YES BIM / NO BIM
- S. Mansour
- Jul 22, 2018
- 4 min read
Articles, talks, and seminars about technology in the construction industry are often dominated by those who feel passionately about the need to challenge the systems and methods in current use, and can easily drown out voices that argue against moving in a new direction, or question the validity of such a move. This can sometimes be misconstrued as ignoring those that argue against the adoption of new methods or technologies. Of course, that is not the case, and those counter arguments are heard loud and clear every day in the working environments when we try and push for change.
The introduction of building information modelling (BIM) into the architecture, engineering and construction (AEC) industry has been one of those technological and social changes that has caused a lot of polarization and discussion within the industry, and while there are certainly legitimate reasons not to use BIM in some projects, sometimes the arguments against implementing BIM can be very frustrating to hear. Most of us have heard arguments that range from the valid and entirely understandable, to the completely baffling and downright bizarre. However, it is important to face these issues head on, as ignoring them does nothing to help strengthen the case for change, and can often leave the professionals countering the change feeling isolated and ignored.
That being said, the number of counter arguments used by some of those opposed, or those unsure of the move to new technologies are limited, and often repetitious. This is an attempt to collate some of the more commonly used arguments that I have come across. Please feel free to add any others that you feel might fit in this list.
We do not know what BIM means.
BIM is too confusing, there are too many standards, acronyms, and interpretations.
BIM is too confusing, there are not enough standards and rules.
BIM has no standards, and everyone does it differently.
BIM is for public/big projects only.
BIM is not necessary for small home extensions or renovations.
We are only using BIM because the government is forcing it on us.
We will only use BIM if the client tells us to use it.
We want to use BIM, but the clients do not want to use it on this project.
We only need BIM for coordination. Or for compliance only, or asset management only, or pricing only, or scheduling, etc.
We just need to get the drawings out, and do not care about the manner it is done in.
We need to "Pause" the BIM until after the deadline.
It will all be built from 2d drawings anyway, so the 3d BIM stuff really doesn't matter.
At the end of the day, the building has to be built.
It will cause us to lose our rights.
It will increase our liability.
The design only ever finishes when the building is demolished, so the client will expect us to maintain the model forever.
It is all a conspiracy by the software vendors to force us to buy their software and be tied into their eco system.
We don't know what software to use.
The software and the workflow are too inflexible.
Everyone is using different software, and that is causing too many problems to do BIM.
The computers always crash, and you lose all your work.
You can't rely on the data, and you need a human to check it anyway.
We can't find competent staff to work on BIM projects.
We are capable of working in BIM, but the rest of the team is not.
Our consultant does not use BIM, and we always use consultant X.
The supply chain is not using BIM, so we can't really use it either.
Using BIM is expensive, and an extra cost we do not need.
Using BIM is slow and means losing work/time/money.
There is no data to back up the financial savings claimed by using BIM.
There is no data to say that BIM produces more efficient or faster construction.
BIM is only a fad and will disappear like so many others.
Design is about listening to the client, not about computers or BIM.
BIM will force us to design things only one way.
If you use a single method, standard or workflow, all buildings will look the same.
Computers have ruined design, we should be using drafting boards and pencils.
We already do the same thing, so there is no benefit in BIM versus traditional methods.
I am only working on a small part of this project.
It is not my responsibility.
We'll leave it to the experts.
We only work in BIM level 3.
If it aint broke don't fix it.
We do not know what BIM means.
There are plenty of reasons to be weary of BIM, and some project where BIM does not need be used. However, it is important to remember that although BIM is trying to challenge the industry and its current practices, it is not trying to reinvent the wheel. What BIM is trying to do, is make the process of designing, constructing, and managing buildings more efficient, more sustainable, and more collaborative for all parties involved. And for that to happen we need to have reasonable answers to the above arguments, excuses, and comments, as well as the data to back it up.
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