Session 2

Preparing the Entire Supply Chain for BIM

Paul Woddy, White Frog

Class Description
Long before BIM emerged in the vocabulary of the design and construction
sector, we have been striving for paperless design - the notion of being able
to digitally transfer all information from one stakeholder to another, all the
way down to manufacturing, fabrication and installation.
Has the advent of BIM methodology and associated software brought us any
closer to that position? The information models are increasingly more
accurate and more intelligent, and the barriers between the discipline-
specific software and hardware are being eroded by better import and
export capabilities, but what about the cultural barriers - are we closer to
overcoming them?
For a start, many members of the supply chain need to be convinced of the
advantages of moving to a fancy 3D workflow, so we will take a look at a few
examples of trades that live on the fringes of the BIM world, working outwards
from surveyors to internal fit-out and then onto specialist trades such as
diamond drilling, painting and piling contractors. Their BIM journey may be
very different to the Architect and Engineer but it is potentially no less
important to the future of the sector.
 Along the way we will explore answers to such questions as:
 Would a QS, or a fabricator sufficiently trust design data to price or
manufacture from?
 What level of information is it applicable for a manufacturer to supply?
Is it all about paying to have products made available in a library or is
there more to it than that?
 How does the extra degree of information and the availability of 3D
models impact on how contractors price for, and carry out work?
Beyond the design practice is where BIM will really evolve from 3D CAD into
the information management process that it should be, and this cannot be
achieved without the whole supply chain embracing the methods and rules
that apply.
Preparing the Entire Supply Chain for BIM
Paul Woddy, White Frog

About the Speaker:

Former product evangelist for Revit Inc and then Autodesk, Paul has
advised hundreds of companies on the strategic implementation of
Revit and BIM in almost 14 years as a consultant and trainer. Through
White Frog, Paul writes books and builds training courseware on BIM
software and workflows as well as training trainers around the world.
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Preparing the Entire Supply Chain for BIM
Paul Woddy, White Frog

Notes
This session is aimed at raising awareness of the need to better engage
with the whole construction supply chain, including manufacturers,
suppliers and fabricators as well as specialist installers and sub-
contractors.

We will take a look at where we are in respect of global BIM adoption

and how this roll-out is impacting on different sectors. We will explore
and discuss various factors and fears which have to be overcome in
pushing BIM into new disciplines and how these firms might be
encouraged to play ball.

We have a number of theoretical case-studies which are based upon

real-life consultative work and conversations with people who either
want to get into BIM, have to get into BIM, or had never heard of it
before.

Introduction
BIM adoption rates vary considerably around the world and whilst there
are pockets of excellence and abject failure in almost
any region, we see various trends of how the
methodology is spreading. These trends are not only
valuable in understanding which geographic regions
are coming onboard but also in seeing what lessons
can learnt by those regions coming along behind the
trail blazers.

In Europe, we see that the Northern countries have

more BIM-related legislation already in place with
Denmark, the Netherlands, Finland, Norway and the
UK all mandating BIM deliverables on any centrally
procured public works by 2016. That's not projects
that start after that date, but the ones which
complete after that date, so many which are all
ready underway.

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Preparing the Entire Supply Chain for BIM
Paul Woddy, White Frog

A recent UE directive has opened the door for this mandate to be

applied in other member states and it is anticipated that within the
next two years, most of Europe will be asking for a similar level of BIM
methodology in the public sector.

These targets are not difficult to meet and provide only the first step in
the BIM journey, but they are hence achievable political objectives.

Globally we see
various hotspots of
BIM usage spread
around, generally where
governments have
mandated BIM in
some form.

Obviously the advantage for those regions and countries which are
following on is that they will not, or at least should not, have to
experience so much learning by trial and error.

There are several surveys and industry reports which show how fast
adoption is spreading in the BIM hotspots with fabulous claims of
fantastic growth, but often when you look below the surface of these
surveys, it is clear that they suffer from marketing spin.

There are two major problems with such survey reports, firstly that the
surveys are often completed by a sales or marketing representative of
a company, who will not know or admit the current weaknesses of their
capabilities; secondly that to the unenlightened, buying software
equates to adopting BIM, so when it comes to answering questions on
whether they use BIM in the practice, the answer will be yes.

