Chapter 2: Project Data Management

Project data management is an essential aspect of efficiency and productivity when working with Building Information Modeling (BIM) as the authoring software is data-centric.

Organizations are increasingly using processes to drive their business based on data analysis for multiple sectors, to improve performance and profitability. When using Revit to manage models and data, the principles of data management are similar.

A data-driven culture is growing, and more companies are noticing the value of analyzing data for business decisions that promote improvements and disruption in the Architecture, Engineering, Construction, Owner Operator (AECOO) industry.

Companies use a data management plan (DMP) to outline how data will be used during and after a project's completion. BIM projects will start by creating similar documents to support the project development, such as the Exchange Information Requirements (EIR), the BIM Execution Plan ...

Critical data to start a BIM project

It is imperative to start BIM projects with quality information from multiple stages and to consider how this data will be used for Asset Management and, ultimately, for processes to manage a Digital Twin.

There are critical challenges in the AECOO industry to provide the required information in the right format at the correct time, and to avoid loss of data between a project's stages.

Ideally, we should receive all the necessary information before starting a project. It is common to see projects starting with incomplete information, very often without any information at all other than the request to BIM (or BIM according to a local framework, such as the UK BIM Framework (https://ukbimframework.org/)).

To minimize those issues, we will provide information about the critical data to start BIM projects and understand the principles for data management.

The principles of a DMP are based on the following items:

• Project information...

BIM documentation overview

It is essential to align the BIM documentation with the project strategy to improve efficiency so that the requirements will be well defined, which increases productivity and decreases cost.

Companies must understand which information they should provide for the Design and Construction teams and also define which information they expect to receive for Asset Management to support building maintenance.

We understand it is difficult for clients to have precise BIM requirements at the beginning of the project. Still, this has to change to improve the AECOO industry and ensure that project teams have defined requirements during a project life cycle.

There are clear benefits to having the BIM documentation well defined. Some of these are outlined here:

• Quicker Return on Investment (ROI)
• Client and project standards compliance
• Ensures the BIM requirements from clients and the project team are aligned
• Better communication to deliver...

Project functions

The standard ISO 19650 series has replaced the word roles with functions, but the meaning is still the same, which is to define the responsibilities of a specific person or group of people.

The Exchange Information Requirements (EIR) and the BIM Execution Plan (BEP) will define project functions to outline key responsibilities, and this can improve productivity as each team member will be aware of the tasks that need to be performed.

It is essential to highlight that project functions are not job titles, and more than one person can take and perform multiple functions.

The Appointing Party (Client) that writes the EIR will define the Information Management function primarily. The Appointing Party can nominate a person from their organization or appoint a third-party company to perform this function.

The project team will define the following functions in the BEP:

• Task Team Manager
• Task Information Manager
• Information Authors
• Interface...

Asset Management

Asset Management is a process to support building owners to maximize the value of their asset by providing strategic and operational services.

The lifespan of a building and utilities are limited, and the building life cycle after the construction stage represents the highest cost for real estate owners. If we take into consideration a period of 25 years, it is estimated that the cost to operate, maintain, and repair a building is around 80% of the total cost of ownership.

This is illustrated in the following diagram:

Figure 2.5 – Total cost of ownership

The importance of Asset Management during the building life cycle is clear, yet the AECOO industry still has improvements to make in providing digital and structured data to integrate into Asset Management and operational processes.

Efficiency and productivity will increase if the data created during the design and construction stages are flawlessly transferred to the Asset...

Establishing an Action Plan to start a BIM project

An Action Plan helps organizations to start BIM projects with an established process to manage project data and turn goals into reality, which will avoid problems during the design, construction, and building life cycle.

The Action Plan will provide a list of tasks to be completed to achieve initial objectives to manage project data, and it can increase efficiencies on your workflow to start a project.

The Action Plan will include the following tasks, but is not limited to these:

• Defining the initial BIM objectives to manage project data
• Listing the task to be completed to reach your objectives
• Prioritizing essential tasks in conjunction with project deadlines
• Defining initial project deadlines to receive information
• Defining the resources required to complete your tasks
• Measuring and evaluating the progress and updating the Action Plan as required

An effective Action Plan can help to keep...

Summary

In this chapter, we have learned about the importance of Project Data Management to increase efficiency and improve productivity.

We explained the benefits of having clear BIM requirements defined by the client, and which BIM documents the client is responsible for providing to the project team.

We provided an overview of the BIM documentation for clients, project teams, and industry standards.

You also learned about the project functions that are involved in a BIM project, the importance of Asset Management, and how to create an Action Plan to start a BIM project.

In the next chapter, we will cover how a good Revit template and graphical standards can improve productivity.