Implementing BIM - Lesson 1

BLUF; Lesson 1 was two-fold;

• Firstly, identify what data your client will need (not want), when it will be needed and in what format and who is responsible for it;
• Secondly, the 'M' in BIM is for 'management', not 'model', which makes a lot more sense. Oh, and BIM is huge subject and formal training is needed.

I'm still only on my second attempt, but my first attempt at implementing BIM started with "I'd like to provide the contractor a #bim compliant data set at RIBA 2 on this project, Ben" from a great manager and friend; he knows who is is. Wide, open horizons, and the authority to move in it, is an area I strive in and he provided. Nothing is impossible, it just needs to be tried, evaluated and developed if it works - if it doesn't, scrap it and try something else. So off I went to learn about BIM which is just all LiDAR models and 3D images, isn't it? Hundreds of companies have done it, it can't be that hard. Well, I'm about 5 months in now, and I still don't think I can see the bottom the 'learning lake'...it's still a long way down... and its murky, and dark.

The project was a major project, not necessarily in cost or size, but it spanned across multiple agencies and in a different subject area. At the same time we were converting to AutoDesk Revit from AutoCAD, which is a big leap, bigger than realised to be fair. The Drafters were being proactive as expected, using YouTube and professional development time to gain the skills, which worked well. Implementing two major changes on a chaotic project was sub-optimal, but it was a lot of fun and definitely accrued some CPD hours.

My BIM research started with colleagues. Some had written papers for BSc and MSc and they gave me a really good steer (thanks Sean Smithson MSc CMgr MIET and Andrew Johnson). Although it can be overwhelming, the internet was my best source ( UKBIMA Communities and UK BIM Framework are excellent sites), as well as friends and the LinkedIn network - hence my silly questions. I had known Andrew Johnson for years and knew he had been working in the BIM arena so I called him for advice. His company, Okana , was offering a course called Enhancing Digital Skills in Construction, delivered remotely and in the classroom through New College Durham . I got myself and a few of my team on it and it proved to be an excellent insight. BIM Academy used innovative and interactive systems, which enhanced the lessons and classroom enjoyment. They even 'gave' me a virtual computer on which they provided AutoDesk Revit for use during the online sessions (very weird working on a iMac using MS Windows desktop) and for offline practicals. It was responsive and quick, even though it was a 'fake' computer in some far off server cabinet somewhere - VM still makes my head wobble. I still have access to those lessons, notes and virtual computer for up to a year after the course which came in really handy. The course covered many areas; practical modelling using Revit and White Frog Publishing lesson material; BS EN ISO 19650 and associated standards; COBie; BIM in operations: BIM in construction; BIM for H&S; digital twin concepts; data collection methods; and much more. BIM Academy is a training provider who I would highly recommend and they deliver many levels of BIM-related training packages. If I had one 'criticism', it was that I now knew how much I didn't know.

So now I had some knowledge, which I normally assume is dangerous, and this time I was right. Prior to the fundamentals course I had been trying to start the BIM adoption process by writing a BIM Execution Plan (BEP) [I can physically hear the sighs from you all whilst you sit on your sofas reading this]. The BEP was making no sense; the headings of the random template I downloaded seemed to want information that would have been provided to me, but from where? It seemed to want me to provide answers to questions which I didn't have. Without another option on this project, I was planning to use a hybrid of Microsoft SharePoint Online (SPOL) and a local Network Attached Storage (NAS) device as the Common Data Environment (CDE). My thoughts were that 'flat' documents can go on SPOL and models can go on the NAS which was wifi-linked to the Drafters for collaborative working. Unknowingly, this was doomed for the outset. We didn't have the additional software necessary to work collaboratively (why would it be separate, who works on Revit as a single entity?) and we didn't have the skill set yet either. Big lesson - you don't now what you don't know, that's why there's experts out there! Talking of experts, that's where the BIM Academy course gave me my first realisation. I needed to know my organisation's information needs, usually delivered in Organisation Information Requirements (OIR) and Exchange Information Requirements (EIR) documents to respond to.

Another great source of help, old advice and constructive positivity is Iain Miskimmin . Every time I see any of my work or think of BIM, I hear Iain saying (paraphrased) "data is important, but more important is working out the data you actually need - it all costs something to store, recover or create, so spend time working out what's needed and then plan when to deliver it." This was easy, I thought. We had a staged design management process in place which just needed replicating in a BS EN ISO 19650 compliant method. Ha! I was so naive. So this is where the OIR and EIR come in, which I didn't have. It was now I realised I was supposed to be responding to my organisation's information needs for this project, and directing when and what data will be produced in what format and by who - the Information Delivery Plan! Sadly. there wasn't the time, capacity nor knowledge to develop and write these products for this project.

So did I succeed? Well, no. However, I gained some experience, learnt a hell of a lot and developed a first draft of a BEP which I will come to butcher and develop in the next step.

So, to "close the learning loop", why did I not succeed on implementing BIM?

• First and foremost I had no idea what I was doing and was out of my depth. I am a deep-end learner and enjoy the pressure of the unknown, but this was too big of a subject area.
• Secondly, we started too late in the project's timeline; we're brought in when something needs to be delivered at pace and this project wasn't the right project to develop these skills and processes on. At week 1 of 10, when I got involved, products were already being developed. I just could not keep up with the production and publication of the policies and methodologies required, let alone the necessary learning and change management needed for all involved.
• Lastly, I had no information requirements to meet or be held accountable for. After the training I knew I had to have at least an OIR and EIR and, as a 'contractor', I should be responding to them with a BEP which contained the necessary information deliverables and formats. The organisational laydown also didn't meet a 'normal' project and matching it would have created its own issues. Although not critical, we also didn't have a useable CDE but this was to be the next major part of the story.

What we did succeed on;

• It was chaotic and fast, but we delivered 3D models with some data attached which was useable by the subsequent contractor. We managed our documents in the usual manner and successfully transferred to the contractor. This has been taken forward for further development.
• Base-level learning had been completed which has since been used in the next trial and will continue to generate skills.
• Skills have been developed and now the team can mobilise at a higher SQEP than they were.
• We found out a lot of things we didn't know, so now we can fill the gaps...for next time.

Summary; it was a blast!

#bimmanagement #bimmanager #bimimplementation #bimlearning