BIM for Sustainable Practice

BIM is so much more than just a modeling tool.



Its collaborative nature draws together various softwares as well as industries and professionals. This becomes clear when acknowledging the positive effect BIM has made on 'Green Architecture' and 'Sustainable Structures'. BIM has enabled collaboration between both Engineers and Architects in order to produce the most energy efficient building solutions while remaining true to the parameters of time and cost. This is achieved through the modeling stages where Architects and Engineers can explore different design options that will ultimately enhance energy efficiency, indoor air quality and passive solar/natural lighting solutions.



As a growing number of consumers are becoming very conscious of their surroundings and what impact such surroundings are having on the natural environment, the trend of green Architecture is growing which is why as a company it is important to acknowledge this trend and work to remain current and connected with consumer demands. The fact is that building accounts for around 60% of the raw materials used in the United States is no coincidence; before BIM the way in which Architects and Engineers were designing simply did not allow for the level of control and planning necessary in order to reduce the large levels of waste that go hand and hand with new builds. This is why BIM for Sustainability is here to stay. Specification and procurement of green building materials rely on the accurate computation of a projects material quantities and BIM allows for such accurate computation.



As raised by Buildipedia, the benefits of using BIM for sustainable design are as follows...



1. Better informed decision making. As I've already stated Architects are able to consider and explore different options, being provided with a large amount of information in order to select the final design. Options are set on or off to analysis and are either kept or discarded according to the outcomes of analysis, in accordance to the design decision.



2. Better Analysis. BIMs ability to create accurate, highly informed and correct virtual models of sustainable building projects provide an effective simulation of the final built design. The model is useful for making different kinds of analysis, like quantity takeoffs and clash detection.



3. Easier access to information. BIM allows Architects easy access to the information required in creating sustainable design. For example with BIM you have easy access to the amount of building material required to complete a project.



4. Simpler certification. BIM models allow for the creation of detail, improving the accuracy of green certification. Not to mention the automatic tracking of building materials and their quantities.



For more information take a look at this link http://buildipedia.com/aec-pros/design-news/bim-and-sustainable-design buildipedia have presented a great case for BIM and sustainability and it's definitely an area that we should all be taking an interest in.