BIM Serial 002: BIM arrives to the Engineering Office

In the June issue of Roof and Facade’s BIM Corner, I wrote about how Building Information Modelling (BIM) helps to integrate the fragmented construction processes, bring cost savings and improve efficiency. Let’s now have a closer look on what are the major benefits you can expect from BIM based design.

Faster take-off

Most architects use 3D tools and can provide a 3D model, in some format, to support their architectural drawings. Engineers may utilise this information and use it as reference models whilst creating the structural engineering model, or directly convert it into an engineering model thus integrating the work process between the architect and engineer.

Automatic drawing and material lists production

Models produced by the BIM process are not “drawn”, but actually contains all the construction components and material as a computer-model simulation. From this model you can automatically print out all the required drawings and material lists. All the measurements and material lists will be correct since they are extracted from the accurate finite model. And the best part is still to come – any changes you need to make, and you know there will always be changes, all you need to do is to simply amend the model, and all the related documents, including drawings and material lists, are automatically updated.

Easier Analysis & Design (A&D)

Now that you already have the model, which you have created for conceptual design, there is no need to create another one for Analysis and Design (A&D). Within applications such as Tekla Structures all you need to do is to simply apply loads into your conceptual model and run the analysis by using your preferred A&D software from an extensive list of applications. And the benefits do not end here, since your loads are intelligent objects in the building information model they will stay there and can be reused at any time. When you modify the model, loads connected to the structural parts will follow the modifications and the re-running of the analysis results is easy at any time.

Design coordination in 3D environment

You may integrate your structural, HVAC, piping and other models into a single environment which becomes real-life working 3D model of the complete building. You can navigate around the structure, check any construction details and consider the overall constructability. This is much easier and interesting than trying to do the same based on a pile of 2D drawings. Communication is a major part of design coordination and your BIM model becomes the preferred communication tool, where you can view the model on the meeting-room wall or share it over the internet. Even complicated issues are easy to convey when discussed within the 3D model.
So what is the end result? Faster and higher-quality designs, where you can detect and correct all mistakes and most of the constructability issues, which would become very costly if only noticed a few months later at the construction site. In other words structural engineer has added more value to the design compared to the traditional drawing based process and his/her role has become more important.
Any comments or feedback you may have on my BIM Corner writings, please drop me an email.

Next time we will look how BIM can benefit the construction process downstream in fabrication.

Let’s BIM!

Ari Nassi / Tekla
ari.nassi@tekla.com

Contents of B & I (Vol. 19 No. 3 (November/December 2009))

http://www.b-i.com.my/