James McKenzie, Director of the Center for Excellence at Swinerton Incorporated, presented on utilizing BIM during the project lifecycle for smarter facade delivery and higher performance buildings. The presentation discussed the history of curtain wall design and technological progression, importance of integrated project delivery and collaboration, and how BIM can be used from early planning through operations to improve coordination and identify opportunities. BIM allows information to be linked from initial programming to 3D concept models and cost models to validate the program and facilitate early decision making.

1. Presented by James McKenzie
Director-Center for Excellence | Swinerton Incorporated
Utilizing BIM During the Project Life Cycle for Smarter Façade
Delivery and Higher Performance
4th Facades Design & Delivery Conference
Chicago, 2012

2. WhoAm I ?

3. James McKenzie
Director-Center for Excellence
Swinerton Incorporated
SWINERTON CENTER FOR EXCELLENCE
OVERVIEW

4. CFE MISSION STATEMENT
The Mission of the
Center for Excellence is
to leverage the
collective knowledgeof
our employees. It is a
catalyst to accelerate
continuous
improvement in Project
Delivery.

5. • Agenda
Agenda
•Introduction
•Radical Transformation of the Structural Art
•High Performance Project Success Factors
•BIM and Façade Design-One Disruption Meets
Another
•Case Studies
•Glass Only Future of Facades?
•Conclusion and Summary
•Open Discussion

6. • Agenda
THEMES & PERSPECTIVES
•Collaboration
•Design Matters
•Integration
•Process
•Trust & Integrity
•Pre-fabrication
•Modeling
•Analysis
•Rich Data
•Early Decision Making (“left shift”)
•Transformation
•Disruption
•Multi-disciplinary
•Project Delivery
•Procurement
•Productivity
•Risk

7. 1956 Essay “Chicago Frame,” Colin Rowe-”The Radical
Transformation”
•Frame structure as universal
theme of mid-twentieth-century
architecture
•“Essence of Modern
Architecture”
•“Major transformation in
architectural design and
construction, exerting
substantial influence over the
commercial and institutional
architecture of cities,
particularly Chicago
•One of the most influential
ideas derived from the frame
structure is the modern curtain
wall”

8. Ten years after its completion, at
a time when most building
facades were significantly less
than 50% window, Polk’s
revolutionary building became the
first large-scale urban building to
feature an all-glass curtain wall
Historical Context: All Glass Curtain Wall Era Starts

9. "Natural light, budget limitations,
and a desire to facilitate
erection, were all to influence
Polk's decision to produce an
all-glass facade and this he was
to achieve by exploiting the
cantilevering capacity of
reinforced concrete to its fullest.
A regular grid of mullions held
the glass membrane in place
with three vertical subdivisions
per floor; the top pane of each
storey pivoting outwards for the
purposes of ventilation.”
from Kenneth Frampton and Yukio Futagawa.
Modern Architecture 1851-1945. p194.
Hallidie Building, 130 Sutter Street, San Francisco, CA
Designed by Willis Polk, 1918

10. “I tried to put the emphasis of my
work in integration and
coordination, inclusiveness, not
exclusiveness, for I felt that the art
of building is contingent upon the
coordinated teamwork of a bank of
active collaborators whose
cooperation symbolizes the
cooperative organism of what we
call society.”
Walter Gropius
The Curtain Wall and Collaboration

11. Structural Steel
Frame/Elevator
Curtain
Wall
All Glass
Façade
Advanced
Glazing
Fabrication
Techniques
Double-
Curtain &
Adjustable
Sunshades
Building Envelop Technological Progression

12. Curtain Wall Design Responds to Architectural
Fashion
“Beginning in the 1960s and continuing to
the present day, the approach to the
curtain wall has been characterized by
diverse strategies, due in part to the
vicissitudes of architectural fashion at large
and to the growing impact of global
environmental and economic forces. It
seems that each new decade has brought
with it a new design doctrine-
postmodernism, high tech,
deconstructivism, critical regionalism,
green architecture-and the curtain wall
concept has been transformed in
response.”
From “ContemporaryCurtain WallArchitecture” by
ScottMurray

