Crisis or no crisis, the construction sector is picking up Virtual Building on a large scale. It creates the preconditions for more customer orientation, chain cooperation and process improvement. Information and communication are crucial for all three.
On 22 September, managers, project leaders and BIM specialists from ten construction companies shared their experiences with introducing Virtual Building. All ten participated in the programme ‘Virtual Building, just do it!’ from Bouwend Nederland in cooperation with Balance & Result and deBIMspecialist.
Not only architects, but also construction companies have embraced Virtual Building because of the enormous advantages. Construction is developing into a knowledge-intensive sector in which organisations cooperate in a complex environment on complex building projects. Today's construction is accompanied by large flows of information between the cooperating parties. In order to make sure this runs smoothly, there is a need for advanced information systems that people are happy to work with and that enable information exchange without problems.
Virtual Building enables companies to optimise their information flows. Not only internally, but also between the partners in the building chain. Not only in the development and design stage, but also in the execution and operational phase.
Virtual Building has been developing for some time and this will probably continue for years. At the moment, there are already so many functionalities available that practical applications are arising rapidly. Some ten construction companies integrate Virtual Building in their operations with support from Bouwend Nederland, Balance & Result and deBIMspecialist. These include the following companies: Waal Bouw, Era Contour, Pellikaan Bouwbedrijf, Ter Steege Bouw Rijssen, Visscher Amersfoort, Dura Vermeer, Hendriks Bouw en Ontwikkeling Oss, Mertens Bouwbedrijf, Smit’s Bouwbedrijf and Heddes Bouw.
The companies are in different stages of development with respect to Virtual Building, from beginning to advanced. The companies chart out their starting situation together with Balance & Result and deBIMspecialist using the BIM ladder (see www.bimladder.nl). The management sets it ambition level and goals and every BIM team then works out its 'roadmap' to realise this.
Most companies have linked the implementation with one or more concrete construction projects. This immediately makes the approach very practical. In the coming 12 months, the BIM teams will work on implementing their roadmap and gaining experience. Balance & Result and deBIMspecialist monitor this process and compile the learning experiences from the various teams. In the course of 2011, more knowledge and experience will become available on the effective introduction of Virtual Building.
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