What is BIM?

If you can’t see the whole picture… you can’t appreciate BIM.

Hard to believe…perhaps to some… but many /most of us in the Architecture, Construction, Owners, Operations sector still don’t know how to define BIM.

Anna Winstanley and Nigel Fraser of Lean BIM Strategies Limited provided the most likely reason in a recent perspective…  if you can’t see the whole picture… you can’t appreciate BIM.

BIM Definition – Short – The life-cycle management of the built environment supported by digital technology.

via http://www.4Clicks.com –  Premier cost estimating and efficient project delivery software supporting JOC, SABER, IDIQ, SATOC, MATOC, MACC, POCA, BOA … and featuring integrated contract, project, document management, visual estimating/quanity take-off. QTO, and an exclusively enhanced 400,000 line itme RSMeans Cost database.

Sustainable Grounds / Landscapes

State universities continue to make strong efforts to bring sustainability to their campuses through capital and curriculum related projects. However, these efforts have not yet been paired with strategies for improving the sustainability of the landscape.

Framingham State University, an institution noted for its commitment to reducing its carbon footprint, has begun to move in this direction: in January 2012, FSU contracted Land People Habitat LLC to develop a Sustainable Grounds Development Plan for the campus landscape.

Sustainable Grounds / Landscapes

This document contains the work completed under this contract, and explores the existing conditions of the landscape and the needs and desires of the community in order to propose design and maintenance schemes that will close the loop of sustainability at the university.

New National BIM Library – UK

A National BIM Library for the UK was introduced at Ecobuild 2012.  Accessible online, the BIM Library is intended to all Architects, Engineers, Contractors,  Designers, Owners, Business Producte Manufactures – BPMs, locate and download generic and proprietary BIM objects.

The National BIM Library has been launched with 200 generic BIM objects covering the main elements of a building, available at no cost.

 

via http://www.4Clicks.com – Premier Cost Estimating and Project Management Software for Efficient Project Delivery – JOC – Job Order Contracting , SABER, SATOC, MATOC, MACC, IDIQ, IPD, POCA, BOA.  RSMeans Strategic Partner.

Authoritative Source on BIM – Mission: Improve all aspects of the facility and infrastructure lifecycle by promoting collaboration, technology, integrated practices, and open standards

BIM is the life-cycle management of facilities (built structures) supported by digital technology.  3D visualization tools, aka Revit, Archicad, etc. simply components of BIM.  Other components include, capital planning and management systems (CPMS), cost estimating and project delivery systems (IPD – integrated project delivery, JOC – job order contracting), computerized maintenance management systems (CMMS), building automation systems (BAS), geographic information systems (GIS), and others.

The BuildingSMART alliance™ (Alliance) is  the premier organization in the United States chartered to coordinate and provide technical development; standards development and adoption; and political, and financial support for advanced digital technology in the real property industry—from concept, design and construction through operations and management. The buildingSMART alliance operates within the independent nonprofit National Institute of Building Sciences (Institute).

1. You can’t manage what you don’t measure

2. You can’t automate what you don’t understand

3. Cultural is the primary barrier to efficient construction delivery, not technology.  Information is currently exchanged by disparate teams, in different ways and with different content for the same purpose.

4. Paper-centric process, email, phone create even more problems.

5. In order to take advance of BIM and digital technology…. PROCESS MUST CHANGE!

•1974 – Public Law 93-383, Sect. 809

–Bridge between Private and Public Construction

–Non-governmental – Unique 501c3 Organization

–Unique in that it represents all disciplines in industry

•Architects, Engineers, Contractors, Insurers, Unions, Manufacturers, Legal, Housing, Vendors, Owners, Consumers,  State & Federal Government, Codes & Standards, and Testing

–buildingSMART alliance is a council of the Institute

–Formerly International Alliance for interoperability

 

 

via http://www.4Clicks.com – Premier software for cost estimating and efficient project delivery.  Best representation of RSMeans Cost Data with exclusively enhanced 400,000 line item database. JOC, SABER, IPD, IDIQ, SABER, SATOC, MATOC, MACC, POCA, BOA….   Owners, Contractors, Subs, and AEs, manage multiple estimates, projects, and contractors… all in one program!

 

 

The Operational Side of Sustainability – Sustainable Landscapes

Any Owner with a significant portion of lawn, natural, and/or impervious surfaces – typically Educational, Healthcare, Government, Hotel/Lodging, Transportation, and Recreational organizations – needs to consider a  landscape management strategy.

Maintenance costs, energy/water usage, security, carbon footprint, and aesthetics are all directly linked to sustainable landscape strategies.

Initial implementation is, of course important, long term operational aspects and adaptation, however, are the keys to success.  Beyond initial design work (renderings, plant selection, overall strategies), a HANDBOOK OF BEST MANAGEMENT PRACTICES FOR THE LANDSCAPE (Ground Maintenance Handbook) is a requisite component.    The Ground Maintenance Handbook should include step-by-step strategies for installing and maintaining the landscape designs over time. It must be a living document that is updated as new discoveries and adaptations are made by the landscape crew. It is grounded in the concept of adaptive management, where the goal is to plan responses to multiple outcomes (e.g., deer eating the seedlings and invasion by bittersweet).

While this may be a lot to ask from a traditional landscape firm,  and is the piece that is often missing from landscape plan, the Ground Maintenance Handbook is a requirement for success.

Sustainable Landscape - Adapative Maintenance Strategies

Sure, everything might look great when it’s installed at full maturity for completion photographs. But what happens afterwards?

See more at ….

http://issuu.com/placematters/docs/landscapepatterns

http://www.csld.edu/2011/12/conway-alums-impress-state-planners/