13. Project Management & Delivery
“At present, there are no industry-wide accepted definitions of project delivery
methods……” Primer on Project Delivery
JointCommittee of AIAand AGC

14. Project success:
• Determined prior to design
• Depends on the quality of the
owner’s:
• Business Model
• Planning ability
• Service Provider’s understanding
of campus leader’s business
drivers and environment
Project Success

15. “…… a project delivery approach that
integrates people, systems, business
structures and practices into a
process that collaboratively harnesses
the talents and insights of all
participants to reduce waste and
optimize efficiency through all phases
of design, fabrication and
construction.”
Jim Bedrick, AIA, National BIM
Consultant
Project Delivery

16. “Collaborative approach to projects
requires many disciplines to be tightly
integrated in their process. Time moves
linearly but the challenges of a project are
dynamic and non-linear”
Abundance to Scarcity
A Strategy for the 21st Century Building Industry
Doing More with Less while creating Value
Kimon Onuma, FAIA, Hon FIGP
Project Delivery & Collaboration

17. Integrated Practice (Design)
•BIM and integrated design go hand-in-
hand
•Integrated design is a process not a
delivery method (IPD is a delivery method)
•Has been referred to by authors as a
“collaborative method for designing
buildings that emphasizes the
development of a holistic design”
•Involves stake holders from the earliest
stages
•Every project stakeholder’s point-of-view
is taken into consideration
•Integrated design leads to high
performance buildings
•Avoids the linear hand offs from owner,
architect and builder

18. “The capture of integrated
knowledge in an organized way
should drive planning.”
Alvin Toffler, author of Future Shock
Integrated Planning

19. BIM Usage Spectrum by Project Delivery Method
Design-Bid-
Build
CM as
Risk/GMAX/Design
Assist
Design-Build
Integrated
Project Delivery
Integrated practice starts here
“IPD-ish”

20. Project Delivery Failure Points

21. Owner’s World-Cost Forecast & Budgets
 Cost “forecast” is needed for
executive project approval
 Forecast:
 Makes financial resources
available
 Bridge to a project plan & budget
 Failure points:
 No conceptual design
 Minimal data
 Generic in nature
 Life cycle costs & escalation
 Remembered by executives
 False Expectations

22.  Market conditions change
 Lack of thorough analysis &
testing of assumptions
 Unreliable profit & loss data
 Unclear model narrative
 Lack of revenue streams
 Technological changes
 Lack of customer knowledge
 Lack of value
 Ego-based decisions
Business Model Failure Points

23.  Lack of time
 Lack of integration between project
management and facilities &
operations
 Emphasis on initial not life-cycle costs
 Unclear objectives
 Objectives not aligned with the
business model
 Poorly defined processes
 Support facilities poorly programed
(impacts life cycle costs!)
 Feasibility studies lack sound analysis
 Operational data is stored in “silos”
Key Facility Planning Failure Points

24.  High operating cost (low performance
facility)
 Excessive initial cost
 Poor quality
 Non conformance with regulatory
requirements
 Functional requirements
 Safety and security
 Poor space utilization
 Lost opportunities for innovation &
revenue
 Ops. & Maint. staff productivity
 Employee (end user) Productivity
Key Programmatic Failure Points

25.  Poor PM leadership
 Poor planning & scheduling
 Poor communication
 Timely action
 Organizational structure
 Material and equipment supply
chain
 Regulatory requirements
 Constructability
 Poor productivity
 Quality of personnel
Sample of Key Project Failure Points

26.  Value of Programming
 Steps used in programming
 Task Identification
 Feasibility and Analysis
 Research and Data
Compilation
 BIM links program with spatial
geometry
 Business objectives should not be
compromised by a design
Programming – Where Business Drivers
Communicate Design

27. BIM / LEAN / IPD / SUSTAINABILITY/DESIGN-BUILD
Project success requires strategy,
planning, and effective processes.
BIM, IPD Principles, Design-Build,
Sustainable Design, and Lean
Construction are powerful
processes individually developed to
address critical and complex issues
in the AEC industry.
Although effective separately, these
processes create excellence in
project delivery when harnessed
together and managed skillfully to
accentuate the synergies between
them.

