Building Information Modeling
Building Information Modeling is for the real estate industry what Industry 4.0 is for mechanical engineering: The digital networking of all processes, products and stakeholders. Building Information Modeling (BIM) bundles all relevant data from a construction project. Whereas previously architects and engineers previously had to create their own plans and had to be informed separately about every tiny change, with BIM all the information is now available in a single digital model. This results in a digital twin of the planned building with a high level of detail.
Although adding all the data to this model initially increases the planning effort, it later saves a lot of calculation, as the building ‘calculates itself’ at the push of a button: How does the building geometry change if I add more offices? What impact does a green facade have on energy consumption? What would tiles cost instead of vinyl flooring?
In the BIM model, such design variants can be checked out at a very early planning stage. As all participants are working on the same model, all information is instantly available. For example, if the planner changes the building floor plan, the number of windows or doors and all required components are automatically adjusted. And if the designs no longer fit, collisions are detected immediately, rather than during the construction process, where they lead to costly delays. The model automatically flags planning errors, thus ensuring maximum planning certainty.
Our specialists are not only experts in the use of BIM – they are also very familiar with your core business and the processes in your industry. We do not sell software but advise independently on possible solutions. Your needs are the only selection criteria for the right BIM software. The BIM experts at Drees & Sommer also make sure from the outset that your data can be used seamlessly and is subsequently available to you for profitable application. Because ideally, the BIM model accompanies a building throughout its entire service life – from the design and construction phases, to the use phase and right through to demolition. Facility Managers who take over buildings planned with BIM can use the model as a kind of operating system for building management. Whether maintenance work, conversion or refurbishment – all operating data is immediately recorded and facilitates communication between owners, operators and service providers. BIM means that the building develops a kind of digital memory, in which not only planning and construction data but also all process data during ongoing operation is recorded. And at the end of the lifecycle, the model enables precisely synchronized demolition planning.