08:30 - Welcome and Scene Setting

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08:40 - Keynote: City of Cape Town Digital Twin Pilot

Lynn Spieringshoek-Martins, Manager: Infrastructure & Planning | Facilities Management, City of Cape Town

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​09:00 - Aecom Case Study

Anien Nauta, BIM Manager, Aecom

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​09:15 - Towards developing a National Digital Engineering Standard, SANRAL

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Lessons from the N2 KwaMashu ISO-19650 BIM Pilot. During the past 5 years, the South African National Roads Agency SOC(Ltd) has been on a journey towards developing a Digital Engineering standard aimed at enhancing asset management across the organization. As part of this transformation, the Digital Engineering Transformation Team (DETT) was established to guide and support the implementation of structured information management aligned with ISO 19650 principles. This presentation presents a case study of the N2 Kwamashu project, where a Building Information Modelling(BIM) Pilot was initiated during the preliminary design phase. The project, driven by the appointed consulting engineer in collaboration with members of the DETT, explores the practical application of ISO19650 through the implementation of Organisational, Asset, and Exchange Information Requirements (OIR, AIR, and EIR). The case study highlights the challenges of transitioning from traditional workflows to structured digital processes. These include defining information requirements in a way that aligns stakeholders and ensures processes are aligned to SANRAL's asset management objectives including integration with the "Integrated Transport Information System (ITIS).

Evans Nkomo, Candidate Engineer, SANRAL

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09:30 - Construction BIM

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This presentation explores the practical implementation of BIM on projects from a contractor’s perspective, with a focus on scenarios where BIM is either not required or applied in a simplified, lightweight form.
Werner Pretorius, Technical Manager, Stefanutti Stocks

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09:45 - Which Bear are you really?

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Every session today offers a piece of the puzzle, but it only makes sense if you know where you're starting from. This session gives the room a shared baseline for an honest self-assessment.

Machiel Odendaal, That Guy, Digital Reframe

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10:00 - Partnering for BIM Enablement: How Industry Collaboration Strengthens Project Delivery

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It reflects on the role that industry platforms, standards and professional networks have played in supporting Pro-Serve’s integration into BIM-enabled project delivery.
Positions as a professional services partners that supports BIM implementation through project leadership, coordination, governance and compliance, rather than design ownership. It demonstrates how companies has been correctly supported by the BIM industry to align its services with project realities, client expectations and industry standards, and how this support has translated into practical value on projects.
The presentation reinforces  commitment to continued collaboration with the BIM community and its role in delivering structured, reliable and compliant support to BIM-enabled projects across the built environment.
Victor Mokwape, Senior Construction Project Manager, ProServe

 

​10:15 - Building a BIM-driven culture from a Developer's perspective

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Digital transformation requires a shift in mindset, processes and organisational culture. Jacques shares a developer's perspective on how BIM and information management have reshaped the way teams collaborate, make devisions and deliver projects. Drawing from Abcon Developments' digital journey, Jacques unpacks how adopting BIM workflows and connected information platforms impacted skills development across the business, from leadership and project teams to consultants and contractors.

Jacques Erasmus, Head of Projects, Abcon Developments

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10:45 - TEA BREAK

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11:00 - Model-based planning - The future of integrated construction delivery                 

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Traditional planning methods that rely on manual data input and 2D drawings or schematics are increasingly challenged by the growing size and complexity of modern construction projects. Data is often simplified before it is entered into a Gantt chart, and the depth of data included in a typical Gantt chart may only have a loose connection to its source. Simplification happens in different ways by different users, companies, regions, and industries. This is further simplified for presentation and the result can be very high level, easy to understand, and yet lacking in useful information for making key decisions or recording useful data for future use. Model-based planning is emerging as a significant shift in processes, offering a transformative approach to how projects are conceived, planned, and executed.
Jaco Barnard, Managing Director, Agile

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11:15 - Impact of Organisational Culture on Digital Transformation

Laetitia van der Merwe, Senior Lecturer - Real Estate/Property Science, University of Pretoria

 

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11:30 - Beyond BIM: Building a Culture of Digital Delivery Across Africa - How Organizational Culture Enables Scalable Infrastructure Transformation in the African Construction Industry

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Africa’s infrastructure future will not be shaped by software alone, but by organizations capable of building cultures that support collaboration, integration, and digital trust.
Across the construction industry, many digital transformation initiatives fail not because of technology limitations, but because organizations remain fragmented in culture, process, and leadership alignment. True digital delivery requires more than BIM models and software platforms — it requires a shift in how teams communicate, make decisions, manage risk, and share information across the project lifecycle.
Drawing from the experience of leading digital delivery initiatives within Stefanutti Stocks across multiple regions and disciplines, this presentation explores how organizational culture becomes the foundation for scalable digital transformation in African construction.
The session will discuss:

• the transition from isolated BIM adoption to enterprise-wide digital delivery,

• the importance of integrated workflows between tendering, planning, surveying, engineering, and construction teams,

• the role of Common Data Environments (CDEs), ISO 19650 principles, and information governance,

• how digital culture reduces RFIs, improves coordination, and mitigates construction risk before issues reach site,

• why Africa has a unique opportunity to leapfrog legacy systems through collaborative digital ecosystems.·        

Ultimately, the talk argues that the future of infrastructure delivery in Africa will belong to organizations that can combine technology, people, and culture into one integrated delivery strategy.

