The following article was published in ASHRAE Journal, June 2008.

©Copyright 2008 American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-

Conditioning Engineers, Inc. It is presented for educational purposes only. This article may not be copied and/or distributed electronically or in
paper form without permission of ASHRAE.

BIM
Building Information Modeling

T
Gaining
Momentum
By Gordon V.R. Holness, P.E., Fellow/Life Member ASHRAE

 his article reviews recent developments in building information modeling

(BIM) and interoperability and the impact of this technology on ASHRAE.

because it allows all interested parties to,
transparently and in real time, share, ap-
ply and update information about build-
ings. ASHRAE can play a significant role
in this effort, if it is prepared to commit
resources and develop specific goals in
Clearly, sustainability is a major focus of the Society through its 2006 Strategic establishing basic HVAC terminology,
data dictionaries, rule sets, and schema
Plan and all subsequent developments: Vision 2020, Proposed Standard 189, for its Handbook and standards to sup-
port the building industry in electronic
Standard for the Design of High-Performance Green Buildings Except Low-Rise data exchange.
The establishment of an ASHRAE
Residential Buildings, the Advanced Energy Design Guide series, etc. However,
Building Information Modeling and
Interoperability Steering Committee
paralleling these efforts is recognition that issues such as integrated building
under the Technology Council is an ex-
design play a critical role if we, as an industry, are to succeed. Sustainability and cellent start. It indicates recognition by
ASHRAE of the role technology can play
many other issues associated with building design, construction, commissioning, in the development of better buildings
(whether better is defined as sustainable,
and operation are interwoven and interdependent such that everyone involved with more energy efficient, safer or less cost-
ly). As ASHRAE rolls out educational
buildings must work together if individual objectives are to be fully realized. programs, seminars, white papers, and
other publications on BIM, including a
BIM is the process of using intelligent members, BIM encompasses the use of planned ASHRAE BIM guide, it needs to
graphic and data modeling software to three-dimensional, real-time, intelligent
create optimized and integrated building and dynamic modeling, and can be a About the Author
design solutions, as defined by the 2007 valuable tool in facilitating successful Gordon V.R. Holness, P.E., is a consulting engi-
ASHRAE Handbook—HVAC Applica- coordination and collaboration. This is neer in Detroit. He is also treasurer on ASHRAE’s
tions. More importantly to ASHRAE critical to integrated building design Board of Directors.

28 ASHRAE Journal a s h r a e . o r g June 2008

be cognizant of the bigger picture: the potential impact of BIM ance™ (BSA) (www.buildingsmartalliance.org) believes that
on almost everything it does as a technical society, not just onBIM has the potential to save more than $200 billion per year
technology associated with buildings, but the actual process of in construction costs.
design, construction, commissioning, and operation. Clearly, the use of BIM technology has gained wider acceptance
As discussed in this paper, a significant amount of work is be-
in the past two years. A recent McGraw-Hill Construction 2007
ing done worldwide on software tool and protocol developments Interoperability SmartMarket™ Report of the building industry
by government agencies, nonprofit and research organizations, (www.mcgraw-hill.com/releases/construction/20071024.shtml)
as well as commercial entities, to facilitate and promote BIM indicates BIM is used by approximately 20% of designers. However,
technology. Also discussed are developments in application the responses also indicate a projected use of 80% within five years
software. The good news is that many, if not most, of these and 100% within 10 years. Although those numbers may seem
developments will provide greater interoperability. optimistic, it indicates the potential of BIM having a significant
impact on, and creating a considerable opportunity for, ASHRAE
Overview of BIM members, whether they are in the design, construction, or manu-
BIM is the assembly of a single database of fully integrated facturing side of the industry. BIM technology already has proven
and interoperable information that can be used seamlessly and to increase collaboration between design disciplines and between
sequentially by all members of the design and construction team designers and constructors. It also allows others who are involved in
and, ultimately, by owners/op- the process such as lenders, owners,
erators throughout a facility’s life and developers to better understand
cycle. The desired result is a BIM buildings and more effectively
model where three-dimensional participate and contribute.
(3D) graphical imaging carries Intelligent modeling technol-
real-time (i.e., immediate and ogy can start with direct data
dynamic access) data, and where transfer from the design calcula-
every line and every object car- tion software and spreadsheets,
ries real-life intelligent physical into graphic layouts (for systems
and performance data. such as structural steel, f ire
The technology of BIM is protection, or other modular
rapidly evolving and, although elements). Alternatively, it can
some interoperability issues still use the graphic layouts as direct
need to be addressed, little doubt input to load calculations (such
exists that this will cause a funda- Figure 1: Typical BIM model systems coordination. as pipe sizing, duct sizing, etc.).
mental change in how buildings BIM models also can link di-
are designed, constructed, and operated. The technology will rectly to specifications and manufacturers’ Web sites for data
bring greater collaboration between design disciplines, as well input. Building information modeling technology extends into
as within the construction industry. Statistics from the Con- fully integrated 4D (adding the fourth dimension of time, e.g.,
struction Industry Institute (CII) (www.construction-institute. scheduling or sequencing programs such as Primavera®) and
org) under its benchmarking and metrics studies indicate that 5D modeling (adding the fifth dimension of cost for estimating
construction industry productivity has decreased 25% during and budget control using programs such as Sage Timberline
the past 15 years, compared to manufacturing industries, which Office). The building design development can continue with
have increased 125% during that same period. Similarly, and the provision of automatic bills of material and generation of
of greater concern, while manufacturing industries have taken automatic shop drawings for everything from structural steel
advantage of technology and are at 66% value-added and 26% to sheet metal duct fabrication, to fire protection and piping
waste, the construction industry is at an all-time low of 10% fabrication, to electrical cabling and bus duct layouts, etc.
value-added and 57% waste. This represents a tremendous
untapped resource in the $1.5 trillion U.S. and $4.8 trillion Tool and Software Protocol Developments
worldwide building industry; a resource that when tapped can A major key to the success of these efforts is establishing
provide needed revenue to support initiatives leading toward common software protocols. The National Institute of Building
better buildings. Studies done for CII by NIST (www.nist.gov) Sciences’ Facility Information Council (www.facilityinforma-
indicate that resolution of interoperability issues alone could tioncouncil.org) working in conjunction with such groups as
save $15.8 billion per year. In fact, the buildingSMART Alli- FIATECH (www.fiatech.org), the buildingSMART Alliance and

