In the first quarter of this year 110.3 thousand construction cases are available in the Building Information System (BIS) which is 8.5 thousand more than at the end of 2019. The number of BIS users has also increased by 9.2 thousand reaching 33.9 thousand at the end of March.
In the 1st quarter the system has been used more often, since from the beginning of this year it has become mandatory – starting from 1 January 2020, each new construction intention must be submitted only electronically to the BIS maintained by the State Construction Control Bureau (SCCB).
“The System provides essential support to the construction sector ensuring that both the initiated and new ideas are implemented in this complicated period. A rapid increase in the number of clients and construction cases has resulted in an increased need for customer support – last December the BIS Support Service handled 1,567 applications electronically or via telephone, while this March their number increased to 7,883. Together with the sector, using various digital tools, we continue working actively on the development of the System also within the framework of the 2nd round of the European Regional Development Fund co-financed project. The current practice demonstrates that the existing situation in the State allows us to work with the same intensity and quality as before,” emphasises Svetlana Mjakuškina, Director of the SCCB.
Already in 2017, commencing development of the System, the SCCB set an objective to establish the BIS as a single platform for the construction sector. It is implemented by involving all parties to the construction process and relevant institutions and constantly identifying and incorporating in the BIS their needs which have been defined together. In 2020, 116 proposals were received for the improvement of the System, out of which 48 have already been implemented but 68 are still in the process of development. Close and mutually open cooperation has also led to solutions which enable to ensure that starting from the beginning of this year the construction documentation process is completely digital. Thus Latvia ranks as one of the first in Europe in terms of digitalisation in the construction sector.
“Coordination of building designs on paper had become archaic already long time ago. A requirement to submit to a building authority a building design in four volumes, which are most likely to become obsolete with the first changes that are inevitable when starting construction, could be described as formal, to say the least. Electronic coordination of building designs has been a subject of discussion in the sector for several years. The BIS is a comparatively new system which is currently undergoing a real baptism by fire. In the emergency situation we can also continue designing works staying home, yet it would be impossible without the BIS to carry forward the completed designs for acceptance. At the moment it is not a problem at all,” indicates Uldis Zanders, Leading Architect and Board Chair of SIA DEPO projekts.
“Although it is clear that there is still much to do to improve the BIS, we are glad that such electronic system has been developed. And the current complicated situation has demonstrated that a decision to create it as an online platform rather than an application has been correct – in order to use the System no special programs only available at workplace are required. The BIS can be used from any computer! We are also glad that recommendations from the sector are taken into consideration in the development of the System, for example, it has become possible to upload all project files in the BIS together, although even at the end of the last year it had to be done page by page. It is a particularly important improvement for architects,” emphasises Elīna Rožulapa, Head of the Certification Centre of the Latvian Association of Architects.
Improvements oriented towards facilitating the documentation process are constantly made in the development of the System – starting from 1 February this year, the BIS is accessible to construction specialists registered abroad (the right of access may be obtained in a certification institution), as well as owners of real estate who are foreigners (the right of access is granted by a local building authority). An option has also been created in the BIS to register historical construction (the construction commenced by the beginning of this year), so that it would be possible to transfer data from the BIS to the Single Database for Electronic Working Time Accounts (SDEWTA).
This year extensive development has occurred in functionality related to the improvement of data of construction specialists, as well as management of energy efficiency of buildings, and the improvement of maintenance of the major information characterising structures, and data exchange with the Cadastral Information System and the Electronic Procurement System of the State Land Service. The BIS provides a possibility for everyone to view information characterising requirements for the compliance of construction products in one place. Thus both the persons involved in the construction process and the market operators, such as importers, distributors and producers, can find the existing requirements in one place at any time and learn which construction products may be offered on the Latvian market, what their intended use is and whether they correspond to the requirements of laws and regulations governing the construction sector.
The improvement of the BIS takes place within the framework of the project “Development of the Construction Process and Information System (1st Round)” of the European Regional Development Fund. The project is implemented according to the Agile Method, and so far 152 working groups involving 2,037 participants from 95 institutions have been organised in this context. Implementation of the ERDF project “Development of the Construction Process and Information System (2nd Round)” has been commenced within the framework of which the improvement of the BIS will continue until November 2020.
Information prepared by:
Elīna Balgalve, Public Relations Specialist
E-mail: Elina.Balgalve@bvkb.gov.lv, phone: 67013320