Masonry Magazine July 2008 Page. 44
TECHNOLOGY
Training staff on BIM has also been an issue, though several programs exist to assist with that task. "Depending on which software you implement, there could be a high training component for your company.
Anderson is seeing a strong push for use of BIM coming even from building owners, many of whom won't award bids anymore to companies not using BIM. And, while progress has been good, there are still some incompatibility issues with BIM software, which can cause glitches with the 3-D models such as doors dropping out and layers of the design or text missing.
"We're still early in this game, and the software is still catching up," Anderson says. "We've always had those issues with 2-D if anyone was using anything other than AutoCAD software. There are just more things that can go wrong with BIM."
Whereas the 2-D model method required the development of a drawing package, the BIM movement brings architects and engineers together with contractors much more easily now. Masonry contractors involved early in the game, for example, would recognize if conduit or duct work is going through a wall that isn't coordinated correctly to fit, according to Anderson.
Under past methods, "if an error was caught during construction, the contractor has already bid the job. So, if it's a major change, it became a change order for the owner and additional cost... [BIM] takes all layers of the model and puts them together to find conflicts," prior to construction. An error that could have cost $50,000 during construction phase might be fixed for $1,000 or less using BIM, Anderson says.
Additional software is being used by some larger contractors to create 4-D and 5-D models, with the fourth level determining cost and the fifth level setting the schedule. But these programs are expensive and use is rare at this time.
Another benefit of taking construction high tech is being able to tackle issues right on the jobsite, as many contractors are moving to the use of I-trailers, a technology trailer on the worksite where parties involved in the project can gather for video conferences and to brainstorm over the 3-D model when problems arise. Some projects even employ a tech consultant to assist with all the new technology.
"With BIM, you can also use Web presentations from any remote location, rather than everyone flying to the site to gather over a light table," says Anderson. "It's really changing the way we do business.
"When we went from hand-drawn paper to CAD, it was a major transition everyone had to make to stay in business so you were forced into it," he says. "There's another evolution happening now: If engineers and architects or contractors haven't made the transition to BIM, they're not going to get work." IMAS
K.K. Snyder is a freelance writer based in Albany, Ga, She can be reached at kkondeadline@hotmail.com.