Pedia
BIM, in plain language
Standards, terms and workflows explained simply, with pointers to the documents to read next.
106 entries
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- 4D and 5D BIM (time and cost)WorkflowsLinking model elements to the construction programme (4D) and to quantities and cost (5D), and what each is useful for.
- 4D planning (linking the programme to the model)WorkflowsConnecting each activity in the construction programme to the model elements it builds, so the sequence can be watched, checked and explained before it happens on site.
- AI in construction and BIM (what works today)WorkflowsA practical map of where AI helps across design, construction and operations today, where it is still a demo, and the questions to ask before using it on a project.
- APIs for BIM softwareSoftwareHow programs talk to BIM software and platforms, desktop APIs, cloud APIs and file-based access, and what each lets you automate.
- Appointed partyGlossaryA party appointed by a lead appointed party to provide information, such as a consultant or specialist subcontractor.
- Appointing partyGlossaryThe ISO 19650 term for the client: the organisation that receives information about the works from those it appoints.
- As-built verification and record modelsWorkflowsChecking that what was built matches the model (or updating the model so it does) before it becomes the record that operations rely on for decades.
- Asset information requirements (AIR) in practiceStandardsThe client's statement of which assets it needs information about, which properties for each, in what format and when, written so a delivery team can actually provide it.
- Asset registerGlossaryA list of the assets an organisation maintains, with their identity, location, type and key data.
- Asset tagging and identificationWorkflowsGiving every maintainable asset a unique, readable identifier that appears on the asset, in the model, on drawings and in the maintenance system, so all four point to the same thing.
- Autodesk Platform Services (APS)SoftwareAutodesk's cloud APIs (formerly Forge) for reading, viewing, converting and automating models and project data in Autodesk's cloud, including Autodesk Construction Cloud.
- BCF (BIM Collaboration Format)SoftwareAn open format from buildingSMART for exchanging model-based issues — with viewpoints, comments and element references — between BIM tools.
- BEP (BIM execution plan)WorkflowsThe delivery team’s plan for how it will produce, check and deliver information to meet the client’s requirements.
- BIM authoring softwareSoftwareThe main families of software used to create models — architecture, structure, services, civils and fabrication — and what to agree when teams use different ones.
- BIM coordinatorGlossaryThe role that brings models together, checks them and manages coordination issues between disciplines.
- BIM objectGlossaryA reusable model component, such as a manufacturer’s product or a generic element, with geometry and information.
- BIM usesWorkflowsThe specific purposes a model serves on a project — such as coordination, quantity take-off or handover — and why every requirement should name one.
- bSDD (buildingSMART Data Dictionary)StandardsAn online service from buildingSMART that publishes classifications, properties and their definitions, so requirements and models can refer to shared, unambiguous terms.
- Building data, BMS and IoT sensorsWorkflowsThe live data buildings produce (from building management systems, meters and IoT sensors) and how it connects to the asset and space data from BIM.
- CAFM and CMMS systemsSoftwareThe software that facilities and maintenance teams run buildings with, what data it needs from BIM, and why handover data so often fails to load into it.
- CDE (common data environment)WorkflowsThe agreed source of project information, with a workflow that moves containers through work in progress, shared, published and archived.
- CDE platformsSoftwareThe software used to run a common data environment — document management, model hosting, workflows and approvals — and what to check when choosing or setting one up.
- Clash detection types (hard, clearance, duplicate)WorkflowsThe three kinds of clash test — physical overlap, insufficient clearance and duplicated elements — and what each is good for.
- Clash groupGlossaryA set of related clash results treated as one coordination problem, such as one duct run crossing several beams.
- COBieStandardsConstruction Operations Building Information Exchange — a spreadsheet-shaped format for handing over asset information to the people who run a building.
- Constructability reviewWorkflowsChecking, with the people who will build it, that a design can be built safely, in a sensible order and at a sensible cost, before it reaches site.
- Coordinate reference systems and EPSG codesBIM + GISHow positions on Earth are described — datums, projections and grids — and why every project should name its system with an EPSG code.
- Coordination and model checking softwareSoftwareThe tools used to federate models, run clash and rule checks, and manage issues — what they do and how they fit into the coordination cycle.
- Coordination issueGlossaryA recorded problem between models or disciplines, with an owner, status and due date, tracked until it is resolved.
- Data dropGlossaryAn older UK term for a planned delivery of information at a project stage, now called an information exchange at a milestone.
- Delivery teamGlossaryA lead appointed party together with all the appointed parties and task teams under it.
- Digital twinWorkflowsA digital representation of a physical asset that is kept in step with it through live or regular data, used to monitor, predict and decide.
- EIR (exchange information requirements)WorkflowsWhat the client needs from an appointment — which information, in what form, at which milestones — written so the delivery team can plan and price it.
- EPSG codeGlossaryA number that identifies one coordinate reference system or transformation exactly, from the EPSG registry.
- Fabrication models and DfMAWorkflowsModels detailed enough to make parts from, and design for manufacture and assembly (DfMA), where buildings are designed as kits of parts made off site.