June 2008 ASHRAE Journal 29

the International Alliance for Interoperability (IAI) at (www.
iai-na.org) has developed the National Building Information
Modeling Standard Version 1.0 to address this issue. The stan-
dard is available at (www.facilityinformationcouncil.org/bim).
The mission of IAI can be found on its Web site, which also
provides information on programmable language XML data
models for information transfer between disparate software
packages. It also offers intelligent and universal data models
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30 A S H R A E J o u r n a l June 2008
through Industry Foundation Classes (IFC) to IFC.XML2 ISO
10303-28, which incorporate HVAC schemas compatible with
ifcXML - IFC2X3 code (ISO 10303-11), as well as data ele-
ments that represent entire portions of a building or system.
Worthwhile reading is the new Journal of Building Information
Modeling (www.wbdg.org/pdfs/jbim_spring08.pdf).
Although not widely used in the U.S., IAI’s International
Council has established the European Integrated Project called
InPro, Open Information Environment for
Knowledge-Based Collaborative Process-
es Throughout the Lifecycle of a Building
(European Project No. 026716-2).
The buildingSMART Alliance, previ-
ously organized as the IAI North American
Chapter, has been established as a coun-
cil of the National Institute of Building
Sciences and is specifically intended to
address interoperability issues and foster
collaboration among the individuals, or-
ganizations, and entities associated with
the building industry. ASHRAE has a
representative on the Alliance board of
directors and the vice chair of the Alliance
is on the ASHRAE BIM steering commit-
tee. The Alliance is still in the formative
stages. Although it has developed a vision
and mission, its short-term activities are
to identify what is needed to fully realize
building SMART in the U.S. Work is being
done to satisfy the vision and mission and
then identify and help fill the gaps needed
for success.
Of particular interest is the work being
done by the FIATECH  (a nonprofit  con-
sortium established by the Construction
Industry Institute and supported by NIST)
towards fully integrated and automated
design and construction technologies. Its
Capital Projects Technology Roadmap
(CPTR) presents its strategy for the capital
projects industry in developing “a consensus
vision for the capital projects industry and a
unifying initiative to achieve the vision.”
Commercial Application Software
Developments
The first challenge facing private and
commercial enterprises in developing
integrated information modeling is the
limited size of the marketplace. Unlike
basic office software where a word pro-
cessing program may sell tens of millions
of copies, building modeling programs
(of far greater sophistication) may sell
only a few hundred thousand. The second
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 challenge facing the industry is developing a commonality of
program protocols that enable a free exchange of data between
disparate software systems. Here, the work being done by NIBS
and IAI to develop an overall integrated program under the
umbrella of the buildingSMART Alliance shows great promise
in combining BIM technology with Information for the Con-
struction global ISO standards to ISO/PAS 16793.
One of the most important recent advances has been the de-
velopment of open meld protocols that allow the integration of
disparate software programs. These programs have the ability
to more easily manage, view, and integrate disparate software
programs providing real-time navigation, collaborative com-
munication, and presentation of 3D and 4D BIMs.
Of even greater benefit in the United States, is the advance-
ment in software protocols and communication that has been
lead by Green Building Studio’s gbXML (www.gbxml.org).