Neels van Zyl, Group Digital Delivery Manager, Stefanutti Stocks
 

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12:10 - Smarter and More Connected: Leading South Africa’s Practical BIM Transition
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This presentation will set out why BIM matters now for South Africa’s construction sector and why leadership, not technology alone, will determine the pace of progress. It will position BIM as a practical information management approach that can improve coordination, procurement consistency, delivery confidence and long-term asset value, while also supporting a more inclusive and digitally enabled industry. The presentation will highlight cidb’s role in creating the enabling environment for adoption through guidance, standards, procurement support, capability development, pilots and evidence-based learning. It will also emphasise that the starting point for many organisations does not need to be complex: the priority is to begin in a structured, proportionate and purposeful way, then scale over time. For the BIMHarambee 2026 audience, the message will be clear: South Africa does not need to wait for perfect conditions to act; it needs aligned leadership, practical steps and a shared commitment to building a smarter and more connected construction ecosystem.
Bongani Dladla, CEO, CIDB

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12:25 - From Models to Management: Why Project Managers Are the Missing Link in BIM Maturity

Repositioning BIM Leadership: BIM adoption in South Africa has largely been designer-led, with many key stakeholders introduced late and positioned as information recipients rather than strategic leaders. This presentation highlights the gap between academic BIM knowledge and real-world implementation, where graduates are often unprepared for practical requirements such as BIM Execution Plans, ISO standards, contractual obligations and Common Data Environments. It argues that BIM maturity and ISO accreditation should not belong to a single discipline, as compliance is rooted in governance, coordination, risk management and trust. The session emphasises the importance of early education and platforms like BIM Harambee in bridging the gap between students and industry, and positions inclusive, stakeholder-led leadership as essential for sustainable BIM growth in South Africa.
Melissa Lwana, Construction Project Manager and BIM Co-Ordinator, ProServe

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13:05 - From Models to Measurable Outcomes: How BIM, Coordination and Digital Delivery Improve Project Performance

This session focuses on shifting the BIM conversation from model production to measurable project outcomes. It will explore how BIM, model coordination, issue tracking, cloud collaboration, and digital delivery workflows can help project teams reduce rework, improve design coordination, speed up decision-making, and create better-quality project information. The presentation will position BIM as a performance enabler rather than just a technical deliverable. It will highlight how coordinated models and structured digital workflows improve communication between consultants, contractors, and clients, while creating greater visibility and accountability across the project lifecycle.
Key areas covered will include coordination workflows, clash detection, issue management, digital collaboration, project visibility, and practical measures of BIM success such as fewer coordination issues, faster review cycles, improved information quality, and stronger handover outcomes. Attendees will leave with a clear understanding of how BIM can deliver tangible value when it is connected to business and project performance outcomes.
Atlegang Molefe, Design Technology Specialist (BIM Coord), Modena AEC and Infrastructure

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13:20 - LUNCH

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14:00 - ISO 19650 in Practice: Turning BIM Standards into Real Project Delivery Workflows

This session will explore how ISO 19650 can be applied practically on live projects, moving beyond theory and documentation into everyday project delivery workflows. It will explain how information management standards can improve clarity, accountability, collaboration, and information quality across project teams. The presentation will unpack the practical building blocks of ISO 19650 implementation, including information requirements, roles and responsibilities, naming conventions, common data environment structure, approval workflows, revision control, status codes, and information delivery planning. The session will also address common implementation challenges, including the risk of treating ISO 19650 as a compliance exercise rather than a delivery framework. It will show how ISO 19650 principles can be embedded into real workflows using digital platforms such as Autodesk Construction Cloud, BIM Collaborate, document management tools, model coordination workflows, and structured review processes.Attendees will leave with a practical understanding of how to translate ISO 19650 principles into structured project workflows that support better collaboration, stronger governance, improved information control, and more reliable project delivery.

