Architecture Notes

Today, numerous companies are striving to re-imagine the way we interact with information.  Apple claims the iPad has dramatically rethought the way people will interact with the web.  Google’s numerous products constantly strive to deliver information in the most simple and clear format possible.  For decades, people have noted that the construction industry has evolved very little in comparison to the productivity leaps taken in other industries.  These comments usually refer to large products that are most similar to buildings: cars, airplanes and other industrial equipment.  From Le Corbusier’s Towards a New Architecture (1931) to Kieran Timberlake’s Refabricating Architecture (2004), it has been noted that architects should take lessons from ever-evolving manufacturing processes.  These texts point out the differences in the physical process of making.  But what if, instead of modeling our evolution off of planes and cars, we strived to replicate the Steve Jobs of the world – those who are re-thinking the way we communicate basic information?

What would it look like if we rethought the way owners and builders interact with construction documents? Can we improve upon the conventional methods of construction documentation to better communicate the mountain of information required to realize a new building?

For decades, the construction documents for large buildings have consisted of a set of drawings and written specifications, each several inches thick.  This system works; much thought has gone into these documents’ format to allow all parties involved in the construction process to find information quickly.  The construction site is dangerous and while searching through a paper document can be cumbersome, the hard copy format is imperative. Some construction trailers have computers and tablets (and possibly iPads, in the not too distant future), but the conditions of the site and the number of parties involved in a building’s construction insist that distributable paper deliverables will still be required for the foreseeable future.  Operating within the boundary of 2D graphics on paper, can we use modern digital tools, such as BIM, to reassess the way we communicate our designs?

Let’s consider modern methods of creating paper construction documents.  The construction drawings depict two-dimensional graphic conventions that have evolved from the earliest of hand drawings.  For 20 to 25 years architects emulated such drawings using CAD software.  Today, we have numerous other tools at our disposal than CAD alone; we use BIM software, such as Revit, to create conventional construction drawings from a 3D model.   If such robust tools are now available, how should architects take advantage of them to improve how others comprehend their designs?

BIM models can contain tremendous information about the model components.  While Integrated Project Delivery methods do allow for the model information to be shared, how should the traditional 2D deliverable be reconsidered to better communicate the information required for construction?  Conventional documents provide several layers of information densely compiled on the same drawing.  This provides as much information on as few total drawings as possible.  If clear visual communication is a goal, then how might BIM models facilitate more clear drawings?

Let’s take the architectural floor plan as an example. The layers of information shown are:

• The building’s geometry
• Rooms: number, finish codes, area
• Dimensions
• References to other drawings: elevations, sections and enlarged plans
• Notes
• Tags for doors, windows and other scheduled components
• Fire ratings
• Partition types

Of this information, what could be delivered differently through a BIM model?  Filters can be applied to automatically change the display of certain components.  A colored plan could automatically show a carpenter where each unique partition type is located in the plan.  Plan diagrams that more clearly communicate fire ratings can also be generated.  Similarly, different doors or window types could be filtered to graphically highlight where each type should be provided.

Beyond the floor plan, how should other drawings take advantage of the third dimension to clearly communicate the design?  Yes, we can put 3D views on the drawing sheets, but what systematic approach should be taken in doing so?

As we continue to improve how we use BIM, we should think critically about what aspects of our designs should be better communicated.  If innovators in information technologies such as Google and Apple are thinking critically about how people interact with information, what would equivalent innovation in architectural communication look like?  Construction drawings as we know them have facilitated the construction of the greatest buildings for generations.  Even 3D models have been around for many years.  But we should not underestimate the paradigm shift that BIM models represent.  We’re virtually constructing the building; how can we use the model to provide additional value for our clients and the construction process?  Collectively, if we do provide additional value to individual projects, perhaps we will take a larger step toward increasing the value of architectural services.