B7, Redus (Group D)

I really enjoyed this survey of trending technology for the built environment. From robots to BIM, we certainly covered a lot. Co-ops and classes have done an excellent job showing us the industry standards, how things are done now. It is easy to get stuck doing what you are taught: it works, why change? One of the responsibilities of “young people,” in my opinion, is to change things. When you’re too young to now that something will fail it may just succeed. This class introduced us to the cutting edge technology, allowing us to better understand current technology and hopefully anticipate future advances and making us aware of how we can improve design and construction technologies. I am particularly interested in watching how robotics changes the construction industry, and what the possibilities will be for 3D printed concrete.

The class mainly consisted of blog posts, lecture periods, and assignments. The blog posts were a great way to get us to understand the details of the different technologies, be they databases, BIM, or general groundbreaking stuff. It was good to research a particular topic and then have to form ideas regarding it. Commenting on other similar posts is interesting and allows us to learn more about our topic. There was so much that the other groups reported on that we did not learn about however. It might be worthwhile to have students comment on other group’s posts so they learn about a different subject. Students would not be getting as in-depth in their assigned subject, but this course does not strive for in-depth understanding. Students also would have trouble having productive conversations in the comments, since they were just learning about the topic. I did not see conversations happening often in the comments section however, so this should not be an issue. The class time was split between lecture and group activities. While some lectures features guests sharing their real world experience others covered broad topics that would be time consuming to research. By themselves, the lectures were not terribly helpful. One could easily not pay attention or leave and forget whatever they had just “learned.” The group activities were a good way to mitigate this. They forced us to think about what we had just learned and apply it to what we had experienced in Co-op. I think the activity week 9 was especially good at this. The various assignments were good opportunities to dive into a particular topic. The final project allowed us to learn about a topic that we found particularly interesting. Assignments and blog posts gave students a deeper understanding of an area of intelligent buildings, lectures gave us a broader understanding, and group discussion forced us to apply the information.

The concept of building information models, or BIM, was integral to the course. The assignment had us create a parametric family, which was interesting and will no doubt be very useful in practice. It also got us to think about BIM in general. While cumbersome and novice hostile, it is a very useful design tool. Programs such as AECOsim allow the designer to see how everything interacts. Is there a duct running through my beam? BIM knows. How much less energy will the building use if I specify triple layer windows? How much more energy does it take to make the extra layer of glass? BIM knows. We talked a lot about BIM, but we didn’t get into BMS much. I wonder, are their decisions we can be making as designers to make operation easier. How might BMSs affect our designs?

 The database assignment was also useful. We thought about how a database is structured, how the information interacts to allow easy entry, processing, and export. More importantly, it forced us to think about what kinds of information can be contained in a database. Computers have the power make our lives easier, but we rarely use them to their full potential. In a few years someone from this class will probably be sorting through spreadsheets (or worse, paper files stored in various parts of the building) and think, “hey, this could be better!”

Comment to Farnelli & Palma

B3 - Group C - Sean Coffey

What are the possible future advantages of Revit/BIM?

I found that there are various ways in which BIM is likely to improve in the future. In many ways the future advantages have been implemented but they are not in standard use but are foreseen to become standard, while there are other potential interoperability and unutilized capabilities of BIM that may exist in the future depending on how technology advances, the level of adoption and the economic support for those advances to become mainstream.

The currently existing advantages that are under utilized are the development and use of as built models for the future operation, maintenance, renovation and eventual demolition of the building, full interoperability of BIM with other specialty design programs, support of the complete design of a building in single BIM programs, provide quicker analysis of building systems, support modular and lean construction through prefabrication, track construction components on the site and have a real time updating schedule based on feedback from site sensors , the viewability of all building systems at the same time in a “stitched together” model, the direct use of a BIM model to fabricate the components needed, the use of virtual or augmented reality to facilitate building construction, Integrated Project Development will become standard.

As all of these capabilities that have been developed during the construction of building and other structures or products become mainstream. These future advantages of BIM in development will endow construction savings, efficiency, optimization, learning, quality, speed, safety and accuracy benefits. These will be realized by optimizing the construction process to reduce waste, minimize errors in components and schedule, limit the number of onsite activities and crew interferences, better record data about the construction process, streamline delivery, and require less work on site to assemble modular components. These will mostly occur due to leveraging what is learned from collected data and process automation through more advanced software to design a comprehensive and well informed concept to design to construction to operation work flow and feedback strategy.

