As a company offering BIM Coordinator help, we have noticed that since the British Government implemented the BIM Level 2 mandate in April 2016, Building Information Modelling (BIM) has been the buzzword in the UK construction industry. This focus on BIM has impacted everyone involved in construction as it has altered how architects, designers, and construction workers work together and utilise all of the data created positively, enabling cost savings and increasing performance. BIM 3D modelling software has moved on from the traditional CAD software, enabling the development of tools and processes and influencing training and industry standards to improve quality information throughout all operations.
BIM Level 2 has been in force for over a year, but there are still some issues with standardised procedures and methods. Delivering efficient BIM data has always relied on the performance and regulation of current BIM tools, which are only as good as the person producing and inputting the data, which can lead to inconsistencies. BIM Level 2 is aimed at enforcing the implementation of new working methods to ensure that all tasks are delivered correctly. These new approaches include embedding new roles & responsibilities within companies, providing an element of ownership and sufficient information management. This ensures that the whole data management process is followed efficiently and the modelling is completed.
This focus on standardised processes and efficient information flows is being driven by the Building Engineering Services Association (BESA), the Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers CIBSE), the Construction Products Association (CPA) and the Building Research Establishment (BRE). The process they are going through started with the aim of creating an essential data template tool, but as they have gone along, they have realised that the issues connected with BIM standards are more complex than first thought.
The tool they are working on is now being expanded to enable and support the management of new and improved data standards, which will also feed into the Construction Operations Building Information Exchange (COBie) in the area of life cycle management. Traditional CAD designers are not used to structuring data to be delivered throughout the design process to teams, including construction contractors, operations contractors, and maintenance contractors. This is not a criticism, more of an observation, as they are used to producing a standard deliverable on electronic paper, which highlights a primary delivery window. There are British Standards embedded within existing building and construction practices, which is excellent. Still, these tend to lack specific detail about roles and responsibilities for individuals, which is something that the new template that is being worked on will aim to establish. This means that individuals will be able to input data into the new BIM tools, which will then be exported into the COBie tools, leading to higher-quality information throughout the construction industry in the future.
These developments are fascinating to us as they give a hint of the fact that the way we work is going to completely change – as the things that are learnt from this project can be used to develop tools for asset management, carbon, facilities management, life cycle, and production and waste. This flow of higher-quality information will be a fantastic support for the decision-making process within construction operations, improving collaboration throughout the design and build process.
We are delighted to announce that we were recently accredited with BSI status for Level 2 BIM. For this, we had to meet the PAS1192 Level 2 criteria set out by the British Standards Institute.
If you are looking for help with BIM Compliance or want to find out what a BIM Company has to offer your business, then please give us a call at 0161 427 0348 or drop us an email to office@thecadroom.com
