Professional Assessment of Building Information Modelling Adoption Readiness in Nigerian Construction Firms

Building Information Modelling (BIM) adoption is accelerating in construction industries globally and has begun to penetrate Nigerian construction practice, yet a systematic professional assessment of the readiness of Nigerian construction firms to adopt BIM across different firm size categories remains limited. This study assesses BIM adoption readiness among construction firms operating across Nigeria's six geopolitical zones. A professional survey targeting 100 construction companies stratified by annual turnover and geographic location was administered, covering BIM awareness, current software use, workforce training, hardware infrastructure, and client demand. Structured interviews with twelve BIM implementation specialists supplemented survey data. BIM readiness was scored using a modified BIM Maturity Index framework. Results indicate that BIM awareness is high (78 percent of respondents), but active BIM use remains limited to 22 percent of firms, predominantly large companies with international project exposure. Lack of trained personnel is cited by 82 percent of non-adopters as the primary barrier. Hardware and software investment cost is secondary. Client-side demand for BIM deliverables is identified as the strongest driver of adoption among early-adopter firms. Small firms with annual turnover below 500 million naira show very low readiness scores. The study proposes a phased BIM adoption pathway aligned with different firm capacity levels, recommending that the Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria establish minimum BIM competency requirements in professional training curricula.

Keywords: Building Information Modelling, BIM adoption, construction firms, Nigeria, digital construction