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CitA’s Smarter Co-operative
Building Series: Building
Digital Momentum for
Ireland’s AEC Community
The CitA Smarter Co-operative Building Series is a unique
collaborative agreement between CitA and the constituents of the
Construction Industry Council (CIC). Two meetings have already
taken place thus far in 2016. Here we will identify what these
meetings offer attendees, look back at the recent meetings and
look at what is planned for the next four meetings in 2016.26
2016 CitA Smarter Co-operative Building
Series
CitA’s Smarter Building Series is a most
relevant series for construction professions
wanting to adopt BIM in their business and
to stay up-to-date on the digitalisation of the
construction industry. The breakfast meeting
series is not just for learning about BIM and
the use of technologies in construction, it offers
opportunities for companies and individuals to
network and grow their businesses.
The CIC members: The Association of
Consulting Engineers in Ireland, The Building
Materials Federation, The Construction
Industry Federation, Engineers Ireland, The
Royal Institute of the Architects of Ireland and
The Society of Chartered Surveyors Ireland are
event partners for the Series. Its sponsors are
prominent high-profile companies.
From past meetings, it is obvious that there is
a coming together of building professionals,
experts and academics to discuss BIM and
other technologies in construction. The
speakers are always experts and industry
leaders, and this is evident from this year’s
meetings. All of the breakfast meetings,
generally starting at 7.30am and concluding
around 10.30am, are held at The Gibson Hotel,
Point Village, Dublin 1. The Gibson, with
excellent facilities and a great view of Dublin
from its upper floors, has been praised by
attendees of CitA meetings and conferences.
Building Momentum by Working Together
The 1st CitA Breakfast Meeting of 2016:
‘Building Momentum by Working Together’
was held on February 10th. This opening event
sought to set the context for the Series.
BIMIreland.ie asked Dr Alan Hore about how
CitA selected the speakers. He said ‘I had
seen Paul Doherty of the Digit Group present
at the RTC Conference in 2014 and I was
very impressed. Paul provided the ideal “big”
message on why we need to work together by
selecting smart technologies to create great
buildings and infrastructure. I met Brendan
Keane of Intel at the CitA BIM Gathering
and was aware of his involvement with the
Construction Client Forum (CCF). Brendan
was keen to find out more about our BIM
Innovation Capability Programme (BICP)
project and was willing to reach out to CitA
to see if we would assist in raising the value
proposition for BIM for clients within the CCF.
Given that CitA will be carrying out significant
research over the next few years, it was great
to hear from Joern Ploennings Smart Cities
research work in IBM and also from Luis
Blane from NUIG who spoke of university-
industry collaboration in BIM related projects
to develop useful tools and frameworks for
industry.’
The opening address was given by Carole
Pollard, President of the Royal Institute of
the Architects of Ireland (RIAI). Carole was
the Chair of the meeting. Paul Doherty was
the keynote speaker, and he was up first.
Paul has a prolific CV. He is Chairman of
theBIMcompany, President and CEO of the
digit group, inc., and Co-Founder of the AEC
Hackathon. Paul did an in-depth interview
before the meeting with BIMIreland.ie which
you can find on the website.
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Pauls presentation was titled: ‘BIM 2.0:
Building Digital Momentum for Irelands AEC
Community’. It was a session that challenged
Ireland s AEC Community to rise above
the ‘But, that’s how we have always done it
mentality’ to change workflows, processes,
contracts and methods to meet the market
demands of Smart Buildings and Smart Cities.
Paul has worked in the development of design
software. He has expertise on AEC software
requirements and the potential of BIM. He
gave an excellent talk on BIM and technology
and how it can and will be applied to our built
environment. Paul spoke about his work in
designing smart cities. He talked about the
inefficiencies in construction and how they
can be eliminated. The world is fast changing
and cities will host a large percentage of the
world’s population, so they will have to be
smart, sustainable and efficient. Paul talked
about cities that were designed ‘from scratch’.
Paul covered health requirements, services,
schools, and housing. People are comfortable
with traditional ways because they are safe.
He talked about his work in America, Dubai,
Australia and China. His talk focused on
the requirements of entire cities, not just the
individual buildings within. Paul compared
the operation and function of a city with those
of the human body, using Leonardo da Vinci’s
Vitruvian Man in his presentation slides.
Paul, describing one of his projects, costing
$114 billion, as ‘the largest construction project
in the history of the world’, and is privately
funded. He said it is a global industry project.
AEC Hackathons are becoming popular. Paul
described the collaborations between AEC
professionals, computer engineers and software
engineers. Considering the technology
incorporated into buildings now and the
technical detail shown in Paul’s presentation,
these professions will be working together a lot
more in the future.