But, whether we believe the surveys or not, one thing is clear:

BIM is here to stay and the whole construction supply chain should not
be discussing whether to get involved, but how to get involved!

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Preparing the Entire Supply Chain for BIM
Paul Woddy, White Frog

The obvious early adopters of BIM in any region are

always the designers, due in part to the
availability of authoring tools and
the precedents set elsewhere
that show a return on any
investment.

But even in this group made up of

Architects and Engineers, there are firms that
are claiming BIM compliance because they feel that
cannot be seen not to.

Then we see Contractors and Clients moving

towards BIM, but not always in an informed way, with
tender documents insisting on BIM deliverables even
though the recipient does not always know exactly what they are
asking for, nor what they will do with it when they get whatever it is.

When you combine these last two groups

together we can see various parties all
supposedly delivering BIM without any
clear experience to lead the way.

If an individual or a firm
first experience BIM in this
sort of environment then it
can lead to confusing
practices or bad advice on
how to proceed, and a lot of
wasted money training staff,
producing information or libraries of
element which will not be suitable for the
mainstream user.
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Preparing the Entire Supply Chain for BIM
Paul Woddy, White Frog

Even when a project uses BIM, and this includes some projects which
have been heralded as exemplar BIM showcases, the BIM data hits a
filter when it gets to the main contractor and is reduced to dumb, 2D
drawings and minimal information.

A common complaint amongst firms that want to engage with BIM is

that whilst the design side of a contractor might be highly BIM-
proficient, the members of the same team that deal with sub-
contractors and site work have little or no knowledge of it. Over the last
few years, the use of pdf rather than paper drawings has actually had
the effect of reducing the level of understanding as the sub-contractor
is trying to review drawings on a relatively small screen, one at a time,
rather than spreading out a series of interrelated drawings over a
conference table to really comprehend a project.

BIM should, in time, reverse this trend and provide a much better
understanding, but only if we level the playing field and make sure that
BIM data is being transferred to all parties.

Above all, we need to remember that if a

member of the supply
chain is considering a
move across to a BIM
workflow, this can be
a scary transition and
might be seen as a potentially
destabilising factor for an otherwise
successful business.

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Preparing the Entire Supply Chain for BIM
Paul Woddy, White Frog

BIM and the Supply Chain

The above image is part of a workflow diagram which was produced

to answer the question of whether BIM is relevant for a firm in the early
stages of understanding BIM, but whilst the answer may be 'Not yet...'
the answer is rarely an outright 'No'.

Flowcharts and generalised statements can be useful when talking to

an entire supply chain at an initial stage, but ultimately it is essential
that advice is provided which is tailored to the company or the specific
industry sector. It is not enough to say that 'All suppliers do this...' or that
'Sub-contractors only need that...'.

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Preparing the Entire Supply Chain for BIM
Paul Woddy, White Frog

Trust
Trust is an obvious
potential barrier to
widespread supply-chain
adoption of BIM, especially
amongst fabricators that
ultimately are responsible
for the product they
manufacture.

If we are going to move to

a state where the 3D model
and BIM data can be relied upon for accurate quantification, costing
and fabrication, then we must be aware of a few important issues
regarding communication and model integrity.

Model Integrity
The majority of
contracts which
mention BIM still
require drawings
as the legal,
contractual
deliverable, on a
GA and Typical
Detail basis.

In this regard, the Revit model is transmitted for information purposes

only, covered in disclaimers pointing back to the GA's and Typical
Detail drawings. Very rarely is the contractual deliverable a 3D model
which is deemed to be accurate, and hence there is no incentive to
ensure that the model is accurate when it is quicker to apply a Detail
Component family to patch up the view.

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Preparing the Entire Supply Chain for BIM
Paul Woddy, White Frog

It is not always the case that a 100% accurate model is the only answer
to this problem. When a sub-contractor receives a model, it is essential
that he knows what can be relied upon and what is indicative and is
hence a matter of communication. This is however communication
which may be separated by several layers of people who do not know
what they are dealing with and it is therefore imperative to the success
of Supply Chain adoption that all links in that chain are fully conversant
in the language of BIM and the expectations and use cases of the
modelled data.

