*7.2. The RINNO Project Case Study*

This paper also introduced an ontology that is dedicated to 4D BIM planning within the context of renovation projects and demonstrated its applicability and value by designing and developing the RINNO Renovation Engine to enable automatic 4D planning generation and simulation. Ontologies are known to be powerful AI tools that allow the formalization of specific domain knowledge by providing it in a machine-readable format. To allow users to test and simulate different 4D planning strategies, the automated 4D planning process proposed enables 4D scenario identification and generation in a simple, interactive, and automatic way through a set of user-friendly interfaces. In the literature, ontologies are usually implemented using the Protégé platform [112]. Based on expert's input and knowledge from renovation engineering documents, Amorocho et al. [99] developed an ontology restricted to the installation of common renovation products, such as windows, HVAC components, and external thermal insulation panels. The 4D BIM ontology proposed in this paper considers the general case of renovation projects and so includes all related activities: innovative products installation as well as general activities, such as 'façade insulation with cavity insufflation'. Furthermore, to improve interoperability and interfacing between the BIM authoring tool (Autodesk Revit), the BIM management tool (Synchro Pro), and the scheduling tool (MS Excel), the RINNO Renovation Engine was developed as a plugin using the C# programming language, and the ontology was implemented as a knowledge base and populated using both the SQL Server tool and the RINNO partners' expertise and knowledge. However, further research is needed in order to extend and validate the content of the domain expert knowledge in terms of renovation activities, equipment, innovative products, sequencing rules and constraints between activities, costs, etc. For that, a survey has already been launched across many EU countries, and the results will be soon reported. Since costs data will be validated by the survey, it can be then integrated to

implement a 5D BIM use case, thus enabling the economic assessment and monitoring of renovation projects.

Disruption was one of the concepts represented through the UML class diagram of the 4D BIM planning ontology; however, it was not further developed nor detailed. This concept usually refers to a disturbance which interrupts, diminishes, or alters the usual functioning of an activity, service, or system, and its impacts on the overall efficiency and productivity of the project [113]. Disruptions and delays are two interrelated concepts. While disruptions can cause delays in the progress of construction works, delays similarly can generate disruptions and a loss of productivity. Although renovation may be disruptive per definition, project participants should ensure the managing and minimisation of the impact on occupants. To build trust and minimise this impact, communicating with residents and explaining the renovation process in advance can play a crucial role [114]. Certainly, BIM-based disruption simulations, along with detailed 4D BIM planning for retrofitting works, can help address this need, which is one of the RINNO project targets that will be presented in future.

Ultimately, to validate and evaluate its impact, the automated 4D BIM planning tool (i.e., the RINNO Renovation Engine) should be tested and applied using real case studies. For this, the RINNO project and its partners offer four demonstration sites in France, Denmark, Greece, and Poland, respectively (Figure 17) with a total floor area of 3 386 m2 including both single-family and multi-family residential dwellings. These buildings reside in different climatic regions, and comply with diverse building codes and regulations, having been built using very different construction components and tools, and they are equipped with different construction systems and other building amenities. Previous research [115] recommended simplifying the 4D BIM model to ensure it does not contain too many unnecessary details and that it enables the clear visualisation of retrofitting works. For the design and planning phase, other research [116,117] specified that LoD 200 should be adopted. These hypotheses, along with the BIM model with granularity relevant to 4D simulations, will be thoroughly studied while demonstrating the 4D automated process using the RINNO's demo sites.

**Figure 17.** RINNO Demo Sites.

**Author Contributions:** Conceptualization, O.D.; methodology, O.D.; software, O.D.; validation, O.D., B.S., D.G.; formal analysis, O.D.; investigation, O.D.; resources, O.D.; data curation, O.D.; writing original draft preparation, O.D., B.S. and D.G.; writing—review and editing, O.D., B.S. and D.G.; visualization, O.D., B.S. and D.G.; supervision, O.D.; project administration, O.D.; funding acquisition, O.D., B.S. and D.G. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

**Funding:** This work was funded by the European Union's Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Programme through the RINNO project (https://RINNO-h2020.eu/ accessed on 1 August 2022 [103,104]) under Grant Agreement Number 892071.

**Institutional Review Board Statement:** Not applicable.

**Informed Consent Statement:** Not applicable.

**Data Availability Statement:** All data, models and code generated or used during the study appear in the submitted article.

**Acknowledgments:** The authors would like to gratefully acknowledge the useful assistance, help and support received from Ridha Bensahaila, Célia Guilloteau, Jean-Daniel Penot, and David Failly during the development of this work.

**Conflicts of Interest:** The authors declare no conflict of interest.

#### **Appendix A**

**Table A1.** French terminology for project actors with English equivalents.


#### **References**

