Episode 1 - Introduction to BIM

This first episode of Data Matters, is an introduction to our company Summit BIM Consulting, outlining our relevant experience, along with an overview of what Building Information Management / Modeling is, why it is so important for the Architectural, Engineering, Construction, Owner and Operations Industry as well as what is needed to ensure success.

Speaker Geraldine Rayner, Summit BIM Data Matters

Transcript

Hello, I'm Geraldine Rayner, the managing principal at Summit BIM Consulting, thank you for taking the time to listen in on our very first podcast to our Data Matters channel. I'm going to talk about BIM, an acronym that stands for Building Information Modeling or Building Information Management. Before I get into the details, let me give you some high-level facts which you may find of interest, and that also help to set the stage for why improvement in efficiency is so critical in helping the current state of the AEC industry.

I should perhaps explain that this is a commonly used acronym for Architecture, Engineering, Construction Owner, Operator Industry. First of all, the AEC industry accounts for around 10% or 27 billion of BC's GDP and 8.6%, or 152 billion of Canada's. Sadly, however, it is also considered one of the most inefficient industries, one which it is estimated could realize savings of around 25% by utilizing a more efficient process.

A BIM process is key to realizing the savings. So, what is a BIM process and how can it help to realize these savings? BIM is a process based on using data, digital information, instead of paper-based information to undertake capital projects and maintain them for their lifecycle. That's all-phases design, build and operate for both vertical and horizontal infrastructure. 

Basically, this covers the entire built environment buildings, roads, bridges, railways, tunnels, etc. in later episodes, I'm going to talk about BIM in more detail, with an initial focus on BIM for owners as they are the group that pays for the project, without them there is no project I will be covering what BIM is, why it is important, how to ask for it, and what do you need to be aware of to ensure success?

In this episode, I aim to provide an overview of who we are and what we do as a consulting company and more importantly, what a BIM process is and why it matters so much to the industry. I'm an architect registered in both the UK and here in Canada. I have over 35 years of experience and a passion for technology. 

I'm part of the steering committee for Building Smart International, Building Domain and the past chair of the Asset Management and Lifecycle think tank Committee for Building Transformations, or CanBIM, as they used to be called.  Operating since 2009,  the Summit BIM team is comprised of AEC industry experts with a passion for innovation and technology, and a desire to help the industry transition from a traditional paper-based process to one that is digital, and data driven.

We are all creative thinkers who find solutions to problems and constantly innovate to develop new ways of reducing risk and improving quality. The depth of our knowledge comes from years of hands-on experience working with all teams involved in the procurement, design, construction, and operation of facilities. The focus of the company has always been to ensure that the benefits of a BIM process are enjoyed by all who procure and operate facilities.

Our primary goal is to support the generation of robust data sets that can be utilized by facility management teams throughout the lifecycle of the project. We have developed a software interface, FMi, that extracts the data from the different models being generated by the teams and exposes it in a cloud-based environment. This enables all parties to interact with the information without having to purchase expensive software and then learn how to use it.

A phrase we often use is ‘consider the end at the beginning’. Since BIM is a data driven digital process, it is key to understand what you want the data to do. Our services include helping our clients identify goals and uses for the data and then prepare the BIM Requirements Specifications. These specifications articulate what it is that the design and construction teams are required to generate, and the processes to be followed.

Aligned to this scope, which we define as Identify. We undertake management of the BIM process on behalf of our clients. Taking the role of Information Manager as identified within the international standard for undertaking a BIM based digital process, ISO 19650. Within the scope of this management piece, we check to ensure that the proposed strategies and workflows as identified in the BIM Execution Plan will yield the required data at the required time.

In addition, at agreed project submission deliverables, we undertake audits of the model data as a quality control step to mitigate the risk that the data will not be capable of supporting the defined goals and uses. A bit like not noticing a dropped stitch in knitting. If a mistake is not picked up early, it can be very hard to rectify later.

Aligned with the step in the process we define as Management, we generate an asset registry. An asset registry is a list of all assets within the facility that are of interest to the owner and the FM team. We do this by extracting the data sets from the models and associating the required installed asset information that the owners need to support the lifecycle of the project.

At summit BIM, we use the cloud-based interface FMI that I mentioned earlier to undertake this scope. We'll delve deeper into this scope in later podcasts. We hope that this series of podcasts will expand the industry's understanding that BIM is more than just a collection of different technologies, and that by asking for BIM requires the generation of a specification to control the data requirements and processes that need to be followed. 

