Increasing Use of Tools There are a number of tools and methodologies being used throughout Europe that will continue to develop and influence our approach to projects. BIM (Building Information Modeling) is a growing approach for producing the highest quality information on a construction project. The complex relationship between all parties and professions involved in a project requires a tool to professionally organize the flow of information for the entire team. Framework programs of the European Union are funding a large-scale research program for BIM. BIM guidelines are developing in different countries around Europe with varying approaches and speeds. Lean Construction is being applied as a way to design production systems to minimize waste of materials, time and effort in order to maximize value. Designing a production system based on lean construction is only possible through the collaboration of all project participants (owner, A/E, contractors, facility managers, end-user, etc.) at early stages of the project. This approach goes beyond the contractual arrangement of design/build or constructability reviews, where contractors, and sometime facility managers, merely react to designs instead of informing and influencing the design (Abdelhamid et al. 2008). 5 D Planning builds off the definition of 3D, using width, length and depth to represent an object. This enables 3D visualisations and walkthroughs, clash detection and coordination, and item scheduling. To understand 5D, consider that 4D is 3D plus “time”: the ability to link individual 3D parts with the project delivery timeline, including scheduling of resources and quantities, and project phasing. In addition to collaboration, 4D simulations function as communication tools to reveal potential bottlenecks. Following from 4D, 5D adds “cost”: integration of design with estimating, scheduling and costing, including generation of bills of quantities, and derivation of productivity rates and labor costs. Possible New Sea Lock in the Netherlands There are three key reasons for building Ijmuiden Lock, a new, large sea lock in the Netherlands: • The current Noordersluis Lock dates from 1929 and will need to be replaced no later than 2029. • A sea lock with larger dimensions than the current Noordersluis Lock is needed to accommodate larger and wider ships. • The new sea lock will provide the space needed to meet the market demand of the North Sea canal area, and will make a major contribution towards optimizing the accessibility of the businesses in the North Sea canal area and the European hinterland. The government of the Netherlands, the province of North Holland and the city of Amsterdam signed a covenant in November 2009 to initiate a planning study into the new large sea lock with the aim of opti- mizing the accessibility of the North Sea canal area. This planning study began in 2010. The nautical, technical, spatial and financial feasibility were studied in the first phase. The expected environmental effects were charted and the social costs/benefits analysis carried out. A preferred version was included in the Dutch Minister of Infrastructure and the Environment’s preference decision in June 2012. The city 42 • DEEP FOUNDATIONS • MAY/JUN 2014 The north lock Ijmuiden that will be replaced (Photo by Harry van Reeken) of Amsterdam and the province of North Holland agreed with the preferred version, which provides for a lock that is 500 m (1,650 ft) long, 65 m (210 ft) wide and 18 m (60 ft) deep. A lock with these dimensions is feasible, affordable and implementable. The market will be challenged in the call for tenders to see if it might be possible to build a lock 70 m (230 ft) wide within the budget. Phase two of the planning study (2012- 2014) included the spatial planning pro- cedure, Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and preparations for the call for tenders. A Provincial Integration Plan (a kind of zoning scheme) will be drawn up for the spatial planning procedure. In 2015, it will ultimately be decided whether the realization phase can commence. The project’s objective is to increase the sea-access capa- city to the Port of Amsterdam to 125 million tonnes (335 million kips) per year through the construction of a new sea lock allowing New Panamax ships to enter the port. The studies will lead to the first design- build-finance-maintain (DBFM) project for large maritime infrastructure in the Netherlands. The results will have a significant impact on preparing the public- private partnership (PPP) contract and tender documentation, mitigating the risk of being the first such project. The use of PPP procurement is designed to accelerate the works, so that they can begin 10 years earlier than initially planned.
