# Geotechnical Property Modeling and Construction Safety Zoning Based on GIS and BIM Integration
## 3 Implementation on the Peshawar Region Borehole Data
### Soil Classification Map According to OSHA for Safe Construction Zoning  
Although the proposed methodology of integrating BIM and GIS for geotechnical property modeling and zoning can be applied for many purposes, however, the application in the context of this paper was limited to identify a safe and proper construction type and place for the excavation design. In the construction works, more than 800 workers die each year in the U.S, while 40 construction workers die in the excavation works due to which is considered, a dangerous construction type [5]. It is very important to know the soil type before initiating excavation construction as it will help to prevent construction hazards. Furthermore, safe construction techniques such as sloping, benching, and sharing can be adopted. Therefore, it is recommended by the occupational safety and health administration (OSHA) that the construction team must determine the type of soil available on the site.  
The OSHA has classified soil into stable rock, soil type A, type B, and type C and the support system can be planned according to the soil type available on site. Soil can be either granular or cohesive. Granular soil contains coarse particles such as gravel and sand, while cohesive soil contains fine particles such as clay that has enough binding to stick together preventing cave-in during excavation. Type A is cohesive such as clay, silty clay, and sandy clay, and considered stable. Type B soil is also stable but has medium-strength such as silt, angular gravel, and silt loam. The least stable soil type is C that is mainly granular soil such as sand and gravel and cohesive soil with lower strength.  
Figure 10 depicts the soil classification map according to the OSHA regulation for safe excavation construction. The study area has all three type of soil, while the rock is also available that can be seen in Figure 7b. Soil type A is represented in red color, which is cohesive soil and has high-unconfined compressive strength. This further shows that it can be cut with a higher slope because of its stability. Soil type B is dominant in the central part, while soil type C soil is prominent at the other side of the study covering more area  
Figure 9: (a) Visualization of IFC-based geotechnical property model in open BIM tool; and (b) Part of EXPRESS code showing the strength category information stored in the IFC format.  
than other types. These three-dimensional maps with features illustrated in colors allow the user to identify the strong and weak layers.  
It is very important to know the depth of each layer as the safety plan can be changed according to the soil type and condition because an excavation can have a cut through more than one soil type. The developed digital map shows that the GIS and BIM integration successfully plot, manage, and visualize the geotechnical properties. This integration provides ready-to-use digital maps visualizing the distribution and classification of soil type, properties, depth, and volume. The distribution of the soil properties over the whole area in three-dimensional can be adopted by the practitioners to plan the right protective system for worker's safety in the excavation construction.