The buildingSMART openBIM Awards Yearbook 2021

The buildingSMART
openBIM Awards
Yearbook 2021
Extraordinary projects from the 2021 buildingSMART

International openBIM Awards Program
About buildingSMART
buildingSMART is the
worldwide industry
body driving the digital
transformation of the built
asset industry, committed to
delivering improvement by
the creation and adoption
of open, international
standards and solutions for
infrastructure and buildings.
buildingSMART is the
community for visionaries
working to transform
the design, construction,
operation and maintenance
of built assets and is an open,
neutral and international not-
for-profit organization.
The buildingSMART Awards program was The 2021 Awards saw projects compete
established in order to recognize exemplary in 8 categories, with 1 additional Award
projects that have used buildingSMART being presented at the discretion of
standards and solutions to effectively the buildingSMART management team,
overcome interoperability challenges. The resulting in 9 project winners.
first awards were presented in Toronto in
October 2014, and the program continues
to grow year on year.
2021 Highlights
Categories
The program was divided into four broad
categories: Project Delivery, Operations,
Research and Technology. Each category
has its own sub-categories, providing the
basis for the Awards program.
Jurors
This Awards program was supported
by 154 jurors across 23 chapters. The
primary role of the juror is grading project
submissions against a strict criteria,
designed to ensure the highest quality of
submissions. This year there was once
again a triage team to help reduce the
amount of work on all jurors.
Submissions
There were a record 133 submissions
across all the categories, 74 of which
passed triage. The breakdown for those
that passed triage is outlined below:
• Asset Management: 4
• Construction: 17
• Design: 18
• Facilities Management: 2
• Handover: 2
• Professional Research: 10
• Student Research: 3
• Technology: 18
Special Mentions
Due to the high volume of quality
submissions, there were a number of
projects deemed a high enough standard
to warrant a special mention. These
projects were scored especially highly
by the jury, falling slightly short of the
required score to become a finalist. These
projects were duly awarded during the
Awards Ceremony, alongside all finalists
and Award winners.
Contents
Asset Management MKP GmbH, Germany Pages 6-7
University of Naples Federico II, Italy Pages 8-9
Siemens, Austria Pages 10-11
Community Contribution Mostostal Warszawa S.A., Poland Pages 12-13
China Academy of Railway Sciences

Construction Pages 14-15
Corporation Ltd, China
Helse Bergen HF, Norway Pages 16-17
Sweco Norge, Norway Pages 18-19
Sichuan Highway Planning, Survey,

Design Design and Research Institute Ltd., Pages 20-21
China
CBGU (CPB, BAM, Ghella and UGL)
Joint Venture in collaboration with Pages 22-23
Willow, Australia
FCC Construcción Madrid, Spain Pages 24-25
Facilities Management Siemens Schweiz AG, Switzerland Pages 26-27
Granlund Oy, Finland Pages 28-29
Auckland International Airport Ltd,

Handover Pages 30-31
New Zealand
The University of Hong Kong,
Professional Research Pages 32-33
Hong Kong
Yonsei University, South Korea Pages 34-35
Xi’an University of Architecture

Pages 36-37
and Technology, China
The Technical University of Munich
Student Research Pages 38-39
(TUM), Germany
The University of Rome, Italy Pages 40-41
VCE Vienna Consulting

Technology Pages 42-43
Engineers ZT GmbH, Austria
Open Design Alliance, USA Pages 44-45
ACCA Software, Italy Pages 46-47

WINNER
smartBRIDGE Hamburg - The openBIM-based

Digital Twin for Bridge Maintenance
MKP GmbH, Germany
About the Project traceability and sustainability of asset condition

results and produces a time-discrete condition
smartBRIDGE Hamburg is a pilot project with the assessment. In addition, structural damage is
aim to optimise the maintenance of the Köhlbrand
currently only detected after it occurs, leading to
Bridge in the Port of Hamburg, Germany by
costly and inconvenient reactive maintenance.
harnessing the concept of the “digital twin”.
The project was initiated by the Hamburg Port To improve current processes and implement
Authority (HPA) with a multidisciplinary team predictive functionalities, this project combined
consisting of Marx Krontal Partner, customQuake BIM with IoT and other heterogeneous data
and WTM Engineers was appointed by the sponsor sources and processed the data with high-level
to realise it. analytics.
The bridge structure is 3,618 m long and 17.2 A BIM model was created to provide a geometry
m wide and carries four lanes. Around 36,000 of the complete Köhlbrand Bridge structure,
vehicles per day cross Germany’s second-longest in line with the Employers Information
road bridge, with heavy goods traffic dominating. Requirement (EIR) and the BIM Execution
Plan (BEP). The BIM model consisted of a
Core Objectives large number of models (terrain, diagnostic,
This project aims to transform the current electric, bridge, monitoring, damage) created by
analogue and reactive maintenance processes to different disciplines in their specialised software
digitally enhanced and predictive maintenance applications. To enable collaboration, all sub-
based on real-time condition information to models were stored as IFC 2x3 in a Common
ensure the functioning and availability of the Data Environment (CDE), where the models
ageing transport network. were managed and versioned.
Project Description
smartBRIDGE Hamburg is an innovative project
demonstrating the application of digital twins
to optimise the maintenance of bridges. The
current maintenance process in Germany
consists of a periodic manual inspection
and an analogue workflow in analysing and
documenting the results. This leads to limited
Category of Asset Management
All project partners could access current data and • Comparison of as-designed and as-built
undertake model-based collaboration. Reviews of models based on a LIDAR point-cloud
models were made and delivered via BCF.
• Connection of BIM to real-time data from
In addition to the EIR, the “Bauteilkatalog heterogeneous monitoring sources
Brücken” component catalogue was used, as
it contains project-independent specifications buildingSMART openBIM Solutions
for the creation of 3D BIM bridge models and
enabled interoperability. The different semantic BCF, IDM, IFC 2x3
information was embedded in the model as Software Used
attributes for each IFC object. These standards
were extended for the implementation of Autodesk 3Ds Max, Autodesk Revit, BIM Vision,
monitoring systems, damages and diagnostic BIM360, BIMplus, Blender, Desite BIM, NavVis
examination. Indoorviewer, Nemetschek Allplan, Sofistik Bridge
Modeler, Solibri Model Checker, Unity
Real-time condition measurement data from
Köhlbrand Bridge came from continuous structural Result
health monitoring (IoT) sensors, inspection data
In this project, the Köhlbrand Bridge was used to
from traditional periodic manual inspection and
other structural diagnostic examinations. The demonstrate a transformation in infrastructure
information streams were combined into a single maintenance and operation based on BIM
information source, with the BIM model acting as a methodology. By combining BIM with IoT and
central data hub that linked real-time conditions. other heterogeneous data sources and processing
the data with high-level analytics, it becomes
The collected real-time data was aggregated possible to optimise the maintenance process
into easily understandable condition indicators and implement predictive functionalities. The
that allowed all stakeholders (owner, operator, result is more precise damage prognoses and
maintainer) to have a constant overview of the thus predictive and sustainable maintenance
bridge’s condition. A high-level browser-based management.
solution for visualisation of the digital twin called
conditionCONTROL was developed to allow
approachable and open access for any user, “The award is a great opportunity to show the
with different navigation views to choose from, world what is already possible with openBIM
depending on the user’s needs. today. In the future, BIM will be indispensable - in
A cloud-based system was developed that enabled all phases of a bridge’s life. As a company, we gain
the use of machine learning algorithms to predict international visibility and prove ourselves as BIM
the bridge’s behaviour and trigger maintenance experts. A great programme.”
countermeasures when alarm or limit values are Marc Wenner, MKP GmbH
exceeded.
Highlights
• Second largest road bridge implemented in
BIM
• About 10,000 IFC objects modelled, and 26
different models created
• Over 200 different non-geometric attributes
assigned
• Implementation of automatic model checking
rules
• Cross-discipline model-based collaboration
FINALIST
Asset Information Management of an

Existing Railway Infrastructure in the openBIM
scenario: the Cancello-Benevento Line
University of Naples Federico II, Italy
About the Project the infrastructure gap with respect to RFI

company standards, as well as the technical
This project tested the application of BIM and economic feasibility of future rehabilitation
methodologies to the management of an
investment. This project offered an opportunity
operating railway infrastructure, the Cancello-
to test the potential of BIM methodologies
Benevento railway line. The project team was
through fully openBIM standards in a real-life
made up of collaborators from two Italian railway
case study.
managing authorities (EAV, RFI), ACCA Software
and the Department of Structure for Engineering The University of Naples FEDERICO II was
and Architecture at the University of Naples appointed to provide services such as BIM
Federico II. modelling, information management and
surveying. The technological solution for the
The railway line was built in Campania at the
project was provided by ACCA Software and
beginning of the 20th century and completed
was used for BIM modelling of the railway
in 1913. It is made up of 12 stations, 15 bridges,
viaducts, and overpasses, and six tunnels along a infrastructure (by means of an authoring
length of 47 kilometres. environment), management of project
information (through a CDE), and information
Core Objectives flow between collaborators through the
application of openBIM standards (IFC).
To test the application of openBIM standards for
the digitisation of an existing railway infrastructure The project was formed of two key overarching
for application in its operation and maintenance. activities: surveying the existing infrastructure
and the digitalisation of the railway line. The
Project Description surveying activities involved the use of drones
This project stemmed from a need to model
the existing condition of the Cencello-
Benevento railway line for asset management
purposes in light of a potential management
takeover by Rete Ferroviaria Italiana (RFI) from
regional managing authority Ente Autonomo
Volturno (EAV). The modelling of the railway
line was required to enable the analysis of
and an autonomous railway truck (equipped with buildingSMART openBIM Solutions

instrumentation such as laser scanners, GPS,
railway odometers, and an inertial platform) to IDM, IFC 2x3, IFC 4, mvdXML
collect multiple forms of information (geometry,
condition, structural conditions) about the linear Software Used
railway infrastructure. Blender, CloudCompare, Edificius, pix4D, Sketchup,
As part of the digitalisation of the railway line, a usBIM.browser, usBIM.IFCinfra, usBIM.platform
BIM object library was created using Edificius and Result
its integration with other tools such as Blender
and SketchUp. This resulted in a series of IFC The use of the openBIM methodology enabled
models with detailed geometry and properties for greater reliability, accessibility, and transparency of
each object type, as identified in the information the exchanged data between project collaborators,
requirements (e.g. pole models, sleeper models, considerably reduced the time and resources
rail profile, ballast profile, and so on). After needed to deliver the project’s objectives and
validation, the BIM object library was uploaded on facilitated interoperability between the different
the CDE to be reused for future asset management systems and software.
and operation & maintenance projects. The use of a digital, federated model offers secure
The BIM object library and the existing track data storage, avoiding dispersion and loss over
geometrization were used as the input for the time, and the objects library in IFC format will
modelling of the track. This was done using a have further application as a reference for other
specific tool developed for the purpose and projects in asset management, maintenance, and
produced IFC models using the IfcAlignment operation.
concept and the IfcLinearPlacement concept to
create the track and position the objects along the
track, respectively. “As shown by the project outcomes the openBIM
offers the opportunity to reassess and reorganize
After validation by railway specialists, the models
company processes in asset management
were uploaded on the CDE together with
context, allowing a reduction of time-consuming
the point clouds, 360˚ photos and all related
activities. Information is accessible via a single
documentation to form a unique federation of all
environment (CDE) to all actors at any time and
the available documents and models for use in
place. The IFC models can represent an “access
the maintenance management workflows of the
key” to information and processes related to other
railway.
systems (CMMs and ERP) and the client, through
Highlights the use of IFC certificated platform, can manage,
control and validate the required information
• A model of approximately 47 km of the railway
(objects library and models) in open format (e.g.
infrastructure was made using openBIM
IFC).”
standards
Angelo Ciccone, University of Naples Federico II
• Use of the IFC 4x2 for the development of IFC
objects and models
• Project information management through an
IFC-certified BIM Management Platform
• Linear positioning of objects with respect to
alignment, as required by IFC standards
• Exchange of information based on IFC files
FINALIST
openBIM based Digital Building Twin –

