B2 - Chapter 3: Interoperability

Interoperability is defined as the ability to exchange data between different applications in order to improve workflow. Since there are many different programs and applications used in the design process for various fields of engineering it is critical for these groups to be able to convert and utilize the data from others. However, this adds repetitive steps to the process which has a negative effect on work flow. There has been a national push through the National BIM Standard (NIBIMS) to standardize the data required for these types of applications to allow data to be converted more quickly and even automatically.

One of the major challenges for interoperability is platform-to-platform exchange (1). Each individual platform has its own range of data as well as internal rules that make the object exist in terms of that program. If you were to try to share this object across platforms you would need to convert all the data as well as exchange the rules for that object. This is difficult since sometimes those rules exist in separate spreadsheets that would also need to be shared. Another problem with interoperability is that once the data is moved to a new platform the goal is usually to modify it and improve upon it to complete the project. Currently if you were to receive a model form a different platform, an engineer would have to review, modify, and update the model to make sure there are no errors before making his or her own changes. This adds time and costs to all projects and ultimately hurts workflow.

As new modeling technologies are introduced, and the existing platforms are updated to follow the NIBIMS standards for data, we will begin to see more applications that are able to operate together seamlessly. Two NASA funded companies, Boeing and General Electric, have already adapted what is now known as IGES (Initial Graphics Exchange Specifications) which allows each software company to develop only two translators for their program rather than a new translator for every exchange. IGES was a success and is still used today throughout engineering communities.

I believe that the overall capabilities of BIM technology will be hindered if the technology that promotes interoperability does not improve with it. The more complex that these programs get the harder it will be to move data between them which will ultimately hurt workflow and discourage the desire to push these technologies further.

Sources:

1.)    C. M. Eastman, “Chapter 5: BIM for Architects and Engineers,” in BIM Handbook: A Guide to Building Information Modeling for Owners, Managers, Designers, Engineers, and Contractors, 2nd ed., Hoboken, NJ: Wiley, 2012, pp. 193–261.

1. Carlos Hillinger

I watched the video and it helped me gain a better understanding of how BIM works for a project. The chapter I read this week was on interoperability and I see where the advantages are with having multiple programs that are able to access the same data and build a concise model like the one in the video. Here it seems that all the components in the restaurant are stored in a central BIM library so adding them to the model seems easy. A problem may arise when a client wants to use a certain door or window that isn’t already loaded into the BIM library. It may just be as simple as adding the specs for the door to the library and having someone who runs the BIM library review and approve it to be used again on later projects. With all this data going into a single model it is also important for developers to focus on interoperability to allow the various programs being used to create it to talk to each other easily.

2. Andrew Maita

One of the portions of this chapter that stuck out to me was the highlights of how the current platforms utilize interoperability and the flaws highlights similar to what you have said here. If that person from the senior design group has to go in to eQuest and enter all the parameters of the building again it will require a lot more time than just loading in a Revit file. This also creates more opportunities for errors which would further increase the amount of time spent trying to analyze the building. It is clear that there are huge implications for businesses to focus on interoperability for these exact reasons. The time and costs that could be saved on each project would be worth the early investments.

3. Jacob Wahbeh

I think any time you make more data accessible to people you have the opportunity to streamline a process like this. Being able to have a single model with all aspects of the construction on it would make planning a construction process much easier as well as predicting those conflicts. Making the right data more available for everyone to access may also help in this area. The people handling the construction don’t need to know the make and model of the chairs that will be going inside but they would need piling dimensions or board sizes for a fence. In the few BIM videos I’ve watched on youtube it seems like there is so much information that it may just clutter the model and make it difficult for people to get to what they need in a timely fashion.