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Four essential tips on BIM (Building Information Modeling) for today’s construction and infrastructure managers.

It’s here and it’s changing everything: Building Information Modeling (BIM) is a digital revolution transforming the competitive landscape of the construction industry. BIM makes us see assets differently. It drives change in how we design, price, construct and maintain assets throughout their whole life. For those still not aboard time is running out. What are they action points that will help us seize the BIM opportunity?

What is BIM?

Three New Dimensions of Change

Simply put BIM is using a digital 3D model so that everyone who interacts with an asset can optimize their actions. However, BIM is way more than that. BIM adds three new dimensions to the geometric ones:

  • Time
  • Cost
  • Whole-life Maintenance

With BIM, we can calculate and visualize costs, plans and whole life maintenance of an asset, from the initial bid, through every stage of construction, all the way to refurbs or renovation.

Key action point #1

Become Building Information Modeling complaint.

In some countries, BIM compliance is now mandatory for all large projects. The UK is an example: If a company is not BIM-compliant, it will not get any state-funded construction work. London’s Crossrail project is the largest construction project in Europe, with 10,000 workers on 40 different sites building 42 km of new tunnels. All contractors on the project had to gain BIM certification from the UK’s BIM Academy. And it’s not just the UK. Last week I got calls from businesses in France, South Africa, Sweden and Norway, all wanting to know more about BIM. The issue of compliance should be “when” not “if” for all large-scale construction companies.

London’s Crossrail project is the largest construction project in Europe, with 10,000 workers on 40 different sites building 42 km of new tunnels. All contractors on the project had to gain BIM certification from the UK’s BIM Academy. And it’s not just the UK. Last week I got calls from businesses in France, South Africa, Sweden and Norway, all wanting to know more about BIM. The issue of compliance should be “when” not “if” for all large-scale construction companies.

Key action point #2

Use Building Information Modeling when bidding for projects.

With BIM, contractors can add a timeline to the digital 3D model of their asset using a 4D Scheduling tool. With 4D Scheduling, they can map every stage of construction and watch it happen, sequence by sequence, before them. 4D Scheduling is becoming an ever more common tool in bidding. In many large projects, these days the architect will give contractors a BIM model as a Request for Tender (RFT) and ask them to bid against that. 4D Scheduling is a powerful competitive advantage when bidding. And who knows, maybe it too could soon be mandatory for entering certain projects.

Key action point #3

Use Building Information Modeling to estimate costs.

Traditional estimating for construction projects has been based on lists of specifications, and something of a ‘black art’. And we all know how costing by spec can end up – within months suppliers realize that the costs they committed to on paper are, in reality, unachievable. With today’s tight margins, nobody can afford that kind of slippage. A BIM model includes all currently available component costs. Eventfully the model itself will be able to generate an estimate. Of course, it will be more complicated in practice than it sounds, but for most businesses, the gains in efficiency will be irresistible. BIM means more accurate costing, complete with a feedback loop so that companies can see where they got it right, where they got it wrong and how they can estimate smarter next time.

Key action point #4

Reduce the whole-life costs of assets with Building Information Modeling.

With growing regulatory demand for sustainable buildings, constructing low-maintenance assets with low whole life costs is essential. The digital Master Data in a BIM model can be handed over after construction, and then kept for maintenance and constantly updated throughout the life of the asset. In a project driven by 2D drawings and competing Excel sheets a truly finalized drawing of the finished building may never emerge. The 3D BIM data needs to drive the business process, evolving with the asset over time, growing with the building, and acting as a constant blueprint to be handed over to each generation of the asset’s life.

As societies become more complex and networked, all industries are striving to build assets smarter and faster, with a lower cost of ownership. Groups like the UK’s BIM Academy and BIM Task Group recognize the essential similarities between industries and the common reward that will come with universal best practices. In today’s digital, visual society, tomorrow’s engineers are already building multidimensional worlds today on their Play Stations and consoles. The gaps between industries are bound to close. Maybe the last great change BIM will affect the construction industry will be ending the idea of a separate, specialized ‘construction industry’ itself.


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11 Responses

  1. Avatar

    bim modeling

    BIM may be started around 10 years before, bu now it has become a life changer. Nowadays we can see many companies have implemented BIM in their projects. And so the software industry also has grown to fulfill the needs.

    Reply
  2. Avatar

    BIM Services

    Building Information Modeling (BIM) is the way toward producing and overseeing building information amid its life cycle. Ordinarily it utilizes three-dimensional, continuous, dynamic building displaying programming to expand profitability in building outline and development.

    Reply
  3. Avatar

    ASC Techno

    Building Information Modeling has really saved a big toll from the construction industry. It has enabled easy timeline projections and estimate cost and hence has provided a new direction to the construction industry.

    Reply
  4. Avatar

    Roger King

    BIM has become a primary requirement for any project. Implementing this can help to reduce time, money, redesigning, errors, and much more. Each stage can be scheduled and the various team can be involved at any time and make them work in syn.

    Reply
  5. Avatar

    Rusbe

    Great post on Building Information Modeling and ways to make buildings more efficient and cost effective with BIM.

    Reply
  6. Avatar

    Prasad Kulkarni

    BIM technology has completely changed the construction industry all over the globe. The blog has perfectly discussed about how it has affected the industry in a positive way. Thanks!

    Reply
  7. Avatar

    Carl Smith

    Hey, I read your article and your information about BIM dimension is very amzing and so much useful for me. Keep it up and Thank you very much.:)

    Reply

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