Thoughts about BIM to date….

Because BIM allows so many drawings to be produced from the same source, it seems that it has allowed architects to create more drawings faster, and more detailed than before. There are possibilities for hybridized drawings, 2D + 3D, that were previously much harder to achieve. I think it allows for more clarity as well, making the drawings richer in information.

The design process becomes more cohesive from the beginning because the architects are able to see the totality of the model and the drawings all at once. This changes the design process radically because the plan is no longer the “baseline” from which the design process begins.

It is also evident that to make good use of BIM modeling tools the designer needs to have a good understanding of building construction, tectonics and such. The program is very detailed, which makes it too complicated for someone that has no understanding of construction. Yet it is also a great learning tool.

The use of new software always leads to new problem solving skills because the user is limited by the possibilities of the program. Yet this also gives the opportunity for the creative use of the software to overcome the challenges. Creative thinking often results from these hardships.

I think BIM will enhance investigation of design opportunities in digital medial because the kind of simultaneity that it allows (plan, section, 3d, perspectives, all in real time) can lead to new investigations. Form becomes more complex, and the ability to build such forms and geometries is more reachable to the architect when she uses this type of software.

"Change or Perish" by Thom Mayne

Change or Perish

By Thom Mayne

This article reads as a manifesto on the future of architecture. Thom Mayne takes the very strong stance that if architects do not adapt and evolve with the advances of technologies and the way they can change design process, then architecture will “perish.” He claims that computer modeling has changed the way architects design, that two dimensional representation such as plans are sections are “dead” because with computer modeling the architects can view design in whole, what he calls a “new totality.” It’s interesting that this resonated with the previous readings where the authors also claim technology is allowing the architects to reclaim their status as builders, because with these new tools there is much more control, and emphasis on, construction methods. The authors talk about architecture as a representation of making and rather than as one-dimensional ideas that are often concentrating on style. “Survive or Perish,” is his message. Although that is very blunt, it seems to make absolute sense. The older ways of thinking and producing just don’t seem to compare with these newer methodologies.

Probe 6 Brickality

Probe 5

Autodesk Revit Families: A Step-by-Step Introduction

The article is a tutorial explaining the steps necessary to make new families. It delineates the basic hierarchies and nomenclature used to classify the different elements in a revit model. Using this article and the practice of making our own families was a great way to begin to understand the program better. It was very helpful to have a guideline we could rely on when things got a bit confusing on our own experimentation with the program.

It was a bit frustrating at times to understand the different levels of families, when they are nested to each other, and how they are linked in terms of changing one to automatically change the other. It was also confusing at times when a parametrically controlled family was downloaded, to understand what its existing constrains were to be able to edit and manipulate the model the way we wanted to.

Lastly, the process of creating a family is really great because it makes one think in variables and in geometrical relationships, but it is at times very difficult to understand what kind of constrains and variables need to be set to generate the form one wants. I also noticed that editing is not as easy as when in conceptual mass form. With parametrically controlled editing, it is better to understand initially what the user wants to generate, to have a strategy to go about it, so that the model remains cleaned and “editable.” Otherwise it is really hard to change and retrace the steps later as to what was constrained, what should be blended or cut or joined, etc, etc. Overall it was a very tough exercise, but it was very clear that there are huge benefits to this way of modeling, and the tutorial was really helpful in explaining the logic behind the process of creating families in Revit. It will just take time to really get used to it.

Family Counseling

Technology, process, improvement, and culture change

By Jim Bedrick and Tony Rinella

This article outlines the importance of BIM in its ability to change the work process of architecture, engineering, and construction industries. At its core, BIM will change the industry to enhance collaboration and work-flow integration amongst the different disciplines. This is significantly different from past technological advances such as the use of AutoCad for drafting purposes.

The author describes this difference by relying on three definitions: data, information, and knowledge. Data is defined as raw facts. Data then become information when they are given relevance and meaning. Lastly, information becomes knowledge when it is “combined with experience and know-how.” The use of AutoCad, he claims, is just the use of data, because the files do not contain any information or captured-knowledge from the distinct fields. In a way, drafting with cad is the same as drafting by hand, because the process of work and design has not changed at all. BIM breaks away from this data based culture because it relies on information.

BIM models contain embedded information that can be combined with simulation tools. This combination of information and simulation can then output results that inform the designers on the performance of the building, its construction mechanisms, and its cost estimates among many others. To maximize the benefits of these increased amounts of information, the AEC industry should create collaborative workflows where input and feedback can be shared constantly rather than at very early or late benchmarks in the process. The traditional more linear workflows, the author claims, led to many delays, discontinuity and errors that can be avoided in a more collaborative work environment.

Lastly, an interesting point made relates to the importance of considering the right technology when working in this field. The author explains that many process-improvement efforts choose to wait to include and decide on technology until after the process of work is defined. He claims that it should be the opposite: “The drawback to this approach is that processes often exist that would not be possible without certain technologies. Deferring the consideration of technology prevents recognition of these processes and often leads to ‘paving the cowpath,’ simply automating the old way of working.” BIM can and will really change the field, so long as the AEC industries start to implement its use in a collaborative and integrated process.