BIM for Interiors, Land Surveyors and Sub-contractors

There are 3 new practice papers available from the joint AIA (Australia) / Consult Australia BIM Steering Group. They are an extension to the 7 Outreach papers that were published last year:
O1 Educating Clients - What to ask for when requesting “BIM”
O2 BIM for Architects and Building Designers
O3 Engineers: What does BIM mean to my business?
O4 Possible uses of BIM for Construction
O5 Quantity Surveyors and Cost Planners: How can BIM improve my business?
O6 Facilities Managers: What benefits are there for me in engaging with a BIM process?
O7 Manufacturers and Suppliers: What can BIM do for my products?

As chair of the BIM & IPD Steering group of the Australian AIA and Consult Australia I had the pleasure to launch 23 Practice Papers back in August 2012.

National BIM Seminar by the AIA Australia

After traveling the continent for the AIA National BIM Seminar for two years in a row, I've handed over the baton to Dan Jürgens, the National BIM Manager at Cox who will start his 'tour' on Wednesday, 23 November in Perth. The AIA will run the seminar in a slightly different format this year: A networking lunch with an expert panel session.

10 Things a Client Should Know about BIM

Written by Dominik Holzer 

download as PDF

As a client on any medium to large scale construction project you would have come across the acronym BIM (standing for Building Information modelling) one way or another over the past 1-2 years. BIM is an industry buzzword that can relate to many things. It is often misunderstood or at times even deliberately misused in order to promote the goals of individual parties.

This essay provides clients with a straightforward summary of 10 things that are useful to know about BIM. In putting these points together, the author draws on extensive industry knowledge as well as exposure to some of the most prominent BIM projects that have been delivered in Australia. 

How BIM changes effort levels across the AEC industry

This is  a short overview of a recent industry study conducted by AEC Connect in order to establish the sentiment among some of Australia’s leading architecture and engineering consultants who use BIM to deliver projects on a day to day basis.

Dominik Holzer of AEC Connect appointed as Senior Lecturer at The University of Melbourne

As of early February 2013 AEC Connect’s Dominik Holzer occupies a half time position as Senior Lecturer in Digital Architectural Design at The University of Melbourne where he complements his activities as a consultant with an 'academic edge' at this highly regarded University.

As one of the leading academic institutions in Australia, The University of Melbourne provides a fertile ground for critical reflection on contemporary architectural and construction practice.

Dominik looks forward to a rich discourse with his colleagues at the Faculty of Architecture, Building and Planning, as well as expanding his horizon through research, teaching and learning with potential partners across the entire university.

How full is your BIM? (Part 2)

The urgent need to clearly define BIM ‘Scope of Services’

Blog entry by: Dominik Holzer

The dangers of a ‘Full BIM’ scope

I was recently approached by a lawyer during an industry function where I presented the (amongst others) four documents discussing ‘Legal and Procurement’ aspects of BIM. The lawyer was pleased to see that the construction industry is now increasingly considering the legal aspects of BIM.  “We are currently having a lot on our plate”, he said “…lots of disputes between consultants, contractors and clients who collaborate on projects using BIM; there seem to be large discrepancies between the clients’ expectations and what ultimately gets delivered by the consultants and contractors – More work for us lawyers!”.

How full is your BIM? (Part 1)

Or: How the ambiguous definition of BIM deliverables keeps holding us back!

Blog entry by: Dominik Holzer

Preamble

Ambiguous interpretation of deliverables is one of the main hindering factors for progress in the uptake of innovative technology and the adoption of BIM in the construction industry. I have been debating the dangers of ill-defined services and in particular the notion of ‘Full BIM’ for a while now across the industry. The feedback I receive about my ‘Full BIM’ criticism reflects on the struggle our industry  is going through: Collaborating parties too often experience a mismatch between their initial expectations and the benefits they ultimately receive when requesting BIM. Others have commented on the ‘hype factor’ when inflated expectations about BIM don’t match up in practice. The point I’m making is slightly different though:  I argue that there exists a lack of differentiation of what constitutes BIM among those offering it as part of their services as well as those requesting it as part of their deliverables.

Revit Technology Conference (RTC), Australia 2012

Blog entry by: Dominik Holzer

This year's Australian RTC was held in the coastal town of Woollongong (NSW) with a 400+ strong crowd of Revit users and affiliates. Over the past year's the RTC has established itself as the primary user forum of computational design tools in Australia (and it is on the to follow this path with its US and European offshoots as well). Its strength is derived from the mix of hands-on user feedback related to Revit and associated tools, plus an increasing focus on strategic BIM implementation and the use of innovative technology in practice. I presented my paper on the Seven deadly sins of BIM on behalf of AEC Connect  during the 'Principals' Stream' on day one of the three day conference.

Still us and them?

The curious persistence of the 'Design vs. Technology' paradigm

Blog entry by: Dominik Holzer

The organisers of the 2012 National Conference of the Australian Institute of Architects need to be commended for their excellent effort in setting up a fantastic event in Brisbane. It has been a while since Queensland last hosted the AIA annual conference and by the feedback I got from those present, people were delighted with the result. A strong Queensland focus was noticeable overall as part of the introductions to the speakers as well as in considerations of the speakers themselves.

