2006 2nd Annual BIM Awards, Part 2

Last month, I published Part 1 of the article on the second annual BIM Awards that were presented at the AIA TAP conference in June. It described the award winning projects in three of the six submission categories: Creating Stellar Architecture Using BIM (awarded to M. A. Mortenson Company for the Denver Art Museum Expansion project); Design/Delivery Process Innovation Using BIM (awarded to GHAFARI Associates for the Flint Global V6 Engine Plant Expansion project), and Inspirational Pilot Projects Demonstrating New Ways Forward (awarded to Kirksey for the Satterfield & Pontikes Corporate Headquarters project). This AECbytes "Building the Future" article discusses the award winning projects in the remaining three categories of this year's BIM Awards: Analysis or Simulation; Jury's Choice; and Academic Program or Curriculum.

Category: Analysis or Simulation

Two firms received the BIM Award for this category: Leo A Daly for the Georgia State University Library project in Atlanta, and Group Goetz Architects/Ehrenkrantz Eckstut & Kuhn Architects for the Herbert C. Hoover Building in Washington D.C. The common thread running across both these projects was the advanced use of the BIM model for evaluating different aspects of the building's performance.

Let's look at the Georgia State University Library project first. This transformation of a library building was part of the phased redevelopment of the larger campus block that the library was part of. The architects were first retained to renovate the main University Library building, including a three-level enclosed bridge crossing over to an adjacent library extension building (see Figure 1). They were then asked to also produce conceptual design studies and phasing/constructability/cost proposals for two new replacement buildings near the library as well as the re-design of a series of exterior landscaped plazas on various levels interconnecting these buildings, and relate these design studies to improved site circulation to the library. The key challenges were a very tight urban site located at the heart of the campus with multiple physical constraints on the design and construction process; coordinating this project along with other major campus redefinition projects taking place simultaneously so that their implementation would allow the university to continue its daily activities and functions; and controlling construction costs while evaluating and implementing multiple design options. With the client anxious to meet the immediate needs of the library renovation/expansion as well as to receive guidance on related renovation/redesign of the exterior plazas, the design team was quickly expanded to include a local contractor acting as CM for comparative cost/phasing analyses and a local structural engineer for analyses of the expanded library bridge.

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The design team utilized BIM from the inception of the project to better meet its programmatic complexities, phasing demands, fast-track scheduling and other design challenges. In fact, apart from three sketches, the project was exclusively developed using Autodesk Revit Building, with no supplemental manual drafting. The structural design was done with Revit Structure, while the MEP engineer used AutoCAD and Trace 700 load calculator. BIM was used for all the different components of the project, starting from the plaza studies and urban design, where it was used for 3D studies of the experiential connectivity of the various plaza levels with the streetscape; integration of the new library entrance with plaza site circulation; analysis of the space-enclosing building walls, both current and proposed, surrounding the plaza levels; implication of the plaza re-design on site circulation patterns; sun studies to examine shade, shadow, and sunlight penetration resulting from the plaza and building modifications (see Figure 2); and phasing analyses and cost estimates for the plaza re-designs by the contractor (CM).

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For the main library building, BIM was used for elevation studies to determine the best glazing options for visual connectivity with the plaza; conceptual studies of various connecting bridge designs, along with long-span structural design options (see Figure 3); advanced CPM planning of the library renovation, the identification of major lead items (steel, HVAC equipment and glazing options) and the creation of five distinct design packages for optimal constructability; and integrated coordination of the library renovation phasing with the designers, CM and client to meet a highly aggressive construction schedule. For the library bridge, engineering simulations helped to determine that horizontal overhangs were insufficient for shading on the southwest façade, calling for the use of vertical fins instead; in contrast, the north-east façade was being shadowed by the surrounding buildings and didn't need any kind of shadowing devices, which were retained for decorative purposes only.

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Since the project team was distributed across ten offices in four different cities, interoperability was critical and was achieved by the use of the same platform for architectural and structural design, and by sharing the model with the Construction Manager—who was using ArchiCAD—through NavisWorks. All the necessary Revit model attribute data (e.g., floor areas, quantities, skin takeoffs, etc.) were able to be extracted and shared between the design team and the CM, eliminating the need for manual quantity takeoffs and rework. A shared electronic project portal was set up where all the data files were stored, and real-time inter-office connectivity was achieved by using Riverbed Steelhead Appliance data-caching technology, which eliminated errors caused by working from multiple data sets.