Technology Centre II
Siemens, Austria
About the Project including over 1,500 sensors. The state-of-the-

art devices found in the fire alarm, access, and
The Technology Centre 2.0 or “tz2” is a commercial building automation systems together formed
building constructed as a sustainable passive
a powerful building intelligence network that
house standard and is owned and operated
allows data-driven decision-making. All systems
by the Vienna Business Agency. It comprises
were combined in Siemen’s Desigo CC Building
approximately 5,600 m2 of rentable office space
Management System (BMS), which was used
and workshops over five floors and is home to 25
for control, maintenance, localization and
innovative companies and start-ups.
documentation of the building technology.
As a project of Aspern Smart City Research (ASCR),
A reliable connection between this live data
one of the largest and most innovative energy and
coming in from the building and the as-built BIM
smart building research projects in Europe, the
model was essential to creating and maintaining
building is a testbed for various R&D use cases.
a digital twin.
Core Objectives To establish this connection, the project team
This project’s scope was to use BIM data to create first quality-checked the as-built discipline
a digital twin of tz2 that would act as a single BIM models against 3D scans of the building
source of truth to optimize facility management, to ensure the correct spatial placement of all
energy management and allow predictive objects. Two model checker applications were
maintenance. used: NavisWorks Manager for clash detection
between disciplines with issues reported via BCF
Project Description and Solibri Model Checker for model conformity
Aspern Smart City Research was launched and the verification of technical system
in 2013 by Siemens, Wien Energie, Wiener
Netze, Wien 3420 and the Vienna Business
Agency. ASCR uses real data from the urban
development zone of Aspern Seestadt, where
tz2 is located, to explore solutions to power
future of cities.
To gather building data, tz2 was equipped with
a wide range of networked building technology,
features/compliance with technical guidelines. Software Used

Once the data quality was ensured, the BIM BIM360 Build, BIM360 Design, BIMcollab,
models could be matched with the BMS by Navisworks, NavVis IndoorViewer, Revit 2019,
connecting devices (BIM objects) and data points Solibri Model Checker
using a communication protocol for Building
Automation and Control (BACNet). Algorithms Result
were employed to facilitate the critical relationship An openBIM approach, as explored by ASCR in this
between the individual devices and their multiple project, provides excellent flexibility, customization
sensors, thus enabling the connection between IFC
and adaptation to customer requirements, while
and the BMS.
facilitating collaboration. This openBIM method
The integration of IFC models with the BMS and the use of the IFC standard ensures a future-
resulted in a digital twin of tz2 that is enhanced proofed, manufacturer-independent, and open
by live data coming directly from the on-site building data structure that can be maintained
devices. Through an openBIM approach, the BMS over several decades.
was made more useful in facility management
As a result of this project, the operation and
by contextualizing building system data in the
maintenance team at tz2 will benefit from
constructed model using a BIM viewer.
better building documentation, high efficiency
The integration of the real-time data feed from the in operations and higher building performance
building sensors with the building model enables stemming from optimization and improved
different use cases that improves efficiency and analysis with real-time opportunities.
productivity in the operation and maintenance
phase. Other use cases include the automatic
creation of 2D plans in the BMS, the visualization “Combining BIM & real-time data is complicated
of live data (e.g. temperature, humidity, occupancy, because there are currently no standards existing
movement states, or window states) directly in the for this topic. But with the openBIM standard,
BIM model, linking asset schematics with the BIM IFC and its classification system, which includes
model, and alarm and issue localization in the BIM elements from the building automation domain,
model. This latter use case is of particular interest we already have the perfect foundation to combine
in industrial and hospital environments where structural BIM data with real-time data standards
systems can be highly complex, and reaction to like BACnet, Modbus, or OPC UA. This combination
possible issues must be instant. enables the efficient creation of digital buildings
twins, which can further help achieve up to 10%
Highlights total operating cost reduction and 30% faster fault
• Integration of the IFC model and a BIM Viewer resolution for the Facility Management.”
directly in the Building Management System
Kevin Bauer, Siemens
• Visualization of real-time building system data
to improve facility management planning and
decision-making
• New Model View Definition (MVD) adapted to
meet the visualization demands of different
disciplines
• Clash detection between discipline models
reported using BCF
buildingSMART openBIM Solutions

BCF, IFC 2x3
WINNER
Make it Easier with openBIM: Primary

School in Warsaw’s Wilanów District
Mostostal Warszawa S.A., Poland
About the Project construction needs and decided to use BIM to

perform the quantity take-offs, multidisciplinary
This project saw the design and build of a modern, coordination, earthworks, scheduling and
sustainable primary school for 750 children in reporting work progress. They implemented a
Wilanów, Warsaw. The budget was 59 million Common Data Environment (CDE), using the
Polish złoty (US$14.4 m) and encompassed three Dalux platform, to manage documentation and
buildings (the school, sports hall and parking construction work processes.
garage with rooftop playground) with a total area
of approximately 13,500 m2. The project had a During the mobilization phase, a naming
fixed and immovable deadline—the first day of convention for project documentation and the
school. rules of information exchange between the
stakeholders were established. Software and
This project established openBIM practices within information exchange platforms were tested, with
Mostostal Warszawa S.A. (General Contractor) and the openBIM standard enabling quick and easy
the use of IFC and BCF for the first time. switching between different software. To ensure
Core Objectives a smooth exchange of models, the modelling
method and the information required to be
The project aimed to develop an openBIM contained in the elements were defined. The
framework that would involve all project models were divided into zones, and an additional
participants and could be further scaled to all reference model was created to enable the correct
company projects. placement of models in space.
Project Description During the mobilization and construction phases,
Mostostal’s staff and the project’s designers,
The project became the foundation of openBIM
strategy development for Mostostal Warszawa
S.A., who aspired for all project participants to
be able to implement BIM technology in their
everyday tasks. The key to achieving this was to
highlight the benefits of the openBIM approach at
the construction site and train the relevant parties
how to use IFC models.
Early in the project, the project team defined the
Category of Community Contribution
subcontractors and inspectors received Software Used

extensive training to strengthen their openBIM
competencies. The participants learned, among Airtable, Asana, Autodesk AutoCAD,, Autodesk
other skills, how to view models (moving in 3D, Civil 3D, Autodesk Revit (plugins: Dynamo, Bentley
managing the visibility of elements, sections), Navigator, BIM Track, BIMcollab, BIMcollab ZOOM,
search for information about elements, take BIMvision (plugins: Advanced Reports, Compare,
off quantities directly from the IFC model and Dalux BIM Viewer, Dalux Box, Dalux Field, Enscape,
communicate through the coordination platform. Fluid Desk Ventpack (supported by SimpleBM),
IFC Comments, Instagantt, Multifile), Navisworks
Time-effective clash detection and model Manage, Object Info, Power BI, RTV Xporter),
review using IFC models allowed the effective SharePoint, SYNCHRO Open Viewer, SYNCHRO
communication of over 1000 potential clashes to PRO, Twinmotion
the designers using BCF. This resulted in a better-
coordinated execution design, avoided additional Result
project costs at the construction stage, and
Thanks to openBIM, the school’s construction was
allowed more time to be spent on quality control
completed on time and budget, and there was
at the site.
an overall cost reduction of BIM implementation
A 4D schedule was created using IFC structure (software, hardware, digital skills, training). The
models, which provided a better understanding of simplicity of using openBIM made it easy for
the scope of work and the relationship between project participants to adapt to using digital BIM
subsequent works. This allowed the project team tools that employed the IFC and BCF standards.
to better plan the work and eliminate inaccuracies
and incorrect assumptions early. Using openBIM contributed to better
communication and quicker decision making.
Quality control processes on the construction It reduced the time required to analyze project
site were facilitated through mobile applications documentation, perform quantity take-offs,
that gave subcontractors access to data, tasks, manage issues and accept final work by up to
drawings, documentation and IFC models, 75%. These time savings and faster information
reducing the risk of miscommunication and exchanges led to a higher quality project delivery.
improper interpretation of technical designs.
Highlights “openBIM is not about technology. At its core it

• On time and within budget is about giving and sharing information which
encourages every project participant to be
• 6,151 documents, 7,215 document revisions
collaborative, transparent and to contribute. That
with tenfold faster access to documents
creates more friendly atmosphere and removes
• 1,250 BCFs the information silos. We want to share our
• Over 120 project participants positive experience and exchange ideas with others
in order to grow together. buildingSMART Awards
• 3 buildings, 16 building models, 35,311 building Program provides the opportunity to compete on
objects international level with the best.”
• 2,927 defects managed, increasing defect Dawid Fedko, Mostostal Warszawa S.A.
resolution by 75%
• Over 20 new company projects now being
carried out using the openBIM solutions
employed in this project

BCF, IFC 2x3, mvdXML
WINNER
openBIM Implemented on Beijing-Zhangjiakou

High-Speed Railway
China Academy of Railway Sciences
Corporation Ltd, China
About the Project In the design phase of the Beijing-Zhangjiakou

high-speed railway project, several software
The new Beijing-Zhangjiakou high-speed railway applications were used, including Autodesk,
project has a total length of 174 km, with 10
Bentley, and Trimble to build the openBIM
stations, 66 km of bridges, and 49 km of tunnels
model. The IFC format was adopted for
along the line. The design speed of the line is
model file transmission, and the project team
350 km/hour and will ultimately serve the Beijing
established a Common Data Environment
Winter Olympics in 2022. The total investment in
(CDE) in the form of a REMPLAT data center to
the project was 53.54 billion yuan ($8.32 billion).
facilitate a collaborative and open design (and,
In the process of construction, a BIM platform later, construction) process.
was established with multiple users, enabling the
The IFC standard was verified and extended
implementation of openBIM for the full lifecycle of
according to the project requirements. Railway
the project.
elements were mapped to IFC elements, and
Core Objectives the lists of information models to be built and
the existing IFC models were created. Unified
There were three primary objectives in the Modeling Language (UML) was used to define
construction of the Beijing-Zhangjiakou high-speed new objects. Finally, the extended IFC standard
railway. Firstly, it will support the Winter Olympics schema files (EXPRESS, XSD) were generated from
2022, as well as the coordinated development of the conceptual model and deployed in the relevant
the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region. Secondly, as the software.
world’s first smart high-speed railway, it will serve
to create a guidance plan for future smart railway In the design delivery phase, the Bentley suite was
construction and operations. Finally, by adopting used for the secondary development of ECObjects,
an openBIM methodology, the project seeks to
establish data transmission channels for different
stages of the railway’s lifecycle.
Project Description
The project was full of complexity in both the
design and construction stages, requiring
streamlined collaboration and coordination.
Category of Construction
and the IFC standard was integrated into the and a variety of self-developed construction
software and bound with geometric entities to management software
generate the structure objects. To represent the
long, linear infrastructure entities, the openBIM Result
model was imported into SuperMap iDesktop, and
By using openBIM standards, the project team
oblique photography data was superimposed to
built an ecosystem for multi-party cooperation
merge BIM and GIS data.
and information sharing. The application of IFC,
In the construction phase, the BIM management mvdXML and other standards greatly improved
team created a cross-professional Information communication between the project participants,
Delivery Manual (IDM) and applied IFC files in the resulting in a time saving of 144 days and an
data exchange scenario. The ISO-19650 standard estimated cost saving of $2.36 million.
was applied in the information management
Employing the COBie standard when transferring
workflow to form a standardized railway asset
data from the construction to the operation
model and information generation process.
and maintenance stage prevented information
In the operation and maintenance stage, misalignment due to imperfect information-
the information exchange templates were sharing mechanisms. This reduced the need for
formulated using COBie. By establishing the repeated collection of construction data during
the railway infrastructure operation and the operation and maintenance phase, resulting
maintenance information model data standard, in further time and cost savings and better-quality
a firm foundation was laid for the full life cycle data.
management of the railway.
Feedback from the various project stakeholders
Highlights reveals that openBIM allowed them to better
understand the project’s status throughout and
• The first high-speed railway that adopts the improved quality, safety and communication
concept of openBIM to carry out multi-domain between all parties.
full life cycle management on the whole
process in China
• More than 20 software were used in the “The bSI Award is a recognition of the development
project, and a new mode of multi-platform in applying openBIM in railway projects. The
collaborative management at all stages was project proves that openBIM can help us establish
adopted a digital environment that is interoperable and
shared throughout the life cycle, creating a more
• Successful adoption of openBIM standards convenient and comprehensive ecosystem for
such as IFC 2X3, IDM, mvdXML and COBie in constructing the first intelligent railway in China.”
the design phase and construction phase
Dashuang Li, China Academy of Railway Sciences
• The first digital railway project in China that Corporation Ltd
combines openBIM modelling with GIS data