Thabelo Netshivhungululu, Technical Manager, Modena AEC & Infrastructure

 

 

14:40 - The Importance of Accurate Geospatial Information in the BIM World

In the BIM world, good decisions depend on good information. This presentation looks at why accurate geospatial information is such an important part of a successful BIM workflow. We will explore how the right combination of technologies, including GNSS, LiDAR, OmniSLAM, GPR, drones, and optical solutions, helps teams capture reliable, well-positioned site data from the start. The session will also touch on the importance of understanding what needs to be captured, choosing the right tool for the job, and turning raw field data into information that can actually be trusted and used. From design coordination and as-builts to progress tracking and asset documentation, accurate geospatial information plays a key role in making BIM more practical, more dependable, and more valuable across the project lifecycle.
Wiam Labuschagne, CEO, SOM Survey Instruments

 

 

14:55 - Engineering intelligence through digital twins & digital replicas

Digital twins have become a buzzword in the built environment, yet the substantive story lies in the workflow that sits beneath them: the process that converts a physical asset into an interrogable digital one. This talk traces that workflow end-to-end, from robotic data capture in the field through to engineering analysis at the desk, and identifies where the discipline is delivering measurable value today.
The session opens with reality capture in practice. Drones, SLAM-based LiDAR systems, handheld scanners, and high-resolution imaging now permit a building, substation, shaft, or section of road to be captured in hours rather than weeks. Scan-to-BIM through photogrammetry and LiDAR provides the foundation, but the more significant shift concerns what becomes possible once the replica exists. Structural assessments, clash detection, deformation analysis, and condition rating can be performed off-site, on a digital copy, by engineers who never set foot on the asset. The outcome is safer, faster, and fully auditable.
The discussion advances to the current technical frontier. Gaussian splatting is reshaping how engineering replicas are visualised and inspected, producing photorealistic, navigable scenes that materially change the experience of remote inspection. GIS and topography workflows are being rebuilt around drone-derived point clouds and orthomosaics, displacing legacy survey assumptions with continuous, current data. Cloud hosting represents the quietly decisive element, because a replica residing on a workstation remains a model, whereas a replica hosted in the cloud and queryable by any stakeholder becomes infrastructure.
The closing thread connects the full chain: robotic data capture, AI-driven defect detection and classification, and cloud-based platforms that render the output accessible to designers, asset managers, and operators within a single environment. The argument is straightforward. The BIM community already owns the information management layer. The opportunity now is to extend that ownership from design intent into operational intelligence, using tools that are already sufficiently mature for deployment on live projects.
The session is aimed at infrastructure professionals and asset owners interested in the convergence of capture, analysis, and accessibility.
Darryl Epstein, CEO, Pr. Eng, Delta Scan

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15:10 - How to know when your BIM game needs sharpening

 

As BIM adoption accelerates across South Africa, many professionals find themselves “using BIM” without fully leveraging its strategic value. This session challenges attendees to critically assess whether their current BIM practices are truly delivering efficiency, scalability, and intelligence or merely replicating outdated CAD habits in a 3D environment.
Madeleine Louw, BIM Specialist, Snr.Arch.Tech, Baker Baynes
 

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15:25 - Redefining Property Development through Immersive 3D TechnologyMeta-dology is transforming how the world plans, builds and sells property through hyperreal 3D visualisation anddigital twin technology. Using Unreal Engine 5, AI-driven automation and real-world satellite mapping, Meta-dology converts architectural plans into fully explorable, interactive virtual environments within 72 hours, a capability that is currently unmatched in the property technology industry.Unlike traditional 3D visualisation and virtual tours, Meta-dology delivers real-time digital environments where theusers move freely, navigate continuously and experience developments with true scale, distance, technical layers and context. This enables faster, more confident decision-making across the entire development lifecycle.

Mike Eilertsen, CEO and Founder, Meta-dology.com

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15:50 - Beyond Automation: The Next Evolution of Computational Design at Zutari

As engineering projects become more data-rich and delivery timelines tighten, computational design is evolving into a more intelligent and integrated capability. This presentation explores how computational design at Zutari is evolving through the integration of AI-enabled tools, low-code workflows, and data-driven automation. Rather than replacing engineers, these technologies are helping teams scale design logic, improve workflow efficiency, and support better decisions across the project lifecycle. The talk takes a practical view of adoption; focusing on where value is emerging, where guardrails are essential, and why governance, assurance, and human oversight required for trusted delivery
Astrid van der Laan, Principal Computational Designer, Zutari
MJ Mthimunye, Computational Designer, Zutari

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16:40 - How IFC and IDS contribute to Future-Proof Civil Infrastructure Models

What is the design life of civil infrastructure and will the digital models behind them still be usable in 50 years? This session explores OpenBIM in practice, with a focus on the buildingSMART IFC and IDS standards for civil infrastructure. Drawing from technical implementation experience, this presentation will unpack what these standards are, the kinds of information they can store and exchange, and why they matter. The conversation goes beyond file formats: it's about enabling collaboration, improving transparency, preserving information over the long term, and avoiding vendor lock-in so that the data we create today remains valuable long after the infrastructure is built.
Dawie du Toit, Director, Software Development, Civil Designer
 

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16:55 - Wrap up and consolidation of the day

Dr Amanda Filtane, Lecturer Construction Management, University of Cape Town

Fabio Companie, Head of Construction Management, City of Cape Town

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17h10 - 18h30 - Cocktails and networking