L&T Construction is India's largest construction organization and ranked among the world's top contractors. It offers EPC solutions to execute large industrial and infrastructure projects from concept to commissioning on a turnkey basis with single-source responsibility. One of the largest verticals within L&T Construction is the Buildings and Factories business, which has built some of the most iconic structures in the country.
The buildings and factories vertical is one of the largest construction, vertical which does various types of buildings and factories across the country.
In the expansive landscape of modern construction, Buildings and factories IC stands out as one of the largest and most influential sectors in L&T. This division has not only built the world’s largest statue and stadium but also constructed numerous airports and is now venturing into the development of country’s largest data centres. Among its remarkable projects is the SCB Medical college and Hospital, a unique and monumental undertaking in the realm of healthcare infrastructure.
Mr. R. Balakrishnan described the SCB Medical College and Multi-Speciality Hospital mega project as a 3.4 million square feet vast area. Constructed using a steel structure, it incorporates an automated queue system, time location tracking system for physical hazards and an automatic waste and laundry system – a first for a government hospital facility. He also stated that, this service intensive complex project required meticulous planning and coordination, particularly as it involved extensive use of steel structure.
To simplify this herculean task, the team turned to Autodesk tools primarily Autodesk Revit, BIM 360 and Navisworks. Along with the 3D model, Autodesk Revit was used to generate 2,800 construction drawings and 3,500 shop drawings. BIM 360 was used to collate and integrate various stakeholders from different locations to give precise details for project execution, review of drawings and documents. Autodesk Navisworks was utilized for improved coordination and visualization of the work that would be done on site. These platforms facilitated seamless integration of MEP services with architectural and structural design, in making validation and accommodating changes requested by various stakeholders ensuring effective workflow.
SCB Medical college and hospital is about 2000 bedded multi-specialty hospital, and the value of the project is about 2700 crores. An extensive amount of coordination within the building became necessary due to the intricacy of the steel structure.
To achieve a balance between the two sides of a coin starting from presenting designs, obtaining approvals, incorporating client requirements and fulfilling statutory and contractual obligations, all in a short span of time required a powerful tool. He also mentioned that the capabilities of this 3D platform enabled flawless communication to client and coordination among 150 engineers, modellers and draftsmen throughout the project's peak phase, reducing 50% of working time. As this hospital building heavily relies on MEP services, architectural finishes and steel structure, Autodesk Revit proved to be the ideal platform to model and get a coordinated output. Additionally, as this building is made of steel, the Revit platform significantly contributed to the optimization of steel structural components, which reduced wastages for all steel structures.
The deployment of BIM 360 further enhanced the project’s execution by enabling real-time, multi-location collaboration, thus helping in effective change monitoring and control along with timely resolution of pain-points among various stakeholders and vendor eco-system.
In addition to technical advancement, the SCB Medical college and Hospital project has been pre-awarded Green Healthcare and Green Campus certifications, reflecting its commitment to sustainability. The hard work and innovative use of Autodesk tools by the team culminated in winning the Design Innovation in Building category at the Autodesk Image Awards 2023.
The SCB Medical College and Hospital project demonstrates the transformative power of advance construction technologies. Using Autodesk Revit, BIM 360 and Navisworks, the B&F IC has set new benchmark for efficiency, cooperation and sustainability in construction. This project is a monument to the team’s innovative spirit and technical expertise, bringing in an era of construction excellence.