"Tell me more about this "B" "I" "M" thing..."

So, I obviously got sidetracked - I was expecting to post every couple weeks, and now I'm looking at a couple months since I started this thing! Well, everyone always says I go at my own pace...

So, as promised, here's a little intro to "that 'BIM' thing" for the uninitiated.

First, you pronounce the acronym as a word, not as three separate letters. That's all I'm going to say on that subject. Next, BIM actually stands for a couple things, and depending on how you look at it, there's Big BIM and little bim (starting to sound like a Dr. Seuss book, you say?), or Social BIM and Lonely BIM as my boss puts it. So first, the disambiguation of the acronym:

Building
Information
Model(-ing/-er)

Sounds cool, eh? The basic premise requires a little background, which I'll get into later. Essentially, you build the building virtually before you do it physically, and embed info into the computer model. Walls understand that they're walls, roofs know they're roofs, doors are attached to walls, and so on. This digital model of the building enables enhanced coordination and collaboration between the people involved in a building project, and when everyone plays nice it can enable a higher quality product at a lower price and in less time (the magic triangle of which before only two options were possible at the expense of the third). Basically, it offers the potential of a more integrated understanding of the project to flow between design, construction and operation.

Essentially, Building Information Modeling is a collaborative process, during which a Building Information Model, a digital thing, is generated using a Building Information Modeler(s), the tool(s). Now, the mistake is to think it ends there.

However, I was very deliberate in the order in which I placed that explanation - I went from greater importance to lesser. The process is the most important thing - it's a whole mental shift, a paradigm shift in the industry (again, more on that later - all part of the in-depth background). The digital model is what enables this process, and the tools help to create the model. The tools will change with time, which is why focusing on them will make you miss the big picture. The model by itself may have only limited potential and use, if each user is only focused on their immediate benefit. The process of collaborating, working together and getting over the divisions in the industry is what makes that model most useful, and pushes the whole thing to its full potential.

So, now I've either lost you, or you're waiting with baited breath for more (or this is all old hat to you and you find my writing style somewhat entertaining, I hope...). However, this post has gotten rather lengthy already, so I think I will save the in-depth discussion for the next post. So until then (which won't be two months again - I already started it), I will bid you adieu and good evening.

Waiting for Revit

I've been wanting to start a blog for a while about my experiences as an architecture intern, and my new job (after nearly a year of under/unemployment) has given me the final inspiration I needed to get this thing started.

So, first the disclaimer: I am not working in an architecture firm - I'm actually at a construction company. However, I work in their "Virtual Design and Construction" department (aka, VDC), which is kind of like the Switzerland between Design and Construction. It's been really neat so far. I did work at a great architecture firm for the previous two years, and for three years in architecture school I worked for the Drachman Institute.

Back to the question at hand: why the title?

Answer: because that's what I spend a lot of time doing.

Ok, so I do get other things done while waiting for Revit, (including contemplating what to write on this blog) and it's not really Revit's fault that we're working on a really big building, but notheless, there I am, watching the little waiting cursor (especially when Revit is eating both processor cores and all the RAM, then I actually can't use my computer).

I've never had a computer this powerful before, and I bring it to a grinding halt almost daily. It's pretty incredible.

For my next post, I think I'll explain what Revit is for all the uninitiated yet inquiring minds who want to know. So stay tuned, and hopefully we'll have some fun while we're waiting for Revit.