Also, what to consider and be aware of as an owner when initiating a BIM process on a capital project from including BIM in the business plan to ensuring that the contract language and BIM requirements are in alignment, and the project managers delivering the project understand the process. Too often we have seen issues arising due to a misalignment of what the client is expecting and what the design and construction teams believe they have been asked to provide. 

This misalignment leads to frustration, BIM getting the blame and participants failing to achieve their goals. Why this podcast? Great question. Our goal is not only to introduce ourselves, define our expertise and outline our consulting services, but also to improve understanding of BIM across the AECOO Industry. BIM is a process and not a piece of software. As an owner asking for BIM, what do you need to be aware of?

How do you define what you want in a way that provides clarity for those in the design and construction industry that are to meet your goals? Even with clear definitions around them, the single biggest challenge, without doubt, is managing the change in process and strategies required to transition from a paper to a data driven process. 

Change is hard.  We all like to do things the way we're used to doing them. Learning something new takes time, effort, and requires support. Buildings are a significant contributor to climate change, and a more effective process with less waste is key to supporting a more efficient industry. The ability to test designs while they are digital is key to improving efficiency and reducing risk. 

According to a McKinsey construction report. 98% of commercial contractors report their projects experience delays or cost overruns. More worryingly, 80% of these projects were also overbudget. Another report by KPMG found that only one third of building projects were within 10% of the original budget. The rest were much higher. With statistics like these, the value in learning about a BIM process that can mitigate some of these issues is self-evident.

This series of podcast is going to focus first on in episode two, BIM for owners, an overview of understanding the process from the owner's perspective. Things that need to be considered before getting started. What are the required steps to have in place? Then a more in-depth look at determining the goals. What is it that we want the data to be capable of doing?

What are the benefits, the work effort, and the cost of achieving those benefits? Planning how to put in place the requirements and when to get help. In episode three, we're going to look at understanding why those issues in episode two matter. Lessons learned. What happens if the requirements are not clear? Risks of being unable to manage the process and the need for consistency across the data set to drive efficiency.

If there is an aspect of BIM that you would specifically like us to focus on, please let us know. The goal of these podcasts is to provide an unbiased, impartial explanation of the BIM process to enable all parties to gain a greater understanding of the entire process and the risks and benefits that arise. The risks and benefits differ depending on whether you are involved in the capital planning, design, construction, or the operation phases of a project.

There is considerable information available online around the topic of BIM. However, the bulk of it is related to technology and the use of software solutions. Rather than defining requirements that support downstream goals and uses for the data, unfortunately, there is considerable inconsistency within the industry around the definition of BIM. A recent document published by Stefan Mordue do highlight nine different versions of these definitions.

These include definitions from the General Services Administration, the GSA, the Royal Institute of British Architects, the RIBA as well as the National Institute of Building Sciences and IBS. The following are three definitions that were also included on that list of nine. If anyone's interested in the list, drop me a line and I'll send it to you. So, first ISO 1650, the international standard for a BIM process, defines BIM as an international standard for managing information over the whole lifecycle of a built asset, using building information, modeling. 

Second, the National Building Specifications NBS, defines it as a rich information model consisting of potentially multiple data sources, elements of which can be shared across all stakeholders and be maintained across the life of a building, from inception to recycling. Third, Autodesk states building information modeling BIM is the holistic process of creating and managing information for built asset based on an intelligent model and enabled by a cloud platform. BIM integrates structured, multi-disciplinary data to produce a digital representation of an asset across its lifecycle, from planning and design to construction and operations. 

Great. So, which one should we use? If there are so many definitions, how can we use any of them to ask for BIM? It's vital to realize that BIM as a definition, is no more specific than the term building. 

You wouldn't put out a request for proposal, an RFP asking for a design team to design you a building. You would take the time to put together a facility program detailing what you require in your building and how you want it to perform by specifying minimum requirements. In the same way, when asking for a BIM process on a project, you need to have a BIM requirements specification in place detailing the goals and uses for the project data.

What the end deliverable is to be, and what processes the team are to follow, so that everyone understands what it is that they are being asked to do. What is the work effort required and what has been asked for? Without clear definitions, it is very hard to hold teams accountable for any deliverable. Sadly, BIM is often considered just a marketing tool or just a 3D model.

Then when things go wrong, it becomes the obvious scapegoat. An analogy I have often used is to compare drafting by hand with pen and pencil on trace or paper, as a horse drawn omnibus, when we transitioned to CAD all we did was switch out the horses for horsepower. We didn't change any of the processes. We just drew digital lines instead of ink. 