According to its Web site,
Advertisement formerly in this space. “The Green Building XML schema, referred to as gbXML,
was developed to facilitate the transfer of information stored
in CAD building information models, enabling integrated
interoperability between design models and, a wide variety of
engineering analysis tools and models available today. Today,
gbXML has the industry support and wide adoption by the
leading CAD vendors Autodesk, Graphisoft, and Bentley. With
the development of export and import capabilities in several
major engineering model tools, gbXML has become a defacto
industry standard schema. Its use dramatically streamlines the
transfer of building information to and from engineering mod-
els, eliminating the need for time consuming plan take-offs.
This removes a significant cost barrier to designing resource
efficient buildings and specifying associated equipment. It
enables building design teams to truly collaborate and realize
the potential benefits of Building Information Modeling.”
Green Building Studio (www.greenbuildingstudio.com)
offers open gbXML schema for direct data exchange offering
Web-based building energy analysis tools integrating data from
the BIM into DOE-2, BLAST, TRACE™ 700, EnergyPlus 1.4,
etc., and exporting the results back into the BIM. Many software
companies use gbXML in related products that are focused
on the HVAC market, including: Carmel Software’s Loadsoft;
Trane’s TRACE 700; Carrier’s HAP; CADline’s Cymap; Elite
Software’s Chvac; Square One’s ECOTECT; IES, Ltd.’s <Virtual
Environment>; Autodesk’s AutoCAD MEP®, Revit® Archi-
tecture, and Revit® MEP; Graphisoft’s ArchiCAD®; Bentley’s
Bentley Architecture and Bentley Building Mechanical Sys-
tems; and EDSL’s Tas. Although still not seamless, these tools
have significantly improved software interoperability.
Wrightsoft Corporation (www.wrightsoft.com) offers a fully
integrated HVAC design package, Right-Suite® Universal, which
supports residential and commercial applications, and includes
an object-oriented, drag-and-drop CAD interface for thermal
zoning and automatic dimensional takeoff. It includes all six
current North American load calculation methods, three duct
design and layout methods (including the current ASHRAE duct
database), radiant panel design and layout, automated bill of

32 A S H R A E J o u r n a l June 2008
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 Organization Description Web Site

International Alliance for Development of a universal framework

www.iai-na.org
Interoperability for information sharing

National Institute of Umbrella organization for IAI and the

Building Sciences
buildingSMART Alliance™
National Institute of Standards
and Technology (NIST)
Capital Facilities Industry XML
FIATECH
World Wide Web Consortium
(W3C)
www.nibs.org
buildingSMART Alliance
Development of interoperable technology for
www.buildingsmartalliance.org
design and construction
Advanced Technology Program (ATP) and www.atp.nist.gov
Standard Reference Data (SRD) www.nist.gov/srd
The organization’s goal is to “foster wide-
spread, practical, cost-effective use of XML www.cfixml.org
in the capital facilities industry”
Capital Projects Technology Roadmap
(CPTR) standard XMLs for the manufacturing
www.fiatech.org/projects/roadmap/cptri.htm
industry and model library
for systems to ISO 15926
Internet standard XML
www.w3.org
schema 1.1 structures for XML

Unified Modeling Language™ and Global

Object Management Group www.omg.org
Regulatory Information Database

Building systems-related software for evalu-

U.S. Department of Energy www.eere.energy.gov/buildings/tools_directory
ating energy efficiency and sustainability

International Building Performance Building performance simulation

www.ibpsa.org
Simulation Association for HVAC systems

Table 1: Sources of general information.

