Automated clash detection. Been there, done that. Quantity takeoffs. Mastered it. Virtual construction coordination. Old news.
More than 25 years after the first BIM software tools came to market, the U.S. construction industry has largely mastered the BIM/VDC learning curve and is implementing 3D BIM coordination on a regular basis. According to Building Design+Construction’s 2013 Giants 300 survey, 80% of the nation’s largest architecture, engineering, and construction firms have adopted BIM/VDC tools and report having earned revenue working on BIM-driven projects.
Let’s face it: Most of what’s discussed in the BIM/VDC arena today is yesterday’s news. So BD+C set out to identify the next big developments in BIM/VDC technology and implementation. We reached out to dozens of AEC firms that made our annual BIM Giants lists and asked one simple question: What does BIM 2.0 look like to you? Here’s what they had to offer:
Precise field-placing using robotic total stations
Structural steel items embedded in cast-in-place concrete are often misaligned or omitted in the field due to poor coordination between the structural engineer, concrete subcontractor, and steel erector. In a broader sense, the use of meta data in a building model promises great benefits, but it has not found a place in general practice because of questions of accuracy, responsibility, and liability for use of the data.
TOP BIM ARCHITECTURE FIRMS
2012 BIM Revenue ($)1 Gensler $484,286,1302 HOK $385,700,0003 HDR Architecture $299,828,0004 Perkins+Will $270,225,0005 Skidmore, Owings & Merrill $267,601,7006 HKS $216,000,0007 Stantec $197,000,0008 Cannon Design $165,000,0009 RTKL $131,834,950910 SmithGroupJJR $105,598,00011 EYP $85,381,169
TOP BIM ENGINEERING FIRMS
2012 BIM Revenue ($)1 Jacobs Engineering Group $4,465,746,0002 URS Corp. $292,864,7493 Science Applications International Corp. $131,066,2354 Arup $123,364,0285 Merrick & Co. $106,000,0006 SSOE Group $99,560,5617 Thornton Tomasetti $93,431,5458 Buro Happold Consulting Engineers $78,006,0009 Middough $60,000,0009 KPFF Consulting Engineers $60,000,000
TOP BIM CONSTRUCTION FIRMS
2012 BIM Revenue ($)1 Turner Corporation, The $5,924,000,0002 Clark Group $2,224,508,1273 DPR Construction $2,175,000,0004 Hoffman Construction $2,155,377,2765 Hensel Phelps $2,089,180,0006 Mortenson Construction $1,992,450,0007 Balfour Beatty $1,902,988,3328 McCarthy Holdings $1,879,000,0009 JE Dunn Construction $1,513,283,00510 Walsh Group, The $1,313,656,333
Even though hardware and software are available today, we lack a standard practice outlining the responsibilities of each stakeholder to create, verify, and utilize geospatial data in the BIM model.
—Steve Wilkerson, Associate Vice President, Haynes Whaley Associates
Extracting data for FM operations
The next “big trend” in BIM is the set-up, coordination, and extraction of data in COBie (Construction Operations Building Information Exchange) format so that more information can be pulled from the BIM model for use in client-based FM software, such as Maximo and AiM. The primary obstacle is figuring out how to do this when so much information for a project resides in multiple models. Programs such as BIMLink will be developed to help with the management of these “data buckets” and with the flow of that data out of and back into BIM models.
This trend will also push the AEC industry closer together, and new ways of collaborating—such as IPD multiple-party, single-contract delivery methods—will continue to evolve to help remove the obstacles to integrating data from all of the necessary parties involved.
—Sam Boyd, Quality Assurance Director, Cooper Carry
BIM on the go
Mobility is becoming more important. Multi-disciplinary teams in multiple locations collaborating on one model will require faster data networks and the use of cloud computing. Take that to the next step and design teams will be expected to instantly communicate with the construction and fabrication in the field through the model in the cloud.
We’re also going to see teams untethered from their desktops using more mobile tools (tablets, smartphones, etc.) to modify, navigate, and display the model. We are starting to work with tools that allow us to open BIM models on an iPad or iPhone to share with clients on the go.
—Don Ghent, Principal and Global Technical Leader, Gensler
Creating a common BIM language
The Industry Foundation Classes (IFC) being developed by buildingSmart International will eventually define actual data elements of a building model and standardize them industrywide. The group is working to develop and promote a standard data format that can be used across all platforms (Revit, Tekla, Bentley, etc.) so that data can be transferred and read across all model authoring and audit software programs. The walls of proprietary software will be broken down by IFC. All models will soon be able to interact with each other in ways not possible before.