Review of the GSA and Penn State guides on BIM for FM/Owners

Blog entry by: Dominik Holzer

In early BIM days architects, engineers and manufacturers (hence those authoring BIMs) were the main parties of interest when it came to BIM literature, followed by contractors who would learn about BIM's advantages for coordination and site related work. This is changing and two recent U.S. publications illustrate that the focus surrounding BIM is currently moving towards exploring advantages for Owner / Operators in general, and Facility Management FM in particular: The General Services Administration (GSA) 'BIM Guide for Facility Management' and the Penn State 'BIM Planning Guide for FacilityOwners'

BIM’s Seven deadly sins (IJAC)

Blog entry by: Dominik Holzer

After nearly a decade since BIM started on its path to transform the building industry, I some thoughts to expose seven prevailing problems that emerged as part of its industry wide uptake. My paper about these sins was published in the ‘International Journal of architectural Computing (IJAC)’, where I provide the reader with a reality check between an idealistic view on BIM and the way it is currently applied in daily use.

Designing the Dynamic

Blog entry by: Dominik Holzer

AEC Connect has been strongly involved in a 5 day event titled Designing the

Dynamic’ this November at RMIT University in Melbourne. Hosted by RMIT’s Design Research Institute (DRI) and the Spatial Information Architecture Lab (SIAL), Dominik was part of the organising committee and Andre presented via Video link from overseas on the opening day of this 4 day workshop plus one day symposium.

Dominik Holzer confirmed as chair of the BIM and IPD IPD Steering Group of the AIA (Aus) & Consult Australia

Blog entry by: Dominik Holzer

The Australian Institute of Architects and Consult Australia have trusted me with the challenging task to chair their joint steering group with BIM experts nationally. The group will promote the use of BIM and IPD in the Australian AEC industry. We will provide guidance to practitioners and we will inform the position of those key industry bodies on BIM overall.

My first task is to guide the setup of four working groups that address the most prevailing issues we face in practice considering BIM. In order to do so, I intend to promote the sign-up of a broad spectrum of industry experts, including architects, engineers, contractors, QS, Facility Managers, lawyers, risk management/insurance and clients. Wish me luck! Dominik

Built Environment Industry Innovation Council (BEIIC), Industry Speaks Workshop

Blog entry by: Dominik Holzer

Australia’s Built Environment Industry Innovation Council (BEIIC) was established in September 2008. BEIIC acts as an advisory body to the Minister and as an innovation advocate for the Australian industry. The Council considers industry innovation challenges like climate change, sustainability and industry competitiveness as well as issues such as regulatory reform, workforce capability, skills needs and uptake new technologies.

Design, analysis and the Cloud

Blog entry by: Dominik Holzer

In collaborative design practice, computational tools are becoming ever more utilised to help bridge the gaps between designers, consultants and contractors who search for streamlined exchange of information. Despite early promises of BIM software developers to provide us with tools that assist collaborative design practice, most BIM authoring tools facilitate tasks of individual professions such as architects, structural consultants, MEP consultants or quantity surveyors.

BIM in a Legal Context

Blog entry by: Dominik Holzer

In a recent meeting with construction lawyers it became apparent to me how important the legal profession is about to become in assisting the construction industry to escape from the impasse we witness in the adoption of BIM. Whereas technical issues related to the implementation of BIM undergo ever greater resolution, there are manifold contractual, IP and legal issues that are as yet little resolved.

Australian BIM Forum 2010

Blog entry by: Dominik Holzer

Public discussions about BIM by industry bodies such as the Australian Institute of Architect or Consult Australia have been rather sparse since the 2007 RAIA National Conference in Melbourne. At that event, the RAIA held an entire one day parallel stream about BIM, to complement their ‘usual’ program that was less technology focussed.

Since 2007 a lot has happened in the BIM world and the RAIA (now AIA) joined forces with Consult Australia and Autodesk to set up a series of BIM  forums in four major Australian cities. I was invited by the organisers to facilitate the Melbourne and Sydney events in October and November 2010. The forums had the aim to identify the challenges, successes and failures of using BIM to create integrated principles within the AEC industry.

A selected number of 35-40 AEC industry representatives with design, engineering, construction and client background were invited to review key challenges in the uptake of BIM. Those challenges included: the cost of implementation, cultural change, IP Ownership, data manager and security, quality of documentation, improved collaboration, earlier decision-making, the evaluation of alternatives for sustainable design and improvements using analysis during the design process.

Discussions at all the forums were lively with extensive feedback provided by the floor. During the individual sessions comments were recorded and they were then summarised in a 14 page report titled: BIM in Australia 2010 that can be downloaded here!

ACADIA 09: reForm()

Blog entry by: Dominik Holzer

AEC Connect attended the 29th annual conference of the association for computer aided design in architecture (ACADIA) that was held in Chicago, Illinois from October 22nd 025th with a line-up of presenters from academia and design practice. There was a notable difference to the usual workshops that we have seen preceding conferences such as ACADIA, Caadria, or eCAADee over the past few years. This year a staggering number of 12 workshops were on offer in Chicago with parametric modelling and scripting in Rhino as well as environmental analysis in Ecotect raising most interest. The workshops attracted nearly as many visitors as the conference itself and some participants didn’t even stay on for the main event. It makes me wonder if the focus of architectural computing conferences is shifting towards more pro-active participation and training.