COBie, IDM, IFC 2x3, ifcXML, mvdXML
Software Used
Ansys, Bentley ContextCapture, Integrated
Maintenance System (IMS), MicroStation V8i,
Model Review Software (MRS), Navisworks,
OpenRoads Designer, PowerCivil, ProjectWise,
Railway Engineering Management Platform
(REMPLAT), Revit,SOLIDWORKS, SuperMap
iDesktop, Tekla Structures,Unreal Engine 4,
FINALIST
Building a Hospital with openBIM –

Haukeland University Hospital
Helse Bergen HF, Norway
About the Project processes related to controlling the model during

pre-construction and currently acts as a single
Helse Bergen HF (Bergen Hospital Trust) source of truth to support different processes
is currently building phase 2 of the project during construction, such as supervision, making
“Glasblokkene”, due to be completed in 2023. The corrective actions and testing.
project is a 50,000 m2 hospital building providing
comprehensive specialist health service to women, The project prioritizes lean construction
children and adolescents in Bergen, Norway and methodologies, digital collaboration, and
the surrounding area. It comprises 10 wards with a systematic completion, all of which are supported
total of 160 beds, 60 polyclinic rooms, 12 operation by the structured data found in the IFC model. To
theatres, a radiology department, and maternity produce this reliable, structured data, Norway’s
and neonatal departments. The total investment interdisciplinary building part tagging system,
into the project is estimated at NOK 3.5 billion. “tverrfaglig merkesystem” (TFM), was used to
assign a unique TFM tag to almost every building
Core Objectives part in the IFC model. dRofus, a room and
The project has employed openBIM methodology equipment database, acted as the generator/
to facilitate an efficient flow of information owner of the tag system and was essential to
between stakeholders, improve decision- structuring the data in the IFC model.
making and transparency, providing seamless This structured data of the IFC model has enabled
communication between different BIM the project team to connect various software
applications and support on-site production. and automate several operations, including
maintenance, parameter updates, IFC model
Project Description exports, updates and checks in Solibri models,
The project is being led by the hospital’s own
project management team and is being carried out
in line with the Norwegian contract standard “NS
8405”. For the purpose of this project, the standard
was modified and adapted to the openBIM IFC
standard, as IFC models have been contractually
mandated as deliverables.
The IFC model will be used in all phases of the
project. So far, the IFC model has been used in the
and model “clean-ups” in Revit files to reduce Software Used

their size. Additionally, the model has facilitated
interdisciplinary communication among the dRofus, IT-base, Novapoint, Power BI, Revit
design team, contractors, owners, and other (BIM360), Smartsheet, Solibri, StreamBIM,
stakeholders via BCF, which offers an efficient way SYNCHRO Pro, Touchplan, Vrex
of communicating and problem solving.
Result
The software StreamBIM has been implemented
to ensure the most up-to-date version of the IFC Although the project is still in the construction
model is accessible to all stakeholders (owner, phase, using the IFC standard as a foundation
design team, contractors, hospital staff) on a to support all project phases and processes
phone, tablet, or PC. StreamBIM has facilitated has shown several benefits thus far. These
openBIM-based collaboration and information include improved communication between and
distribution, and it has enabled several workflows participation of stakeholders resulting in better
supporting different project phases and purposes. problem-solving, greater project transparency,
Through StreamBIM, users are also able to better design leading to improved “buildability” on
access non-geometric information supplied by the construction site and usability in the operation
the contractors from the dRofus database, such phase, interoperability between different software
as product data sheets and other documents and the implementation of automation.
necessary for the construction, operation, and
maintenance phases of the hospital. Because
“Participating in the Awards Program has been
StreamBIM is accessible via personal electronic
a valuable process and important in terms of
devices and can handle many large IFC files, it
evaluating oneself in our quest to contribute, as a
allowed the transition to a paper-free building site.
building owner, to push the construction industry
The easy accessibility of information to all in our area to adopt to new ways of planning and
stakeholders has been an important aspect of executing construction projects by working with
the project’s transparency and participation. openBIM; a direction in which we have great faith.”
It enabled, for example, the end users of the
building - the hospital staff - to participate in digital Tord Monsen, Helse Bergen
testing of the building using VR to correct design
issues. This data accessibility via the IFC model
will continue to play an important role in the
completion and handover process and, ultimately,
in the operation and maintenance phase of the
building.
Highlights
• IFC files contractually mandated as deliverables
• 76 IFC files, approximately 90,000 BCF issues
• Communication between 600 distinct users
through the IFC model
• IFC data structured using Norway’s
interdisciplinary building part tagging standard
• 3D models viewed on devices, leading to a
paper-free building site

BCF, IFC 2x3
FINALIST
Randselva Bridge –
Preparing for the Future
Sweco Norge, Norway
About the Project of successful BIM use, they proposed that the
Randselva bridge should be designed and built
The Randselva Bridge is a 634-meter-long free based entirely on BIM models.
cantilever cast-in-situ concrete bridge and is the
world’s longest bridge built without the use of Engineering consultancy Sweco Norge, who
any drawings, only BIM models. It contains over produced designs, calculations, and openBIM
200,000 rebars, 200 pour stages, 250 unique models for the Randselva Bridge, had experience
tendons in the pre-stressing system, over 19,000 in BIM-driven approaches on smaller scale
m3 of concrete, and 18,000 m2 of formwork. projects in the past. As a result, they recognised
the benefits a BIM-based approach would offer to
The owner of the project is the Norwegian Public a project of this magnitude, including the ability
Roads Administration (NPRA) and the project to detect clashes, implement design changes,
included a multidisciplinary, international team and the impact cost and performance early in the
including a design team situated in five different project could have. Additionally, while drawings
countries (Norway, Finland, Denmark, Poland and are country-specific, BIM models are international,
Portugal). which allowed Sweco to choose their best
Core Objectives engineers from across several countries to work
on the bridge’s design.
This project was a proof of concept for complex
model-based projects and demonstrates that The project involved complex geographic
model-driven projects can be more beneficial for considerations, including an asymmetric river
site management, site monitoring, clash detection, valley geometry and a steep, 80 m2 sandy slope
understanding the scope of work and flexibility in located on the west side of the valley. These key
the design. requirements, together with other functional
Project Description
In recent years, the NPRA has gradually extended
their demand for how BIM is used in their projects.
Initially, they mandated that BIM models should
be used for project drawings, which resulted
in a significant reduction in change orders
thanks to better clash control and an improved
understanding of their scopes of work. As a result
crossing needs related to an existing railway line, Grasshopper, Rhino, Solibri Model Checker, Tekla
the Kistefoss road, a future parking place and a Structures, Trimble Connect
local access road, necessitated the development
of a bridge solution that harmonised all these Result
elements.
Applying openBIM on this project has and
The whole bridge was modelled in Tekla Structures will continue to provide numerous benefits
using both calculations and parametric design throughout the lifecycle of the Randselva Bridge.
and exported as 57 IFC files to the client. To limit Using IFC files enabled designers from different
model sizes and lessen the information filtering countries to use the best suited software for
requirement, the model was divided up into the task at hand, which resulted in significantly
several parts when exported into IFC files. The fewer change orders, enhanced understanding
superstructure was divided into three parts with of the scope of works, and made procurement
each part made up of one pier/abutment. All easier. It also improved communication between
objects in the model were fed with 22 user-defined stakeholders, and facilitated progress monitoring
attributes to serve as metadata. In addition, shape and supported construction teams with
codes with additional attributes for bar bending information on-site.
schedules were also included.
In the future, openBIM models created in this
Communication between stakeholders, project will have further application as digital twins
including the contractor, the design team, for the operation and maintenance stage and
third-party control, internal quality control can act as input data for future design based on
and the construction site, was done using IFC reference models.
and BCF standards. New ways of transferring
information through geometry and attributes
was enabled by an openBIM approach, with 95 “Taking part in the buildingSMART Awards
% of the information flow from design team to Program has encouraged us to define current
the construction site transferred through the IFC benefits and future goals of our BIM-workflow. It
format. has also given us publicity to communicate the
ever-increasing importance of BIM and the need to
At the construction site, the IFC model was used
democratize it by using openBIM formats.”
for backfilling and excavation, scaffolding systems
and coordinates, third-party products helped Øystein Ulvestad, Sweco Norge
with reinforcement and material placement. This
information was available on-site using tablets or,
for some tasks, augmented reality.
Highlights
• World’s longest bridge built using only BIM-
models
• 95% of the information transferred through IFC
format
• Over 250,000 IFC structural objects and over
200,000 rebars modelled
• Collaborative design process across five
different countries and multiple software

BCF, IFC 2x3
Software Used
WINNER
Yan-Jiang Expressway G4216 – openBIM Flagship

Highway Megaproject in Southwest China
Sichuan Highway Planning, Survey, Design
and Research Institute Ltd., China
About the Project Three core concepts of openBIM were

implemented in SCHDRI’s Cloud-based
Authorised by the Ministry of Transport of the Collaborative Design System (CCDS) platform
People’s Republic of China in January 2019, the
to define the meaning (bSDD), the process
Yan-Jiang Xin-De Expressway is a 136.2-kilometre
(IDM), and the format (IFC) of the information
(84.6-mile) road-bridge-tunnel system consisting
exchanged between project stakeholders.
of a series of highway structures, including 88
bridges, 39 tunnels, 45 culverts, 4 flyovers and bSDD A BIM standard framework
22 interchanges. It is in a challenging mountain- was developed to establish a consensus on
canyon area and is one of the most expensive standards that suited the project’s use cases
highways in Southwest China, with an initial total and requirements. Inherited from the bSDD
estimated cost of 40 billion RMB (US$ 6.2 billion). mapping framework, SCHDRI’s Dictionary
Release Scheme (DRS) translated and unified the
Core Objectives terminology of objects and properties used in the
In addition to sustainability goals, the project’s design stage. All technical terms were aligned with
objective was to enable a design process with both national and regional encoding regulations.
reduced time and cost—but improved quality— Each object was assigned a GUID, which acted as
through adopting openBIM-driven BIM technology a unique language-independent serial number
and a model-centric information flow. and ensured information could be extracted and
maintained accurately without the risk of terms
Project Description being mixed up.
Recognising BIM’s ability to enhance IDM/MVD A customised IDM was
collaboration, increase productivity, and thus developed to define user-specific information
improve efficiency, the asset owner mandated
its use for the entire lifecycle management.
Sichuan Highway Planning, Survey, Design and
Research Institute Ltd. (SCHDRI), the appointed
BIM solution provider, adopted openBIM
standards and workflows to enable reliable and
transparent information exchange between all
project stakeholders.
Category of Design
exchange requirements and to specify methods the information exchange processes by