Brendan Keane of the Construction Client
Forum (CCF) was the next speaker. 'Ihe
Construction Client Forum is responsible for:
Standardized Industry KPI’s; Procurement
lifecycle improvements/synergies;
Standardized Basis of Pricing approach; BIM
Standardization; Shared Learning Repository;
and Impact of Client specification on VfM
(Value for Money). Brendan spoke about
how the CCF was set up and came to work
with CitA. The construction industry is
embracing Lean Construction along with
BIM, with the aim of making the industry
more efficient. Brendan spoke of what BIM
and Lean can bring to construction. It is
not just about money, but time and the
quality of work. Speaking about the ‘Ireland
Construction Industry Change Enabling
Groups’ Brendan spoke about the setting up of
Lean Construction Ireland and the Academic
Forum. The collaboration between academia
and industry will be beneficial to the built
environment. The main goal of Lean is to
increase value, and there is significant interest
from contractors. Educating the client is
critical in both Lean and Building Information
Management. Brendan said educating the
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client in the value of Better Information
Management ‘BIM’ for overall project
performance is key. The core message of his
presentation was that ‘Clients are eager to lead
the transition to digital construction. Client
education and training are required to enable
that transition.’
Joern Ploennigs was the next speaker. Joern is
a Research Scientist at IBM Ireland. His talk
was titled ‘From BIM to Cognitive Buildings’.
He said BIM is seen as a big enabler in the
implementation of the Internet of Things (IoT).
He said BIM will be a reference model for work
to be done with Internet of Things. The work of
IBM and Smart Cities is well known. IBM has
about 100 researchers focusing on Smart City
problems such as energy, water, traffic. They
want to link all the data elements together and
see BIM as a key element to this.
Joern talked about software and the business
models for software, he linked this with BIM
and said how companies would see it as steady
income because the living model would be
used over the lifecycle of the building, creating
a sustainable income for the software company.
It is obvious why a company like IBM is
interested in BIM. He said the company was
not just interested in the 3D visualisation but
the data, which can be of use. He talked about
retrofit of building stock and using the data
for the facilities management. For existing
buildings, data can be captured by scanning.
He used the example of an IBM data centre
which is being surveyed for to make a model.
Like the presentation at the 2015 CitA BIM
Gathering by IBM’s Dr Claire Penny, Joern
talked about cutting-edge technology and what
we can expect in the near future with devices
and augmented reality. He described how
building data will be collected and analysed
in a cognitive buildings environment. A
cognitive building will be understanding of
the environment, the requirements and what is
going on inside the building through IoT.
Luis Blanes of the National University of
Ireland, Galway (NUIG) gave a presentation
titled ‘Building/HVAC energy models (BEM)
from building information models (BIM).’ Luis
is an Architect and an experienced researcher.
The ultimate aim is to
use BEM in design-
stage solutions, the
procurement stage, and
in BEM performance-
based contracting.
He described his research at NUIG. He spoke
about energy systems and HVAC systems,
the use of calibrated building models to
support operation and energy management of
buildings. BIM is growing internationally, and
Britain’s 2016 BIM Mandate was mentioned
in the presentation. Luis emphasised what
potential there is for using BIM data and
improving BEM inputs. He also spoke about
using BIM for the lifecycle, with post-
occupancy calibration. BIM for the lifecycle
of buildings is a reoccurring topic. How a
building’s data can be used was mentioned
here again. Luis described how to efficiently
generate building energy models from BIM
data and avoid duplication. The ultimate aim
is to use BEM in design-stage solutions, the
procurement stage, and in BEM performance-
based contracting.
The meeting concluded with an interactive
Q&A session and the closing address. After,
talking about his experience of the CitA
meeting with Irish building magazine, Paul
Doherty said ‘Presenting at the kick off of
CitA’s Breakfast Series was an honour to be
part of. Listening to the Irish AEC industry
and learning about the great progress Ireland
is making in regards to BIM and other
innovations was inspiring. I look forward to
becoming part of the Irish AEC industry this
year where we can learn and grow together.’
The Role of Digitisation in Propelling Irish
Architecture
The 2nd Breakfast Meeting of 2016: ‘The Role
of Digitisation in Propelling Irish Architecture’
took place on March 9th. For this meeting,
CitA partnered with the RIAL
We asked Alan Hore about the selection
process for speakers for this event. He said,
‘The local speakers were selected by the RIAL
The RIAI were keen to include both a medium
and micro-sized architectural practice. The
keynote speaker Paul Dodd was selected due
to his particular involvement in the Scottish
Futures Trust (SFT) BIM Implementation Plan
in 2015. This connection will greatly assist us
in our own BICP journey.’
Alan Hore welcomed attendees, speaking
about the BICP and the progress made to-
date. Daniel Daye chaired the meeting, and
opened it on behalf of the RIAI and spoke
about the role of the RIAI in making sure
BIM is implemented. The RIAI has long been
supportive of CitA’s work. Dan spoke of his
experiences and of how BIM has created
opportunities for small architectural practices
and said that architects must embrace BIM to
get work internationally. He then welcomed
Paul Dodd the first of the mornings speakers.
Paul works for the Scottish Futures Trust
(SFT), an independent company established
by the Scottish Government. This organisation
has a responsibility for delivering value
for money in public sector infrastructure
investment. Paul is currently involved in
implementing the recommendations of
the ‘Review of the Scottish Public Sector
Procurement in Construction. Paul spoke
about some of the projects the SFT is involved
in. He reviewed public procurement and
spoke of the challenges and significant savings
in introducing BIM. Paul talked about the
Scottish Implementation Plan and the Scottish
road map to BIM Level 2 in April 2017 and the
BIM Implementation Plan. In Scotland, there
have been three pathfinder projects set up.
