Taryn Francischetti - A-Team - Week 2 Blog Post

BIM Modeling has many benefits in the construction industry. According to Charles M. Eastman, a BIM tool is, "a task specific application that produces a specific outcome," while a BIM platform is, "an application, usually for design, that generates data for multiple uses" [1]. BIM has not always been as seamless as it is today though. The first BIM platforms were originally the B-rep or the CSG platform. These platforms originated in the 1960s and 1970s. According to Eastman, B-rep stored the results of the definition as a set of operations and object arguments, while CSG stored an algebraic formula to define a shape [1]. It was not long that developers realized the benefit of combining the two software's to begin developing BIM for what it is today.

BIM software uses the concept of families. This allows the user to have predefined objects that can easily be placed into the design such as walls, doors, or windows. Families allow objects to link together so if one object is changed in design, others will follow suit. Eastman states that, "a distinction exists between those objects that interact with other objects, such as walls, beams, slabs, columns - that have complex behavior ... and other objects that do not need to have parametric behavior such as bathroom fixtures, door and window products that have fixed sizes, and other objects that do not vary with their context" [1]. This concept makes it incredibly easy for items such as walls and floor slabs to seamlessly fit together. Most BIM software's have a large set of predefined parameters for the user to work with, but users can define their own.

One of the most common BIM tools today is Revit. While this is most often used for architectural development it is quite handy in analyzing the structural design as well. According to Eastman, Revit is the market leader and contains not only architectural and structural design components but also mechanical, energy and environmental, visualization, and facilities management [1]. Revit works well with import and exports to AutoCAD and SketchUp as well as other modeling programs. Eastman states that Revit's strengths are the fact that it is intuitive and it has great drawing production tools, while its weaknesses include the fact that it slows down if the file size becomes too large and it has limited support for complex, curved surfaces [1]. This however can be supplemented with other programs to have a complete building model. Eastman also outlines quite a few other programs such as Bentley, ArchiCAD, and Digital Project.

BIM software is greatly helping out the building industry. It become much easier to be able to place objects in a building such as a column or a wall without having to draw each component as individual lines. This allows a simpler design and ensures items are incorporated better. Building design becomes more efficient as there are fewer setbacks in design coordination.

References:
[1] Eastman, C., Teicholz, P., Sacks, R., & Liston, K. (2008). BIM Handbook. Pages 65-91. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Retrieved January 21, 2017.

Comments:
Christopher Sager: I agree with your comments that BIM will become more common and a need for greater interoperability. I also agree that the chapter would have to be a bit dated as there are already better exchange interfaces in affect. There are many secure measures taken today to ensure building safety that have stemmed from the International Standards Committee.
URL: https://ae-410-510-ay16-17.blogspot.com/2017/01/b2-group-b-week-2-blog-post-chris-sager.html

Peter Dannemann: I also agree that I don't often think about BIM modeling outside of building use. This is most likely due to the fact that I have really only been exposed to the software for modeling buildings. However, I ran across instances in my reading of Chapter 2 that explained how engineers used BIM modeling in designing the Boeing 777. Ultimately, BIM modeling has many different uses in many different sectors. It is more of a concept idea of placing pieces rather than lines into a model.
URL: https://ae-410-510-ay16-17.blogspot.com/2017/01/b2-group-c-peter-dannemann.html

Nick Pawlikowski: I had never really thought about the use of building model repositories as a way to share building files. I agree that these are going to become very important as more and more information is incorporated into building models. I know that Revit has a small form of this idea in its program called Collaborate. Collaborate allows many users to view and work on a model at the same time. This allows users to see real time changes and comments on their work. With a bit of development this idea could help simplify file exchanges.
URL: https://ae-410-510-ay16-17.blogspot.com/2017/01/nick-pawlikowski-interoperability.html