Future advantages that may be possible with BIM but questionably feasible due to economics, lack of adoption or physical limitations such as computing power are the use of 3D printing to perform custom construction, use of drones or robots for construction, the automation of building systems design,

These plausible next generation advantages of BIM could increase the ability of BIM to develop custom and unique building features, automate the design, construction and operation process, use collected data and resulting performance information to optimize future construction and design, and reduce the need for human labor to construct a building.

Drones could be used to monitor construction progress through monitoring the proper installation of components and support the development of as built models. Robots could be used to help construct the structure, removing the need for human labor and performing hazardous tasks. Both the drones robots could increase the accuracy and speed and reduce the cost with which the structure is constructed.

Automated and comprehensive analyses of an entire building throughout its lifecycle could identify potential problems in the design that will unnecessarily shorten the life of the building or are non optimum. These analyses could show the designer where to pay attention to improve a building design and present the data needed to make the decision. They would effectively remove all of the tedious task that result from designing a building and leave the complex, intuitive decision making up to the engineer. If programs eventually gain the capability to make those tough decisions then programs could automatically design entire buildings or building systems so that only a check by an experienced and capable engineer is required to determine the functionality of the design.

Lastly, the digitization of codes that automatically modify families into components that meet the standards and requirements for location the model will be built. For instance the Canadian and US International Building codes have slight differences in how far out the handrails in stairwells should extend past the end of the stairs. Canada requires 11.75 inches and the US uses 12 inches. Based on the location the model is set to be built in, only stairwell handrails designs that meet the requirements would be importable into the model or the handrail family could be programmed to modify the handrail extension length to meet the requirements. This seems entirely possible, but because of the huge variety of building codes and their differences, the process to to understand the code would have to be automatic, taking advantage of text recognition software, language understanding artificial intelligence, and .link the output to the BIM code parameter input regions. This technology is already possible but is not fully reliable and expensive to produce.

References

Volk, Rebekha, Julian Stengel, and Frank Schultman. "Building Information Modeling (BIM) for Existing Buildings — Literature Review and Future Needs." Building Information Modeling (BIM) for Existing Buildings. Automation in Construction, Mar. 2014. Web. 26 Jan. 2016.

Yoders, Jeff. "5 Tech Trends Transforming BIM/VDC." Building Design + Construction. N.p., 23 Dec. 2014. Web. 27 Jan. 2016.

Comments

@Samuel Boyce

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I think you are right about most of the future pitfalls of BIM modeling. Many of them exist today and will only get worse such as trusting that the computer program has done the correct thing and increasing complexity of the programs and creations of the programs. Somewhere there is likely to be an error that has been missed since class detections have not been reduced to zero. If were stop questioning whether or not the design has been done right then we will need to rethink how we design buildings. Many firms push the software to make profit and may not perform all the checks necessary and end up under designing building components. It gets scary when those building components that are faultily designed are crucial to making the building safe or keeping it standing. Another one of my fears is that the program operations will become so complicated that the usual engineer's check stops working. This could lead to a failure and there would not be easy way to check for an error so fewer companies would bother to put in the effort to do the check.

@Christian A in Alexis Akins Post

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I am very excited to hear that this technology is becoming a reality due to its abilities to enhance communication. It can perform all the tasks that you mentioned and maybe more depending on how the program becomes integrated with other functionalities. Like was show during the presentation the owner, architect, or engineer could go to the site even before construction starts and have the building model augment reality so that they can get a feel for what the building will actually be like. The communication from an offsite location could be upgrade with translation abilities so that language barriers wont get in the way of real time communication and decision making. Additionally, the owner could don a VR headset and take a virtual tour of the building which allows them to inspect the building model in a way that they are more familiar with. There are so many uses. I think this will be the next big game changer that will really push forward collaboration and communication of construction project stakeholders.

