Still, the savings are clear. Gordon Holness, incoming president of the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers, which has studied the use of BIM in construction, says BIM projects cost 5 percent to 7 percent less overall. The challenge comes down to a question of who pays for the technology, and when.
“In all the owner presentations I’ve done, I’ve never had anybody say they weren’t convinced,” says Current’s Thirlwell. “The disconnect comes when they have to turn around and convince their backers that this is a worthwhile investment from the beginning. By the time we’re talking to owners, they’ve already worked out their pro forma.”
TOMORROW’S TECHNOLOGY Even with these challenges, some developers have started requiring the use of the technology for their projects.
At Parkway 22, a 37-story, 254-unit luxury condo project scheduled to open in 2010 in Philadelphia, Israeli-based developer Naveh Shuster called on designers and contractors to use BIM. “Clients are starting to demand that the process for design, documentation, pricing, and coordination gets improved,” says Steve Brittan, principal at Philadelphia-based architect Burt, Hill, which is working on the project.
Thus, for BIM to really take off, owners will have to shepherd its use. “We find that owners are really in a unique position to drive that behavior across the value chain,” says Autodesk’s Douglas. “It’s really hard for the architect or contractors to set a policy that can be adhered to by everyone else.”
For Chris Texter, a principal at Irvine, Calif.-based architecture firm KTGY Group, BIM’s ultimate adoption is inevitable. But he says it will take time for it to really catch on. “It’s like going to a teenager’s swim party,” Texter says. “No one wants to be the first one to jump in the pool, but once somebody does, everybody else jumps, too. For now, everybody’s still at the edge of the pool.”
Contributing Editor JOE BOUSQUIN is based in Sacramento, Calif.
Modeling Musts
Implementing BIM?
Consider the following.
- INCREMENTAL ADVANTAGE. BIM is complex, so start small. Many design firms begin by using BIM to double-check projects they’ve already drawn with 2-D CAD software.
- ONUS ON OWNERS. Because BIM’s biggest advantage comes from coordinating across trades, it’s up to owners to require its adoption on projects. You can do so by implementing less costly “review” software, such as Autodesk’s NavisWorks, on the investment side, while making BIM capabilities a must-have on the design and construction side.
- LEVERAGE LEARNING. A cottage industry is popping up to teach people how to use BIM programs. Invest in your own staff by sending them to training seminars.
