Data Sharing

6.2.4 Data Storage

During project team setup it is decided who will maintain the database and where it will be located. One problem with pre-BIM projects was duplicate sets of project data maintained by each team. Using the Internet Web-based access to the project database facilitates maintaining one central database. Web servers are one solution, but maintaining the database on a server in one of the team’s offices works equally well. Both require uninterrupted internet access and data speeds that don’t affect work productivity. Fast Web data throughput, uninterrupted power, and universal Internet access are still not globally available. This, as we will see in Part II, can limit the extent of BIM implementation.

6.3 Data Sharing

The BIM process relies on data contained in the project database to be extracted as needed by team members. The information contained within the project da-tabase can be grouped in subsets as needed. Data is tagged so that different users can access different kinds of data. Metadata incorporates all data charac-teristics, including relationships and facts about a particular data set. For exam-ple, data that is embedded in and defines a parametric object can be extracted individually or in numerous different groupings. A common example of this is project schedules.

Let us take the example of windows and the many views of window data in a building project. Architects, interior designers, and contractors will all view a win-dow by the parameters relevant to their scope of work. In creating a virtual model, an architect will specify many descriptive types of information about a window: its aesthetic, its relationship to lighting and HVAC needs, user needs, its usage as an emergency exit, and finishes and colors. An interior designer will be interested in how the specified finishes and materials impact the design of each room, the furni-ture and fittings as well as specifications, including any clearances for exiting. The contractor will need to know all of these details as well as lead times, cost,

instal-Figure 6.1 Data flow of a project as depicted by Pavlides Associates in Greece since they adopted a BIM process. Note the use of open standard IFC file format and the chain of programs data passes through prior to final export as a PDF document.

66 CollaborationCollaboration lation criteria, and labor. Each of these three team members uses some or all of the parameters that describe the window to accomplish his or her work.

The flow of information within the database is contingent on how well tagged the data is and how easily the information can be found and extracted for use by others. Applications that use the AEC/FM industry standards such as industry foundation classes (IFCs) are structured to facilitate communication between pro-grams and people because they use an agreed-upon set of definitions. Applications and their users share a common reference and identification system. In this manner IFCs and other open standards also facilitate collaboration. Similarly, applications using file formats that meet interoperability standards (such as PDF) promote bet-ter work when users can share information regardless of platform. Web-compatible formats that allow information to be viewed and accessed have also become a stan-dard in making information easily available to users.

BIM databases are, in fact, metadata. How successfully these databases tag their information consistent with industry standards determines their value. RBB architects has created a custom data tagging solution for use in Autocad (and now Revit), connecting it with their firm’s database, as shown in Figure 6.2.

6.3.1 Sharing Project Data

To coordinate the databases of the teams, middleware programs are being devel-oped for the building industry. These programs can import and export data in many formats. Most of these programs, such as the Onuma System [3], rely on open standard formats such as IFC. The Onuma System is discussed in greater depth in Chapter 10. Web-based servers such as Onuma have the advantage of access from anywhere that has Internet connecticity. Building industry teams are

Figure 6.2 Attribute data management. RBB Architects has customized their use of CADaccess and MS Access to tag data in Autocad/ADT elements. They are now adapting this for their use of Revit.

6.4 Standards 67 now often geographically separate, so using Web-based servers for maintaining databases is an appropriate solution.

Another solution to data sharing has been developed by Graphisoft. Their Teamwork 2 (TW2) Delta server technology, introduced in 2009 with ArchiCAD 13 [4], allows design teams to work simultaneously on one file from multiple loca-tions. Any computer can function as the teams’ BIM server and host the project file.

After the initial project sharing with the remote computers, sending and receiving updates is completed in seconds. Haneef Tayob was one of several architects inter-viewed who stated that TW2 has dramatically increased the amount of work that their office could accomplish, improving their competitiveness.

6.4 Standards

Metrics for goals can be incorporated once methods for measurement are de-termined. Security is now often cited as one project goal. Many federal agencies including the United States General Services Administration (USGSA) have set stan-dards using diverse benchmarks including blast survival and sighting of buildings relative to transportation access points. As a set of rules, these regulations can be incorporated into a checking program for site planning and building applica-tions. International Crime Prevention through Environmental Design (CPTED) is a multidisciplinary approach for incorporating these kinds of concerns. CPTED [2]

was first coined in 1971 with publication of Ray Jeffries’ book Crime Prevention  Through Environmental Design (1971) [4] and has since become a worldwide or-ganization. Since the 1990s this approach has been embraced by national security organizations. Many CPTED approaches to a more secure built environment are applicable to buildings of all types, not just government projects. Some of the areas that CPTED addresses are:

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• Design of light levels for pedestrians and vehicular access;

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• Access control, which is the ability to view from within a building’s sur-roundings, and conversely, the ability of those passing by or approaching the building to maintain clear and safe accessibility to and from the project;

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• Maintenance, which is the idea that maintaining a project is a passive mes-sage that the building is being cared for as a deterrent to crime.

Reports generated by IPC applications included LEED and CPTED because the criteria that define them can be described in measurable terms, which can be extracted from a project database. Continued refinement of these project goals and standards are available to owners throughout the life cycle of their projects. As an example, the LEED standard incorporated by planners and designers has expanded to include construction and facility management, which enables owners to main-tain environmental goals that were established at the start of a project [5].

68 CollaborationCollaboration