Limitations of using the Revit-BIM software for quantification

As the construction industry evolves, most quantity surveying consultancy firms desire to use computerised take-off for quantification. In practice, the common Building Information Modelling (BIM) authoring software such as Revit has a feature of quantification which allows quantities of building elements to be measured. It is argued that the REVIT application is mainly developed to model a particular facility and its application in quantification is less effective than the BIM-based cost estimating software. The paper aims to empirically examine the limitations of using the Revit in quantification. To achieve the aim, a case study in Taiwan was conducted to compare and investigate the accuracy of measurement by using manual quantification, the Microsoft Excel spreadsheet and Revit. A comparison among the three applications was made based on four concrete elements which include floor, beam, wall and column. The findings revealed that although the accuracy of measurement in the three applications is similar, the Revit was essentially designed for building modelling and it could not take care of the interceptions of some building elements such as the interceptions between columns and beams. The Revit software should be enhanced to remedy its limitation, otherwise, BIM-based cost estimating software which is mainly designed for quantification should be used. This study does not intend to replace BIM-based cost estimating software with the BIM design authoring software such as Revit. It is meant to shed light on the limitations of the quantification feature in BIM design authoring software so that actions can be taken by the BIM design authoring vendor and construction industry to improve the quantification process and outcomes.