B3: Group C - Alexis

I thought the most interesting possible future advantages of building information modeling were the site survey applications discussed during the presentation. The digital terrain models created with 3D imagery allow for images and point clouds to be integrated into design development drawings [1]. This will improve the overall quality of the project by giving project engineers quick access to existing conditions or progress on site. Modeling site plans and mapping existing infrastructure will become significantly simpler in future years with 3D imagery. Like we discussed last week in lecture, with advancements in raster processing design firms can utilize drones to fly over project sites and collect hundreds of photos. These images are later stitched together in a scalable 3D model known as digital terrain models (DTM). A DTM is created by overlapping high quality images associated with specific coordinates. This will enhance topographic maps of the site and make demolition drawings much quicker, since existing conditions are already modeled. Developments have also been made in image recognition for 3D texturing applications.

Applying 3D visualization to as-built and record drawings comes with many advantages for the building owner and facility managers. Implementation has just begun for buildings in the post-construction phase, used during commissioning and the testing and balancing process to locate mechanical equipment throughout the facility [2]. As discussed in lecture, the facility manager will be able to hold up a tablet anywhere on site and identify the location of tagged items through their camera. Contractors will be able to outfit their digital record drawings with tagged locations of mechanical rooms and switchgear for commissioners. In the future it will become common practice for mechanical and electrical equipment to have individual QR codes. This way, facility maintenance and building owners can easily pull up their specifications, past performance, energy usage, and location on site. 

Advancements in parametric design software will continue to enhance the architectural complexity of buildings. Generally, the designer uses CAD software to manipulate lines of a digital plan. Today’s parametric technology automatically modifies the model when the designer changes a parameter, giving the architect and engineer more flexibility to explore design options. Future versions of parametric software will allow for more input parameters and make changes faster. Parametric models can already optimize features like natural lighting, ceiling heights, and structural systems, and they are also used to determine how much water and energy a building will need [3]. In the future, full body physical simulations will be applied to the 3D model to optimize the building layout. These simulations are currently used for the design of cockpits but could be applied to larger spaces to visualize occupant movement and human proportions. 

1. https://www.bentley.com/en/products/product-line/reality-modeling-software/bentley-descartes
2. www.researchgate.net/publication/283574972_3D_terrestrial_laser_scanner_for_managing_existing_building
3. http://www.technologyreview.com/review/517596/new-forms-that-function-better/

Comments:

Bridget,
I also think the main advantage of BIM software is the collaboration between design disciplines. Though there is a lot of progress that can be made to improve the parametric modeling of each type of system, the mechanical, electrical, plumbing, fire protection, and structural systems can be viewed in one model. This has drastically increased collaboration, allowing for integrated project delivery from the initial design concept to construction. I liked your point that BIM has given designers more flexibility to explore alternate aspects of each system.

Matt,
I agree that Revit has much to improve, but ultimately it is a software used to communicate the designs of MEP systems and not primarily an energy model. A pipe connection like that can be placed without connecting the elbow to the system, it will print as a true connection. In some cases, the software must be manipulated to better communicate the design to the constructor. Like you said in your post, Revit has drastically improved and is becoming the most widely used parametric modeling software for consulting firms.

B3 - Group A : Yuanjin LI

BIM software like Revit has shown a rapid growth in the architectural design and building construction field due to its advantages and convenience. But problems are start to appear as well. This post will discuss what the possible future problems of BIM are.

If someday BIM becomes very popular in every industry, then how to unify the database? For example, to build up a building, there are many different processes like design, construct and install, etc. The requirement of the building model of each process are different, then how to make sure they can corporate with each other? How to build a single model that can satisfy all these requirements? Therefore to build up a uniformed database is very important.

Secondly, since BIM is easy to use and quick to learn, now that almost everyone can use BIM. Thus how to ensure the quality of the building model or the entire project? I think a certificate is required. Engineers need to be acquainted with the basic construction standard to ensure that their model is reliable.

In the future, BIM will definitely become more and more “automatic”. It can help people solve most of the problems during the design or the construct process. It is too “smart” and we will not doubt about it for most of times. But computer software will not always be right, if BIM does something wrong people might not be able to realize it. The dependence on computer software will destroy our ability to think and learn. Even will influence our creativity. All the buildings might looks similar because they are all designed by computer instead of human.

Although BIM might bring us problems, it is still cannot be replaced and will always become more intelligent. The future of BIM is obviously optimistic. All these problems discussed here might not really happen in the future, but we cannot stop examine ourselves.

