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Three Dimensional Design
For years I have drawn custom home after custom home in a 2D environment, and then meeting with clients with the drawings, which I have prepared to present their new home design, only to spend a great deal of time trying to explain how certain aspects of the interior, and exterior are going to look, how the roof lines are going to tie together and how they accent the look of the home as a whole, not just one elevation view. With many designs, that is difficult to do with 2D drawings.
Building Information Modeling (BIM)
Building information modeling covers geometry, spatial relationships, geographic information, quantities and properties of building components. It is the ability to assemble critical building data, from beam sizes and types, to plumbing details in one user friendly model to access this data during, or post construction.
BIM is a process which goes far beyond switching to a new software. It requires changes to the definition of traditional architectural phases and more data sharing than most architects and engineers are used to.
BIM is able to achieve such improvements by modeling representations of the actual parts and pieces being used to build a building. This is a substantial shift from the traditional computer aided drafting method of drawing with vector file based lines that combine to represent objects.
The interoperability requirements of construction documents include the drawings, procurement details, environmental conditions, submittal processes and other specifications for building quality. It is anticipated by proponents that BIM can be utilized to bridge the information loss associated with handing a project from design team, to construction team and to building owner/operator, by allowing each group to add to and reference back to all information they acquire during their period of contribution the BIM model. For example, a building owner may find evidence of a leak in his building. Rather than exploring the physical building, he may turn to his BIM and see that a water valve is located in the suspect location. He could also have in the model the specific valve size, manufacturer, part number, and any other information ever researched in the past, pending adequate computing power.
BIM can greatly decrease errors made by design team members as well as the construction team (Contractors and Subcontractors) by allowing the use of conflict detection where the computer actually informs team members about parts of the building in conflict or clashing, and through detailed computer visualization of each part in relation to the total building. As computers and software become more capable of handling more building information, this will become even more pronounced than it is in current design and construction projects. This error reduction is a great part of cost savings realized by all members of a project. Reduction in time required to complete construction directly contributes to the cost savings numbers as well. It's important to realize that this decrease can only be accomplished if the models are sufficiently developed in the Design Development phase.
BIM models can also be created for existing buildings to keep on file as an 'as built' record, or just an illustration or general reference for future use.
Designing in 3D is like virtually building a project before any ground is broken. It's an innovative way to present and edit a project during the design process.
