Putting standardization on the agenda with buildingSMART

BuildingSMART is a netural union, working to unite and improve the methods and sustainability in the construction industry by creating smarter and better ways to share information.

Rasterex are proud to be one of the 135 members located in Norway, and it’s inspiring to be a part of something greater. We know that there is no I in TEAM, and together with the other members of buildingSMART we are working to create general, open standards, so everyone will experience the benefits of open BIM.

To give you more insight about buildingSMART and why open standards should be used, we sat down and had a chat with Anstein Skinnarland, manager of buildingSMART in Norway:

What’s the vision and true purpose of buildingSMART?
Our goal is to make information-sharing easier for everyone who is involved in a construction process. To achieve this, we have developed the IFC format, an open format that allows anyone to get access to all relevant information.

What makes open formats like IFC better?
More and more companies are starting to adopt BIM, but it’s impossible to get the full advantage of the technology if you can’t share the information you have with others. It’s too complicated, and if only a handful of people have access to the information, everybody else have to work in the same analog way that they have been doing. The problem with the construction business is that, even though we build more in total, the overall productivity is decreasing. Much of that is caused because it’s too complicated to visualize and share information with one another.

When does the advantages of open BIM apply?
Open BIM is great from the planning process and the construction work itself, throughout the building’s entire lifecycle and demolition process. The intensity of the different processes are very different, but the brilliance of the technology is that it’s equally relevant and helpful from start to finish.

What do you mean by relevant and helpful?
Well, this is the key to why it’s so helpful when it comes to efficiency and collaboration. With open BIM, the information isn’t only accessible for those directly involved in construction, because it affects so many areas of a business. When other departments of a company can collect and exchange information, and employees can visualize technical data, it gives you a better understanding of the overall situation.

And that's why you promote open standards, right? 
Exactly! Using open formats as a standard would make construction, collaboration and communication smoother, smarter and most importantly: More sustainable.