Applying and advancing Building Information Modeling (BIM)

On May 16, 2023, Krigh Bachmann of Dialog gave an SME Workshop to the Nexus Pro community focusing on how to leverage BIM to improve smart buildings. He introduced Dialog as a multidisciplinary design practice that is expanding into smart buildings because of their holistic view on architecture and design. Bachmann himself has a background in design and architecture which he applies as a member of the technology team at Dialog. 

For the Nexus Pro community, Bachmann offered an engaging overview of the ISO 19650 BIM standards without putting anyone to sleep. When I say overview of the standard I don’t mean a detailed run down of what it is and how it’s applied, but Bachmann made it clear that at their best, building information models are made within a specific set of goals (defined by the customer) and constraints (defined by the standard). This is crucial because when you’re talking about using data to model physical spaces, scopes can creep quickly. Do you want make, model and serial number for all HVAC equipment? Yes, of course. What about amperages for electrical, links to O&Ms for operational teams, live connection to a CMMS? Sure, why not? 

When given the choice, a customer will always choose more data over less data, even if they aren’t sure what that data will be used for. 

Bachmann gave several examples of some jobs in his early days of delivering BIMs where the scope was simply “deliver BIM.” How can you price or deliver against that? One quick way to perform a gut check on a customer’s wish list, Bachmann noted, is to get a price estimate from sub-contractors for the different levels of data desired. Putting it in real terms helps facilitate use case discussions.

But what is BIM?

People often confuse BIM and Revit, Bachmann noted. He offered this as a way to keep things straight: Revit is a tool, BIM is a process. In other words, “We use Revit to do BIM.”

For those who are new to BIM, how it’s made, who uses it and why, Krigh Bachmann was unequivocal - BIM is not just the next evolution of CAD.

“The main thing I want to make clear is that BIM is two things: we digitally prototype a project so we’re building it before we’re building it; … and you’re enriching that model by connecting the information inside that model.”

His point is BIM is not just the 3D model. In fact, it’s not even mostly the 3D model, although that’s what has the “Hollywood sex appeal” as one attendee noted later. It’s the information contained within the BIM that has all the value.

Bachmann gave the example of a fan coil unit, a stair and a door. Each of those are defined in the BIM as they are, physically - fan coil unit, stair, door. Then they’re given constraints in the spaces where they exist - geometry and coordinates that say this fan coil unit is installed in this space, this stair runs between this floor and this floor, this door is this tall by this wide. Then it becomes a matching game of “using technology to connect people with the information that they need to do their job.” And that’s where the scope meets the standards and things become really interesting.

A lot of people, said Bachmann, think of BIM as just a 3D model.

“Yes, it’s building information modeling, but it’s basically information management. If you click on the properties inside that model you can see that this thing knows it’s mechanical equipment. It knows that it’s a fan. It knows its spatial relationships, so it knows that it’s on level three in room 305.”

It starts with the graphical model but builds quickly to include non-graphical components in an effort to be made useful by integrating into a building management system post-construction.

Lifecycle Adoption

Another component not to be overlooked, Bachmann explained, is that BIMs are living things. An edit in the BIM needs to persist as an edit in all connected docs. For those of you also wondering how the BIM lives on post-delivery and into building operations, check out the recording and be sure to stick around for the Q&A.

But before you go throwing all the bits of data you’ve got into your model, it’s critical to understand the total lifecycle adoption plan for the model.

“We need a digital brief,” Bachmann offered. “And that digital brief needs to incorporate and explain to us what digitally needs to be delivered as part of this project.”

And doing this is quite a big ordeal, he says, because of everyone on the client side who needs to be involved. 

“It’s not just the capital expenditure team that needs to decide this.” 

It’s OPEX and CAPEX together and there’s a typical back and forth to determine the BIM use cases and define the data that really needs to be available in the model, from all sides. 

Customers looking to create a BIM for their asset need to consider their business drivers. Bachmann offered a few:

“Is it zero carbon? Is it the fact that you want to run your facilities more efficiently? Is it ESG reporting at a high level to organize and manage assets?”

Then it gets into the nitty gritty details of determining what systems to include, what specific information you must have. The ISO standard is a helpful starting point, Bachmann noted without (thankfully) diving into the alphabet soup of acronyms and terms used to help create structure around these efforts.

BIM vs. Digital Twin

Bachmann admits there is a lot of crossover between BIM and Digital Twins (as they’ve come to be defined thus far in the marketplace). 

“I think that this idea of gathering within a smart building all the information about what’s happening in the facility [plus] the spatial relationship to [that information] it starts to move towards what my understanding of a digital twin is, which is that a digital twin is trying to solve [for] understanding a facility holistically - to understand everything in the past and present and be able to predict the future in the context of what’s happening now, in 3D.”

He cautioned that focusing on the 3D or graphical elements of the models, either BIM or Digital Twin, will be to the detriment of operational users. 

“I don’t think you’re going to be clicking on things in a 3D model trying to shut them off.”

But, Bachmann and others on the call conceded, the graphical components are what excite the executive teams so it’s likely to continue to be an area focus for developers of BIM and Digital Twin software.

The existential questions for BIM models are clear to everyone on the operations side, and to Bachmann too. 

“What will the FM team use the BIM model for when it’s delivered?” 

While the non-graphical information is likely the portion more relevant to operational teams, “does that mean you throw the 3D model away?”

If it’s procured in support of a larger organizational asset management strategy, Bachmann thinks either component can live on to be useful to Facility Managers and the systems they use to run their buildings. An interesting discussion around operationalizing the BIM ensued, with Nexus Pro members sharing the challenges they’re experiencing with BIM post-construction. Watch the recording for that dynamic discussion, and keep your eyes peeled for details on the next SME workshop.