Performance Specifications for Building Information Exchange

Discussions of building information modeling often center on building geometry. The most widely described uses of building information to date have been for collision detection and progress visualizations. Engineering News-Record reported recently that one hour spent in design coordination activities results in ten hours of saved field re-work. Attaching geometry to Critical Path Method schedules creates “4D” models, useful in reducing on-site conflicts due to trade scheduling and material handling.The majority of information needed by the owner, construction agents, and ultimately, the facility manager, does not directly concern the geometry of the building. Equipment lists, for example, provide the list of equipment and equipment types listed with their room number and some limited sets of properties. Other equipment properties may be found in the specifications, a decidedly non-geometric representation of building information.