BIM for Architects and Engineers - Future (5, 10 and 20 years)

During the next 5 years of the construction industry, BIM will leave a significant mark on each aspect of the design, construction and operation of the worlds buildings. Owners will choose BIM for the new design experience and witness effective results by the different members of the design team collaborating between each system. The process will be under constant scrutiny when compared to traditional design methods because of the unproven integration between all parties involved. As mentioned in Maria's blog post, larger firms that are already implementing this technology could help the smaller and medium sized firms realize that the inevitable change to BIM is real and current. Maria also gives examples of projects internationally that have been using BIM for the design and construction processes. In the next five years, there will be plenty more projects being managed in all phases by utilizing BIM. Government agencies that have adopted this process of building management will most likely author the first of many manuals and design guides in addition to the required new specification sections and contractual agreements. The construction industry will start to see the benefits of model to factory processing where the results are nearly error proof and the amount of detail and the variety and complexity of designs will increase greatly. Building components will no longer be confined to simple shapes and plane geometries, as also mentioned in Rita's blog post where she believes that the current projects that undergraduates are studying could prove to be obsolete in the future of the design and construction of buildings. The construction firms that adopt BIM will see the schedule and monetary benefits from utilizing BIM features such as construction assembly. The building's operation personnel will being to benefit from the efficiency of completing maintenance issues that arise with equipment and other systems in the building. The personnel will be able to use the building models to reference mechanical equipment that are represented by families, model numbers, locations, quantities and schedules.

In the next ten years nearly every building will be designed using BIM and will be a rarity if an owner decides to design utilizing 2D drawings. BIM execution plans will be a staple in specification books and will be a requirement for each prospective design team. Designers will utilize the capacities of BIM to design buildings that contain a number of design elements that are standardized within the building program. I believe that their is a capacity for multiple construction firms to specialize in their own building components that have proven successful in past projects. These components will be designed or modified by the individuals at construction firms that are proficient in building modeling for the assembly of buildings. For this very reason, regular usage of BIM will make it necessary for new digital rights and securities to be developed to protect the authors of each component. In the facilities and operations realm, BIM will allow building owners to connect into the building automation system and receive real time feedback of the HVAC, electric usage and security systems among other important systems. The facilities managers will also be able to use the management software to keep virtual stock of inventory for the building. Each component in the building will have a specific identification tag that will carry information such as part numbers, compatibility requirements, specifications, prices, locations and replacement date.

In twenty years designers will take on a lessening role of chief designer and more of project manager. Architects will still be utilized for their space-planning, conceptual ideas and creativity that is required to translate a need of a client to the design space. Architects will be employed as project managers or "master builders" where the primary responsibility is to delicate design responsibilities, manage the design process and act as the owners representatives. Physical boundaries of design teams will be broken, as inter collaborative meetings will be able to take place across multiple countries and locations through the use of web meetings and conferences. This idea is expanded on by multiple classmates, such as in Junwah's blog post that mentions the use of mobile devices being integrated into construction management. As the design of buildings moves towards the most energy efficient and net zero buildings, the energy using systems will be the primary importance. This will obtainable through BIM, at this point in development, fully able to take multiple inputs from a myriad of illustrating programs and deliver real-time results to the design team and owners. Changes to the building will be able to be made, based off the amount of information available, that can be seen from the prospective of the "construction assembly team" as well as the facilities management through energy and maintenance programs. Construction firms will take on a role of an assembly manager as they could be interacting with smaller companies that specialize in each component of the building. Designs will begin to be analyzed and then modified based off best uses of the materials and construction practices.

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Eastman, Charles M. "Chapter 5: BIM for Architects and Engineers." BIM Ha

ndbook: A Guide to Building Information Modeling for Owners, Managers, Designers, Engineers, and Contractors. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley, 2008. 149-206. Print.