BIM2FM – Take advantage of the opportunity
There are rumors going around that BIM, and respectively the 3D model that was created during the BIM process, will be the new SSOT (single source of truth) for building operations. Quite frankly speaking, can you imagine processes such as maintenance planning, workplace management and contract management handled in a 3D model?
The fact remains unquestionable, that quite a lot of efforts are required to get a reasonable As-built model in the first place. Let alone that these days people would have even the slightest idea, how BIM models should be handled once the construction phase is completed. There is no questioning the fact that master data, as an indispensable basis for ongoing process support as well as for smooth and secure building operations, has to be transferred to the CAFM- or to the SAP system at any rate. And preferably, this transfer should occur based on a clear data structure.
If you are currently looking at 3D models, you will certainly observe the following:
Yet, the usual hierarchy of building–level–room is still respected in the 3D model. However, things will be getting a bit more complex when it comes to doors, windows or even furniture objects. They may still be optically situated in a room when you import the entire model. If you import this data into a data base system, usually these objects will be positioned in parallel to each other. And the data referring to a door will not give any information that this door belongs to a specific room. Thus, when you create objects, it is very important to make sure that those objects get an unambiguous connection to a room yet in their inherent data.
The situation is getting even worse when dealing with technical installations. Technical models are usually created as individual 3D models independently, and the connection to their position can only be seen in case the model is being loaded simultaneously with the architectural model. There is no possibility to recognize in the data the exact position of the technical installation itself. And what is even more serious, there is no relation between the technical object and its several components. However, to be able to carry out a substantiated maintenance planning, operators need to know precisely the respective position as well as the relation and interdependence between the technical object and its different components. As an inevitable consequence, you have to consider that the position of a technical installation will be incorporated alphanumerically when creating a 3D model. Furthermore, you need to make sure that each component carries the information indicating to which technical installation the component really belongs. Anything else would mean a severe step back in quality for building operations.
The importance of the 3D model itself for building operations will be the subject of discussion in our next blog post.