Communication
Following on from that trend, communication and interpretation need
to broached also. As BIM adoption spread further and further into more
specialist industries, there will be increasing numbers of software
interfaces to deal with and you cannot talk to the supply chain
members without raising this issue.

Whilst Interpretation is a dangerous word in a definitive subject like ours,

another word which could be used to say the same thing might be
Translation. It would be good to think that the distinction between the
two would be that with a translation, the result matches the original but
in a different language, whilst interpretation allows for flexibility of
meaning during the process.

When it comes to reading design data then, it should be a direct

translation that we use to go from one software package to another,
but unfortunately when dealing with programming code and
modelling kernels, there is always a degree or interpretation involved.

This is evident if we take a paragraph of words and run it through a

translation engine into another language such as English to French, but
if we run the result back through the same engine and compare this
with the original, certain words may have been altered and potentially
in the worst cases, the meaning subtly changes.

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Preparing the Entire Supply Chain for BIM
Paul Woddy, White Frog

Putting this in context, if we have a 3D model of a frame from a piece

of design software such as Revit and we transfer that to a fabrication
software to run a CNC machine, can we guarantee the result exactly
matches the original? Especially is neither party owns the other piece
of software to validate it.

How Deep does BIM Reach?

It is easy to understand how the marketing potential of providing your
customers and those responsible for
specifying your products with what they want.
So assuming that they get the specification
correct, a manufacturer or supplier can justify
the cost of creating a library or a service.

But does this miss the big trick? Could BIM

methodology actually improve the service;
the design process; the manufacture of the
product?

There are examples in industry where the

Revit model can be fed into an application
which applies logical rules to certain categories of element and from
that creates cutting lists, shop drawings and costs. This automation and
the feedback provided by the tool when the logic cannot be applied,
gives a huge jump in efficiency.

Even if products are not manufactured using BIM

data, it is still possible that stock control and
deliveries can be mapped to a specific
location on the 3D model and a time-frame
on the project plan, all connected using
BIM principles.

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Preparing the Entire Supply Chain for BIM
Paul Woddy, White Frog

It is possible of course that

certain manufacturers are
insulated from the people
specifying their products,
either by a purchasing
chain of command or
simply because of a
distribution channel that
handles sales in a region.

In this case, it can be difficult for a company to justify the expense of

providing BIM services or libraries when they gain none of the benefits
of direct customer communication. We will come back to this point
later.

Case Studies
The following examples are derived directly from real-life examples in
which we have assisted or are assisting a company in the adoption of
BIM. Each one exemplifies a particular aspect of advice which we will
summarise afterwards.

Case Study 1 - Fixtures and Fittings

If you manufacture or supply elements which are used to
construct fit-out or furnish a building then the route to
deploying BIM might seem an obvious one.
Certainly it can be easiest example to tackle in most
cases.

But the biggest problem with many manufacturers can

be getting them to understand that more accurate
geometry is not always best and to look at the
specification of component libraries from the
perspective of the user and not their own internal sales strategy or
opinion.

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Preparing the Entire Supply Chain for BIM
Paul Woddy, White Frog

The natural tendency is to make the

model as accurate as possible,
sometimes based upon the same
data that they use in the factory but
almost always based upon the same
level of detail that have been used to
supplying in CAD formats previously.

There is a time and a place for high

levels of geometry but if this all that
they produce then they risk been
overlooked because their
components are too heavy. Can
geometry be reduced by intelligent
use of 2D detail? Do they need to
consider graded components for
different stages of the project?

Many manufacturers waste a lot of

time and money producing libraries
that will never be used by
experienced modellers or on large
projects - the very type of project that they aspire to be involved with.

So for this type of company, the various products and services to

consider would be:
• Component Libraries
• Libraries of materials and/or finishes
• Examples of room or layout combinations
• 2D typical fixing details
• Bespoke components provided on consultation with the client
• A fit-out service based upon the designer model
• Pricing and quantification

Case Study 2 - Building Fabric

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Preparing the Entire Supply Chain for BIM
Paul Woddy, White Frog

Many companies supply products which do not exist in isolation but are
always part of a bigger composite element such as a wall, floor or roof
construction - in other words System Families!