28. BUILDING INFORMATION MODELING (BIM)

29. Client’s
Business
Drivers
Validation
Process
Prototype
model
Project
Plan
Program
3D Model
•Design
•Construction
Operations
Integrated BIM Rich Data

30. BIM and Early Decision Making

31.  Needs analysis
 Program analysis
 Digital Concept prototype
 Cost model
 Design criteria
 Comparables
 Pro forma
 Validate Program
BIM and Scenario Based Planning Validation

32. • Accelerates response time to
issue
• Emphasizes interaction
• Improves coordination
• Establish building metrics
• Links the project to “business”
of the organization
• Defines what is unclear
• Identify opportunities
BIM Pre-Design Tools

33. Excel Building Space Program Data Revit Concept Model with Program Data
Bi-directional
Linking the Program to a 3D Concept Model

34. “The ability to frame questions
is fundamental to working
collaboratively across fields
toward a transdisciplinary
objective and creating
possibilities that are above and
beyond “business as usual” for
building envelops.”
From “Building Envelopes An Integrated
Approach” by Jenny Lovell
Moving Beyond “Business as Usual” in Building Envelope
Design

35. Market Desire
for visual
transparency
through all
glass facades
Current
Environmental
& Economic
Crisis
Market demands
conflict with the
responsibility
towards the
environment. The
old economics of
throwing money at a
problem can no
longer be supported.
Market Drivers vs. Professional Responsibility in Façade
Design

36. •Critical interface between a
buildings interior functions and the
external environment
•Its design is crucial to the
architectural process
•Cost represents from 15-30%
total construction costs (note: only
MEP systems represent a higher
percentage)
Importance of Building Envelope

37. “At first sight this separation of a
building’s structure from its envelop
might be expected to be liberating,
freeing the contemporary architect to
invent new and radical solutions to
the problems of creating building
enclosure.”
From “Building EnvelopesAn Integrated
Approach”by Jenny Lovell
BIM Allows a Designer to Unite the Building Structure with the
Building Envelope

38. Key Considerations In Building Envelope Design
•Technical performance of
the individual materials
•Nature of material and
component assembly
•Visual appearance
•Building Form

39. “Inventiveness and ingenuity are therefore critical to the design of building envelops
in the future, and complete integration of the skills and experiences of al members
of the design team will be fundamental to this process.”
From “Building EnvelopesAn IntegratedApproach”by Jenny Lovell
Good Building Envelope Design & Construction Requires an
Integrated Approach and Sophisticated Communication

40. Gap Building, San Francisco, CA
BIM Facilitates in Addressing and Balancing the Following
Requirements in Façade Design
•Thermal Insulation
•Ventilation
•Solar Heat Gain
•Glare Control
•Daylight Levels
•Water management
•Materials assembly
•Sound & pollution
control

41. Modeling represents a radical
departure from the way we
architects have traditionally
undertaken the work of our
profession for centuries. This not
only represents a change in the
mechanics of our work, but I
contend it is a shift in the
cognitive processes that
accompany and ultimately drive
that work. We work differently,
and as result, probably think
differently too.
From “BIM in Small-Scale Sustainable
Design”by Francois Levy
BIM Represents a Radical Departure in Façade Design

42. Façade Design No Longer Being Done In a “Silo”
….”the current rapid pace of
construction has positioned
practice and industry to
dominate the design and
implementation of building
envelops. Form and
performanceof building
envelopes are frequently
compartmentalized in curricula
and in professional practice.”
From “Building Envelops An Integrated
Approach”by Jenny Lovell

43. Façade Design In BIM Allows Continuous Feedback
• Integrated Design
Responses
• Maintains close
relationship between
design, specifications and
cost
• Continuous estimating
through continuous
collaboration and
feedback

44. Early
Project
Knowledge
Architect
Owner
Builder
Façade
Engineer
Structural
Engineer
Façade
Fabricator
Steel
Erector &
Misc.
Metals
Bring Deep Knowledge in Early-Some of the Key
Players in Façade Design, Fabrication and Installation

45. Façade Procurement Strategy: Key Concepts
• Single Sourcing
avoidance.
– Suppliers
– Fabricators
– Installation contractors
• Early Involvement
– Long lead time
– Greater potential for
integrated solutions