The second project that received the BIM Award for the Analysis or Simulation Category was the comprehensive modernization and renovation of the famous Herbert C. Hoover Building in Washington DC for the GSA (General Services Administration). Originally constructed in 1933, this historic National Landmark building—once the largest in the world with 1.8 million sq. ft—is part of an ensemble of buildings known as the Federal Triangle and is considered the most significant example of Beaux Arts architecture in the world (see Figure 4). It currently houses the headquarters for the Department of Commerce, the White House Visitors Center, and the National Aquarium. The modernization of this building, scheduled in four phases over the next 12 years, involves installing new building systems, new life safety systems, ADA accessibility, new utility connections, significant security upgrades, new flexible office space, new landscaping, and restoration of the exterior façade. What made the project especially challenging was to install the new building systems in a structure not originally designed to house them, and to create new office space into four existing floors with minimal ceiling heights, along with new vertical circulation and egress. Other key challenges were an irregular column grid and infill levels whose floor elevations are not aligned with the main building floor level structure.

The architectural team at Group Goetz Architects/Ehrenkrantz Eckstut & Kuhn Architects strongly felt from the beginning that BIM should be adopted on this project to better understand the complexity of the existing building and determine how best to weave and surgically insert new systems and other components into the existing structure. It also believed that using BIM would ultimately save significant time, minimize potential field conflicts and change orders, minimize costly exploratory demolition, and provide valuable quantitative information to all team members during the long project schedule. The software solutions adopted were Autodesk Architectural Desktop for creating the BIM model and any related CAD work, Autodesk VIZ for generating renderings for communication with the clients, and Microsoft Excel for processing information retrieved from the BIM model.

While the project is still ongoing, the benefits of using BIM have already been realized in several specific areas. For example, a courtyard of the original building that housed a four story infill space within an eight story light well was being redesigned to reinstate the roof with a green roof and a partial skylight to allow natural light into the office floors, which required relocating the existing HVAC systems to lower levels with the courtyard. A detailed BIM model was used to determine how to maximize ceiling heights, introduce daylight, create life safety egress, and distribute new air to each of the floors and the adjacent White House Visitor Center and Law Library, while minimizing disruption to these adjacent historic spaces (see Figure 5).

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In another example involving doors and windows—the building has over 5000 exterior historic windows and over 10,000 historic doors—the team modeled and tagged each door and window within the building model for future restoration or re-use where possible, as well as to determine the best blast protection method for each window (see Figure 6).

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The use of BIM was also invaluable for the design team to quickly and efficiently explore different options for accommodating more office space in the building for a larger number of occupants as well as increased conference and amenity spaces. They used the BIM model to create a matrix of area objects that fit the six unique floor plan varieties in the building, and tied each of these back to a Master density and population matrix that included circulation, shared spaces, etc. By moving departments around within this model, the matrix would report which combination of adjacencies allowed or did not allow the appropriate fit (see Figure 7).

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The use of BIM for design and analysis in this project and the benefits that are being realized makes a significant contribution in highlighting that BIM is not just for new buildings and new construction. Complex existing renovation projects or historic modernizations, as in this case, can also make excellent candidates for using BIM tools and technology.

Category: Jury's Choice

The award winning project in this category was the Merck Research Laboratories building in Boston, a twelve-story research laboratory tower with six levels of below grade parking located in the Longwood Medical Area of Boston, a highly active educational, cultural and historical environment. Kling was the lead architect on this project, while Bovis Lend Lease was the lead contractor. The tight constraints of its downtown Boston location dictated that a multitude of typically discrete functions (research, administration, conferencing, reception, dining, parking, and utilities) be housed in a single building (see Figures 8 and 9). This "vertical campus" of high-technology spaces presented an implicit challenge to the design team. Other key design challenges were resolving a normally introverted program in an open, light-infused, "public" manner, and the complex layering of system distribution and public/private movement.

Accordingly to Kling, their BIM approach to this project can be parsed into two levels: Basic Documentation, a continuous process whereby the "current" design solution is described and maintained; and Advanced Analysis, a periodic charrette approach used for the most challenging design problems. At the Basic Documentation level, MicroStation Triforma was used to develop the BIM model, including the entire structural system, the architectural finishes, and the major mechanical spaces (see Figure 8).

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The use of a single software platform within the multi-disciplinary team allowed for the day-to-day referencing of models between architects and engineers. The significant scale of this project is reflected in the fact that the "master" BIM model referenced a total of 104 architectural, structural and mechanical models. From the master model, schematic-level plans, sections, elevations and oblique orthographic drawings were generated for the drawing sets. The model was also used for visualization, though full-building renderings and animations often required the use of a simplified MicroStation model optimized for 3D rendering (see Figure 9).

