical–constructive coherence, while ensuring consistency in their transfer to FEM environments. The methodology is validated through its application to the Villa dei Quintili archaeological site (Rome), a complex case characterized by irregular morphologies and multi-phase stratigraphy. The results demonstrate improved interoperability, increased geometric reliability, and more consistent structural assessments, supporting the identification of critical structural behaviours and intervention strategies. Although surrogate modelling was not implemented, in order to maintain direct traceability between survey data, archaeological interpretation, and numerical modelling, its future integration is identified as a key direction for enhancing parametric analyses and decision-making processes. The proposed workflow advances digital heritage practices by bridging the gap among documentation, interpretation, and structural analysis, offering a scalable, interdisciplinary framework for the conservation of complex archaeological remains.