46. Façade Design and Constructability
Key Considerations:
• Design intent and
performance criteria can
be build efficiently
• Numerous Sources
• Analysis of sequences
for:
– Fabrication
– Transportation
– Installation

47. BIM and Façade Design-Look for the Critical Building System
Intersections & Penetrations

48. “By integrating design, analysis,
manufacture, and the assembly
of building around digital
technologies, architects,
engineers, and builders have an
opportunity to fundamentally
redefine the relationships
between conceptionand
production.”
From “Architecture in the DigitalAge and
Manufacturing” by Branko Kolarevic
Digital Fabrication

49. Small Building Envelopes
•Exterior envelope load dominated
rather than internally load
dominated
•Morphology is heavily influenced
by the exterior environment
•Benefit from climate indexing
•Building massing, geometry,
fenestration, envelop and interior
materials, and passive strategies
are tailored to the buildings region
and site.

50. Sustainable (Green) Design is Good for Business
• Improves End User &
Operational Staff Productivity
• Reduced energy demands
• Increased property value
• Increased revenue

51. Façade Design & Lifecycle Costs
Key Considerations:
•Life span of building determines
the durability of the façade
•ROI
•Environmental impact
•Techniques:
•Life cycle assessment(LCA)
•Life cycle cost analysis(LCCA)
•Establish benchmarks
•Whole building approach
•Embodied energy
•Good fabrication is critical
regardless of fabrication location

52. • Ability to manage an enormous
amount of parameters and
variables
• Allows new building forms to be
explored
• Ability to model over time and to
account for the change in seasons
• Early analysis (conceptual
level)and feedback
• Link analysis data to schedule and
cost
• Performance can be determined
early
• Early involvement of fabricator
and builder.
• Develop early procurement
strategy
Façade Design and BIM Analysis-Key Value Points

53. Façade Design and BIM Analysis-Simulation Process
•Create 3D model
•Establish roof and floor
•Connect walls to roofs or floor above
•Make sure all areas within the analysis
are bound by geometric
•Collect any relevant operational data or
history
•Determine appropriate simulation or
analysis tools
•Consult with mechanical engineer for
interpretation of data
•Establish methodology for transferring
model surface areas to multiple analysis
tools
•Variable outside of the space of boundaries
(e.g., weather, location, etc.) must be
inputted by the simulation team

54. BIM and Façade Design-Computational Engines Categories
Dynamic Thermal Modeling
•Simulates the heat transfer processes
occurring in and around a building.
•Models conduction, convection and
radiation heat transfer processes of
envelop components
•Modeling data is integrated with room
heat gains, air exchanges, and HVAC
•Ideally suited to work with a 3D Model
Example: Autodesk Ecotect Analysis

55. BIM and Façade Design-Computational Engines Categories
Computational Fluid Dynamics
•Branch of fluid dynamics
•Uses numerical methods to predict
fluid flow
•Requires millions of calculations
•Used to understand airflow and heat
transfer processes around buildings
given space boundaries
•Used in single instances of time due
to time needed for perform
computations
•Can be used to provide detailed
insight to specific parameters
•Help determine velocity and
temperature of airflow through
openings and into adjoining spaces
Associative exchange of Revit data with
Autodesk Simulation CFD

56. BIM and Façade Design-Computational Engines Categories
Lighting Analysis
•Address daylight quality
•Identify daylight distribution
issues
•Model must contain surface
properties and light sources
•Effectiveness of analysis in
façade design depends on the
quality of the identifying the
properties of the glass and
interior surfaces

57. BIM and Façade Design-Visualization is What Promotes
Collaboration in Simulation
•Use simulation data to address
design problems and promote a
collaborative solution
•Analysis must have goals and
by guided strong, theoretical
framework
•Collaboration is achieved
through visual discussions
especially early in the design
process

58. The Future: Performance Based vs. Initial Cost-based
“A new business modelforConstruction
Managementis emerging
and will become the norm overthe next five
years.This modelrespondsto owners’
increasing focus onoutcomesratherthan
output,on life cycle ratherthan first cost,
and on the “triple
bottom line”of business,environmentaland
socialimpacts.
In orderto meetthese ownerexpectations,
CMs will have to help
them move construction awayfrom site-
based,craft-dominated
processes and toward a more typical
manufacturing environment.”
From “Future Focus 2012-The Road Ahead for
Professional CM” by CMAA Foundation

59. BIM Execution Plan
Successful use of
BIM on a project
requires a strong
framework and
management plan
that aligns, roles,
responsibilities,
expectations and
deliverables.

