The disruption that was experienced by the AEC professionals\nin 2020 and the first half of 2021 was unprecedented. It ranged from ongoing\nprojects experiencing delays to new projects being kept on hold. However, where\na lot of potential was experienced was with regards to technological\nadvancements. With social distancing norms and practices in place more and more\nconstruction companies found that modern technology was the answer to their various\nproblems. <\/p>
Once such technology that has seen a rise in its popularity and its adoption has been BIM. Building Information Modeling is a holistic process of creating and managing information that is enabled by cloud platform. It provides the AEC professionals all the tools that they would need to plan, design, construct and manage buildings and structures effectively. The construction industry has in the past year already experienced the cost and time saving benefits of BIM and it is difficult to imagine a scenario where they will go back to the more traditional methods of construction. The focus instead will be on making BIM better so that more benefits can be reaped from it. In the current article we will be looking at the four main ways in which BIM Services<\/a><\/strong> can add more value.<\/p> 1. OpenBIM: <\/strong><\/p> There will be concentrated effort on data and information exchange requirements. Today, there are various software solutions like Revit, ArchiCAD, Tekla etc. available in the market. In these given software the AEC professionals work in native format. However when the 3D model constructed in the native format is required to be shared with other stakeholders who don’t have the same software that issues arise. OpenBIM is thus a very important progressive approach that leads to longevity, easy sharing, data accessibility and workflow transparency. With OpenBIM irrespective of the software used each and every stakeholder can gain access to the 3D model without the loss of data. This would reduce reliance on any given software and improve communication and ease in processes. OpenBIM will also augment reliability and collaboration as workflows are dependent on open and agile data formats as well as improve flexibility and durability.<\/p> 2.<\/strong> Cloud adoption:<\/strong><\/p> The construction processes are already fragmented with multiple stakeholders working at various stages of construction process. It is imperative that each and every member remains on the same page so that errors can detected and reduced. Fortunately, BIM already has cloud sharing capabilities that enables timely and cost-effective detection of errors by effective communication. Revit Server allows multiple members of the BIM team to work on the same project and at the same time. Similarly, BIM 360 connects team members to data in real time permitting quick decision making. Cloud platforms also improve accessibility as team members can access their data irrespective of their location. Moreover, it doesn’t mean that everyone needs to huddle around the screen together or that with every change a new mail needs to be sent. BCF manager instead keeps proper track of changes, flags issues, ensures that they are resolved etc. Companies have already started to witness improvement in their various processes due to cloud platform however, there is always a scope of more. The cloud technology is already improving and as new advancements are constantly taking place. BIM software must also constantly keep track of the same and ensure that it is making the best available technology. <\/p>