The provision of data with information management are a significant challenge for the digital developing construction industry. The utilisation of data from a built asset’s planning, design, and construction phases to the operations phase core and to the facility management function of building and integration in supporting core business and support services is frequently limited due to technical obstacles in information management. The paper presents the second of three stages of design science research to propose a conceptual approach for the implementation of the “as-a-service” method for the construction industry, namely “Building-as-a-Service” (BaaS). BaaS involves a shift in the concept of services: users become recipients of services generated by the building, not only services provided in the building. The paper shows the interdependencies between these various concepts and suggests a possible framework for the inclusion of these “as-a-Service” approaches for enabling a Digital Twin based on Building Information Modelling, which is becoming mandatory in several European states. The study gathered the foundational theoretical constructs through a literature review and elucidated them to make the proposed framework feasible. The theoretical foundations comprise Building Information Modelling (BIM), the Digital Twin (DT), the interconnecting technology of smart applications and the practical application in projects. The approach of “Building-as-a-Service” in combination with smart applications can be an approach to making the use of buildings available in a resource-saving way to clients, building owners and users.

Construction as one of the largest industries worldwide is not necessarily a frontrunner in the application of digital technologies, tools, procedures, and processes. This has been demonstrated in innumerable reports and scholarly work. The industry has a reputation for delivering projects late, over budget and with improvable quality; all of this combined with a certain digital ignorance. Moreover, it is known for having a Goods-Dominant Logic, which is focused on distribution and management of tangible units of output. This is combined with Taylorism resulting in separation of the role of managing the work from the actual execution of work. The planning and erection of a building is cross-cultural, cross-country project setting due to the diverse nature of the industry and its globalised value chain. Building Information Modelling (BIM), a three-dimensional representation of information including its corresponding management in asset’s life cycle is considered as one of the enablers for the digital future of construction. However, the development of service-dominant logic within the construction industry has not kept pace with technological and technical possibilities or is not discernible. This is based on a very traditional approach of money for goods which in this case means money for planned and built assets. Service as a unit of exchange is very rarely considered in the sector. As has been shown in other sectors, this can lead to further (more profitable) business models and further increases in efficiency and effectiveness. The aim of the paper is to show the opportunities that exist if buildings are not considered as amalgamation of materials and goods but as a service model. The paper shows what Service-Dominant Logic (SDL) in combination with BIM could offer to the industry and discusses the term Building-as-a-Service (BaaS) from an SDL perspective.

The paper is based on the scientific outcome of a PhD Thesis. It introduces the generic, model-based, reusable, and extensible conceptual framework to incorporate Facility Management data based within the three-dimensional model-based design and construction of an asset to enable smart applications, which are introduced. The conceptual framework is composed of empirical data from expert interviews, questionnaires, and factual analysis from 13 projects of varied sizes of public and private clients. It shows which phases need which data, who needs them, and which added value can be generated if intelligent data structuring is used at the beginning of the construction project and bridges the gap between requirement and practice. The term “smart application” is introduced.