Building Information Modeling (BIM) is no longer just a software tool, but a fully-fledged environment in which building design becomes more accurate, consistent, and predictable. Experts from Metropolis, a general designer of unique and technically complex civil engineering projects, spoke to TASS about the technology behind it and why accumulated experience with it matters more than its implementation.

In this article, Olga Bornukova, Head of the Design Department and Svetlana Parkhomenko, Deputy Head of the Automation Department, explain why software ownership is no longer a competitive advantage, and why true value lies in the company's accumulated experience, libraries, plugins, and standards that have been developed over the years.

Not a 3D image, but a managed information space

As experts note, a BIM model is not simply a visualization, but a database where each element contains information on its characteristics, cost, manufacturer, and operational parameters. However, without a unified standard for parameterizing equipment and elements, team collaboration becomes more difficult: each model begins to "speak its own language".

Svetlana Parkhomenko emphasizes: "The mere presence of software does not necessarily mean effective use of BIM, and this is a strategic mistake that could prove critical for the company's future development".

Metropolis experience: 20 years in BIM

Metropolis has been using BIM technologies since 2005, and digital design has become a corporate standard since 2015. During this time, the company has built a comprehensive BIM-ecosystem: unified modeling standards, proprietary family libraries, project templates, automatic model checking tools, and specialized plugins for internal processes.

Today, the company has written over 350 internal plugins to automate the work of specialists across various departments. A BIM-model for a single complex project can combine 50 or more coordinated models, each up to 1–15 GB in size.

"The main advantage is not individual plugins or libraries, but the established BIM-ecosystem, which allows us to significantly reduce manual work, improve design quality, and ensure a unified approach regardless of the scale of the project", — explains Svetlana Parkhomenko.

"Magic" in specific objects

The most noticeable effect is achieved on technically complex projects—high-rise buildings, multifunctional complexes, sports facilities, and other unique projects.

In such projects, in-house automation tools significantly accelerate coordination between design sections, promptly identify conflicts and minimize the number of changes already on the construction site.

Experience shows that the time required to approve engineering solutions can be reduced severalfold, while the quality of project coordination significantly improves. And often, it's not a matter of reducing design time, but rather achieving greater accuracy and quality of design.

One striking example is the Moscow clinical scientific and practical center named after A.S. Loginov, the largest oncology center in Europe, where the BIM-model is particularly rich due to the specific functional purpose of the facility and its unique technological solutions.

1. 27 – total number of BIM models;
2. 11.7 GB – project size;
3. The project utilized six software packages, with information transferred between them using the IFC cross-platform data format (Revit, Lira CAD, SCAD Office, EPLAN, HILTI PROFIS Engineering, Navisworks Manage).

This data format supports Open BIM-technology, which solves the problem of data compatibility between different software packages. Throughout the project, BIM-model quality control was regularly performed to identify any conflicts between design elements. Internal design rules and regular collision checks resulted in a coordinated model of this technically complex facility.

Another technology-intensive project – Opera and Ballet Theatre in Sevastopol that won the 100+ AWARDS Award in three categories, including "Best BIM-Building Model".

1. 57 – number of project models (at the Working Documentation stage);
2. 17.5 GB – project size;
3. The project utilized five software packages, with information transferred between them using the IFC cross-platform data format: Revit, Lira CAD, Rhinoceros, Tekla Structures, and Navisworks.

The Revit platform, in accordance with Metropolis's internal standard, was implemented using automation of various tasks, such as batch printing, issuing and receiving hole assignments, creating isometric diagrams of utility networks, and various tools for filtering elements and preparing documentation. The shared data environment was deployed on Metropolis's cloud service. The client's requirements, as well as the company's internal standard, enabled the creation of a high-quality and highly detailed project. The level of detail of project model elements at the working documentation stage reaches LOD 400 (according to the Level of Development Specification document).

"Our experience in BIM-design is our greatest advantage. We are not only experts in all technical matters, but also have been strengthened by our experience in our projects", — concludes Olga Bornukova.

Why experience is more important than software

The main conclusion reached by the experts during the discussion was surprising: the technology of information modeling itself hasn't changed as much in recent years as is commonly believed. Much more important is the knowledge accumulated within the programs as a specific team works.

Without internal libraries, templates, and regulations, employees continue to perform many operations manually, which increases design time, reduces data quality, and prevents them from realizing the potential of automation. This is why a company that has been using BIM for 20 years has a clear advantage over an organization that has recently adopted the same technology, even though both formally use the same tool.

Read the full article on the TASS website.