materials generation, cost estimating, operating cost calculations,
proposal generation, project tracking, geothermal loop sizing,
and sales presentation. These modules are completely integrated.
Designers can try different scenarios because the entire thermal
and HVAC system is a live model. For example, building changes
are immediately reflected in onscreen duct sizes as calculations
ripple through loads, ducts, and bill of materials. The software
can read and write files in a number of de facto standard formats
compatible with popular applications such as AutoCAD and
Excel. gbXML support will be added later.
Certainly the European community, particularly, and to some
extent Australia, are further ahead of the United States in the
widespread application of BIM. Europe is heavily committed
to development of integrated building design technology with
extensive work being done in the UK, Norway, Sweden, Finland,
Germany, and the Netherlands.
Major players in the field include Autodesk, Bentley Systems
and Nemetschek Group (which owns Graphisoft, VectorWorks,
and Allplan).
Autodesk (www.autodesk.com) has software that can export
to load calculations software such as TRACE and input results
back to the software. This is done with gbXML. Revit also uses
the integrated IES tools for load calculations. AutoCAD MEP
design and construction documentation software is built for
mechanical, electrical, and plumbing engineers, designers, and
drafters. According to the manufacturer, “Revit® MEP software
is an intuitive design tool that works the way engineers think. It
can minimize coordination errors between mechanical, electri-
cal, and plumbing engineering design teams; collaborate with
architects and structural engineers using the Revit® platform
and building information modeling workflows; and gain better
building performance analysis support for engineers.”
Bentley Solutions (www.bentley.com) with MicroStation
as the primary product for building design, construction and
operation. Recent enhancements include interface with gbXML
for energy analysis using Trace 700 and tie into pipe and duct
sizing, the latter using ddXML.
Nemetschek, NA, offers programs such as VectorWorks
Fundamentals, which is an architectural building program that
can plug into Graphisoft AutoCAD and CATIA, VectorWorks
Landmark for site planning and VectorWorks Spotlight for
lighting design. HVAC Building Services and 3D Viewer (plus
Nemetschek’s Allplan [www.allplan.co.uk] for architectural
design and modeling software).
In 2006 Oracle launched a new collaborative building in-
formation management platform (CBIM) and is working with
Graphisoft to fully integrate building modeling tools with design
collaboration, visualization, life-cycle management, and other
applications.
The Mayo Foundation (under the Mayo Clinic) is developing
Mayo Graphical Integrated Computer Aided Design using Magi-
CAD® software. MagiCAD, developed by Progman Oy of Sweden,
is IFC compliant and used widely in Scandanavia. It is aimed pri-
marily at duct design and equipment manufacturing. However, it

34 ASHRAE Journal a s h r a e . o r g June 2008

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 Organization Product Web Site

Bentley Systems MicroStation, AutoPIPE, TriForma www.bentley.com

www.autodesk.com
Autodesk AutoCAD, Revit® (including Revit MEP)
www.autoCAD.com
Graphisoft ArchiCAD www.graphisoft.com
Oracle CBIM www.oracle.com/global/uk/pressroom/2006/613.html
Granlund RIUSKA™ www.granlund.fi
Viewers
NavisWorks JetStream www.navisworks.com
IFC Viewer www.nemetschek.com
Nemetschek
Allplan www.allplan.com
Newforma Newforma Project Center www.newforma.com
Solibri Solibri IFC Optimizer www.solibri.com
Mayo Graphical Integrated CAD
Mayo Clinic www.progman.fi
MagiCAD®
Model Checking and Code Compliance
Solibri Solibri IFC Optimizer/Solibri Model Checker www.solibri.com
www.corenet.gov.sg
CORENET e-Plan and Fornax Viewer
www.aecbytes.com
AEC3 UK Xabio www.aec3.com
Octaga Octaga Player www.octaga.com
www.doe.gov
U.S. Department of Energy COMcheck™
www.energycodes.gov/comcheck/ez_download.stm
Project Management
Bentley ProjectWise www.bentley.com
e-Builder: Enterprise, Collaborator, and Pro-
e-Builder www.e-builder.net
fessional Versions
Primavera Primavera P6 www.primavera.com
Autodesk Buzzsaw® www.autodesk.com
Other
ANSYS CFX (CFD software) www.ansys.com
Leica Geosystems HDS (3D Laser Scanning Software) www.leica-geosystems.com
Table 2: Key developments in current commercial application software.