and processes of information exchange. This implementing bSDD, IDM, and IFC
included, but wasn’t limited to, a detailed solution
design (i.e., MVD) supporting information buildingSMART openBIM Solutions
exchange in software products and the
bSDD, IDM, IFC 4
handover standards for object coding, geometric
modelling, attributes, materials, relationships, and Software Used
information flows.
Autodesk AutoCAD, Autodesk InfraWorks,
The IDM served as the basis for communications Autodesk Revit, Bentley lumenRT, Bentley
between domain experts (e.g. road, bridge, tunnel), OpenRoads Designer (ORD), Bentley Reality
software experts, and the BIM end-users for Modelling Software, Civil 3D, CloudCompare,
project management and software development Dassault CATIA, Faro Scene, including Hintsoft,
throughout the project lifecycle. MicroStation CONNECT (MS), software for
IFC A wide range of authoring processing 3rd party data, SuperMap GIS software
software tools were used for various design tasks
in different disciplines. To overcome the lack Result
of interoperability between the different BIM The adoption of IFC models and other openBIM
software, a suite of secondary toolkits and plug-ins standards and workflows supported collaboration
were developed that used IFC. This allowed the between all participants, increasing the
native models to be exchanged, federated, and interoperability, transparency, and reliability
visualised in the CCDS serving as a Common Data of data exchange. The time and financial costs
Environment. of manual data processing were significantly
An IFC-CSV-BDMP conversion tool was developed reduced, while information quality was drastically
to allow users to manipulate IFC data in bulk with improved.
CSV spreadsheets without requiring access to a 3D Leveraging standardised openBIM concepts
BIM graphical environment. This tool also enabled not only added value to the project lifecycle
the IFC data to be transferred to the project’s BIM management, realising cross-platform and cross-
Data Middle Platform (BDMP)—a central data phase data flow, it also provided the project team
platform housing all lifecycle data. The BDMP opportunities to harness available technologies
enabled IFC models for downstream applications and innovate new applications.
to be exported to other third-party platforms via
designated data formats. “the bSI Award helped us reach more international
recognition and visibility. Looking forward to
The data format of this megaproject follows staying with openBIM standards and scaling up
the IFC 4x2 schema, the national IFC platform our innovative processes to really propel our
specifications, and refers to the Chinese highway organization and the global highway industry
industry specifications. Where necessary, IFC
forward.”
extensions were developed for different types of
bridges, roads, and tunnels. Ruodan Lu, Sichuan Highway Planning, Survey,
Design and Research Institute Ltd.
Highlights
• Over 357,000 elements modelled and over 4.8
million properties within over 500 IFC files
• 10+ disciplines, with interoperability achieved
via IFC
• openBIM-based IFC 4x2 extensions for highway
structures were developed
• openBIM-methodology underpinned
and streamlined the design work and
FINALIST
openBIM, Essential for Major

Infrastructure Project Delivery
CBGU (CPB, BAM, Ghella and UGL) Joint Venture
in collaboration with Willow, Australia
About the Project System (ETCS). CBGU D&C JV (CBGU), a joint

venture between four partners, was appointed
Cross River Rail (CRR) is a $5.4 billion investment
as the principal design and construction
by the Queensland Government to deliver a new
contractor for the Tunnel and Stations package.
10.2 km rail line through Brisbane, which includes
5.9 km of twin tunnels under central Brisbane, Although the client mandated the adoption of
four new underground stations and eight newly the IFC standard for CRR, CBGU independently
rebuilt above-ground stations. Construction works recognised the value in applying the openBIM
are currently underway, and passenger services methodology due to the wide range of different
are due to commence in 2025. CCR is expected software platforms to be used and their lack of
to be the largest transport project ever built in interoperability.
Queensland.
To ensure effective use of the IFC format,
In addition to native file formats, the client, CBGU drew on previous experience to identify
Cross River Rail Delivery Authority (CRRDA), has the challenges in applying the IFC 2x3 version
mandated IFC models as a deliverable, clearly of the schema (as mandated by the client) in
demonstrating their intentions to promote the use infrastructure projects. CBGU emphasised
of open file formats. The approach was developed the importance of having the IFC file export
to help overcome the inherent challenges that correct from the outset as it would ultimately
large infrastructure projects face relating to be used as a first source of truth for design
information exchange across a large range of collaboration, model data auditing, quantities
software from various vendors. take-off and costing and site set-out.
Core Objectives CBGU faced two key issues in delivering suitable
IFC models:
To unlock a transport network bottleneck at the
core of the Brisbane transport network while
embracing openBIM principles.
Project Description
The CCR project is divided into three major
works packages: Tunnels, Stations and
Development (TSD), Rail, Integration and
Systems (RIS) and the European Train Control
Category of Design
IFC models: Software Used

1. Consistency in the metadata of the export – 12d, AGACAD Cut Openings, Autodesk Navisworks,
which was overcome by CBGU providing project- Autodesk ReCap, Autodesk Revit, Bentley
specific export settings to all the consultants and OpenRail, Bentley ProjectWise, Bentley Rail Track,
an IFC sample file with the BIMFlow, Civil 3D, CostX, dRofus, Dynamo, Esri GIS,
metadata structured in a standardised way. Feature Manipulation Engine (FME), Grasshopper,
iConstruct, Microsoft Office 365 Suite (SharePoint,
2. Quality in the 3D modelling practice to match Power Automate), Power BI, Revizto, Solibri Model
the construction sequencing and processes. While
Checker, Structured Query Language (SQL),
not an openBIM-related issue, the problem was
SYCHRO Pro, Teams, Tekla Structures, Trimble
generated in the authoring tool and picked up by
Total Stations
the survey team trying to use the IFC files for site
set-out. Result
Once these issues were addressed, usable IFC Once the right processes were established and
models were produced that enabled embedded implemented, openBIM effectively brought
asset information comparison between disciplines down the barriers of interoperability typically
and compliance checking using a model auditor encountered when dealing with various design
Power BI dashboard. Automated processes were authoring ecosystems. Coupling this with
established to allow the auditing of embedded automated workflows, design teams were able
asset data from more than 330 IFC models to share and interact with each other’s designs
containing more than 650,000 modelled elements in close to real time. This brought many benefits
across disciplines such as mechanical, electrical beyond contract compliance, including risk
and plumbing (MEP), utilities, architecture, civil and reduction and improved certainty, 3D coordination
structural. and validation across more than 650,000
Today, the model auditor is used by all consultants modelled elements, standardised deliverables and
to measure the progress of their asset information information capture, greater transparency around
requirements per discipline and project phase. It is design quality and asset information development,
also used by CBGU’s enhanced constructability support and future
handover and asset maintenance/management.
digital engineering team to ensure the consultant’s
performance is tracking at an acceptable pace.
The same auditor is also used by senior leadership
“It’s clear that the use of openBIM was critical
within the project team as a verified and empirical,
to achieve the extremely stringent information
data-driven metric to assess earned value vs
requirements on a project of such magnitude as
amount invoiced.
Cross River Rail TSD and has been essential to
Highlights collaboratively engage with stakeholders across a
broad spectrum of party involvement.”
• IFC file format mandated by the client
as a contractual requirement for design, Matthew Boynton, Floth
construction, handover and service phases
• More than 330 IFC models containing more
than 650,000 modelled elements across
multiple disciplines
• Automated processes established to audit
embedded asset data in IFC models for
progress and performance tracking

IFC 2x3
FINALIST
Santiago Bernabéu Stadium

Refurbishment Project – An openBIM Workflow
FCC Construcción Madrid, Spain
About the Project collaboration, and flexibility in the project.

The 81,000 seat Santiago Bernabéu football At the beginning of the project, exchange
stadium, home of Real Madrid F.C., is undergoing information requirements (EIR) were
a major transformation led by FCC Construcción. established with a focus on facilities
The scope includes a new façade, a retractable management. As the client, Real Madrid, will
roof, a 360° video scoreboard, an expansion of use a BIM-friendly computerised maintenance
the stadium to the west, new leisure offers, a management system (CMMS) that uses IFC in
new logistics ring inside, and the improvement of the operation and maintenance phase of the
surrounding areas. stadium’s lifecycle. Additionally, the project
team developed a 700-page BIM Execution
The design and build phases of the project will take
40 months and is due to be completed in 2022. It Plan (divided into design and build) and two
involves over 50 companies and covers 150,000 accessible Common Data Environments (CDE)
m2 of stadium space and 25,500 m2 of public also separated into design and build.
space. The estimated project cost is more than Throughout the project, openBIM standards
EURO 450 million. were used for information exchange (IFC) and
coordination (BCF) between over 30 different
Core Objectives companies and for ten distinct BIM uses. These
To employ new digital tools, openBIM technology BIM uses included design authoring and design
and a collaborative, multi-disciplinary and multi- revision, model coordination, existing conditions
user workflow to deliver the extensive scope modelling, record model, structural, MEP and
of the stadium’s state-of-the-art refurbishment CFD analysis, digital fabrication, 4D, and 5D.
megaproject.
Project Description
Given the extensive scope and size of the
stadium refurbishment project, it was essential
to its success that all stakeholders were able
to work in a coordinated manner with access
to the latest information. Therefore, an
openBIM methodology was implemented with
a view to achieving reliability, interoperability,
Category of Design
Information exchange Result

The IFC standard enabled information exchange openBIM was identified as the most reliable and
between the main software used in both the secure way to facilitate and optimise information
design and construction phases, as they could exchange and coordination on a project of this size
export and import the models in the format. The and complexity. As a result of the implementation
most common flows was between Tekla, Revit, of IFC and BCF, the project has benefited from
and Solidworks, with the federation of models in deep coordination, improved communication and
Navisworks. The information exchange was done compatibility between the disciplines, deadline
using IFC 2x3 and the Coordination View MVD. and cost optimisation, fewer errors in early project
Coordination stages, and better information requirement
compliance.
Effective collaboration was the only way to
successfully develop a project of this complexity. openBIM provided a solid foundaton with clear
Therefore, BCF files were used and managed project objectives that were established. This
through BIMcollab collaborative platform for helped to avoiding misunderstandings and
coordination and clash detection. This approach confusion, and and brought all stakeholders
provided all team members with up-to-date together with a common vision.
information about the status of the project,
helped to manage the complex fragmentation of
the model’s issues, facilitated traceability of issue “The existing conditions, design and construction
resolution, improved communication between information needed updating on daily basis.
disciplines, and enabled issues to be solved quickly This was all done with a challenging schedule
and efficiently. whilst the stadium was still in operation. I believe
this can only be achieved using openBIM and
Highlights collaborative technology. The broad software
• Over 150 native models, 70% of which were ecosystem, with many BIM uses, makes the use
exported as IFC files of openBIM essential. The importance of working
in a coordinated manner and having the latest
• Over 500,000 structural IFC elements information available to everyone, enhances the
• BIMcollab used as the main coordination tool, value of the CDE.”
with over 2,500 BCF issues Óscar Liébana Carrasco, FCC Construcción Madrid
• 127 versions of the federated model
• Two CDEs (design and build) with over 150
users from over 30 companies
• Two BEPs (design and build)
• Multiple BIM uses by12 disciplines using over
20 different software

BCF, IFC 2x3
Software Used
AutoCAD; Analysis: ETABS, Bexel; 5D: Presto,
Bexel; 6D: Verity; 3D Coordination: Navisworks,
BIMcollab, Caneco BT, Cost-It, CYPE, CYPE MEP; 4D:
Synchro, Design Authoring: Autodesk Revit, Dialux
Evo, Fire Dynamic Simulator, Rhino, SAP2000,
Solidworks, Tekla
WINNER
Grosspeter Tower: Performance

