Editorial article published in Build Gibraltar Magazine, calling for the local AEC industry and local authorities to start a conversation on how to approach BIM adoption in Gibraltar, even if the UK BIM mandate doesn't apply here.

1. 18 ISSUE02 BuildGibraltar BuildGibraltar ISSUE02 19
Everyone is entitled to his or her opinion, but the bottom line
is: opinions don’t change the fact that BIM is a reality and it is
not going to go away. It will change and evolve. Granted. But
it will stay. We all heard about the BIM Level 2 mandate from
the British Government, which came into effect on the 4th
of April this year. A few may be aware of the announcement
made recently by the Spanish Ministry for Industry, presenting
the creation of BIM Task Groups, with views to implement a
similar mandate to the British one by the end of 2018. Even
less people may have heard about the European Parliament
Directive 2014/24/EU (Art. 22, § 4), to encourage BIM
adoption for public contracts in all EU countries.
It is coming to us from all sides. But forget for a minute about
the politics, the 3D models, the fancy technology and the
big promises. I recently heard a consultant reply to another
HOW’D YOU LIKE
YOUR BIM, SIR?
construction
one from a different discipline: “the information is in there…“,
holding his hands up matter-of-factly, in reply to a complaint
from the latter about the composition and layout of a drawing
that the former had issued, which had a small detail in one
corner of the sheet that could easily be missed by a contractor
or sub-contractor during construction. Just another error of
the many that happen on a daily basis in building sites around
us due to poor communication and coordination.
I thought to myself that, right there was exactly one of
the main reasons why we need BIM. And I mean “we” as
in “everyone involved in whatever way with a building or
infrastructure, during any part of its life cycle”. From client
to end-user, architect to engineer, window fitter to main
contractor, carpenter to minister. Having the information
‘there’ just simply isn’t enough. Not by far. The information
ought to be there in the first place because someone will
have to look at it, make sense out of it and then take decisions
based on their interpretation of it. Therefore, information has
to be: first of all correct, where expected, when expected and
presented in a way that facilitates its understanding. Because
it is in everybody’s best interest! We share information with
others in order to communicate our ideas. Isn’t that the whole
point of communication, getting a message from sender to
receiver via a common channel, trying to keep the noise to a
minimum? If the intended recipient misinterprets our message,
we are basically failing. The same applies at all levels and
stages of a building project.
BIM is about facilitating this exchange of information across
all stakeholders, not only in a construction project, but on the
whole of a building’s life cycle, by enabling a common channel,
namely the Model, where information is shared, updated,
accessed, audited, etc. by all parties involved. One unified
vision which all can look at, and where all will see the same
unequivocal data. From design intent to built-asset.
It is not a question of whether we want BIM or not, because
we will get it, eventually. The question is what kind of BIM
we want for Gibraltar. Town Planning has recently introduced
e-Planning, an online portal for submittal of planning
applications and for all planning information to be accessible
online to the general public. And also their GIS Department
has been releasing valuable data, now available to the public.
It is a significant step in the right direction, and Gibraltar’s AEC
Industry should realize that it has a great opportunity ahead
of it at this point in time, and it should seize it, by engaging
Authorities and conveying to them its vision of BIM. We
could move, as a whole, towards a culture of collaboration
and excellence, and away from distrustful and unhelpful
competition and finger-pointing.
Brace yourselves. BIM is coming
BIM, BIM, BIM. By now, everyone in the
AEC industry has heard this acronym
at least once at some point. Building.
Information. Modelling. A lot has been
said and written about this topic already,
and opinions range from the skeptics and
neo-luddites of the “if it ain’t broken, don’t
fix it” persuasion, to the fervent street
preachers and true believer types.
Established Contractors
in Gibraltar
Profield contractors Ltd was constituted in 1989 and has been carrying out
business as general building contractors in Gibraltar since then for major private
clients and developers, as well as the Government of Gibraltar, including Design
& Build projects and major Civil Engineering contracts.
T: (+350) 20043621 | E: management@profield.gi
95B Harbours Walk, The New Harbours, Gibraltar. www.profield.gi
When the winds of change
blow, some build walls, while
others build windmills.
Or we could do nothing about it and then dutifully accept
whatever becomes local law in the end, when BIM finally
comes. We should create a platform to get together and
discuss, as an industry, the way we want to have our BIM, or
we run the risk of enduring a very painful process of rushed
adaptation.
Let’s be proactive and initiate a consultation. Let’s make a
move toward Better Information Management, which by the
way, also spells BIM.
The gauntlet has been thrown…
Rene Pellicer is BIM Manager/Coordinator
at WSRM Architects and currently
pursuing a MSc in BIM Management with
Middlesex University London. He is a Revit
Architecture Certified Professional and
elected member of the Autodesk’s Expert
Elite program for his dedication and contributions to the BIM
community.”

