Architecture, Engineering, and Related Services [NAICS 5413]

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ole of BIM within the industry is discussed in further detail within the information systems analysis section below. INFORMATION SYSTEMS ANALYSIS Building Information Modeling (BIM) is a technology and data-driven approach to managing a building project that is becoming an increasingly important part of the business. “A basic premise of BIM is collaboration by different stakeholders at different phases of the life cycle of a facility to insert, extract, update or modify information in the BIM to support and reflect the roles of that stakeholder” (buildlingSMARTalliance, 2012). Previously, architects would design buildings and other structures in drafting and modeling programs such as CAD. Blueprints would be created from these designs and then shared with other project stakeholders, such as engineers, contractors and the building owners. However, when structural changes were made to the building after the design process or construction process was complete, this information would not necessarily be updated across various project files, resulting in outdated data. This was a particular problem when renovations or significant maintenance was made to the building years down the lines. Siloed information and lack of communication was also a problem. Various stakeholders often re-collected the same data not knowing that another stakeholder on the project might have the information they needed. BIM seeks to address these issues by creating a “living” digital profile of a particular facility throughout the course of its lifefrom the schematic, design and build phases through to maintenance, once the building is fully up and running. So while CAD is still used by architects to automate the process of drafting and modeling, BIM technology is used to actually change the business processes in a way that facilitates information sharing and management. Key Issues Addressed by BIM as outlined by the OPEN BIM initiative (OPEN BIM Program, 2012): • Lack of real coordination workflow • Lost information during data conversion • Interpretation issues of data from other party • Limited utilization of building data created by others • Missing follow-up of design changes between the trades • Lack of detailed model for construction While the exact date that BIM originated is difficult to pin down, many industry practitioners believe that the practice of BIM began in the 1980s, but only in recent years has building information modeling been adopted on a greater scale by architects. Successful implementations of BIM require coordination, collaboration and communication between architects, consultants, engineers and contractors working on a particular project. Some of the most frequently used BIM solutions include Revit by Autodesk (also the makers of drafting and design software AutoCAD) Autodesk and Microstation by Bentley. Other BIM products include Graphisoft’s BIMx and ONUMA’s ONUMA System. In an effort to build an active community around BIM and develop continuous dialogue around this technique, Graphisoft has even partnered 3
up with the buildingSMARTalliance to create the Open BIM initiative which attempts to more clearly define BIM for the industry using the buildingSMART Data Model and establish a BIM certification process (Open BIM Program, 2012). Benefits of BIM: • Seamless communication between design and construction teams • Up to date, reliable data about a building’s design construction • Reduction in data collection redundancies (data can be re-used by many stakeholders) • Design issues can be identified and addressed earlier in the process • Building performance can be predicted prior to construction and closely monitored after construction • Information gathered through BIM can be shared with facility managers who then use this information to make informed decisions about building maintenance moving forward One sign that BIM will be extremely instrumental in the way that architecture firms will manage projects and processes in the future is the current development of National BIM Standards here in the U.S. These standards are being developed by the National Building Information Model Standard Project Committee - United States, is a project committee of the buildingSMART alliance which is a council of the National Institute for Building Sciences (NIBS) (National BIM Standard-United States, 2012). The development of these standards is still very much in the nascent stages. The first version of these standards was released in December 2007 and the second version is scheduled to be released in May 2012 (D.Smith, personal communication, April 26, 2012). Developing BIM standards is a significant challenge because BIM has the potential to “involve all aspects of the facilities industry, including architects, engineers, contractors, insurers, unions, manufacturers, lawyers, homebuilders, vendors, owners, consumers, local, state and federal governments, codes and standards developers, and testing representatives” (buildingSMART alliance, 2010). Ultimately, the goal is to create a set of standards whose core tenets can be used in other countries, perhaps with some localization (National BIM Standard-United States, 2012). CONCLUSION Architectural services is characterized by strong economic fluctuations- strong business conditions result in large upturns while a weaker economy results in large downturns. The industry is highly competitive. Sustainable design and building will become an even more important aspect of the business moving forward, particularly with regards to LEED certifications. While an architectural services is already a globalized industry, increased collaborations between international firms will continue to grow. Technical knowledge, particularly with regards to Building Information Modeling (BIM) will become an increasingly necessary skill for architects. REFERENCES: AIA Code of Ethics & Bylaws (2004). Available from: http://www.aia.org/about/ethicsandbylaws/AIAS077624 4
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