Gap Analysis with Simulation
Siemens Schweiz AG, Switzerland
About the Project BIM viewer (Desigo CC) of the BMS. In alignment
with the buildingSMART Use Case Management
This project by Siemens implemented an IFC Service “Auszug Elemente Gebäudeautomation”
model-based performance gap analysis in the (Automated Building Element Extraction), the
building management system (BMS) of an existing unique system asset ID (AKS) from the planning
high-rise building, Grosspeter Tower, Basel stage were used to pass information between
Switzerland, by comparing the real-time values to the simulation tool and the BMS. The ID keys
the predicted values from a simulation tool that created a link between the real and simulated
was used during the planning phase of the project. world and enabled collaboration with other project
The proof of concept focused on the temperature stakeholders, such as planners, electricians and
values as transmitted by temperature sensors on the facilities management team.
one floor.
In the common data environment (CDE), each
Core Objectives data point was connected to a BIM object, the
The goal of the project was to enable a client simulation data, and the live values obtained
or operator to identify areas where building from temperature sensors, as represented
performance optimisation is required by by IfcSensor in the model. The resulting data
visualising the gap between the simulated as- points were visualised on the BIM Viewer (using
designed building performance and the real-time IfcSpace) to show the gap value between the
building performance. live data and the simulation data using a colour
gradient in a 3D floor view of the respective
Project Description rooms.
To identify opportunities for building performance The IFC (IfcSpace) was parameterised with the
optimisation, target/actual performance
comparisons—or so-called gap analyses—could
be achieved. This requires real building values on
the one hand and simulated or target values on
the other to calculate the discrepancy between the
two.
In this project, the architectural simulation model
and building management models of Grosspeter
Tower (in IFC 2x3 format) were integrated into the
Category of Facilities Management
use cases using the CDE and imported into the operator to identify and inform their operational
IDA ICE (Indoor Climate and Energy) simulation decisions using the IFC model.
environment from the software company Equa
The standardised and open IFC schema meant
via the IFC import interface. The pre and post-
that it was possible to translate and represent
processing took place in the authoring software
the designed, simulated, and real worlds in one
Revit. The quality assurance of the input data
consistent digital form within the IFC structure to
was first carried out with the help of Simplebim
provide the operator with a clear visualisation of
and then with Solibri. The simulation results were
Grosspeter Tower’s relative performance.
analysed using Python scripts (model-based data
analysis), visualised in Python and Revit (model- Further, the use of IFC models during the planning
based data visualisation) and exported from Revit stage added value to the project through better
as IFC in Trimble Plancal Nova for building services and faster data availability regarding simulation
planning. In the process, both the heating and boundary conditions and related simulation
cooling capacity required for dimensioning and the results, more transparent communication of
expected indoor climate were passed on. decision-making for building use and internal
Integrating the simulation tool into the building loads, and business savings through optimisation
management platform environment allowed live and automation of the planning process. This has
data from linked systems to be fed back into the led to a holistic increase in quality and accuracy of
simulation. This enables continuous improvement the expected building behaviour and lower error
of the simulation and even enables operational costs in planning.
improvement opportunities to be predicted. As
the building can be optimised by the simulation,
and the simulation can, in turn, be improved by “Model-based performance gap analysis brings
data from the building. This results in a symbiosis the simulated, designed world together with reality
between the two systems with the digital twin in in one digital medium that allows the operator
the BIM viewer at the centre. to identify and inform his decisions using the
IFC model. The main added value in planning
Highlights phases using IFC models was the better and faster
data availability regarding simulation boundary
• openBIM methods and the IFC 2x3 format
conditions and related simulation results.”
were used in the design and integration of the
simulated and actual 3D model data Werner Fehlmann, Siemens Schweiz AG
• Target and actual building energy efficiency
performance values were compared to
conduct a gap analysis
• IfcSensor used as a transfer medium between
the simulation and actual values

IFC 2x3
Software Used
BIM 360, Equa IDA ICE, Plancal Nova, Revit 2019.2,
Siemens Desigo CC, Simplebim, Solibri
Result
The processes explored in this project brings the
simulated (as designed) world together with the
real world in one digital medium that allows the
FINALIST
An Ecosystem of Digital Twins -

Kampusareena
Granlund Oy, Finland
About the Project operations.

Kampusareena is a multifunctional building Kampusareena was selected as a pilot project to
serving all faculties of the Tampere University of test the BIMLIFE platform. It was agreed with the
Technology in Finland, as well as companies and client to integrate the existing automation and
research institutions operating on campus. In maintenance management systems with openBIM,
addition to the university campus library, student focussing on maintenance and indoor air quality
services and restaurant services that operate on (IAQ) use cases.
site, there are meeting, working, and teaching Important in the development of BIMLIFE was
facilities in the building. The facility has a total area the understanding of the different levels involved
of 13,706 m2 distributed over eight floors. in managing building assets, namely strategic,
To improve the facility management of managerial, and operational. With these different
Kampusareena, Granlund Oy used the building management levels in mind, four tools were
as a pilot project for their BIMLIFE platform, an developed to make up the BIMLIFE platform:
ecosystem of digital twins built on openBIM Portfolio benchmarking tool
standards.
This tool is a strategic decision support system for
Core Objectives property managers that is flexible to changes that
arise over the course of a building’s life cycle and
The BIMLIFE project aims to develop a world-
provides an interactive and dynamic user interface.
class BIM-based digital platform for the lifecycle
The scope of the solution includes two common
information management of building assets.
financial instruments used in the strategy level of
Project Description building management: OPEX and CAPEX. In this
Managing and operating facilities is a complex
process and involves many different stakeholders
with very different sets of goals and objectives.
To help overcome these complexities, Granlund
developed their BIMLIFE platform using openBIM
standards and digital twins. The platform enables
different tools employed by various users in the
operations and management of buildings to
exchange information seamlessly from design to
Category of Facilities Management
case study, the strategic goal was to reduce the • openBIM standards, such as IFC, were the
operation and maintenance costs for one of the primary information sources for developing
buildings in the portfolio. the platform tools
Digital twin for building maintenance • Digital twins used for maintenance and indoor
At the managerial level, the digital twin was used air quality use cases
to improve both the efficiency of the teams’ • Maintenance monitoring systems integrated
performing operations and maintenance work with openBIM
and the efficiency of the technical systems. The
tool has an integrated interface for accessing buildingSMART openBIM Solutions
information about the technical systems, like
heating, cooling, ventilation, water, gas, fire, and IFC 2x3
safety. These systems are represented digitally in Software Used
BIM, integrated using IFC, and coupled with static
and dynamic data about the building. Having all AR4FM, ArchiCAD, Granlund Designer, Granlund
the maintenance data in single repository enables Manager, Revit, SimpleBIM, Solibri Model Checker,
better planning of maintenance activities and Tridify, Unity
identifying the root causes of maintenance issues.
Result
Digital twin for indoor air quality
openBIM was an essential aspect of the
A second managerial tool uses the digital twin development of the BIMLIFE platform. IFC enabled
for improving and tracking the indoor conditions the project team to exchange information
using real-time sensor data (temperature, CO2, between different tools, integrate with the
humidity, lux levels) and feedback inputted by building automation systems, develop the facility
end users about the conditions (indoor air quality, management use cases, and exchange and
noise, light, odour, ambience, design, quality of the synchronise information.
furniture) within the building.
Through the application of these openBIM tools,
A colour-coded heat map quickly shows whether building maintenance teams will be able to
rooms are within, below or above predetermined improve the value and sustainability of real estate
targets, allowing building users to select the assets while increasing the satisfaction, health, and
area where conditions are most suitable for wellbeing of building users.
their workday. The tool can also monitor room,
floor, and occupancy levels, which can help to
understand space usage and plan post-COVID “An ecosystem of Digital Twins is a good approach
return-to-work measures. to create value with the use of openBIM, and
Augmented reality for facilities management satisfy the needs of the different stakeholders in
(AR4FM) building operations.”
This operational tool was developed to help field Francisco Forns-Samso, Granlund Oy
maintenance engineers plan efficient reactive
and preventive maintenance routines. The tool’s
main feature is to visualise and provide static and
dynamic information about the technical systems
and equipment that are commonly not visible.
It can be launched using mobile devices such as
tablets and smartphones.
Highlights
• An openBIM-based platform enables seamless
information exchange in the operation and
management of building assets
WINNER
Foodstuffs North Island Headquarters and

Distribution Centre at Auckland Airport
Auckland International Airport Ltd, New Zealand
About the Project the project. One of these goals was an accurate
and verified as-built model handover with asset
The Foodstuffs facility at Auckland Airport’s The attribute information requirements, as set out
Landing Business Park is a new, purpose-built by the client for their eventual use in Asset
facility to serve as both the company’s corporate Management/Facility Maintenance (AM/FM) in
headquarters and a distribution centre (80,000 the building operations phase. Auckland Airport
m2 of floor area) for over 100 supermarkets. An required these delivered models to be in IFC
adjacent and architecturally award-winning office format alongside the native authoring files, rather
building (8,500 m2 of floor area) was designed to than indicate a specific BIM authoring software for
accommodate approximately 1,000 Foodstuffs the disciplines to use.
employees, along with a flexible ground floor
design for conference, catering, and presentation Throughout the design and construction phases,
areas. delivery teams collaborated via regular model
exchange using Revizto and updated models
Core Objectives to reflect the as-built situation as the buildings
The main objective was to deliver a new, were constructed. All native files were set up
architecturally significant, and sustainable to align to a common survey control network,
head office for Foodstuffs, adjacent to the new which ensured that each IFC discipline model
distribution centre, using BIM technology and output would correctly align without the need to
processes throughout all project phases to translate models to the correct location in a model
promote efficient project delivery. federation tool.
IFC files were delivered to the client via Aconex to
Project Description
The two projects, the distribution centre, and the
office, were delivered by separate teams, with
a BIM consultant coordinating the information
exchange on behalf of the client, Auckland
Airport. This role was critical to ensuring that all 22
discipline models aligned, and attribute fields were
correctly structured.
A BIM execution plan was developed at the start
of the project and clearly set out the goals of
Category of Handover
keep them informed of progress. Aconex enabled Result

the models to be viewed via a web browser
without needing desktop installations. openBIM brought value to the project as it enabled
the project team selection to be based on the
At project close-out, both the contractors and quality of their holistic tender proposal rather
independent information managers meticulously than the BIM software they used. It also enabled
reviewed the as-built models against what was smaller firms, who are relatively new to BIM, to
constructed and went to great effort in ensuring participate in the process using their existing
models were updated accordingly. During this toolset, eliminating the need for them to invest in
stage, 965 as-built issues were resolved in the BIM new software and training.
models.
In addition, the use of IFC enabled the relevant
The final models from the separate disciplines handover data to be consolidated to one custom
were geolocated to a national coordinate system property set with consistent attribute fields
and subsequently dropped into the correct regardless of the modelling software used. This
location within the airport campus GIS model with was the first time that an Auckland Airport project
minimal effort. had mapped data to a common IFC property
Highlights set for all model disciplines and resulted in a
streamlined process for reviewing models.
• 22 different design disciplines across the two
buildings and one significant land development By mandating IFC models as deliverables for this
package, with two construction contractors on project, the Foodstuffs will eventually be able to
site simultaneously choose whichever AF/FM system that best suits
their specific user requirements rather than be
• Client mandated IFC deliverable in their Asset beholden to using a system that works with native
Information Delivery Manual handover models.
• Both projects were delivered ahead of
schedule and under budget
“From the outset, the project teams worked
• All disciplines produced BIM models, leading to towards achieving the requirements set out in
a full as-built model deliverable our Asset Information Delivery Manual, which
• Regular model coordination via a Project CDE facilitates an openBIM approach and includes
and delivered to the client Project Document a full IFC based deliverable requirement. There
Management System (PDMS), Aconex was a great level of collaboration and innovation
throughout all project stages, which led to a highly
• On-site validation using mobile devices of successful delivery of the physical assets and
models against the as-built construction ultimately led to a trustworthy and detailed digital
• First time using IFC as an information exchange record of the built assets. This can now be used in
format for most of the delivery team the operations of the building with confidence that
the data is well structured.”
• All parties were able to model in their
preferred software ecosystem and contribute Karl Fitzpatrick, Auckland International Airport Ltd
to a successful handover