60. Project BIM Data Evaluation
• How is data entered ?
• Does data sit in a silo ?
• Analyze where there are data
“overlaps”
• Examine what data is not
electronic & whether it can
digitized
• Where is data stored ? Multiple
locations ?
• Evaluate how data is
transmitted and in what format

61. BIM Execution Plan-Design Constraints
Matrix

62. BIM Execution Plan-Model Progression
Specification
Levels of Detail (LOD)
100. Conceptual
200. Approximate geometry
300. Precise geometry
400. Fabrication
500. As-built

63. • Green goals
• Schedule-critical business driver
• Challenging site
• Integrated design & construction team
• Prefab concrete floor planks
• Prefab exterior wall panels (load bearing)
• Early research was critical
• Early decision making
• Saved six months
• Tight building envelope
Prefabrication and Modular Construction Case-Study

64. “When you build a residence hall… you only get one time of year to open it up. If you
have it finished in September, that doesn’t quite work.”
Dr. Sue Herderson,Queens College,New York
Moving at the Speed of Business

65. Case Study: The Exploratorium San Francisco
“WhereArt and Science Collide to Change Perception”

66. The Exploratorium:-The Challenges: Existing Historic
Structure & Energy Efficiency

67. The Exploratorium’s Key Façade Design Feature:
Glass Wrapped Observation Room

68. Building Envelope Global Sourcing-Not Business As Usual
Increased Demand
Owners are demanding- Some said they love the can-do attitude of
the Chinese and foundthat,
forall the challenges,Chinesesources were generally more eager
to please and win business.
Added Value
Price is not longerthe single advantage.We are seeing the levelof
manufacturing technologies
rise and now many products are world class.
The greatestvaluesstem from the exploitation of globalefficiencies:
Low costskilled labor,and
low costraw materials
Competition
Future workmay be earned based upon ourability to leverage the
globalmarket.
Ourability to lead and navigate the process and provideresults will
distinguishus from those
providing only the cheapestpossible solution.

69. Building Envelope Global Sourcing-Strategy
Manage the Risk
Communicate
Build Relationships
Do Not Outsource Control
Staff Properly
Control Quality
Get Boots on the Ground
Involve the Designer and Owner
Develop a Risk and Insurance Strategy

83. (2012, EHDD with Barcelon & Jang), the
14-story tower comes with as many as eight
rows of teardrop-shaped metal sunshades
per floor, including two or three rows at floor
level to bounce diffused light up into the
offices and classrooms. The density and
pattern of the blade was determined by
analysis of sunlight patterns at the corner of
Washington and Kearny streets, but there's
nothing labored in the result. The effect is
that of an elegant scrim above Portsmouth
Square, calligraphy at skyline scale.
From San Francisco Chronicle byJohn King,
Urban Design Critic
Case Study-Chinatown/North Beach campus of the City
College of San Francisco

84. San Francisco's skyline tends to change in vertical bursts,
and in five years we could be looking at nearly a dozen new
thin-skinned boxes wrapped in sheets of green and blue.
Some promise to be better than others. The cumulative
effect could erode the physical presence that makes this
city's downtown distinct.
The issue is not that buildings clad in stone are morally
superior to buildings clad in glass. It's that San Francisco's
sense of place is tied to its earthy warmth, the juxtaposition
of steep hills and shifting waters. Too many glass towers
clumped too closely together would set a much different
tone, cosmopolitan but also generic.
The city needs to shift focus to the overall impact of an
architectural trend rather than try to make the best of each
tower on its own - and nudge developers and architects to
introduce the material and depth that is satisfying not just at
first glance, but year after year.
From San Francisco Chronicle byJohn King,Urban Design
Critic
Glass Only Future of Facades?

85. THANK YOU