His advice for Ireland in implementing BIM
was to’ Keep it simple’ and avoid acronyms,
saying that BIM is ‘fundamentally information
management’. Scotland is ahead of Ireland on
the BIM Journey and it was interesting to hear
Paul speak of the challenges and benefits that
BIM can offer.
Paul concluded by telling attendees to utilise
what good work currently exists, and to not
‘reinvent to wheel’. He said Scotland is not
alone on the BIM Journey and would be
willing to share their experiences with Ireland.
He stressed that approaches need to be tailored
to clients and local needs. Paul took questions
from attendees on how Ireland could learn
from Scotland.
Gary Mongey of Box Architecture was the
next speaker. Gary’s practice, founded in 1997,
CitAConstruction IT Alliance
CitA 2016
Building momentum
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Research
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has multiple awards for a variety of projects.
Gary started with BIM in 2007, and he talked
about the learning curve and cost associated
with BIM. He showed attendees what he had
done on projects. His presentation was of great
interest to small practices. ‘You have to jump
in at the deep end5, he said regarding BIM
adoption and that BIM ‘takes the mundanity
out’ of what architects do. Speaking about the
requirements, Gary gave advice on what BIM
offers, showing great section detail examples
in BIM and visualisations. He said BIM is
easier to do detailing with, but emphasised that
‘its a tool, not a design machine and will not
automatically produce results. He concluded
talking about the available online resources
and stated how BIM saves time, gets a better
client brief, and contractors can work better
using it.
Tony Reddy and William Power of Reddy
Architecture and Urbanism were the next
speakers up. Tony told attendees about his
career and the expansion of his practice to
London in the last decade. Tony spoke of
his commitment to BIM and what it offers
architecture. He started the BIM Journey in
2007. Reddy has offices around Ireland, and
Tony described some of his recent projects in
Ireland and the UK. He said BIM has given the
company many advantages.
William Power gave a memorable presentation
at the CitA BIM Gathering in November. At
the breakfast meeting, he talked about Reddy’s
work and BIM adoption. He talked about his
journey as an architectural technician and
BIM Manager. He said of the traditional way
of undertaking works: ‘The same old thinking,
gets the same old results’. He also talked
about Autodesk Revit and NBS Create. His
presentation was technical and interesting to
the viewers. Regarding the adoption of BIM in
Ireland, the message from Tony Reddy was that
‘We need to get on with it’.
In the Q&A session, there were questions
about what we can learn from Scodand for
Paul, the difference between working in Ireland
and the UK for Tony and William. Tony
Reddy responded to a question, saying that
contractors are responding positively to BIM.
Dr Louis Gunnigan, of Dublin Institute of
Technology, identified a problem he had
witnessed in industry, saying that there
was no coordination of designers inputs
into the model from the early design phase.
He also questioned how successful the
transfer of information from the model into
Facilities Management software was after the
construction phase. William Power said a BIM
Coordinator is essential on projects. BAM s
Michael Murphy said that contracts need to be
realigned with BIM and that this is a problem.
The problem of traditional contracts is a big
problem for BIM adoption.
Alan Hore brought the meeting to a close
with thanks to the speakers and attendees.
CitA had a live feed on Livestream, and CitA’s
Eoin Rogers Tweeted from the meeting while
interacting with attendees, remote viewers
and others on Twitter. The organisation of the
meeting by CitA was praised on social media.
What is next in the Series?
The remaining meetings will take place in
May, June, September and October. Alan Hore
provided us with the following details:
May - Engineering:
Civil, structural, building services engineers
will come together in one unique setting to
demonstrate the value proposition of BIM
for Irish engineers. CitA is also delighted
to announce that Ronan Collins, Managing
Director of InteliBuild, based in Hong Kong,
will be returning to Dublin to provide the
keynote address.
June - Construction:
In a unique partnership between the C1F and
the CIOB (Chartered Institute of Building)
learning how contractors are gaining the
most traction with BIM in Ireland. The key
project-related benefits include reduced
errors, omissions and reduced rework. Irish
contractors will also share the benefits of
reduced construction costs, reduced project
duration and improved project safety.
September - Surveyors:
The SCSI and the RICS (Royal Institution
of Chartered Surveyors) will team up to
demonstrate the value proposition of BIM for a
variety of surveying disciplines.
October - Manufacturers:
This Building Material Federation will host an
event that will seek to demonstrate the
opportunities inherent in BIM, which allow the
full realisation of the benefits of linking design,
project and manufacturing information. It will
also include the presentation of case studies
from manufacturers that demonstrate the
integration of BIM data and manufacturing
technologies to supply the products and
solutions for a sustainable built environment.
If you want to find out more about the Smarter
Co-operative Building Series, please contact General
Manager Suzanne Purcell: spurcell@cita.ie
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