The construction industry is an important pillar of society; it contributes to commercial, residential, or industrial housing.
According to data from the UN, in the next 30 years, the world’s population will rise by nearly 2 billion people from the current 8 billion to 9.7 billion in 2050. For the construction industry, this data calls for more efficient designs to meet the needs of the growing human population.
Yet, this industry has long been plagued by high costs, slow progress, and lack of communication because of poor cohesion between the parties involved, including but not limited to contractors, engineers, designers, managers, and owners.
This lack of collaboration is expensive, with the National Institute of Standards and Testing reporting that interoperability in the construction industry costs owners a staggering $15.8 billion annually.
Building Information Modelling (BIM) is a contemporary technology that seeks to fill this gap by revitalizing the technology and processes involved in construction. Read on for more information.
What is Building Information Modelling?
Building Information Modelling is a new evolving technology designed to address the interoperability issues between the different teams involved in construction. It has one simple premise: To provide a central platform from which all parties can see the design with all accompanying information. This way, the teams can:
- Explore design options
- Design visualization for stakeholders
- Develop the design documentation
All BIM systems start with an intelligent 3D model integrated with a database of all related building information and intelligent data. This way, the parties involved in construction can seamlessly manage, document, and share data about the project.
How It Works
BIM systems bring much-needed clarity and collaboration to construction projects in the following ways:
- Planning- With BIM software, teams can visualize how a building will look once complete, thanks to reality capture and real-world data.
- Design- BIM systems can streamline the otherwise complicated design phase in a project’s life cycle. Information from these intelligent systems can be used for comprehensive modeling and providing comprehensive information about a building design to all involved parties.
- Construction- With shared documents and project specifications from BIM systems, the fabrication process can be uniform and streamlined as all the teams have the same data.
- Operation- Finally, BIM systems can assist in operations maintenance, refurbishment, extension, and even demolitions.
What You Stand To Gain
Here are the benefits BIM systems offer stakeholders in the construction industry:
- Better management of design information- With BIM systems, you can conceptualize and visualize an upcoming project using 3D visualizations and space simulations. You can share this information with all relevant parties before construction begins, reducing delays, construction schedule setbacks, and changes.
- Clarity among stakeholders- With data from BIM systems, there is enhanced coordination, analysis, data management, and visualization between all parties involved.
- Safer construction sites- BIM, systems cultivate safe construction sites by offering a platform to identify and mitigate potential hazards and plan your on-site logistics before construction actually begins
- Increased ROI- BIM systems offer better ROI by reducing costs related to interoperability issues, delay costs, operation and maintenance costs, and others.