BCF, IFC 2x3, IFC 4
Software Used
Aconex, Autodesk AutoCAD, Autodesk Inventor,
Autodesk Navisworks, Autodesk Revit, Bentley
Prosteel, BIMcollab Zoom, Graphisoft Archicad,
iConstruct, Revizto, Solibri Office
WINNER
openBIM: Opening the Gate for BIM

and Blockchain Integration (OBBi)
The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong
About the Project design changes, offshore production, cross-border

logistics and supply chain, and on-site assembly.
There is great enthusiasm within the AEC
industry for the potential for blockchain and This research adopted a threefold approach.
BIM integration to overcome challenges arising Firstly, the in-house research team developed the
from multiple parties working concurrently on OBBi system architecture, its major components,
collaborative BIM programs (e.g. cybersecurity and interlinks. Secondly, the system was
risks, lack of single source of truth), as well as the contextualized in bSI’s openBIM ecosystem for
information redundancy and massive data volume implementation, with the core input-output format
that result from file-based data exchange. being IFC. Lastly, the prototype was tested and
validated in the WCH project.
However, the integration of BIM and blockchain
faces challenges such as lack of interoperability, The OBBi system was designed to meet the
information redundancy, and resemblance and demands of BIM users for the WCH project. Four
swiftness of retrieving data. The project team, from vital layers were designed:
the University of Hong Kong, harnessed openBIM (1) Commercial BIM as the base model designed in
to solve the interoperability issue and applied their Revit
Semantic Differential Transaction (SDT) method to
solve the information redundancy problem. (2) Web openBIM interface for the visualization of
nD BIM in IFC;
Core Objectives (3) openBIM semantics-based server back-end for
This research project aimed to take advantage of minimization of changed BIM components as SDT
BIM and blockchain integration to solve challenges records; and
in building projects, such as communication,
provenance and quality assurance, installation,
traceability, lifecycle management and more.
Project Description
A prototype system integrating BIM and blockchain
(called OBBi, openBIM and Blockchain Integration)
was developed for managing AEC processes in a
real-life building project in Hong Kong called the
WCH project. In particular, it looked to manage
Category of Professional Research
(4) Blockchain-based BIM data storage for the buildingSMART openBIM Solutions
authenticity of BIM versions and changes on the
blockchain. IFC 2x3, IfcJSON
The web-based openBIM interface displayed Software Used
the up-to-date and historical BIM models during
the WCH project. On the interface, a user could Autodesk Navisworks, Autodesk Revit, BIMVision,
upload the latest BIM model, retrieve the recorded e-InstalStar, e-Instar, e-TranStar, Hyperledger,
historical BIM at any timestamp, and contrast the Solibri
changes between versions. Result
The BIM semantics back-end minimized the The project led to three significant and unique
massive IFC files as incremental changes contributions: the tidying up the IFC for BIM
for blockchaining. Particularly, the Semantic and blockchain integration, the invention of
Differential Transaction (SDT) model developed
an innovative methodology to blockchain BIM
by the research team could differentiate the
changes only and the development of a new
chronological changes and eliminate the
approach to retrieve information from blockchain
information redundancy between IFC models.
and restore it to BIM without time delay or
First, an IFC file was loaded as a hierarchy of
information loss.
openBIM semantics. Then, the “global IDs” of
IFC components generated by Revit were de- As a result, the key outcomes of the
randomized to compare their semantic contents. implementation were a high IFC compression
The resultant SDT records filtered out the ratio on chain—largely reducing information
unchanged IFC components and relationships. redundancy, lossless IFC encoding and quick
restoration of IFC from the blockchain.
A permissioned Blockchain 2.0 stored the initial
version of the project BIM and all the incremental This is one of the first few studies that has truly
changes over time. A smart contract formatted the harnessed the benefits of openBIM and IFC to
SDT records as encoded transactions documents. integrate BIM and blockchain to enable various
A permissioned blockchain channel shared the on- value-added uses of these technologies.
chain SDT records to the WCH project users via on-
demand requests from the web-based interface.
Alternatively, a permissioned user could also “The buildingSMART International Awards
synchronize the SDT records via two Revit node Program is a competitive but friendly program.
add-ons that supported access to the OBBi system I first experienced the ceremony in Beijing and
through the Revit environment and APIs. decided that we should participate in it. I found
With the three layers of openBIM blockchain and it is particularly inspiring to combine the real-life
two Revit add-ons, the OBBi system can resolve AEC challenges with cutting-edge research findings,
the information authenticity and redundancy at to connect practitioners with researchers, and to
the same time. promote the value of openBIM in real world AEC
applications.”
Highlights Professor Wilson W.S. Lu, The University of Hong
• One of the first studies to employ IFC for Kong
blockchain and BIM integration
• Invented an innovative methodology to
blockchain only the changes in the model to
minimize data volume
• Developed a novel approach to retrieve
information from the blockchain and restore it
to BIM without time delay or information loss
FINALIST
Automated Generation of a MVD

by Linking IDM and bSDD
Yonsei University, South Korea
About the Project Recently, this IDM schema was proposed as ISO
29481-3 and is currently in the Draft International
A team made up of researchers from the Building Standard (DIS) phase.
Informatics Group at Yonsei University, Cospec
Innolab and BIM Peers created a machine- The proposed solution was validated through
interpretable link between an Information Delivery the development of xPPM-neo, a new IDM
Manual (IDM) and a Model View Definition (MVD) configuration (authoring) tool, that allows a user
to avoid the need for manual mapping between to generate an MVD from an IDM document using
IDM and MVD elements. idmXML and the bSDD API.
The new solution, xPPM-neo, employed idmXML xPPM-neo consists of three components to
and the buildingSMART Data Dictionary (bSDD) support the use case, the business context map
Application Programming Interface (API) to (including the process map and the interaction
automatically generate an MVD from an IDM map), and the exchange requirements (ER) of the
document. IDM, as specified in ISO 29481-1.
To automatically generate an MVD and validate
Core Objectives the xPPM-neo solution using the exchange
To improve and facilitate the IDM and MVD requirement (ER) section of IDM, the following
development process to make clear what steps were taken:
information should be generated, managed, and
1. Specification of information units
submitted at each phase of a BIM construction
project and how it can be used throughout the The first step was to specify information units
project’s lifecycle. required to conduct the target tasks. In the ER
section, the user can specify the information units
Project Description
This study proposed a mechanism to directly link
IDM and MVD through bSDD and address the
absence of a proper data schema that makes an
IDM document machine-readable. To do this, the
team employed the newly developed IDM data
schema (idmXML schema definition or idmXSD),
which enables users to store, search, share, and
exchange IDM documents and their contents.
that they want. In the IDM data schema, the data schema as a linking mechanism between
information unit includes name, data type, IDM, IFC and bSDD. Further, this study opened
definition, external element, and example. the possibility of linking IDM not only to IFC and
2. Linking ER and bSDD bSDD, but also other standard data schemas
including cityGML, gbXML, and openGIS by
The second step was to use the bSDD API to converting IDM documents into a standardized,
search for the IFC element (entity or property) that machine applicable, readable, and transferrable
corresponded to the specified information unit. (SMART) format through idmXSD. By automating
An advantage of using bSDD as a search engine MVD generation, the solution helps to resolve the
was that bSDD could also find the IFC elements current slow and error prone MVD development
with synonyms in addition to the IFC elements with process.
exact-matching terms. For example, if a user typed
in “floor” to mean a concrete slab, bSDD will return
“IfcSlab” as one of the candidates IFC elements for “This study proposed Automated generation of
“floor”. an MVD by linking IDM and bSDD through IDM
3. Derivation of a full valid MVD from individual schema – idmXSD. Machine-readable IDM includes
elements a mechanism to link information units in IDM
and IFC elements in bSDD. Using Concept-based
The final step was to collect all the IFC elements MVD generation algorithm, a generated MVD
matching the specified information units and includes all specified IFC elements, supertypes, and
automatically generate an MVD. Even if all the mandatory properties. This study contributes to
IFC elements that match specified information
demonstrating the validity of the IDM data schema
units were found, the collection of IFC elements
as a linking mechanism among ISO 29481-1
were still far from a fully valid MVD because, for
(IDM), ISO 16739-1 (IFC), and ISO 12006-3 (bSDD).
example, IFC requires supertypes and mandatory
Furthermore, the proposed study contributes
properties to be included in a valid MVD. To create
to the open possibility of linking IDM to other
a full valid MVD from the collection IFC elements,
standard data schemas through ISO 29481-3
the concept based MVD generation algorithm
(idmXSD).”
previously developed by one of the project
contributors (Lee) was used. Seungwoo Son, Yonsei University
Highlights
• A new IDM authoring tool, xPPM-neo, was
developed to recreate IDM documents in a
machine-readable format, idmXML
• xPPM-neo linked the IDM and MVD through
the bSDD API
• The solution helps to resolve the current slow
and error prone MVD development process

bSDD, bSDD API, IDM, idmXSD, IFC, MVD
Software Used
xPPM-neo (a newly developed IDM configuration
tool)
Result
This study demonstrated the validity of the IDM
FINALIST
BIM-based Structural Health Monitoring

Platform for Historic Timber Buildings
Xi’an University of Architecture and Technology, China
About the Project that is, repaired after destruction.

Students from the Xi’an University of Architecture The combination of BIM technology and
and Technology developed an automated Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) can serve
BIM-based Structural Health Monitoring (BIM- to unify the management of multi-source
SHM) platform to monitor the status of historic monitoring information and update BIM models
timber structures in real-time and to identify of these historic timber structures with real-time
and eliminate damage risk factors. The BIM- monitoring data. This enables repairs to be made
SHM platform linked IFC models with real-time in response to damage monitoring thresholds
monitoring data from IoT sensors for further being reached rather than in response to severe
analysis to aid in conservation decision-making. damage observed after it occurs.
The project captured the relationship of historic In developing a solution to bring together BIM
timber building elements, damaged elements, and SHM, the team initially analysed the logical
and craft elements through ontological analysis relationship between different concepts and
and established a rule expression framework for divided the ontology into knowledge in the field
historic building attributes through the Semantic of historical buildings into three parts: entity, craft
Web Rule Language (SWRL). and damage. They then used Protégé software to
establish ontology models for them.
Core Objectives Second, the team used SWRL to express historic
This study seeks to solve the lack of digital building construction rules and damage rules. In
representation and digital preservation of the accordance with the ontology model and the SWRL
remnants of historic Chinese timber buildings. expression mechanism, the IFC standard was
Project Description
Chinese historic buildings are dominated by timber
structures, and the extensive use of wood has
become a weak point in their longevity. Adverse
factors such as material degradation, long-term
loading, biological erosion, and human activities
leads to damage that threatens the safety and
stability of these structures. Current conservation
techniques are primarily post-event protection,
extended to accurately express the information buildingSMART openBIM Solutions

related to entities and damage of historic timber
structures. IFC 2x3, IFC 4.1
In the third stage of research, C# programming, Software Used
SQL Server, IoT monitoring technology and a
comprehensive evaluation method for the overall BIM-SHM (developed by the project team),
health of historic buildings were combined with IfcCheckingTool, Protégé, Revit, SPARQL, SQL
the IFC historic building entities and damage Server, Visual Studio, Xplorer
expressions to create an automatic health Result
monitoring and early warning platform. This
platform, named “BIM-SHM platform”, was The application of the openBIM methodology
developed using the xBIM NuGet package and in the development of the automated BIM-SHM
provides several functions, including management platform has led to a powerful, intelligent system
of the monitoring system, visualisation of the for the operation and maintenance of historic
monitoring data, real-time sensor monitoring and timber structures. Compared with the existing
automatic alarm triggering, automatic updating of non-destructive damage detection methods,
the IFC model with monitoring data and importing/ the BIM-SHM platform can monitor the health
exporting the IFC model. of historic buildings in real time with a greatly
reduced human workload and material resource
Using the ChengHuang Temple in Xi’an as a case
requirement.
study, a BIM model was created in Revit from the
point cloud captured by a laser scanner. Then,
the IFC file exported by Revit was transmitted to
“This project got three highlights of openBIM. In the
the BIM-SHM platform. The platform outputted
early stages of the project. By the establishment
the IFC model with the monitoring information,
of an ontological framework for the damaged
as stored in SQL Server, which was collected from
and restored elements of historic buildings, the
environmental and pressure IoT sensors already
foundation for the subsequent establishment of
installed in the ChengHuang Temple.
IFCOWL was prepared. In the middle stages of the
The BIM model with monitoring information was project. By the addition of degradation elements
imported into Abaqus and Ansys Fluent to analyse of historic buildings in the framework of the IFC,
the environmental and mechanical data for use the gap in the sector has been filled. In the later
by the historic building repair, maintenance, and stages of the project. The completion of the HBIM-
management personnel. SHM platform has not only changed the time-
consuming and laborious situation of traditional
Highlights inspection work, but also greatly improved work
• The development of a BIM-SHM platform efficiency.”
offers a new solution for ancient building
Kevin Hu, Xi’an University of Architecture and
inspection Technology
• Creation of an SWRL language and ontology
model of ancient building processes,
restoration and damage
• Established a framework for representing the
damaged elements of historic buildings under
the IFC standard.
• Created a traceable repair process for ancient
buildings by loading the monitoring data into
BIM models
WINNER
The IfcInfraToolKit
The Technical University of Munich (TUM), Germany
About the Project the schema extension proposal ultimately matches