2. 18 ISSUE02 BuildGibraltar BuildGibraltar ISSUE02 19
Everyone is entitled to his or her opinion, but the bottom line
is: opinions don’t change the fact that BIM is a reality and it is
not going to go away. It will change and evolve. Granted. But
it will stay. We all heard about the BIM Level 2 mandate from
the British Government, which came into effect on the 4th
of April this year. A few may be aware of the announcement
made recently by the Spanish Ministry for Industry, presenting
the creation of BIM Task Groups, with views to implement a
similar mandate to the British one by the end of 2018. Even
less people may have heard about the European Parliament
Directive 2014/24/EU (Art. 22, § 4), to encourage BIM
adoption for public contracts in all EU countries.
It is coming to us from all sides. But forget for a minute about
the politics, the 3D models, the fancy technology and the
big promises. I recently heard a consultant reply to another
HOW’D YOU LIKE
YOUR BIM, SIR?
construction
one from a different discipline: “the information is in there…“,
holding his hands up matter-of-factly, in reply to a complaint
from the latter about the composition and layout of a drawing
that the former had issued, which had a small detail in one
corner of the sheet that could easily be missed by a contractor
or sub-contractor during construction. Just another error of
the many that happen on a daily basis in building sites around
us due to poor communication and coordination.
I thought to myself that, right there was exactly one of
the main reasons why we need BIM. And I mean “we” as
in “everyone involved in whatever way with a building or
infrastructure, during any part of its life cycle”. From client
to end-user, architect to engineer, window fitter to main
contractor, carpenter to minister. Having the information
‘there’ just simply isn’t enough. Not by far. The information
ought to be there in the first place because someone will
have to look at it, make sense out of it and then take decisions
based on their interpretation of it. Therefore, information has
to be: first of all correct, where expected, when expected and
presented in a way that facilitates its understanding. Because
it is in everybody’s best interest! We share information with
others in order to communicate our ideas. Isn’t that the whole
point of communication, getting a message from sender to
receiver via a common channel, trying to keep the noise to a
minimum? If the intended recipient misinterprets our message,
we are basically failing. The same applies at all levels and
stages of a building project.
BIM is about facilitating this exchange of information across
all stakeholders, not only in a construction project, but on the
whole of a building’s life cycle, by enabling a common channel,
namely the Model, where information is shared, updated,
accessed, audited, etc. by all parties involved. One unified
vision which all can look at, and where all will see the same
unequivocal data. From design intent to built-asset.
It is not a question of whether we want BIM or not, because
we will get it, eventually. The question is what kind of BIM
we want for Gibraltar. Town Planning has recently introduced
e-Planning, an online portal for submittal of planning
applications and for all planning information to be accessible
online to the general public. And also their GIS Department
has been releasing valuable data, now available to the public.
It is a significant step in the right direction, and Gibraltar’s AEC
Industry should realize that it has a great opportunity ahead
of it at this point in time, and it should seize it, by engaging
Authorities and conveying to them its vision of BIM. We
could move, as a whole, towards a culture of collaboration
and excellence, and away from distrustful and unhelpful
competition and finger-pointing.
Brace yourselves. BIM is coming
BIM, BIM, BIM. By now, everyone in the
AEC industry has heard this acronym
at least once at some point. Building.
Information. Modelling. A lot has been
said and written about this topic already,
and opinions range from the skeptics and
neo-luddites of the “if it ain’t broken, don’t
fix it” persuasion, to the fervent street
preachers and true believer types.
Established Contractors
in Gibraltar
Profield contractors Ltd was constituted in 1989 and has been carrying out
business as general building contractors in Gibraltar since then for major private
clients and developers, as well as the Government of Gibraltar, including Design
& Build projects and major Civil Engineering contracts.
T: (+350) 20043621 | E: management@profield.gi
95B Harbours Walk, The New Harbours, Gibraltar. www.profield.gi
When the winds of change
blow, some build walls, while
others build windmills.
Or we could do nothing about it and then dutifully accept
whatever becomes local law in the end, when BIM finally
comes. We should create a platform to get together and
discuss, as an industry, the way we want to have our BIM, or
we run the risk of enduring a very painful process of rushed
adaptation.
Let’s be proactive and initiate a consultation. Let’s make a
move toward Better Information Management, which by the
way, also spells BIM.
The gauntlet has been thrown…
Rene Pellicer is BIM Manager/Coordinator
at WSRM Architects and currently
pursuing a MSc in BIM Management with
Middlesex University London. He is a Revit
Architecture Certified Professional and
elected member of the Autodesk’s Expert
Elite program for his dedication and contributions to the BIM
community.”