Building Information Modeling - 8

Using BIM, designers, contractors and fabricators meet regularly during design development to jointly review the coordination of systems in the model and collaboratively develop solutions to problems as they are discovered. Source: University Mechanical of Arizona Tools + Process = Value of BIM Although these powerful modeling tools can be used effectively just by individual entities on a project team strictly to improve their own processes and outcomes, this approach risks narrowly limiting the benefits of modeling to merely creating “Silos of Excellence” within i ndividual f irms, and m inimizing t he g reat potential for large scale improvement of the industry-at-large. Undeniably, the macr o-level oppor tunity for c hange is t o leverage these t ools t o br eak do wn the t raditional silos of information and facilitate systematized collaboration and redistribution of work t o the most appr opriate par ties at the most cost-effective points in the process. This is in fact an emerg ing and quickly ac celerating t rend, and though it also goes b y several names, I will refer to it for this article as Integrated Project Delivery (IPD). In its ideal form, the IPD approach brings key construction management, trades, fabrication and supplier e xpertise together with design professionals and the owner earlier in the process than the traditional Design-Bid-Build scenario. The objective is t o jointly le verage modeling and enabling technologies t o pr oduce a desig n that is optimiz ed for c onstructability, affordability and timely c ompletion. Then t o continue the selective use of technologies as construction proceeds to more effectively: • M aintain a hig h deg ree of collective understanding of the progress, quality and cost of the project being built. • Engage the appr opriate parties in any decision-making that is required. • Achieve the design intent initially set forth in the models. • P rovide a “digital double ” of the c ompleted pr oject t o the owner for decades of ongoing operation and maintenance. The enabling applications that detect clashes are particularly effective at facilitating IPD . Firstly because of their ease of use and po werful v isualization capabilit y, but sec ondly because the y affor d the oppor tunity t o c ollectively r esolve what are typically expensive and time-consuming conflicts in the field in a non-confrontational, collaborative process while it is still relatively inexpensive to make changes to the models. When conflicts are identified virtually with BIM, customized solutions can be mutually agreed-upon, then pre-fabricated to achi eve coordination. Source: Turner Construction Company 8 BIM
Building Information Modeling

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Building Information Modeling
