A Report from the 7th AIA TAP Building Connections

The 7th American Institute of Architects (AIA) Technology in Architecture Practice (TAP) Building Connections meeting was held on December 10, 2010, in Washington, D.C. The Federal Facilities Council hosted the event at The Keck Center of the National Academies. Lynda Stanley, Hon., AIA, Executive Director of the Federal facilities Council, coordinated the meeting. Building Connections invited those, “in the interoperability trenches to convene and update each other on their progress and challenges in 2010.” Technology veterans and newcomers were welcomed to the conversation and engaged with key building information modeling (BIM) authoring tool vendors to share their views about interoperability. Proponents of initiatives that were identified as potentially overlapping discussed how each initiative adds value. Three primary topics were focused on at the event: Lifecycle BIM: Defining the Roadmap; Interoperability: How to Overcome 10 years of Roadblocks; and What is the Role of Standards-giving Organizations in the Emerging BIM Ecosystem?