the needs of end-users.
This project takes existing authoring tools to
develop IFC models using Visual Programming During any development and validation phase of
Languages (VPL) and tests the new IFC schema a standard, it is crucial to get feedback from future
release, IFC 4.3, on real-world projects. The end users and test newly developed entities with
models were used to test and validate initiatives sample scenarios from the targeting domains.
of the buildingSMART International InfraRoom Such testing tools should enable the user to unlock
Infrastructure Extensions Deployment project as a the full power of the schema extension proposal
community benefit. and have few limitations in their configuration
sections. At the same time, the testing suite should
Core Objectives remain usable, without the need to know how to
To generate sample models covering new IFC program or compile processes for source code.
entities and new schema versions recently To this end, this project from the Technical
introduced by IFC schema extension projects. University of Munich (in collaboration with
Specifically, the project seeks to enable rapid and Autodesk) identified the application of visual
user-friendly validation of IFC models for storylines programming languages (VPL) as a means to
formulated in the IfcInfraDeployment project dynamically compose information stored and
(buildingSMART International InfraRoom). exchanged in an IFC-based BIM model. This use of
VPL enabled users to create complex procedures
Project Description without compiling source code or running
Extension projects, such as the IFC 4.3 Infra development environments on their machines but
Extension Deployment project, require the instead assemble visual components (nodes and
creation of prototypes and unit tests to verify
the concepts proposed using a platform-specific
conceptual model. A conceptual model formulates
the collected end users’ requirements and maps
them to the IFC-based data specification. Thus,
the conceptual model helps to identify which use
cases can be already covered by extending existing
entities. Furthermore, it helps the technical experts
define new entities and properties to ensure that
Category of Student Research
edges) on a canvas. To do so, the user specifies buildingSMART openBIM Solutions

the information exported into the resulting model
by dragging nodes. Each node covers a specific IFC 4.3
concept of the IFC data specification, such as
creating new components or attaching specific Software Used
geometric representations to elements. Autodesk Dynamo for Civil 3D, Autodesk Dynamo
The project authors adopted the VPL application for Revit, Autodesk Dynamo Sandbox, BIM
Autodesk Dynamo and implemented a VPL-based Vision, GeometryGymIFC: NuGet package for.
toolkit, which helped to compose IFC 4.3 models NET frameworks, Visual Studio 2019 with .NET
using the latest extensions. The Dynamo library Framework environments
exposed a set of nodes that could interactively Result
compose IFC models and modify the model
content without touching source code. This project’s prototypical implementation has
showcased the application of Visual Programming
The prototype toolkit was applied to several
Languages (VPL) for composing IFC-based domain
storylines (i.e., real-world sample test sets)
models. The approach has been implemented
formulated within the InfraDeployment
and validated as a successful and promising
project. This included the creation of IFC
methodology. The ability to compose IFC-based
4.3-compliant sample models for bridge storylines
concepts in an interactive design environment
from infrastructure design firm HNTB as a
was found to be flexible and easy to understand,
comprehensive coverage test.
particularly for unit and coverage test and
At the beginning of the testing phase, provided valuable feedback for the IFC 4.3 project.
relatively small scenarios were tested, such as
creating simple spatial structures or a single
IfcBuiltElement. Once basic functionalities, like “The buildingSMART awards program allowed
constructing a model skeleton with all mandatory us to present and discuss our recent discoveries
items, worked properly (unit assignments, in our research activities with a diverse audience
instantiating appropriate geometric contexts, etc.), of industry experts, practitioners, end-users,
advanced situations were implemented, and more and software developers. Therefore, it is a great
comprehensive datasets were processed. platform to present and discuss our shared
The resulting models, developed using the VPL- goals: to provide the AEC industry with better
based toolkit, will assist other implementers in collaboration and data exchange.”
exploring and understanding IFC 4.3 concepts, Sebastian Esser, The Technical University of
support the definition of new concept templates, Munich
and showcase new entities and geometric
representations of real-world scenarios.
Highlights
• A VPL-based toolkit was developed to
modularize the assembly IFC 4.3 models using
existing authoring tools
• Combines new schema development with
user-friendly validation prototyping
• Allows interactive composition and
modification of IFC models without touching
source code
• The composition of IFC-based concepts in an
interactive design environment was found to
be flexible and easy to understand
FINALIST
Innovative Building Management System

Through Dynamic Digital Twin
The University of Rome, Italy
About the Project monitoring data to the digital twins of buildings to

create “Dynamic Digital Twins”. Using a digital twin
This master’s thesis project from the Faculty of as the basis for dynamic data visualization helps
Civil and Industrial Engineering at the University to overcome data contextualization by linking
of Rome “La Sapienza” developed a new Building BIM objects to real-world devices and extends
Management System (BMS) solution that brings the life of the otherwise static digital twin into the
together the dynamic data from smart devices and operation and maintenance phase of the building.
the static data of a digital twin.
The researcher applied the concept of a Dynamic
The author used the IFC format as a vehicle to Digital Twin to the DIAEE (Department of
merge data gathered from monitoring devices to Astronautical, Electrical and Energy Engineering)
BIM objects via a cloud platform. building at the University of Rome “La Sapienza”,
Core Objectives with data collection focused on the monitoring
and metering of electrical systems of the LAMBDA
To improve the user experience of Building laboratory.
Management Systems by visually contextualizing
data from monitoring devices in a building’s digital The complete implementation of the system
twin. required a four-step process. The first step was
the generation of a digital twin of the building’s
Project Description electrical system using ACCA’s Edificius’ MEP
function. The resulting virtual replica of the
The monitoring of data from different functions
building was exported in IFC and then imported
within a building, such as security, energy
into usBIM.viewer+, which allowed editing of object
consumption, state of the systems (mechanical,
properties and the addition of “dynamic
electrical, etc.), often requires different systems
and software. The data derived from these BMS’s
are typically displayed on dashboards that show
both the status of the devices and the commands
for their control. However, this data is rarely
contextualized in a building model, making it hard
for building managers to locate the monitoring
devices.
This project proposed to connect the digital
Category of Student Research
properties”. The research team created dynamic Result

properties to describe the smart characteristics of
the devices, and their configuration depended on In this project, the openBIM IFC standard became
the communication protocol used by the device. the epicentre of data exchange for a series of
building management and maintenance processes
The second step was the communication system by enabling the contextualisation of building
configuration between the real-world devices management data in a digital twin. The improved
and the BIM objects in the digital twin. The data contextualisation will allow managers or
configuration phase built on the communication maintainers to operate a building more simply,
parameters set in the design phase and used the leading to time and cost savings.
open-source visual programming tool Node-RED
to configure communication with the devices. By applying the openBIM methodology, the
solution developed in this project will support
The third step was the operational phase, in continuity between the design and management
which Node-RED gathered data from devices and phases of a building’s life cycle by using the digital
sent them to the cloud-based platform usBIM. twin output (in IFC) from the design phase without
IoT, which provided a human-machine interface the need to build brand new model for a BMS.
between users and devices.
In the fourth and final step, the gathered data in
the usBIM.IoT cloud platform was stored inside “Data can be stored inside an IFC model creating
properties of the objects in a new IFC file created a three-dimensional photograph of the building
by the usIFC.server on user demand. This new IFC status at a certain moment. It is clear that
file was based on the model created in the design openBIM, through IFC format, manages to connect
phase but with the addition of the values and the design and management creating a continuity
information sent by devices. between the two phases. Besides, being the centre
of the whole management system, IFC model
Highlights becomes a unique landmark during the entire
• A new Building Management System solution lifecycle of the building.”
using a building’s digital twin and smart devices Luca Ciurluini, Master of Electrical Engineering
• The IFC schema used to link real-world Candidate
monitoring data with BIM objects
• Improved user experience and monitoring
data contextualisation in the management
stage of a building’s life cycle
• Royalty-free communication system based on
an open-source programming tool

IFC
Software Used
Edificius by ACCA Software S.p.A. (BIM design),
Node-RED by OpenJS Foundation (data acquisition
from the real-world devices), usBIM.IoT by ACCA
Software S.p.A. (user interface and IFC reader),
usBIM.viewer+ by ACCA Software S.p.A. (properties
definition), usIFC.server by ACCA Software S.p.A.
(background technology for IFC cloud editing)
WINNER
From Pixel to Pset: The Digital

Structural Inspection
VCE Vienna Consulting
Engineers ZT GmbH, Austria
About the Project learning optimisation to analyse individual pixels

of the high-resolution input images, a highly
Through a collaborative effort between the sophisticated method that produces very detailed
corporate start-up STRUCINSPECT (Palfinger outputs. Segmented pixels were produced from
Structural Inspection GmbH) and VCE Vienna this AI damage detection process, in which the
Consulting Engineers ZT GmbH, a technological identified defects were identified, analysed,
solution was developed for the fully automated marked and documented. Defects were also
digital structural inspection of concrete structures. classified according to the respective level of
The solution combines innovative technologies severity, dimensions, type and any other attributes
to automate the detection of structural damages required to describe the damage.
(such as cracks, spalling, exposed reinforcement, In addition to the segmented image, the output
corrosion etc.) and a novel approach to recording of the AI pattern recognition process comes in
and presenting the results using IFC and BCF. the form of two ASCII raw data text files: one
Core Objectives containing the geo-referenced 3D points defining
the contour polyline of the damage, and the other
This work aims to facilitate the digital structural containing the damage attribute metadata.
inspection and maintenance management of
concrete structures while promoting the wide- Using the Python IfcOpenShell, these two raw data
scale industry adoption of an openBIM based sources are transformed into a highly detailed,
structural inspection process. information rich IFC 4 model (with all associated
attribute information stored on the appropriate
Project Description Pset).
The STRUCINSPECT platform (app.strucinspect.
com) enables civil engineers overseeing structural
inspections to manage the entire life-cycle process.
As part of its advanced inspection services, the
platform provides the user with a textured 3D
mesh model of existing concrete structures by
using photogrammetry to extract 3D information
from photographs.
STRUCINSPECT uses neural networks with deep
Category of Technology
Each IFC model depicts the structural condition of using BCF.

