# A BIM-Enabled Workflow for the Rehabilitation of Heritage Steel Bridges
## 3 The Information Management Framework  
To overcome the limitations on information exchange posed by the traditional process, while keeping a thorough technical process in place, a BIM workflow should be considered. It should integrate structured processes and data management principles to align organizational objectives, asset operational and maintenance needs, and project-level objectives throughout the lifecycle. As depicted in Figure 3, this approach uses international standards, such as ISO 19650 [24] for information management, ISO 55000 [25; 26] for asset management, and ISO 21500 [27] for project management, to ensure consistency and interoperability across all project phases. It can be easily observed that the entire standard landscape is enabled by ISO 9001 [28], which ensures process quality, transparency, traceability, and accountability. According to ISO 19650 [24], the process begins with a statement of need formulated by the appointing party (for example, the client). This must ensure that the information requirements are clearly defined at the start of the project along with how the concepts and principles of information management are to be implemented and the benefits that are expected. Information management and associated processes can also be considered as far as they can be determined by the appointing party [29]. Next, each prospective lead appointed party (e.g., designer, main contractor) responds to these information requirements in their (pre-appointment) BEP (i.e., BIM execution plan), which includes their statements of capability and capacity to apply the ISO 19650 [24]. The appointing party considers the contents of each BEP, evaluates them, and then selects the lead appointed party. During mobilization (the initial project phase), the appointing party (for example the client), the lead appointed party (for example the contractor), and other appointed party/parties (for example the subcontractors) collaborate to agree key roles and responsibilities and to agree an IDP (i.e., Information Delivery Plan). Next, in accordance with ISO 7817 [30], these parties establish the level of informational need required at every project stage and approval, authorization, and acceptance procedures. This enables the configuration and implementation of appropriate information management systems that must provide and consider the needs of the project team and stakeholders, the process of information delivery, and the selection and use of appropriate technologies required for delivery. Figure 3: BIM-enabled process for rehabilitation of heritage steel bridges. ensures accessibility and consistency, enabling stakeholders to analyze the bridge's condition holistically. * Information structuring and standardization to ensure compatibility and ease of use across software tools and project teams. Implementing industry foundation classes (IFCs) [40; 41; 42; 43] for data exchange and information delivery specifications (IDSs) ensures that all required data are correctly formatted and available at the appropriate project stages. Defining Organizational Information Requirements (OIRs) and Asset Information Requirements (AIRs) early in the project lifecycle further streamlines data management. * Model creation and simulation [44] to develop a federated model to act as a single source of truth central repository for graphical and non-graphical data. This enables the following actions:
* Visualization for stakeholders to assess bridge's current condition and/or proposed rehabilitation strategies through immersive visualizations. * Simulation [45] for structural and fatigue assessment [46], and corrosion propagation to allow engineers to evaluate potential failure modes and test repair scenarios. * Collaboration, fostering coordination among architects, engineers, contractors, and regulatory authorities.