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B3- Rebecca Lynch (Group A)

The main problem that I see in the future of BIM/Revit comes from the current problems that came up in class. As Laura Worley discussed, the major issues with BIM and Revit currently is the errors that occur when converting from one software to another. I think that because of the competition inherent in capitalism, companies will have more of a push to develop their software to compete with the others by offering the same program capabilities, such as structural and HVAC design for a model created in their particular interface, rather than creating more compatible programs that allow users to switch from one company’s program to another’s. For this reason, I think the main problem with BIM/Revit in the future will be companies competing against each other through broadening their products’ scopes and capabilities rather than specializing in one field, such as creating a program that is the best in steel design, that can then be transferred to and from other company’s interfaces that focused on the other aspects of the building’s design. The second would be more beneficial to the field of engineering because the programs that exist are already better at one thing over the others. If companies could focus on those specialties that they have already established, they could improve our abilities to model the real world, and improve our design abilities overall through the use of multiple different programs that have been fully developed to accurately and easily model and design for their one field specialty.

Another future problem that I think will be a major issue is the problem discussed by Laura Worley that engineers will become too dependent on these programs for our calculations rather than learning the basic principles and equations ourselves. In my graduate classes, there is a significant emphasis on not just putting things into our programs and taking the output as it is. Instead, our teachers have us check our work using the programs to make sure we obtained the right values. The reason for this became apparent to me in CIVE701, when my friends and I would create the same exact structure with the same loads and would somehow get different results, even though we cannot find any differences between the models. There are clear errors in the program interface and human inputs. As we use these programs more and more, it becomes dangerous how much weight we put on their answers.

Comments:
Laura Worley
Derek Zaccheo

B3, Group D, advantages of BIM, Redus

Building information Modeling, or BIM, has many positive effects. The article last week pointed out that it reduces the need to repeat work, increases the ease of collaboration, points out conflicts, and can aid evaluating designs through energy, cost, and circulation simulation add-ons.

In class, Huw showed us a lot of newer (and developing) BIM technology. Currently, the only information transmen have access needs to be on “construction documents” – 2D plan sheets. In the future Bentley’s modeling system will let the user see the proposed 3D model of the space in front of them. It will also show them the section drawing of a wall they are working on. This can greatly improve a tradesmen’s understanding of what he is working on, improving accuracy and allowing him to observe how his system interacts with others and make suggestions. While contractors have been eager to adopt BIM technology, this will probably encourage them even more. The tradesman could also verify the equipment he installed, which would be very useful to building operators as well. Maintenance personnel could simple pull out a surface device and see exactly where their part of interest is located. Huw also pointed out that Yelp can point out where local restaurants are and display reviews, pricing, hours, and distance to each restaurant. This could be coupled with a model to show where the different junction boxes are and which lines go into them. This information could help the electrician to troubleshoot and fix the problem much faster.

McGraw Hill Construction wrote an interesting report in 2014 examining the value of BIM for owners. They found that 85% of owners in the UK felt that few problems occurred during construction because of BIM (The UK has higher BIM usage than the US). This is most likely because of the collaboration that BIM enables and fault-finding software that most systems include. 72% also believe BIM improves control of construction costs, which is somethings most owners appreciate. These reductions are probably due to fewer design errors as well as allowing contractors to effectively plan and schedule the project. Importantly 98% of owners said BIM visualizations allowed a better understanding of the design. This is significant because owners are who pay the engineers and architects. It does not matter who has the best design, it matters who can communicate that the owner will like their design. BIM makes making 3D, schematic, and other visualizations easy, these visualizations give owners a better understanding of the design. Owners also appreciate BIM because it makes post-construction operation significantly easier. 78% perceive value in utilizing BIM for facilities management.

McGraw Hill Construction. SmartMarket Report. “The Business Value of BIM for Owners,” 2014. McGraw Hill Financial. Online.

Comment to Flint, Surveying
Comment to Beynon, Data-Rich Models

B2: Group A - Samuel Boyce

This chapter aims to look at the difference between Building Information Model (BIM) and Computer Aid Drafting (CAD) software. BIM software evolved from CAD as certain industries, particularly the aerospace industry, saw improvements that could be made that they would stand to benefit from. The key development is the addition of parametric modelling. Not only does this allow 3D models to be created, it also allows the addition of non-spatial data.

