The DigiChecks European R&D&I project, financed by the EU Research and Innovation Framework Programme, Horizon Europe, has started with the participation of 13 entities from five different European countries, led by FCC Construcción. Over the next three years, the project will work on the development of a new digital framework to manage construction permits and regulatory compliance control.

The DigiChecks project launch meeting took place on June 13 and 14. This first meeting brought together all the members of the consortium, with the aim of knowing the contributions of each entity and establishing the working bases to achieve the proposed objectives with excellence.

DigiChecks will develop a Digital Environment that allows interoperability and communication between the different platforms of the construction industry, which will facilitate the management of permits and compliance controls. It will be based on new technologies (BIM, GIS, Artificial Intelligence, Blockchain, Digital Twin) among others, taking previous international initiatives as a reference.

The management of construction permits and compliance controls is an issue that involves a large number of actors in the processes, from architects and engineering companies involved in the designs, public entities, construction companies and subcontractors, to the final owner of the assets. 

A common problem in the processes is the lack of a common language that allows interoperability between the different actors and competent authorities. In addition, the process of approval and verification of conformity varies according to countries, regions or even municipalities.

The digital environment will be transformed into an "Open API" service, which will be based on the 3 principles on which DigiChecks is based: the definition of a common ontology of approval permits, the customization of the Permit Processes according to the needs of the users, and, finally, the definition of control rules, for the control of conformity based on Geometric Information Models (IFC).

The ultimate goal of the solution is to provide flexibility, ease of use and efficiency in the permit approval and compliance control processes.
The development of the digital environment will be validated in three pilot projects of different nature and complexity: Wales, Spain and Austria, where all the interested parties will validate the system.

The 13 European entities that will collaborate in DigiChecks are international companies from the fields of construction, research, standardization, digitization and ancillary services. They are FCC Construcción, REALIA BUSINESS, Fundación Tekniker, IDP Ingeniería, Medio ambiente y Arquitectura, Ibermática, Building Digital Twin Association, Neanex, Semmtech, Digital Construction, Bureau Veritas Group, CREE BUILDINGS, Universiteit Gent & innCome.