How should this data be delivered?

One issue that often arises is that

these products are manufactured
in set sizes to mirror local legislation,
specific installation requirements or
other logistical reasons. So the
manufacturer wants to offer a library
which only contains these set sizes.

There are two main approaches to how the manufacturer could

produce their data:

 As a Library of System Family Elements which include their

products amongst other layers
 As a Material Library which contains all the relevant data per
mm, allowing the user to specify depth during application as a
layer of a system family or other component

From the Revit user perspective, we often want the information

supplied with all the relevant performance data and aesthetics in a
material library as this gives us freedom to choose how we compile our
elements.

But once shown the

options the
manufacturers usually
want to create libraries of
sample System Families
rather than just supply
Material Library
data, because of
the issue of their

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Preparing the Entire Supply Chain for BIM
Paul Woddy, White Frog

products coming in fixed thicknesses - whether they see this as a

restriction or as guidance for the consumer is purely a marketing spin!

But that raises questions, not least of which, would a designer choose a
composite wall style based upon a single material hidden inside? It is
great if an insulation manufacturer gives us all the energy performance
data for their product we need in a wall type, but if the rest of the
layers simply say Generic Brick, Generic Finish, etc, then would we use
it? How do we combine the data from three manufacturers who have
done the same thing?

Specifically in relation to thermal data, this question gets quite tricky

and depends very much on how the data might be exported from the
model. Let's continue the example of wall insulation and look at the
implications of the two options.

1. If thermal data is added to a sample wall type then this

information can be exported to IFC and COBie but will not be
recognised by the gbXML schema and so it
cannot be used for energy simulation
and analysis

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Preparing the Entire Supply Chain for BIM
Paul Woddy, White Frog

2. If the information is added at a material level then this can be

used for analysis through gbXML but IFC and COBie export does
not reach into material properties but only those of the
composite element

“So I have to add the data in two places? I thought BIM was
about coordination!”

Unfortunately, as it currently stands, there is no easy way out of this issue

and requires a coordinated delivery of the relevant data. If I am asked
the question directly without further research, I generally opt for the
second option as it is more likely that I need thermal data for energy
analysis than for whatever purposes may be applied to the IFC data.

The various products and services to consider in this case are:

• Libraries of materials with all relevant data
• Example system family compositions
• Typical 2D details associated with products and their installation
• Bespoke advice based upon a supplied model
• Non-standard details
• Pricing and quantification from the model

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Preparing the Entire Supply Chain for BIM
Paul Woddy, White Frog

Case Study 3 - Specialist Sub-Contractor

In looking for a way forward into BIM, it
can be hardest of all for specialist
sub-contractors who are
applying finishes, coatings,
advanced techniques or using
specialised equipment. It is fair
to ask if they even need to get
involved at all. Should a
Painting Contractor for
instance look to
supply a full library
of colours,
textures and
finishes?

How would this distinguish them from the competition?

What possible
advantage can be
gained for a diamond
drilling specialist to
provide BIM services?

Should he supply a
library of holes?

At the centre of BIM is Information, both literally and figuratively. When

the supply chain looks at providing BIM services, this does not always
have to mean the flow of information to the designers or contractors,
but can equally provide benefits in simply being able to talk the same
language.

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Preparing the Entire Supply Chain for BIM
Paul Woddy, White Frog

When a sub-contractor is able to receive a Revit model for instance,

and interrogate that model to extract information, then the benefits
include:
• A clear understanding of issues and logistics - no more
misunderstandings in relation to the requirements (OK, so maybe
less misunderstandings!)
• Accurate quantification
• More informed pricing based on all available information
• The ability to plan manpower and equipment requirements
specific to the particular site and conditions

The concept might be understood with a

single question at tender stage:

“The project involves 5,000m2 of

paint but what percentage of that
requires raised access?”

The advantages of
information management in
BIM are not restricted to clash-
detection at design stage but
relate to the whole supply
chain. If you can talk in 3D
around a model containing all
the facts then the outcome will
be improved.