Firstly I would like to discuss how the parametric modelling has influenced the ability to create 3D models. Modern BIM software comes with preloaded items that can be utilized, but users are also allowed to create their own units, and along with it the appropriate data. In terms of spatial data, typically the entered data is a definition of the shape, its own local coordinates, and its global coordinates. The local coordinates define the size of the shape, but the real importance lies in the global coordinates. These global coordinates locate the shape with regards to everything else in the drawing. It is these global coordinates where BIM really comes into its own. By utilizing these, local changes in turn have a global impact. A great example is shown in Chapter 2 where a change made to the skin of the façade results in the panels and skeleton shifting in relation to this. This ability is in stark contrast to 2D CAD programs, where there is connectivity between objects and changes on a global scale must be propagated manually.

Another part of BIM that this chapter covers, and one that I would like to draw special attention to, is the inclusion of non-spatial data. This data can range from simple financial figures to mechanical data. I would again like to emphasis that this data can be used on a global scale. For example the financial data can be tallied in order to get cost figures for the model. This ability was being utilized at my last co-op with the construction of their new building. The entire building was being modelled in BIM, and this included all of the systems. There were many reasons for doing this. Firstly there is the simple ability to just view where everything is in relation to other components. In their older buildings, ceiling tiles would have to be removed and walls surveyed in order to know exactly where systems were. Now it is simple as opening a computer file and the entire building can be manipulated and decisions made at a lesser cost. Another reason for doing this is to help maintenance staff. This plays off the first reason. A maintenance worker can enter this program and select a system, and the parametric data entered for that system would populate the screen. This includes Operations and Maintenance manuals. This means work can be planned out before setting foot in the building. Training can also be carried out using this system. Finally, as mentioned before, the global parametric data allows tallies of the financial data, water, electric, and gas capacity to be easily visualized.

Reference

Eastman, C. M. (2011). BIM Handbook : A Guide to Building Information Modeling for Owners, Managers, Designers, Engineers and Contractors. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley.


Comments:

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B2: Group A- Yuanjin LI

Overall introduction
This Chapter provides an overview of the BIM technology include the history of how the technology developed, what is the very basic technology of solid modeling and what is the difference between today’s BIM software.
The basic concept of modeling is to build up a 3D model by 2D shapes. Boundary Representation (B-reps) and Constructive Solid Geometry (CSG) are two techniques used in solid modeling. The difference between them is B-rep stored the result of the definition as a set of objectives while CGS stored an algebraic formula to define the shape. Today all the modeling tools are incorporate these two technologies to build up the 3D model.

BIM platforms
Scalability is the ability to handle large project scale which contains a high level of detail. It requires the platform can always response no matter how much 3D model the project includes. This ability is critical when the platform need to manage hierarchical parameters. Normally scalability is limited by the operating system. BIM element library has various objects that can be imported for use. These can be very convenient and helpful. Extensibility capabilities are assessed based on weather this platform has scripting languages for user who need specialized functions.

This chapter also listed some different BIM platforms to compare in three aspects, as a tool, as a platform and as an environment. I will mainly compare Revit and Bentley in this post. Revit Architecture is the best known and the current leader software in Architecture BIM modeling field. It is easy to use with many hints and menus are perfectly organized. The generation support makes the drawing easy to manage and edit. Revit has a very large set of object library which can directly import into the drawing. It also has the larges set of associated applications. But the weakness is obvious which is Revit is an in-memory system, it will slow down dramatically when the file exceeds 300MB.
Next software is Bentley Systems. It provides a wide range of products for Architecture, Construction and Engineering etc. As a BIM tool, Bentley has a standard set of parametric objects. It also support user to create their own parametric objects. As a platform, all actions of Bentley are written to a file immediately, which means it occupies lower computer memory. The strength of Bentley is it can deal with almost all aspects of the AEC industry and very complex models like with curved surfaces. While the weakness is it takes more time to navigate.



Reference
Eastman, C. M. (2011). BIM Handbook : A Guide to Building Information Modeling for Owners, Managers, Designers, Engineers and Contractors. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley.


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B2 - Group C - Cristian Almendariz

As the book “BIM Handbook” chapter 4 “BIM for owners and Facility Managers” says, BIM is an important resource that has the potential of being used in construction by owners and facility managers [2]. 

