ZEMCH 2015 - International Conference Proceedings | Page 284

and to and aid decision-making. One of the key elements highlighted by Sacks et al. (2009) about
BIM is the rapid generation and evaluation of multiple construction plan alternatives through 4D
visualization of construction schedules.

Research approach
The research approach adopted in this study is constructive research, also known as design science research. This approach aims to build an innovative solution, or an artefact, to solve a real
problem. Such problem should be relevant to current practice, and the solution should provide
theoretical contributions (Lukka 2003; Van Aken 2004; Holmström et al. 2009). Van Aken (2004) explains design science research as an approach used to develop valid and reliable research, which
creatively solves a construction problem.
This study encompasses three sequential and interdependent stages: understanding the problem, development of a solution, and consolidation. This paper reports on partial results of a masters’ study, focusing on the development of a method to create, analyse, and select what-if scenarios for housing refurbishment focused on disruption for tenants. It is noteworthy that this
master’s research is inserted into the context of S-IMPLER project.
The S-IMPLER project includes the retrofit of 7 houses. House 6 is the prototype house and is void.
In addition, all houses are two-story, except the house 50 which is a bungalow. Figure 1 shows
houses 44 and 45 before retrofit work started.

Figure 1: House 44-45 before retrofit works

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ZEMCH 2015 | International Conference | Bari - Lecce, Italy