ABOUT SmartBIM
The founders of SmartBIM and ecoScorecard recognize in Building Information Modeling (BIM) a transformative technology that will make the building industry dramatically more cost effective and environmentally responsible. SmartBIM's principals are pioneers and champions of information technology, architectural modeling, construction data distribution, and sustainability assessment. They have spent their careers creating information systems for the building industry, and they are dedicated to helping BIM achieve its potential. To this end, they offer an evolving suite of products and services designed to ease the creation, adoption and use of BIM objects and methodologies by all stakeholders in the building process.
SmartBIM was formed in August 2010 by Reed Construction Data and the Source2 private investment group. It acquired, and merged, with ecoScorecard in January 2011.
Building Information Modeling (BIM)
Building Information Modeling (BIM) is a data delivery system. It presents a visually-compelling, information-rich virtual model of a building and its components. The Building Smart AllianceTM defines BIM as "a digital representation of physical and functional characteristics of a facility. As such it serves as a shared knowledge resource for information about a facility forming a reliable basis for decisions during its lifecycle from inception onward." BIM can help all stakeholders understand a building project not only in its three spatial dimensions, but also in its fourth and fifth dimensions of time and cost.
BIM and IPD
IPD - Integrated Project Delivery - brings architects, engineers, contractors, building product manufacturers, and owners together in a "big room" (real or virtual) prior to construction, allowing early collaboration and a high level of shared expertise.
This design-assist collaboration...led to a superior design, a 20% savings in the cost of the exterior wall system, and the elimination of eight weeks from the construction schedule. NBBJ, 500,000 SF medical project
The BIM model is the centerpiece of IPD. It allows the stakeholders to align project goals, identify risks, eliminate conflicts, and agree on the decision-making process. Problems can be identified and changes made in the model. A change made during the design process is much easier and less costly than a change made during construction.
The IPD approach results in substantial construction cost reductions compared to the traditional "design-bid-build" or "negotiated" approaches.
"The 3D model enabled the teams to identify 590 of these collisions and saved the project team $800,000." Holder Construction, 447,000 SF Hospitality Project.
BIM merges all of the building systems into one file, using different views to show the different layers individually or in combination. Collisions between different parts of the infrastructure can easily be spotted and corrected in the model, before anything is built.
If changes are proposed in one part of the design, the impact on the rest of the structure can be quickly understood. Construction sequences can be simulated and schedules can be optimized.
BIM facilitates collaboration between all the building disciplines, increasing buy-in early in the design process, and reducing change orders after construction starts.
"UCSF has been able to reduce project costs by $205 million or 13% with no change in the approved program scope. Key to lowering the price tag and keeping costs in check is the use of an IPD model." UCSF Mission Bay Hospital Project
BIM and IPD will change everything in the building industry, including responsibilities and relationships. To prosper in this new era, owners, architects, engineers, construction contractors, and product manufacturers must understand how to create, use, and manage Building Information intelligently. SmartBIM offers well-crafted objects, intuitive cataloguing tools, versatile data extraction utilities and customized consulting services. SmartBIM is a key player in industry efforts to create standards, foster coordination and establish best practices. But most importantly, SmartBIM represents years of industry-leading experience in software design, architectural modeling, construction data delivery and sustainability evaluation.
The principals of SmartBIM have been at the forefront of the technological changes that have affected the building industry over the last 30 years, and they understand that BIM will reshape the industry in a way that will dwarf previous transformations. BIM has the promise to make everything from design to demolition safer and more efficient; SmartBIM is dedicated to delivering on that promise.
SmartBIM Products and Services
SmartBIM Object Catalog® is a collection of over 35,000 generic and manufacturer product BIM families and types, built by our expert modelers under the supervision of in-house licensed architects, from content developed in consultation with building product manufacturers. The collection is available to the A&D community for download at SmartBIM.com and FREE with each seat of Library Manager®.
SmartBIM Library Manager 4.2®, our content management tool, allows users to find BIM objects with ease, saving significant amounts of time and money. It has drag-and-drop convenience for both the consumer and the publisher of BIM objects. Our Object Library is included with each seat along with our content update service, ensuring our objects contain the latest version of the manufacturer's product information.
SmartBIM QTO Quick Cost 2.2® is an early cost estimator, a tool unique in the building industry. Integrated with RSMeans® cost data, it makes the formerly arduous production of quantity takeoffs and construction cost estimates push-button easy.
ecoScorecard® a web-based tool for architects and designers that searches and evaluates products in a manufacturer's catalog against the major environmental rating systems. It dramatically reduces the time necessary to find and document the most sustainable building product choices.
BIM Managed Services for Owners/Developers
BIM Managed Services for Architectural, Engineering and Construction Firms
BIM Object Creation for Building Product Manufacturers