does include HVAC, piping, and electrical design and application
software (running on an AutoCAD platform). These have the ability
to feed data into EnergyPlus using Olof Granlund/LBNL-developed
BS Pro COM server middleware (with IFC-based 3D RIM).
Other Developments
Although BIM technology is maturing, significant parallel
efforts are being made in the development of software for model
viewing, model checking, energy analysis and simulation, facili-
ties management, etc., to support various use cases associated
with building information. A use case is the task to which the
information in the BIM is applied. Cost estimating, schedul-
ing, and conflict resolution between structural and mechanical
components of a building are examples of use cases. A signifi-
cant component to support visualization of any use case is the
development of model checking software. One particular use
case is focused on compliance with codes, standards, regulations
or other criteria, whether mandated or market driven.
In the U.S. the International Code Council (ICC) (www.
iccsafe.org) is supporting a use case to check for compliance
with codes, standards, rules, regulations, etc., through its
SMARTcodes™ initiative. By putting codes, standards and
other criteria in a smart format that can be understood and
applied by model checking software it is possible to identify
and prevent conflicts between the building, as represented by
the BIM, and the codes or other criteria. Initial SMARTcode
demonstrations have taken place with the 2006 International
Energy Conservation Code. The 2006 IECC is anticipated for
availability for the purpose of automated code compliance
checking in early 2008.
ICC anticipates creating SMARTcodes for a significant por-
tion of all building, life safety and fire protection requirements

36 ASHRAE Journal a s h r a e . o r g June 2008

Advertisement formerly in this space.
in the ICC codes by the end of 2008, and then working with
federal, state, and local agencies to put their amendments to
the ICC codes in a smart format for access and use with ICC’s
SMARTcodes. Those SMARTcodes then would be used by
model checking software to identify conflicts or code com-
pliance problems associated with the BIM. This allows the
designer to consult software for code compliance assistance
and software to augment the review and approval functions of
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38 A S H R A E J o u r n a l June 2008
federal, state, and local government. It also provides a founda-
tion for evaluating building designs for conformance to other
criteria established by voluntary sector entities.
ASHRAE Related Activities
ASHRAE needs to look ahead at the role its Handbook,
standards, guidelines, etc., play in the process and establish
a viable path moving forward. The Society uses XML source
files for publishing the Handbook, how-
ever, examination of the basic structure
and development of SMART XMLs is
needed so that all of these documents
(particularly standards) have built-in rule
sets that can be read by design and model
checking/compliance software.
ASHRAE needs to revisit the basic
terminology used in its documents to
ensure overall consistency and a common
set of identities. Although the Handbook
does provide basic terminology listings,
these cannot be used for information or
data transfer. The Society needs to estab-
lish a common set of terms, definitions,
properties, and enumerations, applicable
for each document type.
ICC has produced a data dictionary
covering energy components. This project
is being coordinated with the Construc-
tion Specif ications Institute (Omni-
Class™ Construction Classif ication
System numbers) that is being considered
as part of an International Framework for
Dictionaries (IFD) and global dictionary.
However, the overall program needs to be
expanded into mechanical and electri-
cal systems and incorporated into all of
ASHRAE’s document development and
the results coordinated at the global level
so IFDs will fully support BIM use cases
of relevance to ASHRAE members.
The Society needs to take a step back
and look at where the ASHRAE Guideline
Project Committee 20: XML Definitions
for HVAC&R, is going. The Society needs
to go beyond the establishment of sets
of use cases and data objects within the
guideline and determine a recommended
HVAC schema and XML (i.e., gb.xml, aec.
xml and ifc.xml). In doing so, ASHRAE
needs to look at the work being done by the
Hydronic Institute, API, ISA, and others to
support electronic data exchange and the
ability to share, import, and export XML,
IFC and other files in different formats.
Guideline Project Committee 20 is spon-
 A

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Figures 2a – 2c: Pipe fabrication and detailing capability.

soring research project 1354-RP, Common Data Definitions for

HVAC&R Industry Applications, to identify existing data group
developments, which may provide us with some guidance mov-
ing forward. ASHRAE needs to establish consistent basic HVAC
terminology, a full data dictionary, rule sets, and schema to sup-
port the industry in electronic data exchange. ASHRAE needs to
look at the work of AIA ACC on integrated project delivery; the
work in the ICC dictionary; the manufacturing industries’ project
information model; as well as the new ANSI standard.
Related ASHRAE technical and project committees include:
•• TC 1.5, Computer Applications
•• TC 1.6, Terminology (Environmental Analysis of
HVAC&R Terminology)
•• TC 4.1, Load Calculation Data and Procedures

