Integrated BIM and Design Review for Safer, Better Buildings

How project teams using collaborative design reduce risk, creating better health and safety in projects
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Safer Building Occupancies and Operations

Besides security, there are other emerging ideas in building operational safety related to integrated BIM. "Once the as-built 3-D data is available to facilities managers, smart chip sensors can be placed in critical areas of the building operations therefore informing the operators within a 3-D model of possible problems," says Boryslawski. "Avatars, like the ones played by our children in their computer games, will inform the facilities managers on how to solve a problem once an emergency situation occurs."

While this idea is in its infancy, other concepts are already in place. For example, as-built models are being used to check on building operations. "The as-builts can be made available to facilities managers for use as maintenance schedules-to check on VAV boxes and make sure filters are changed regularly," says Swinerton's Gonzales. Sellen's Condit agrees, proposing more integration of maintenance schedules and systems information for facilities staff on such minute details as altering fan speeds; an important result will be keeping building systems operational and more efficient over longer periods.

For this project, highly compressed 3-D data from different applications were integrated into one model using a design-review tool that reads all major BIM application file formats, easing coordination.

Letterman Digital Arts Center aerial image Courtesy of View By View, Inc., San Francisco, CA

BIM databases carry specifications and even warranty information on key components and systems. Integrated with a BIM database, a facility's building automation system can automatically generate repair and replacement orders when products fail. This improves maintenance scheduling and reduces downtime, boosting building performance while also making it safer for occupants. "From an operations standpoint, I think there is a real future," adds Gonzales.

This level of detail within the BIM model attracts both building owners and managers who may need to troubleshoot unseen systems behind their facilities' walls. For example, says Boryslawski, an integrated BIM model would contain all relevant information on a 3-inch waste pipe hidden behind a wall: size, elevation of the bottom or top of the pipe, as well as the construction of the 6-inch, 2-hour-rated fire stud wall that conceals it. All this data is immediately available to fire officials in the event of an emergency. "You could even show egress in a 3-D manner, in event of a fire," adds Gonzales.

Some project teams have extended this idea to complying with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) as well. "Accessibility information can be available to the occupants informing them of the building layout within a 3-D space," says Boryslawski. "All amenities can be located in the BIM."

Last, the benefits of BIM and design review for construction jobsite safety has been documented extensively, showing how it can speed renovation and retrofit projects without compromising building safety. Whether by using off-site fabrication of larger percentages of the building components and assemblies, increasing their quality and longevity, or by protecting existing occupants during the work, BIM makes on-site construction activities and materials staging safer. And when integrated with the general contractor's or CM's project controls, BIM permits rapid iterations of construction sequencing, allowing existing tenants to understand how the work will affect their operations.

In general, adoption of fully integrated BIM technology is more advanced in the steel industry. In that specialty, a standard called CIS/2 captures all data for the design, analysis, procurement, automated fabrication and erection of structural steel. This interoperability through every phase encouraged the AIA to work with the American Institute of Steel Construction to amend contract language that acted as a barrier to architects and engineers collaborating with BIM. It has also encouraged project teams to take a hard look at the future of BIM.

 

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Originally published in Architectural Record.
Originally published in June 2007

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