- Field BIM (models on site)WorkflowsGetting the model and its data to the people building on site, on tablets and in site offices, so they install from current information and report back what they find.
- Generative and computational designWorkflowsDefining a design problem as goals, rules and variables so software can generate and compare many options, and what it needs from BIM data to be useful.
- GeoreferencingBIM + GISPlacing a model in its true position on Earth — linking the model’s local coordinates to a real coordinate reference system with an origin, an angle and a scale.
- GIS and survey file formatsBIM + GISThe common open formats for geographic, survey and infrastructure data, and how each one relates to IFC and BIM workflows.
- GUID (IFC GlobalId)GlossaryThe unique identifier that every IFC object carries, which should stay the same each time a model is exported.
- HandoverGlossaryTransferring the completed works and their information from the delivery team to the client and operator.
- IDS (Information Delivery Specification)StandardsA buildingSMART standard for writing information requirements as machine-readable rules, so IFC models can be checked automatically.
- IFC (Industry Foundation Classes)SoftwareThe open, vendor-neutral data format and schema for exchanging building and infrastructure models between software.
- IFC entity (class)GlossaryA type of object defined in the IFC schema, such as IfcWall, IfcDoor or IfcSpace, which tells software what an element is.
- IFC versions and MVDs (IFC 2x3, IFC 4, IFC 4.3)SoftwareWhich IFC versions exist, what changed between them, and how model view definitions limit what an export contains.
- IfcBuildingElementProxyGlossaryThe generic IFC class used when an element has no better classification — usually a sign of a missing export mapping.
- Information containerGlossaryAny named, persistent set of information in the CDE — a model file, drawing, document, schedule or data set.
- Information container namingStandardsThe field-based naming convention for files and other containers — project, originator, volume, level, type, role and number — and why each field exists.
- Information delivery milestoneGlossaryA point in the project when information is due to be exchanged, checked and accepted.
- Information managerGlossaryThe role responsible for information management: requirements, the CDE, the BEP, plans and checks, rather than modelling itself.
- Information modelGlossaryAll the structured and unstructured information about a project or asset — not just the 3D model.
- Information protocolGlossaryThe project-specific terms for information — rights, duties, liabilities and use — incorporated into each appointment.
- Information requirements (OIR, AIR, PIR, EIR)StandardsThe four kinds of information requirement in ISO 19650 — organisational, asset, project and exchange — and how each one feeds the next.
- ISO 19650 overviewStandardsThe international series of standards for managing information over the life of a built asset using BIM — what each part covers and the ideas they share.
- ISO 19650-3: the operational phaseStandardsThe part of ISO 19650 for information management while assets are in use, how the asset information model (AIM) is set up, kept current and fed by projects and events.
- ISO 55000 (asset management)StandardsThe international standards for managing physical assets over their whole life, and why they matter to BIM: they explain why owners ask for asset information in the first place.
- Lead appointed partyGlossaryThe party appointed directly by the client that coordinates information from a whole delivery team, for example the lead designer or main contractor.
- Level of accuracy (LOA)StandardsHow closely surveyed or modelled positions match reality — the USIBD scale from LOA10 to LOA50 — and how it differs from level of development.
- Level of information need (LOIN)GlossaryThe ISO way of saying how much information each deliverable needs: geometry, data and documents described separately, for a purpose and a milestone.
- Location breakdownGlossaryHow a project is divided into buildings, levels and zones, used consistently by models, programmes and cost plans.
- LOD levels (100–500) explainedStandardsThe Level of Development scale used to say how far a model element has been developed and how much it can be relied on, from conceptual 100 to field-verified 500.
- LOD vs LOINStandardsHow the Level of Development scale differs from ISO’s level of information need, and why ISO 19650 projects describe geometry, data and documents separately.
- MCP (Model Context Protocol) for BIM toolsSoftwareThe open protocol that lets AI assistants use tools and data, and what MCP servers for Revit, Autodesk's cloud, IFC and other BIM software make possible, and risky.
- Measurement and cost classification standards (NRM, ICMS, UniFormat, MasterFormat)StandardsThe rules that say how construction work is grouped and measured for cost, and why a model that ignores them gives quantities an estimator can't use.
- MetadataGlossaryInformation about an information container, such as its status, revision, classification and author, stored alongside it in the CDE.
- MIDP and TIDPWorkflowsThe delivery plans in ISO 19650 — each task team’s list of information containers (TIDP) and the lead appointed party’s combined master plan (MIDP).
- Model checkingWorkflowsChecking a model against rules before it is shared or accepted — information, naming, geometry, structure and coordination — and recording the result.
- Model data and dashboardsWorkflowsTurning model and project data into dashboards that answer real questions (progress, quality, quantities, issues) and the data pipeline behind them.
- Model elementGlossaryAn object in a model that represents a physical or functional part of the asset, such as a wall, beam, pipe or space.
- Model federationWorkflowsCombining separate discipline models into one coordinated view without merging them, so each team keeps ownership of its own model.