the object at that moment in time. When the IFC
By using drones or telescopic lenses for conducting
structural inspection models are superimposed
digital structure inspection, the solution can
over the 3D geometry (3D mesh model, BIM model
reduce labour costs, eliminate risk to engineers,
or point cloud), the user is provided with an instant
avoid disruption to traffic caused by closing
understanding of the damages and the structural
motorways, and improve damage recognition
condition of the object.
rates (as compared to visual inspection).
In a parallel process, the raw data is converted to
The choice of IFC as a BIM format is a
BCF, and the solution automatically generates a
software-independent, robust and sustainable
BCF damages catalogue using a custom Python
format appropriate to the long lifespan of an
tool.
infrastructure project. Widespread uptake of the
This allows comments and damage updates STRUCINSPECT platform-based technology would
observed in the field during interim inspections by provide the openBIM movement with a powerful
an engineer to be entered into a tablet-based BIM new use case, a rapidly growing market and help
model and transfer the inspection update back to consolidate its position as the most viable solution
the BIM model/STRUCINSPECT platform through for BIM-based asset management.
BCF synchronisation.
The solution is now fully operational and has
already been implemented successfully with “The openBIM formats, IFC and BCF, play key
several large clients, including public infrastructure roles in our technology solution, as only they
operators, structural engineering consultants and provide the accessibility and longevity guaranteed
asset management service providers. to outlast the lifespan of the structure itself. Our
decision to integrate openBIM methodologies has
Highlights enabled us to create an environment where all
• Fully automated digital inspection and analysis parties involved can take control over their data
of damage to concrete structures using and workflows and retain sovereignty over their
photographs and AI technology internal software solution.”
• Solution returns output in the form of an IFC 4 Peter O’Brien, VCE Vienna Consulting Engineers ZT
BIM model and an accompanying BCF report GmbH
• Fully operational and is already implemented

successfully with several large clients

BCF, IFC
Software Used
BIMcollab Zoom, DESITE, Metashape, Python
IfcOpenShell, Revit, Solibri Model Checker
Result
The STRUCINSPECT solution is ground-breaking
on multiple fronts. It offers a new and innovative
automated approach to structural inspections
based solely on photographs. It provides a
revolutionary alternative to a 2D structural
inspection report in the form of an IFC BIM model,
and it enables the “round-trip” of site-based
inspection input from minor interim inspections
FINALIST
Collaborative Development
of openBIM Technologies
Open Design Alliance, USA
About the Project differences and incompatibilities in their respective

implementations.
Open Design Alliance (ODA) is a not-for-
profit technology consortium that develops In 2018 ODA initiated work on a more efficient
interoperability solutions for the CAD and BIM solution for openBIM development in response
industries. Through its unique non-profit business to a member survey, in which 60% of ODA’s 1,200
model, ODA has put forth a valuable new offering members expressed interest in IFC. Through ODA’s
to the BIM industry: collaborative development of collaborative model, member companies funded
openBIM solutions. the development of a set of high-quality openBIM
technologies, developed by full-time professionals,
ODA has developed a suite of openBIM
which could then be shared by all ODA members.
technologies that allow companies to efficiently
achieve high-quality compatibility with the latest From this development, three openBIM technology
IFC specifications. components were produced. ODA IFC SDK, the
primary openBIM component by ODA, is a cross-
Core Objectives platform programmer’s toolkit for software
ODA’s mission is complete interoperability for developers that can be quickly integrated into
the engineering software industry through any application on all major platforms to achieve
the collaborative development of high-quality, high-quality support for IFC import, export,
affordable programming toolkits. and visualization. ODA Visualize SDK is a 3D
visualization technology tightly integrated with IFC
Project Description that can be integrated into any desktop, mobile or
Historically, software vendors have implemented cloud application to provide fast visualization of
their own in-house IFC support in response to each large IFC models on any device.
new IFC version release. Doing so necessitates
hiring and training developers, which consumes
valuable development resources, as each IFC
implementation must be independently tested
and verified. Companies separately developing
IFC support for their products in this way can lead
to new IFC releases being supported at different
times for different software packages due to
varying internal resource availability, as well as
Open IFC Viewer is a free, stand-alone viewer that buildingSMART openBIM Solutions
can be used to independently visualize and verify
IFC models of any version and to quickly work with All IFC versions, BCF
new IFC specifications as they are published by bSI.
Software Used
The ODA approach to implementing openBIM is
far less expensive for member companies than All software used in the project was developed by
the cost of in-house IFC support development, ODA
and by using a shared solution, each member Result
company benefits from the testing and verification
done by all other companies. In addition, using Applying ODA’s collaborative development model
the same underlying technology for IFC results in to openBIM has yielded a high-quality, low-cost
fewer errors and fewer incompatibilities between technology solution that has been widely adopted
openBIM data created by different vendors. by major industry vendors. This approach has
benefitted the industry by enabling a shorter IFC
The ODA model fosters faster adoption of new
development cycle, promoting faster adoption
IFC versions by providing complete, professional
of new IFC versions by vendors, improving
implementations of new IFC versions in real time
compatibility between vendors, creating higher
as soon as the specifications are published. The
quality IFC files and making the entire openBIM
process of creating a new version of IFC is complex
ecosystem more efficient and user-friendly.
and involves a large number of participants from
a wide range of companies and organizations,
all working together to verify and refine the “Partnering with the Open Design Alliance allows
specification to ensure it meets industry needs.
Autodesk to fast-track support for international
Fast availability of ODA implementations for new
data exchange standards like IFC. ODA allows
IFC release candidates allows interested parties
the industry to share a joint kernel for openBIM
to quickly integrate new IFC versions into their
workflows, providing a common language and
products, leading to faster verification of the new
understanding of data to improve interoperability.”
specifications, and a shorter development cycle for
Angel Velez, Autodesk
new IFC versions.
In this way, by the time a new IFC version is
officially published, it will have been more
thoroughly used and tested by more parties than
in the past, and users of ODA technology will have
a short, convenient, and well-defined process for
upgrading to the new version.
Highlights
• Provides a complete and affordable solution
for professional BIM interoperability
• Enables quick integration of new IFC releases
into software products
• Full access to all data in IFC 2x3, IFC 4 and IFC
4.3
• Fully self-contained solution with no
dependencies on third party components
FINALIST
usBIM.ids
ACCA Software, Italy
About the Project ids solution to support various stakeholders in

using the IDS open format in software. usBIM.
Italian software company ACCA developed the ids is entirely based on open formats, cloud
usBIM.ids, a solution that revolutionizes how technologies, and ACCA’s own technology, usBIM.
information requirements from clients and owners The solution consists of three modules that can
are managed in the BIM process. This improves work together or independently: creator, modeler,
data workflows for many stakeholders and further and validator.
enriches IFC models.
usBIM.ids (creator) helps to create an IDS file
The solution is based on buildingSMART based on the requirements defined by the client.
International’s Information Delivery Specification To create the IDS file, exchange requirement data
(IDS) standard designed to better understand and is entered into the creator module by the operator
implement requirements from clients. and/or imported from other formats like CSV or
Core Objectives XLS. usBIM.ids can also access bSDD and take
advantage of all its available features to enrich the
usBIM.ids was developed to solve a critical issue model. Once the creation phase is completed, the
in the BIM process: the request and delivery of IDS file is generated and delivered to the modeler
information in the IFC format for clients. via a Common Data Environment (CDE).
Project Description usBIM.ids (modeler) receives the IFC geometric
model created by the modeler with their authoring
buildingSMART International’s (bSI) Information
software of choice and one or more IDS file(s) as
Delivery Specification (IDS) is a new open standard
inputs. When appropriately configured with the
that will be used for the creation of a computer-
machine-readable IDS file, usBIM.ids (modeler)
interpretable document that defines the exchange
requirements of model-based workflows. This
document defines how objects, classifications,
properties and even values and units must be
delivered and exchanged. In effect, it expresses the
Level of Information Needed (LOIN) by a specific
IFC model.
As an active participant in the bSI IDS standard
working group, ACCA developed their usBIM.
shows all the property sets, IFC classes, and buildingSMART openBIM Solutions
properties required for each IFC element. The
operator uses the modelling feature of usBIM. BCF, bSDD, IDS, IFC
ids to fill in the required data in compliance with
the information requirements defined by the Software Used
client. For each property, the user can enter only usBIM, usBIM.blockchain, usBIM.browser, usBIM.
a permitted value as defined in the IDS, e.g. from ids, usBIM.platform, usIFC.server
a list of values or a value in a data range. Once
the data modelling is completed, a new IFC file is Result
produced containing all the information requested usBIM.ids enables clients and stakeholders to clearly
by the client in addition to the geometric data. express their exchange requirements, something
usBIM.ids (validator) receives both the complete that was previously a cumbersome and error-prone
IFC file of the model (geometry and data) process. It allows the level of information needs
delivered by the modeler and the created IDS to be defined, enables predictable and reliable
files as inputs. The validator quickly checks the data exchange workflows, and makes it possible
information quality of the IFC file. Any issues found to automatically validate IFC models against client
are displayed on the dashboard of the platform requirements.
and color-coded for easy analysis. usBIM.ids also
produces appropriate reports or files in BCF, XLSX
or CSV format for further use. “One of the most important aspects for the correct
setup of a BIM tender is the need for clients to have
All the output produced by usBIM.ids (IDS files, a model governance that is smooth and in line
IFC models) can be registered on blockchain to
with the objectives for which they are requested.
guarantee document authenticity and immutability
With usBIM.ids, which implements the new
over time.
buildingSMART standard (Information Delivery
The usBIM.ids solution has been tested in several Specification -IDS), you can correctly define your
projects by ANAS, which is part of Ferrovie dello Level Of Information Need (LOIN) within the
Stato, the Italian Public Railways Group. Prior Employer Information Requirement (EIR) and the
to the development of usBIM.ids, ANAS used to BIM Execution Plan (BEP).”
define the exchange requirements using Excel files
Michelangelo Cianciulli, ACCA Software
but lacked a software tool to verify the correctness
and completeness of the models produced by
the contractors. It was also impossible to perform
manual checking and validation given the large
size of the IFC models provided by the contractors.
usBIM.ids solves all these problems by enabling
ANAS to validate IFC models in a matter of seconds
rather than several days, transforming the way
they work.
Highlights
• Solution based entirely on openBIM standards
(IFC, IDS, bSDD, BCF) and cloud based
• First solution that supports stakeholders in
using bSI’s proposed Information Delivery
Specification (IDS) standard
• Captures and configures exchange
requirements in a machine-readable format
for modelling and validating IFC models

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What are the categories and sub-categories of the buildingSMART Awards program?

What are the categories and sub-categories of the buildingSMART Awards program?

What are some of the highlights of the 2021 Awards?

What are some of the highlights of the 2021 Awards?

The buildingSMART

Extraordinary projects from the 2021 buildingSMART

University of Naples Federico II, Italy Pages 8-9

Siemens, Austria Pages 10-11

Community Contribution Mostostal Warszawa S.A., Poland Pages 12-13

China Academy of Railway Sciences

Sweco Norge, Norway Pages 18-19

Sichuan Highway Planning, Survey,

Facilities Management Siemens Schweiz AG, Switzerland Pages 26-27

Granlund Oy, Finland Pages 28-29

Auckland International Airport Ltd,

Xi’an University of Architecture

VCE Vienna Consulting

ACCA Software, Italy Pages 46-47

smartBRIDGE Hamburg - The openBIM-based

About the Project traceability and sustainability of asset condition

Asset Information Management of an

About the Project the infrastructure gap with respect to RFI

and an autonomous railway truck (equipped with buildingSMART openBIM Solutions

openBIM based Digital Building Twin –

About the Project including over 1,500 sensors. The state-of-the-

features/compliance with technical guidelines. Software Used

buildingSMART openBIM Solutions

Make it Easier with openBIM: Primary

About the Project construction needs and decided to use BIM to

subcontractors and inspectors received Software Used

Highlights “openBIM is not about technology. At its core it

buildingSMART openBIM Solutions

openBIM Implemented on Beijing-Zhangjiakou

About the Project In the design phase of the Beijing-Zhangjiakou

buildingSMART openBIM Solutions

Building a Hospital with openBIM –

About the Project processes related to controlling the model during

and model “clean-ups” in Revit files to reduce Software Used

buildingSMART openBIM Solutions

buildingSMART openBIM Solutions

Yan-Jiang Expressway G4216 – openBIM Flagship

About the Project Three core concepts of openBIM were

exchange requirements and to specify methods the information exchange processes by

openBIM, Essential for Major

About the Project System (ETCS). CBGU D&C JV (CBGU), a joint

IFC models: Software Used

buildingSMART openBIM Solutions

Santiago Bernabéu Stadium

About the Project collaboration, and flexibility in the project.

Information exchange Result

buildingSMART openBIM Solutions

Grosspeter Tower: Performance

buildingSMART openBIM Solutions

An Ecosystem of Digital Twins -

About the Project operations.

Foodstuffs North Island Headquarters and

keep them informed of progress. Aconex enabled Result

buildingSMART openBIM Solutions

openBIM: Opening the Gate for BIM

About the Project design changes, offshore production, cross-border