VIRTUAL REALITY: A SOLUTION TO SEAMLESS TECHNOLOGY INTEGRATION IN THE AEC INDUSTRY? Raja R.A. Issa 1 INTRODUCTION In order for VR applications to be successfully implemented in a complex industry such as construction, they must be part of a vertically integrated construction environment. Whether immersive or non-immersive techniques are used in the VR applications, users must be able to visualize design and construction information in 3D, photo-realistic, and interactive images. The user must also be able to interact with external applications at real-time, thus, allowing VR systems not only to be used as presentation tools, but also as a universal interface for all construction applications. Finally, construction professionals must be able to view, alter, test, etc. any function or part of the proposed design and at any stage of the project life cycle through the virtual space. Because of the magnitude and complexity of the construction projects, the traditional way of doing business in the construction industry is to divide the whole project into work packages according to well-established specialization. The work packages are assigned to specialty designers and contractors respectively. Although a system like this brings significant benefit to the industry, it also results in difficulties in communication and extensive collaboration among the participants of the project. The communication between the segments of the project relies mostly on drawings and specifications. Project participants acquire from these paper-based media information only relevant to their own specialty. Confusions and delays often occur due to the abstract nature of the said media and the process of constant reinterpretation by the project participants. Although computer applications in every specialty benefits the industry very much, most of these applications can only keep information integrity inside their specific areas. The communications between these independent systems are very limited and sometimes frustrating at best. VTT (1998), the Technical Research Center of Finland, proposed the interesting analogy of the current integration research in construction area shown in Figure 1. The independent computer applications in specific areas like design, construction and project management, which shows the fragmentation of the construction project, was referred to as “Islands of Automation” or “Islands of Information”. The contour line is actually the time axle. The current coastline means the frontier of the research and applications at present, while the coastline of 2000 was the goals that the researchers may achieve before next century. With the advances of the computer technology, breakthrough of some key concepts, and the effort of both researchers and industry practitioners, “the water level has dropped (Froese, 1994)”, and bridges are built between the islands. This process will eventually lead to ” an integrated construction management system. Figure 1 is an imaginative description of the evolving process of integrated computer applications in construction industry. Figure 1. The Islands of Information (From VTT, the Technical Research Center of Finland) 1 Associate Dean and Professor, M.E. Rinker, Sr. School of Building Construction, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL32611-5701. E-Mail: raymond-issa@ufl.edu