Anyone with an interest in architecture or building design might be fascinated by many of the buildings and structures in their city or town. They know that engineering these buildings, bridges, and other structures is no small feat. Architecture, design, and construction all must come together to erect, renovate, and maintain even the simplest of structures.
Buildings and other structures that have been around for a long time have a history. People who are enthusiastic about architecture often get into preserving historical buildings. They understand that buildings, bridges, tunnels, and other structures tell the story of their city or town. What many of them might not know is that there is a process to help both build new structures and preserve the old ones. It is called Building Documentation.
This aspect of architecture and design has never been more useful and easier to apply. While there is a never-ending cycle of new building construction that goes on, many projects are refurbishments or renovations. In the 21st century, prepping for the renovation of a building must include Building Documentation Services. One of the best ways to do that is by hiring a company to do a 3D laser scan of the property, then have that company make a 3D model called a BIM.
BIM stands for Building Information Modeling, and it works like a smart blueprint for the project. Thanks to advancements in technology, both in terms of hardware and software, BIM has become the standard for building documentation services. BIM is perfect for documenting buildings, whether it is a new build, a renovation, or a historical preservation.
New Builds
You might ask, why would you need a BIM of a building that doesn’t exist yet? The answer to that is simple; BIMs offer the most detailed plan for a new project. In the past, a construction project would rely exclusively on extensive paper blueprints. Most projects still have blueprints, but more and more they are moving to data-driven BIM.
This is because BIMs are constantly updated and provide a better foundation for the entire project than blueprints. Blueprints have been the standard for building documentation for centuries now. They will be on file with governments, sometimes for hundreds of years. The only problem is that these blueprints are static. They often don’t represent what is called the as-built building.
Having a BIM be the basis for a build allows for there to be an accurate portrayal of the building as-built. Anyone who has built anything will tell you, rarely is something built exactly the way a set of blueprints says it is. Sometimes they get updated on the blueprint, sometimes they do not. That isn’t necessarily a bad thing and often the tweaks made to these plans are inconsequential. However, when they aren’t they can cause big problems.
Renovations
This is where getting a 3D laser scan made into a BIM is crucial in terms of building documentation services. If you are fortunate enough to be working on a project that has an up-to-date BIM, you will know everything there is to know about the structure. Unfortunately, this technology is still new and many buildings that need renovation won’t have a BIM. They will have blueprints, but those may be decades old.
These older buildings will have been altered in different ways over the years. They might have had new rooms built or electrical rewiring and plumbing refits that aren’t on the original plans. Getting a building documented in its present state will account for all the changes that have happened over the years. This up-to-date information will be invaluable for the renovation project.
Starting a renovation or refurbishment of an existing building or structure with just the original blueprint can cause trouble. Your project will run into all those undocumented rooms and unforeseen wiring and plumbing configurations. This could make your project grind to a halt. Having your building documented with a cutting-edge BIM can avoid these problems. It will also give you a detailed and flexible digital platform to manage the project and the structure moving forward.
Historical Preservation
This is the most interesting aspect of BIM for people who are fascinated by architecture and design. 3D laser scans that are compiled into BIMs can be used to help preserve historical buildings and structures. They can even be used to document demolished buildings where they used to be using remaining foundations or artifacts that might be on the site.
Many of the better 3D scanning outfits are also committed to historical preservation. Preserving our country’s buildings and other historical structures for future generations is a passion that people who appreciate architecture share. The historical preservation aspects of BIM are a truly altruistic endeavor.
But they are also practical. Many of the buildings that are needing preservation are already distressed. Further contact by human hands could cause more damage. Scanning them with a laser from a distance is first-rate building documentation with minimal contact.
With SOAPassist, you can create your own templates, or choose from loads of curated templates, SOAPassist also allows you to share templates with your colleagues to maximize the efficiency of your healthcare team.
In short, Autodesk Revit Architecture is an alternative to the popular computer-aided drafting (CAD) software program.
A feature that has professionals returning to this program is it’s focus on Building Information Modeling (BIM) workflows.
This innovative form of database-building provides architects and like professionals a place to collaborate on a common body of project knowledge.
As mentioned above, BIM provides a new way to pool knowledge, streamline tasks, and complete projects more efficiently.
Maximization of productivity is achieved through the ability to make entire model updates automatically with a single design change.
A few of these tools include Physical Materials for Building Performance Analysis, Autodesk 360 Integration, Worksharing, and Bidirectional Associativity.