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At the conclusion of the Design Development phase, when the basic organizational schema of the building had been coordinated, the overall architectural plans and sections were separated from the Building Information Model, and became conventional, 2D architectural documents. The focus of the BIM process then turned to what Kling describes as the Advanced Analysis level, dealing with the development of the building's most complex elements that required more intense analysis and 3D visualization in order to bring them to resolution. For example, the 290-seat auditorium, which was the most spatially complex challenge for this project, was made possible by a BIM process that included the architectural team, the engineering team, and the millwork subcontractor. Its geometry was optimized to accommodate sight lines, acoustical criteria, lighting and environmental control, and did not include any parallel surfaces or horizontal lines, but it was still fully veneered in wood, defying the level/plumb/square logic of standard wood construction (see Figure 10). The milling subcontractor took the idealized BIM model developed by the architectural team and developed it further incorporating site conditions and constructability issues. In the process, several issues and conflicts were resolved in the digital model that would have become significant on-site construction challenges had they remained undetected. The BIM model was also used to fabricate the ribs and panels at the millworker's shop that were then erected on site. The process was so accurate that no panels needed to be modified or sent back to the shop.

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Other examples of the use of BIM at the Advanced Analysis level include the multi-disciplinary design and coordination of complex components of the building including the sloping entrance canopy, the atrium framing system, and a steel, glass and stone reception desk that is cantilevered directly from the building structure. For the mechanical systems design, BIM models were constructed for the three major mechanical areas, with piping being modeled down to the 3" diameter level. The atrium smoke evacuation system was coordinated within the BIM model, and later analyzed in a CFD (Computational Fluid Dynamics) model; also, the air intakes, located at the major façade, were coordinated with the curtain wall in the BIM model. In addition, BIM was used to resolve conflicts between several drivers below-grade, including parking ramps, major mechanical spaces, suspended elevator shafts, the sloped auditorium floor, and the building structure.

In addition to the BIM Award, the Merck Research Laboratories building has also won several design awards, including the 2004 AIA Local Chapter Gold Medal, the 2005 AIA State Chapter Citation of Merit, the 2005 AIA Local Chapter Award for Design, and the 2005 AIA Regional Citation for Design Excellence. It is heartening to see the advanced use of technology in a project also commended for design excellence, dispelling any notions or concerns that the use of BIM could negatively impact architectural creativity and aesthetics.

Category: Academic Program or Curriculum

An Honorable Mention in this category was awarded to UIC (University of Illinois, Chicago) School of Architecture for their project aimed at developing an understanding of the current and future state of BIM and its implications for education as well as practice. A recently completed building, the Elgin Fire Station #6 in the city of Elgin, Illinois, that had been designed using traditional CAD methods was completely digitally recreated as a smart building model using VectorWorks Software, donated for the project by Nemetschek North America. The academic team worked in collaboration with FGM Architects, a large, local architecture/engineering firm which was the architect of record for the case study building. This firm shared all the construction document information which the academic team used to create the BIM model of the building in all its complexity, including architectural, structural, mechanical, plumbing and electrical information (see Figure 11). Each team member is acting as a consultant on the overall building model. When the project is completed, the core team will present the model to the firm to help them implement BIM technology firm-wide.

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In the course of this project, the academic team identified both the benefits as well as challenges of BIM. It found that BIM technology results in a better integrated building, as it enables the initial design concept to be expressed not only in the architectural elements, but also in structural, mechanical, and other disciplines. Since all building systems can be designed concurrently while utilizing BIM technology, the original design intent is not sacrificed during the construction document phase. BIM also enables rapid visualization of design options without much resource investment. One example of this is the adjacency matrix tool in VectorWorks, which can generate a variety of building layouts based on program analysis and rank them according to scores. On the downside, the lack of BIM content from product manufacturers means that all elements must be modeled individually by the user which is very time-consuming. Also, the technology allows for such precision in the model that new attention must be paid in allowing for tolerance in construction and manufacturing of parts. While the process of breaking the master model into separate parts for each trade to work on has gone fairly smoothly, difficulties have occurred when breaking these discipline specific models into smaller parts for multiple people to work on at the same time. The team feels that this could be a major hurdle to the implementation of BIM technology on a large scale.

In addition to the BIM application, one of the primary project tools was the project team website, which has facilitated file sharing, discussion boards, access to all team members' research, and a team calendar. The academic team concludes that collaboration has been the primary factor in the success of this project, and that this will be the key to the future success of BIM technology and the primary component of the cultural change taking place in architecture. The team also recommends that academic curricula should work on integrating building science, structures, theory and design to produce comprehensive building projects, and should provide students the opportunity to build projects at 1:1 scale so that students graduate with the knowledge and skills to be "building model operators," not draftsmen.

This wraps up the two-part series on the second annual BIM Awards that were presented at the AIA TAP conference in June. The annual competition is a great way to track the progress of BIM adoption, and 2007 should see an even larger number of entries and more advanced examples of BIM implementation.

Acknowledgements

I would like to thank all the winning firms and schools cited here who allowed me to use the material they had submitted for the BIM Awards for the purpose of writing this article.

About the Author

Lachmi Khemlani is founder and editor of AECbytes. She has a Ph.D. in Architecture from UC Berkeley, specializing in intelligent building modeling, and consults and writes on AEC technology. She can be reached at lachmi@aecbytes.com.