BIM, however, is like taking an aircraft. The process is different, requiring that we follow rules that are more restrictive. We must have bags of a certain size, no liquids, laptops out for security, batteries in hand luggage, sit in the assigned seat, phones off, tray tables stored, seats up, sit when told, etc. however, we all do it because the benefits outweigh the restrictions on how we behave. 

On the other hand, if we were to try and take that aircraft out on the road, things would not go well.  A BIM process is different to how we worked in CAD and we need to change. Management of that change is something that is difficult. None of us like having to learn how to do something new when we know how to do it quickly, the old way.

BIM is for all parties involved in any capital project, it involves differing degrees of effort and change depending on your role in the process. It's a generally held statistic that in terms of lifecycle costs, excluding the cost of staff design equals 2%, construction 18%, and FMO 80%. So, the main benefit over the lifecycle of the project resides with those who operate the facility.

Based on this statistic, it can be seen that design time is cheap time. And it is here that the greatest benefits can be achieved. A BIM process uses database software solutions. In other words, rather than drawing plan sections, elevations, 3D views, and generating schedules, one is entering data into a database and then running a complex query through the data set.

As such, things only exist once. Change anything, anywhere, and all occurrences adjust in whatever drawing view they occurred. This results in an increase in the quality of the output. We are working towards the concept of ‘one version of the truth’.

Benefits accrue to all members of the teams, design and construction firms are utilizing different software solutions as it improves their bottom line. BIM teams are now present in most of the mid to large sized design and construction companies, because of the benefits that they realize. Owners need to define what they want out of this process rather than hoping that what works for design and construction teams will also fulfill their needs.

Most teams using a BIM process for design and construction are still delivering a paper-based handover, paper or PDF Record drawings and binders full of paper or huge PDFs that can't be opened. The greatest benefits accrue to the owner of the facility whether horizontal or vertical infrastructure. However, they are only achieved if they are specified at the beginning of the process.

So why does this matter, other than agriculture the AEC industry is the least digitized of all industries. The productivity of the construction industry is approximately 30% less efficient than it was 50 years ago. All other industries are roughly 200% more efficient. The AEC industry is currently undergoing the change required to overcome this, in other words, it's adopting a digital process, a BIM process. 

A BIM digital process allows for the design, testing, and visualization of a project prior to building anything real. In addition, a facility that has been designed and tested to ensure that all the pieces fit it can then be prefabricated offsite, creating higher quality, be brought to site when required, and assembled more rapidly. One statistic would suggest that in the existing paper-based process, 30% of all building materials delivered to a construction site ends up as waste.

Given the cost and environmental issues related to manufacturing of construction materials, moving forward with a BIM process that reduces these is imperative. Businesses that fail to adapt to a digital process tend to become obsolete. Blockbuster, for example, had the opportunity to buy Netflix but couldn't see people streaming films in the same way; Kodak failed to adapt to a digital camera, even though they actually generated the first ones. 

There are many other examples of the failure of firms that failed to adapt. How many of us are aware of the following common misconceptions regarding them? BIM is just 3D modeling that will take more time and impact productivity and then will cost more. BIM is only for large projects and companies. BIM is just a flash in the pan. BIM only benefits those involved in design and construction firms. It is just a type of software. Clients don't know what to do with BIM data. 

None of the above reflects the reality of a BIM process. A BIM process is first and foremost comprised of policy requirements, outcomes, goals, and uses. Process, the workflows and strategies. Technology, the tools, and the software solutions. Underlying all of this is people and change management. 

Change management i.e. people learning how to do things in a different way is by far the hardest to manage, it requires commitment and a willingness to change the way in which we have historically worked in the AEC industry. It requires cooperation and collaboration, and a move out of the silos within which the industry has always worked. Within a BIM process, information is shared collaboratively. 

In this podcast. Our goal was to provide a high-level introduction to what BIM is and the benefits as a process that it offers for all parties involved in the AEC industry. I hope that you have found it informative and enjoyed listening. Please feel free to leave a comment or reach out to us at Summit BIM consulting, If you have any questions or if you would like additional information.

Also, don't forget to subscribe, recommend us, or visit our website. I hope you'll join us for our next episode in the series of podcasts in which we'll talk about BIM for Owners. Exploring in a bit more detail on the role of owners in the BIM process and adding some of the lessons learned from our many years of experience working in areas of healthcare, transportation, education, social housing, and more.

Thank you so much for listening. Bye for now.