AEC Tech News #182

Policing BIM Town

Working in the building information model requires a whole new set of rules and regulations

Projects based on BIM (building information modeling) are quite vulnerable to lawlessness and disorder. Every project should have a model manager to serve as the police — and the fire department.

If you think of a CAD or BIM project as a city or a close-knit community, you will appreciate the need for law and order. In BIM Town, the potential for vandalism, theft, fires and corruption is ever present.

• Vandalism:  Layer naming run amok. Poor modeling and drafting techniques. Even your most law-abiding citizens can cause trouble if they don’t know the standards.
• Theft: Deleted objects, files and folders.
• Fire: Unforeseen hardware and software issues. Problems related to user incompetence.
• Corruption: Poorly made objects and elements imported from unknown sources.

You can think of the BIM project as an entire city under one roof. Everything is connected and relational, so corruption in one part of BIM Town can affect the whole population. This is why you need someone to maintain law and order. Read more>>

Event Report: DBIA Conference and Expo

By H. Edward Goldberg, AIA

DBIA (Design-Build Institute of America) convened its 2006 Professional Design-Build Conference and Expo at the Gaylord Opryland in Nashville, Tennessee, on October 18-20. I was there to make a presentation as well as check on the progress of the design-build approach to architecture and construction and check out some new software products.

DBIA is a professional organization founded in 1993 to advocate and advance single-source project delivery within the design and construction community. Design-build, as defined by DBIA, is a method of project delivery that embraces architecture, engineering and construction services under a single contract, integrating the roles of designer and constructor. DBIA members include practitioners from all project phases, as well as public- and private-sector project owners. Among DBIA's directors are prominent executives within the architecture and construction fields.
Read more>>

Mark Your Calendar: AEC Events

Cadalyst's complete list of upcoming industry events is always available on our Web site.

Regional Civil Training Event for InRoads Users
November 6-8, 2006
Broomfield, Colorado
The Bentley Institute's training event for InRoads users offers more than 50 sessions and workshops on Bentley solutions, including peer-presented case studies and technical presentations. Read more

The Power of Adobe Acrobat 8 Seminar
Various 2006 dates
Various locations
Attendees will learn how Adobe Acrobat 8 can be used to improve workflows, and can choose from 90-minute breakout sessions designed for AEC/manufacturing, creative/marketing, general business/IT, legal and education/e-learning professionals, as well as a developer briefing. Read more

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