June 2008 ASHRAE Journal 39

 •• TC 4.2, Climatic Information
•• TC 4.7, Energy Calculations
•• TC 7.1, Integrated Building Design (originally TC 4.12)
•• GPC 20, XML Definitions for HVAC&R
•• SPC 166P, Proposed Standard for HVAC&R Terminology
Also of interest is the work of SSPC 140, Standard Method
of Test for Evaluation of Building Energy Analysis Computer
Programs, and SPC 183, Peak Cooling and Heating Load Cal-
culations in Buildings Except Low-Rise Residential Buildings,
since this could also tie into the BIM model.
Issues and Benefits
Of course, development and use of all of this technology does not
come without cost. Experience on large industrial projects ($75 to
$150 million) indicates that the added design cost represents a 5%
to 10% premium on the architect-engineers (A-E) fees (or roughly
0.25% to 0.5% on construction cost). The A-E cost premium can
be higher on smaller projects. More than offsetting this are all of
the cost savings outlined previously. Immediate savings of 3% to
7.5% have been seen through improved coordination and reduced
conflicts. (The Construction Industry Institute analysis indicated
a potential savings of 7% for this element alone.) This can only
increase as more trades come on board and BIM capabilities, such
as automatic shop drawings and quantity takeoffs, are realized.
Increased use of shop fabrication and elimination of waste
is, itself, expected to produce savings of at least 7.5% to 10%.
Recent experience in the construction of major automotive plants
shows that it is possible to eliminate 20% of sheet metal waste,
develop programs 15% to 25% faster, reduce RFIs by 50%,
eliminate 25% of all change orders, and reduce construction cost
by 4% to 10%. The greatest potential savings may come from
the application of value-added and lean construction techniques
that BIM enables. In the interim, A-Es must convince owners
that this added investment justifies increased fees. It is clear that
the economic driver is the building owner/developer. If they can
be shown that by having a BIM they can get the building up and
leased sooner with less hassle and save money on construction
cost, then they may see the benefit associated with paying ad-
ditional fees up front to have the AEC team use BIM.
To achieve all of the benefits of BIM, more work is needed.
The interoperability of software components is still not fully
there, requiring separate and distinct input and output data. Suc-
cessful widespread implementation of BIM for fully integrated
design depends on the ability of architects and engineers, as a
design team, to easily input and exchange data. The key is for
the integrated system to continually and dynamically model
the building and all of its systems, through daily and seasonal
operational cycles. This allows the “what if ” scenarios to be
played out using different systems and components and allows
them to be evaluated on a first cost, operating cost, and life-cycle
cost basis. The industry is far from that point.
Conclusion
Research into engineering firms specifically for information
related to their experience with BIM programs as design and
40 ASHRAE Journal a s h r a e . o r g June 2008
construction tools, shows wider application today. Although the
Society has seen companies fully integrate structural design and
analysis programs into those architectural models, only a few
companies are able to demonstrate BIM model tie-ins that can
fully integrate, dynamically and seamlessly, HVAC-related design
programs (such as load calculation programs, pipe and duct sizing
programs, building energy modeling/analysis programs such as
DOE-2, EnergyPlus, BLAST, IBLAST, TRACE 700, etc.).
There are few companies that have fully integrated build-
ing owning, operations and maintenance programs for facili-
ties management. And, few companies have fully integrated
natural daylighting design programs (such as Superlite 1.01,
LUMEN, or Radiance 3.4, or illumination design programs
such as AutoLUX, AG132, ESP Vision, Autodesk Lightscape,
Lightcalc+Art or ALADAN™) into BIM models. Yet the spatial
planning, modeling and orientation technology embedded in
3D, 4D, and 5D models seems a logical input database for such
programs and recipient of the output.
Despite this, the tremendous opportunities for improved effi-
ciency by integration of the design and construction process coupled
with the building owner/developer seeing the economic advantages
over the long haul will continue to drive the technology forward. 
The information technology required for these processes is com-
plex and difficult to implement and is straining the limits of design-
ers’ current hardware, software, and staff capabilities. More work
must be done to enable the technology to be applied on a daily basis.
However, the industry is much closer to having an interoperable
system that can enable fully integrated system design. The great-
est opportunity lies with fully integrated multidisciplinary A-Es
practices and where BIM integration is being done as a continuum
of the design process, as well as the construction process.
BIM is gaining considerable momentum as the technology
evolves and greater interoperability occurs between disparate
software systems. The rapidly emerging goals of green building/
sustainable design, towards net zero-energy buildings, coupled
with goals for carbon dioxide emissions reduction, requires
whole building, fully integrated design and construction as a
dynamic process. BIM can help provide that integration.
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