And in terms of our Diamond

Drilling Firm? If they can have a
clear picture of where the
holes need to be, then they
can evaluate such factors as whether they can get the equipment into
position; whether special safety provisions will be required; will water be
an issue? etc

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Preparing the Entire Supply Chain for BIM
Paul Woddy, White Frog

A better understanding of the project provides numerous rewards from

the compilation of accurate pricing to the provision of appropriate
resources and equipment

The services that can thus be consider are:

• Bespoke advice, based upon a supplied model
• Accurate pricing and quantification
• Less risk due to more information

Summary and Overall Advice

We have raised lots of questions throughout this topic but have we
answered them all? Probably not. This is very much a consultative
process and the advice given to a member of the supply chain is
based upon their unique circumstances. We may generalise to a
certain extent, but ultimately the approach to BIM will be biased by
customers requirements, internal development, peer approach and
even perhaps the initial project.

As a general guide, I would advice any supply chain member to

explore the following:

Firstly, it is essential to understand the

demographic of the user that might incorporate
your data in a model. Speak to your customers!
Think of this as a part of your marketing strategy -
a new excuse to call them up and remind them
who you are.

The ultimate goal is to be the supplier of choice for

those users, and in order to do that, you must set the
standard amongst the competition for listening!
They want BIM data and services that make
them reach for you by default and this will come
from usability, both in terms of the ease with which any supplied data
can be used, and also the usefulness of the data downstream in such
applications as the specification, quantification, energy analysis, etc

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Preparing the Entire Supply Chain for BIM
Paul Woddy, White Frog

So you need to understand the way in which your BIM data will be
used, and this may differ from way in which previously supplied CAD
data was used so don't assume you already know. And try to speak to
new customers and customers that are already BIM-ready - don't be
swayed by someone who is also learning.

Some questions might be:

• What purpose do the elements provide?
• How might the elements be sourced?
• When will the data be sought and applied?
• Who will use the data?
• How might we fix data to the project?

Regulations and BIM working

practices may differ from
country to country with
each demanding different
interpretations of the
data. Don't try to tackle
the whole world in one hit,
but also don't assume that
once you have cracked it
for one location, it will work
everywhere.

First develop a specification that works for an initial target market and
then seek feedback from other localities as to any changes that may
be required

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Preparing the Entire Supply Chain for BIM
Paul Woddy, White Frog

Potential Service Offerings

The possible deliverables from this approach might include the
following:
1. Development of standard component libraries and material
libraries, complete with appropriate meta-data. When it comes
to 3D geometry and 2D linework, use the mantra, 'Model as
simply as we can get away with, and detail as much as we
need'. Make sure that information which can be used in analysis
is prepared in a way that it can be used.

2. Don't forget that some clients may still want accurate 2D Details.
Just because BIM methodology is being used does not always
mean that it is 3D, so dig out, brush off and update those typical
fixings, connections or installation details

3. Offer the ability to pick up the phone to the technical services

department and get non-standard components and 2D details
pertaining to the specifics of a project

4. If you are supplying materials that are generally used in a

composite application, then consider partnerships with other
suppliers to provide really useful examples of an ideal build-up
which does not contain generics

5. Train up your internal staff.

a. Your sales and marketing teams need to know the
terminology and be able to hold a conversation without
embarrassing themselves
b. Technical support staff need to be fully conversant with
the technology which is used by your customers so they
have the ability to read a model, extract quantities,
provide feedback and supply bespoke data. This may
mean that various people in the office learn different
software applications, but speak to your customers first
and check what they need

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Preparing the Entire Supply Chain for BIM
Paul Woddy, White Frog

In some circumstances, especially in

regions where BIM is still an emerging
technology, firms may be in a position to
drive and educate the market as a way
of promoting themselves as being at the
forefront of innovation and in doing so,
set the pace and direction.

Even in countries where BIM is

relatively well established, those
companies that have
demonstrated good BIM awareness
and offerings do punch above their
weight in terms of the coverage they
receive in the industry, with sales
representatives showcasing their
company deliverables at BIM
conferences and events

Questions?
If you still have questions or just want to get in touch then please
contact me via the following details:

email paul@whitefrog.co
twitter @paulwoddy
@whitefrogteam

And Finally...
Thank you for reading. I hope you found it useful.

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