In a newly released White Paper, GroupBC focuses on the challenges of creating a digital estate for those with a multitude of legacy information and summarises the process Sainsbury’s underwent when digitising their existing information
Local authorities, central government departments and agencies, the armed forces, universities, road, rail and air transport undertakings, utilities, retailers and financial institutions, to name a few, are responsible for substantial portfolios of built assets – and these portfolios will often encompass a huge variety of different buildings and other assets of widely different ages.
How do we encourage the estate and facilities managers of such estates to become engaged with BIM, when much of the legacy information they have inherited is often paper-based, or compiled for different to different levels of detail, often by different contractors or suppliers?
After all, much of the focus around BIM has been connected to new build projects, or simply related to 3D models and their data. But BIM is more than a technology tool. It is part of the digital transformation of the built environment. It enables a more collaborative and joined-up approach to a whole-life process: planning, procurement, design, construction, commissioning, handover and future operation and maintenance of built assets.
BIM can benefit many asset owners and operators as Sainsbury’s discovered when they needed to digitise their existing estate as their focus moved from new build to ‘sweating their assets’. Although familiar with BIM on their new builds, most of the legacy information of their existing estate was in 2D drawings. However, they saw the potential to use the standards and principles of BIM to process and categorising that information.
That enabled them to create their digital estate which enables colleagues and partners to quickly answer questions about what they have in their estate, how many they have, and where they are located. This allows them to find information and gain insight to make strategic decisions around their assets.
This White Paper from GroupBC focuses on the challenges facing those with a multitude of legacy information and summarises the process Sainsbury’s underwent of digitising their existing information, as well as connecting their existing legacy systems to create a digital estate that drives innovation and investment.
View the White Paper here.
