orcutt | winslow's virtual building brochure
Download our TechnologyThink brochure to read more about the Virtual Building Process and Building Information Model
Virtual Building
Technology has created opportunities for the architectural profession to approach the processes of design and documentation of that design. This same technology allows both the client and the contractor to participate in the design process. The resulting colaboration then allows more effective construction processes, particularly in tracking time and materials. Each participant in the design and construction process can benefit greatly from using these new strategies. However, each participant must adjust their traditional involvement to achieve the maximum benefit. Each has a significant role to play to maximize the potential of this interactive process.
WHAT IS B.I.M?
With the ability of computer aided design, buildings can be conceived and documented in three dimensions. This ability to create a "virtual building" means that all of the elements of a building are created much the same way the contractor traditionally built the building. Each element is created and fit together so that looking at the "virtual building" from any point, it would be as though you were standing in or around the actual building. You can walk through a door, look at a cabinet as it sits in the room and see how equipment will fit in space. You can also look at clearances between mechanical system elements and the structure. Virtually all elements of the building are modeled correctly before they are constructed. One significant element of BIM is that the "virtual building" is in actuality a graphic database. Therefore, it can track information about quantities, equipment specifications, time sequences and costing.
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