Introducing the "Building the Future" Series

This month marks the introduction in AECbytes of a new series entitled "Building the Future," sponsored exclusively by Autodesk. You will find a link to it on the left. This new section will focus on showcasing the advanced use of technology by firms, future technological trends in the AEC industry, developments in AEC technology research, and so on. The inaugural article in this series looks at how Robertson Ceco Corporation, the third largest manufacturer of pre-engineered metal buildings in the US today, is using an advanced rule-based system developed by Design Power, Inc. to automate its design and engineering tasks. Examples such as these are indicative of the future potential of BIM, when it goes beyond simply being a medium to document the design and plays an active role in the actual design generation process.

Earlier this month, we also looked at the highlights of the AIA 2005 National Convention and Expo that was held in Las Vegas last month. The highlight of the show from a technology perspective was a panel discussion on Building Information Modeling (BIM), which was the theme presentation for the general session on the second day. The main message that emerged, loud and clear, was that the days of 2D drawing are numbered. We need to work smarter, not harder, and get back to having fun instead of being trapped in an old process. The current 2D mode only creates an adversarial relationship between the architect and the contractor, whereas the use of BIM will allow for more collaborative, integrated design-construction teams. It ultimately boils down to a question of survival—if we don't get up to speed on this technology soon, we will be out of business. It was great to see technology emerge as a mainstream issue in architectural practice at this AIA Convention, instead of being limited to the technology enthusiasts in smaller conferences such as the AIA TAP.

Thank you
Lachmi Khemlani

Editorials > June 2005