- Model health checksWorkflowsRoutine checks of an authoring model’s condition — warnings, file size, links, unused content, worksets and set-up — that keep it fast, stable and fit to share.
- Model-based estimating (5D)WorkflowsUsing quantities from the model, mapped to a cost structure and priced with rates, to produce and update estimates, and knowing which parts of the estimate the model can't provide.
- National annexGlossaryA country-specific supplement to an international standard that fills in local details, such as naming codes in ISO 19650.
- O&M informationGlossaryOperation and maintenance information handed over with a building: manuals, warranties, certificates and maintenance instructions.
- OmniClassClassificationThe North American classification system for the built environment — 15 linked tables covering facilities, spaces, elements, products, work results, roles and more.
- openBIMGlossaryAn approach to BIM based on open, vendor-neutral standards such as IFC, BCF, IDS and bSDD.
- Parameter (property)GlossaryA named value attached to an element or type in an authoring tool, such as height, fire rating or manufacturer.
- PAS 1192 and BS 1192 (the UK predecessors)StandardsThe UK documents that ISO 19650 grew from — what each covered, which parts of ISO 19650 replaced them, and why you still meet their terms.
- PIM and AIM (project and asset information models)StandardsThe two information models in ISO 19650 — the project information model built up during delivery, and the asset information model used to run the asset.
- Planned maintenance and maintenance standards (SFG20)WorkflowsHow maintenance regimes are defined, how standards like SFG20 describe tasks and frequencies, and how BIM data links each asset to its regime.
- Point clouds and scan-to-BIMWorkflowsMillions of measured 3D points captured by laser scanners or photogrammetry, and how they are turned into models of existing buildings and sites.
- Progress tracking with models and reality captureWorkflowsMeasuring what has actually been built, against the model and the programme, from site updates, scans, photos or drones, so delays show up in weeks rather than months.
- Project base pointGlossaryThe point in an authoring model that serves as its local origin for design coordinates.
- Project information standardGlossaryThe project’s rules for producing information: naming, codes, classification, units, coordinates and formats.
- Property sets (Psets) and quantity setsSoftwareHow IFC groups element information into named sets of properties and quantities, the standard Pset_ and Qto_ sets, and custom sets.
- Quantity take-off (QTO)WorkflowsMeasuring quantities — counts, lengths, areas, volumes — from a model instead of drawings, and what has to be true of the model for the numbers to be trusted.
- Reading IFC with code (IfcOpenShell, web-ifc)SoftwareOpening IFC files with open-source libraries to count, check, extract and report, without any authoring software, and what a first script looks like.
- Record model (as-built)GlossaryA model updated to show what was actually built, used as the basis for handover information.
- Responsibility matrixWorkflowsThe table that assigns who produces, checks and approves each piece of information and each information management task, at high and detailed levels.
- SchemaGlossaryThe formal definition of a data structure: which objects, attributes and relationships a format may contain.
- Security-minded approachGlossaryManaging information about sensitive assets so that it cannot be used to cause harm, as described in ISO 19650-5.
- Shared coordinatesGlossaryAn agreed coordinate system used by every model on a project, so they line up when federated.
- Shared parameterGlossaryA project-defined parameter with a fixed identity that can be used across many families, models and schedules.
- Site logistics modelsWorkflowsModelling the temporary site, from cranes, hoists and scaffold to deliveries, storage and welfare, and how it changes over time, so the site works as well as the building.
- Soft landings (BS 8536)StandardsInvolving the people who will operate a building throughout design and construction, and supporting them after handover, so the building works as intended, now set out in BS 8536:2022.
- Space data and space managementWorkflowsRooms and areas as data (names, numbers, areas, uses, occupants) and how a well-structured model gives operations the space data they plan, clean, charge and report with.
- Suitability and revision codes (S1, P01, C01…)StandardsThe metadata codes that say what a container may be used for (status) and which version it is (revision), as defined in the UK National Annex to ISO 19650.
- Survey pointGlossaryA point in a model that corresponds to a known point in the real-world coordinate system, linking the model to the survey grid.
- Task teamGlossaryA group of people performing one specific task within a delivery team, such as the structural design team or a cladding subcontractor’s modellers.
- Tolerance (clash)GlossaryThe distance below which a clash test ignores an overlap, so tiny modelling overlaps are not reported.
- True north, grid north and project northGlossaryThe three norths on a project: towards the geographic pole, along the map grid, and the drawing’s convenient up direction.
- Type and instanceGlossaryThe two levels at which elements carry information: the shared definition (type) and the individual placed element (instance or occurrence).
- UniclassClassificationThe UK’s unified classification system for the built environment — tables for complexes, entities, spaces, elements, systems, products and more, with codes like Ss_25_10_30.
- ViewpointGlossaryA saved view of a model — camera position, visible and selected elements, sections — used to show exactly where an issue is.
- Visual programming and scripting (Dynamo, Grasshopper, pyRevit)SoftwareThe tools BIM people use to automate their own work, from drag-and-connect graphs to Python scripts, and how to choose between them.
- Work in progress (WIP)GlossaryThe CDE state in which a task team develops information before it is checked and shared with others.