The BIM Difference

There's a reason why the first automobiles were called "horseless carriages." Designers were unable or unwilling to shift their thinking to accommodate a fundamental shift in technology. So they stuck with the familiar—it took until the 1930s with cars like the 1934 DeSoto Airflow before automobile design came to terms with technology.

So it was with the introduction of the steel frame to high-rise design. Unable to see past the status quo, designers of the first steel frames clad them in masonry so they looked very much like tall versions of the bearing wall structures the world already knew. It was years until designers regularly exploited the expressive possibilities of steel in now-familiar designs, such as the Lever House by Gordon Bunshaft of SOM in New York.

These two examples underscore an unfortunate reality: Faced with a true innovation, almost every industry struggles through a period where it tries to force the new and different to conform to the old and comfortable. But, sooner or later, the real visionaries and leaders embrace the innovation for the opportunity it represents to break free of old restrictions.

The latest innovation perched at this tipping point is building information modeling, or BIM. To be sure, many companies have talked about BIM—without really offering technology that provides the new opportunities, new benefits, and new ways of working BIM will bring the industry. Instead of recognizing the benefits, the AEC industry stubbornly has followed the old path of trying to crowbar a truly innovative idea into yesterday's working model.

At Autodesk, we have always considered BIM something different, not simply some kind of extension on existing technology. We believe it can and will transform the AEC industry. As design firms around the world who were starting to explore BIM a few years ago have discovered, however, it is more than 3D modeling, more than object data, more than the sum of all these parts. And it delivers the most benefits if all building design disciplines are able to use a purpose-built BIM platform.

That's why we've been investing heavily in creating a complete BIM solution that covers all the AEC design disciplines. Today, many firms are using Autodesk Revit Building software for architecture and interior design, along with Autodesk Revit Structure for structural engineering. Later this month, we're releasing the third and final piece of that complete BIM solution, Autodesk Revit Systems software for MEP Engineering. For the first time, customers can work with one complete BIM model for all three disciplines, on a common platform, while being able to share information on a variety of levels. If you have three disciplines working in different organizations, the Revit platform approach lets each of them cross-link their models—the structural engineer, MEP engineer, and architect can all exchange copies of their models to link into a shared, distributed BIM. And, of course, if two or more of the disciplines are under one roof, which is increasingly common, everyone can work together on a single shared model.

What's really at work here is something that's complete, fresh, and modern—not unlike the DeSoto Airflow. The best way to think about this is with a precise definition:

Building information modeling is the creation and use of coordinated, consistent, computable information about a building project in design that yields reliable digital representations of the building—representations used for design decision-making, production of high-quality construction documents, performance predictions, cost-estimating and construction planning, and, eventually, for managing and operating the facility.

The full promise of BIM requires that you have a complete description of the building across the disciplines. Some in the industry claim that BIM can be some kind of bolt-on that's used much later in the process—for construction or cost estimating for example. Others claim that you that you can get BIM by simply adding some 3D modeling and some data to existing CAD platforms, to the old 2D technology and software. There's great allure in those claims—the allure that there's no need to retrain, to change what you do…that there need be no discontinuity in your experience to swap to BIM.

Bunk. If BIM could have been realized by simply adding to the old technology, Autodesk would have done it and saved ourselves a great deal of time, money and effort. But you simply can't do BIM without creating technology from the ground up that is based on modern principles of computation—technology that has, at its foundation, the idea of working with a building in software using coordinated, consistent, and computable information.

The idea of "computable" is crucial to BIM. What this means is the information about a design can be understood by a computer in a way appropriate to its purpose. A number, for instance, is "computable" in a spreadsheet; it is generally not "computable" in a word processing program, because that's not appropriate. The relevant question for any BIM solution is whether the information your technology gives you, the model, is "computable"—that is, information that can be understood by a computer as a building.

Consider a project involving a wall with some elaborate geometry. Described in a 3D model it may look right—but it's not "real." There's no way it can be scheduled or quantified as a wall made of real materials. It doesn't know how to accept a window or a door. In short, the wall, the information, is not computable. It looks like BIM, but it isn't. It's just a "workaround." With the Autodesk Revit family of products, the information in the model is computable. That curvilinear, expressive wall can be scheduled, and can accept a door or window. You can see right away how important this distinction is to your business.

As with most technology, saving users time and making their jobs more efficient requires the technology's developer to invest enormous time and energy in creating an effective tool. Part of the investment we've made is to bring the benefits of BIM to as much of the industry as possible without forcing everyone to change their processes or technology all at once. You don't have to have everyone use an Autodesk Revit product. Through data exchange using DWG files, team members using AutoCAD software or an AutoCAD-based product can collaborate with Revit-based team members. And because Autodesk solutions also support open industry data exchange standards such as IFC, teams using a wide variety of software can find the workflow that suits their project needs and technology choices. We've worked hard to maintain a portfolio of solutions that are right for anyone in the industry, no matter how they want to work.

So, what's the real barrier to more widespread BIM adoption? It's nothing more than a new idea replacing and transforming old paradigms. But the AEC industry is beginning to understand that the difference between incremental and fundamental change requires thinking about things in different ways. We don't make cars that look like horseless carriages anymore, and we don't try to throw faux-masonry edifices up to the sky. And we're beginning to understand BIM as more than just a new phrase for old model-based design ideas. We've been able to get past the old paradigms and embrace the new. We're right at that stage with BIM, and those companies that are willing to open their eyes to its possibilities are the ones who will lead the industry into a productive and profitable future.

About the Author

As co-lead and Vice President of Autodesk's Building Solutions Division (BSD), Jay Bhatt is focused on driving BSD's business operations including engineering, marketing, and sales/cross-divisional collaboration and integration. Bhatt also is responsible for both the creation and driving of BSD's forward business strategy.

Prior to joining BSD, Bhatt ran Autodesk's Corporate & Business Development organization, and was responsible for corporate strategic planning as well as corporate and divisional M&A and partnership creation. Prior to joining Autodesk, Bhatt was the CFO and senior vice president of Business Development for Buzzsaw.com, Inc., which was acquired by Autodesk in 2001. Before joining Buzzsaw, he was a real estate and technology investment banker, and previously he worked as a business/transactional attorney with a focus on real estate transactional work.

Bhatt received his bachelor's degree from the University of Pennsylvania and his law degree from the UCLA School of Law. He is a member of the State Bar of California.

Note: The views expressed in Viewpoint articles are those of the individual authors and do not necessarily reflect those of AECbytes.