The book Successful Contract Administration by Charles Cook defines BIM as “computer rendering technology of 3-Dimensional imaging of a project, allowing each space to be viewed from different angles, and identifying where installation of different equipment and materials interfere with other objects in the structure.  The 4^th Dimension of Building information modeling is considered schedule, and the 5^th dimension is cost" [1].  Previously, BIM has constantly being used in the automobile and aeronautic industry but now it is growing its popularity in construction.  Before, 2D drawings and constant project walkthroughs were typical ways to view and control the progress of projects.  It was quite common that different design elements (e.g. HCAV, structural, lighting) would collide between each other and people would not be able to notice these errors before they were being put in place at the worksite. Nowadays, programs like autodesk Revit, archiCAD, and other BIM programs are being used by both engineers and architects to integrate and visualize a project prior, during, and after construction [2]. 

As the book says, BIM has the potential of being of huge help for owners and facility managers.  Owners could be significantly benefited with BIM by being able to: Visualize a project before construction.  Know an approximate and more accurate cost for the project.  Prevent economic losses related to errors in the design. Have a more efficient and faster schedule for construction.  Have a better control of the project progress. Be able to visualize changes in the project and see how they will affect it economically and in its schedule.  Facility managers could be benefited by BIM because they would be able to manage and control a building after construction more efficiently.  In order to do so, they would need all the project design elements to be integrated into a management program.  Unfortunately, BIM in construction is in its early stages and it needs a lot of work in order to be able to integrate different elements of a project to a single program [2].

As BIM programs continue to improve and gain more popularity, both owners and facility managers interest toward BIM will increase as well.  Owners are starting to require BIM as requisite for bidders and this trend is likely to increase.  As previously said, BIM is in its early stages and owners could play a significant role in the integration of different project elements to a single program.  Owners should encourage the communication and collaboration between all project designers and constructors to make the integration easier, better, and faster [2]. 

BIM programs as well as their use and popularity is making significant progress in the United States and other developed countries but is absent in developing countries.  For instance, I worked my last three coops back home in Ecuador and I have not seen BIM being integrated in construction.  BIM is just emerging and some industries like HVAC and structural design are now starting to use it but again it’s on early stages.  In all the construction projects I worked in, I have seen that the collision between different elements is quite common and they are unseen until construction.  Most of them have a significant economic and schedule impact on the project.  Nowadays, construction in developing countries is a happening more often.  For this reason, BIM is the key to success for all this countries and as previously said owners could play an important role to make this happen.  

References

[1] Cook, Charles W. Successful Contract Administration: For Constructors and Design Professionals. New York: Routledge, 2014. Print.

[2] Eastman, C. "Chapter 4: BIM for Owners and Facility Managers." BIM Handbook: A Guide to Building Information Modeling for Owners, Managers, Engineers and Contractors. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley and Sons, 2011. 151-92. Drexel Library. Web. 17 Jan. 2016.

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Responses

Midrul,

As you said the advantages that BIM offers are only possible with investment of companies and owners, to educate, purchase and develop this BIM programs to a new levels.  I think that owners could play a significant role by encouraging the use of BIM by making it a bid requirement.  Moreover, facility managers job could be significantly eased and improved by the integration of all the design elements into a single BIM program.   But once again this is only possible if owners make BIM a bid requirement and they encourage the collaboration and contribution of all designers and constructors of the project.

Alexis,

You made an excellent point by mentioning how BIM can ease and improve the maintenance of a building.  As I read somewhere in chapter 4 of the book Bim handbook, some programs are even able to integrate the manuals for equipment installed in the project.  BIM for the management of facilities still needs too evolve but its potential capabilities are impressive.  Image how great will it be to be able have the entire project into a single management BIM program and it being able to alert you when a certain fan, compressor, or single screw driver needs fix or replacement.  It is really important that these management BIM programs allow easy editing of the facility for possible changes or extensions of the project. 

Faisal,

I think you made a key point by mentioning that the construction industry is known for late project delivery, not meeting client expectations, and going over the budget.  This is more likely in developing countries like my home country, Ecuador because it is still stuck in the past and BIM practically not used at all.  Errors and collision between systems were quite common in the projects in worked in my coops, and most of the time they were unseen until construction.  These not only had economic and schedule impacts on the project, but the owner or final client would be highly upset.  BIM has the potential of preventing this problems and revolutionizing the construction industry completely.