—Aleisha Jaeger, LEED AP, Operations Manager-Construction, Epstein
The rise of virtual reality
The integration of BIM with virtual reality technologies is a promising development. For example, use of augmented reality—where both graphical and contextual information are overlaid onto building systems in the real world to produce the effect of x-ray vision—will allow the operator to see the utilities installed in a wall cavity, ceiling space, and even underground. The possibility of cost savings using these applications is fascinating, and the execution and user experience are quite simple (e.g., Google Glass viewer or mobile device such as an iPad).
—Andre Zoldan, Chief Information Officer, Albert Kahn Associates
Other ideas offered by the group include:
• Use of early phase database programs, such as Trelligence’s Affinity, to do programming and planning in a database-rich environment that can be directly imported into BIM programs.
• Automating code compliance review with the BIM model. The International Code Council is leading and funding the buildingSMART initiative to develop SMARTcodes, which could allow teams to automate the entire code review process.
• Establishing central project control. Building models, along with the use of RFID, barcode technology, and GPS will soon facilitate “smart” job sites. For example, materials arriving on site will automatically be sensed and recorded by the model as delivered. No paperwork will be required.
Related Stories
| Jan 3, 2011
Chicago Architectural Foundation’s media expert takes all 85 tours in one year
Jennifer Lucente, the social media expert at the Chicago Architecture Foundation has completed her year of taking tours—taking all 85 tours in 2010. The challenge that began last January with a tour of the Board of Trade building has ended today with the architecture foundation’s newest tour: Razzle Dazzle – featuring the Loop theater district followed by a celebration at the Chicago Theatre.
| Dec 28, 2010
Project of the Week: Community college for next-gen Homeland Security personnel
The College of DuPage, Glen Ellyn, Ill., began work on the Homeland Security Education Center, which will prepare future emergency personnel to tackle terrorist attacks and disasters. The $25 million, 61,100-sf building’s centerpiece will be an immersive interior street lab for urban response simulations.
| Dec 20, 2010
Architect Adrian D. Smith on zero-energy cities, new technologies, and high density.
Adrian D. Smith, FAIA, RIBA, is co-founder (with Gordon Gill) of Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture, Chicago. Previously, he was a design partner in the Chicago office of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (1980-2003) and a consulting design partner from 2004 to 2006. His landmark structures include the Jin Mao Tower (Shanghai), Rowes Wharf (Boston), and Burj Khalifa (Dubai, U.A.E.), the world’s tallest structure. He recently collaborated with Gordon Gill to design the world’s first net-zero-energy skyscraper, Pearl River Tower, now nearing completion in Guangzhou, China. This account is based on his recent remarks at the Illinois Institute of Technology.
| Dec 17, 2010
BIM Tools Enhance Project Value
The Building Team for a renovation project at Georgia Tech uses BIM and 3D design tools to solve a complex millwork problem.
| Dec 17, 2010
Historic Rhode Island hotel reborn with modern amenities
The iconic Ocean House resort in Watch Hill, R.I., had to be torn down in 2005 when systemic deficiencies made restoration unfeasible. Centerbrook Architects and Planners, Centerbrook, Conn., designed a new version of the hotel, working with preservation societies to save or recreate favorite elements of the original building, and incorporating them into the contemporary structure. The new resort has 49 guest rooms and 23 residences, plus banquet halls, a corporate boardroom, a private clubroom, a spa and fitness center, an indoor lap pool, a bar, and the obligatory international croquet court. Dimeo Construction, Providence, R.I., was the construction manager.
| Dec 17, 2010
Gemstone-inspired design earns India’s first LEED Gold for a hotel
The Park Hotel Hyderabad in Hyderabad, India, was designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill to combine inspirations from the region’s jewelry-making traditions with sustainable elements.
| Dec 17, 2010
Condominium and retail building offers luxury and elegance
The 58-story Austonian in Austin, Texas, is the tallest residential building in the western U.S. Benchmark Development, along with Ziegler Cooper Architects and Balfour Beatty (GC), created the 850,000-sf tower with 178 residences, retail space, a 6,000-sf fitness center, and a 10th-floor outdoor area with a 75-foot saltwater lap pool and spa, private cabanas, outdoor kitchens, and pet exercise and grooming areas.
| Dec 17, 2010
Sam Houston State arts programs expand into new performance center
Theater, music, and dance programs at Sam Houston State University have a new venue in the 101,945-sf, $38.5 million James and Nancy Gaertner Performing Arts Center. WHR Architects, Houston, designed the new center to connect two existing buildings at the Huntsville, Texas, campus.
| Dec 17, 2010
Alaskan village school gets a new home
Ayagina’ar Elitnaurvik, a new K-12 school serving the Lower Kuskikwim School District, is now open in Kongiganak, a remote Alaskan village of less than 400 residents. The 34,000-sf, 12-classroom facility replaces one that was threatened by river erosion.
