BIM Isn’t for Whiners

I’m happy to report that I have another project running full steam ahead in Autodesk Revit. We are lining up our MEP and structural consultants with the prerequisite of working in Revit to gain the most value from 3-d coordination, interference checking, and referencing across disciplines. With BIM (Building Information Modeling) we are essentially building the project digitally prior to the constructors building it in the field. A wall in the model actually contains the components that make up the assembly, not just the visual representation on a screen or paper.

The question I have to ask though is why would anyone not want to be part of the move towards completing all building projects in a BIM platform? There certainly is a learning curve from both learning the software platform and making a mental shift from drawing representative lines to actually building digital assemblies, but the gains from increased productivity through the software managing all of the cross referencing when documenting the project to validating that the mechanical, electrical, plumbing, structural systems, and furnishings are not in conflict saves both time and money working through conflicts during construction.

My request to those in my industry, don’t whine about the change. Either change and make the necessary investments to be part of it, or don’t change and accept the consequences. As a graduate architect I worked on a project where the steel detailer did everything by hand drafting. The shop drawings kept coming back with errors that I would return requesting them to make the corrections noted. Eventually, they submitted a change order because we required them to “redraw” the steel members. In the meeting to review the request, they amazed us as the draftsmen told us how our notes to add length to a steel member required him to start the drawing over again… They only received a very small portion of the additional money because the industry had moved on. A change that would take someone computer drafting about 60-seconds it took a pen and ink draftsmen 4-hours. My owner didn't make the decision for them to use a more time intensive process, and it wasn't fair for them to pay for something that was behind the industry standard.

As Seth Godin posted this weekend, “Smart businesspeople focus on the things they have the power to change, not whining about the things they don't.” We don’t have the power to stop the industry around us from evolving, but we do have the power to improve our operations. If you don't like it, don't change, just please don't whine about it, that won't get you anywhere. Thanks.