Building Information Modeling - Know Before You Go

Illustration: Virtual construction through building information.

Enter the virtual world of Building Information Modeling (BIM):

It's early fall, a cool breeze drifts in from the ocean. Even this late in the afternoon, the sunlight finds most of the long east-west façade of the building, providing enough light for most to do their work by it (a few need the automatically adjusted, inside lighting set low); and although the outside temperature is still in the high seventies, enough of the breeze enters through operable windows to passively cool the inside.

An engineer, let's call her Ms. Daylight, is walking around with a light meter, measuring light intensity in various places of the building, just to make sure the daylighting is strong enough to allow work, comfortably, and without eyestrain. Her colleague, Mr. Cool, thermometer in hand, is on a similar mission, making sure that the natural air is cool enough to provide a comfortable work environment for all.

A third engineer, a Mrs. Efficient, is keeping her finger on various energy pulses, measuring how much electricity is used not only by the building, but in each zone of the building-now and then changing the composition of the building envelope to one with a different R-value, while also changing the size of the HVAC system...yes, she's a magician, too-and then taking new measurements to see which combination would make most sense, both economically and for long-term energy usage.

This building, of course, has not been built yet, not in the real world. Still, that does not make it less real for purposes of analysis and evaluation. Our engineers-Daylight, Cool, and Efficient-are software simulation and analysis tools, as exact and as efficient as actual people walking around, taking measurements and noting the results; and BIM is the software and design/construction approach that let's you truly "know before you go."

The New Happy Valley City Hall

Friday, January 9, 2009, saw the opening of DLR Group's most recent BIM project: The new Happy Valley City Hall.

Designed under the supervision of lead architect Richard Higgins, the new city hall establishes a precedent for public buildings constructed in the Happy Valley architectural style, which emphasizes elements like varied massing and clear entry.

"The key element of this building is Government on Display", he says. "The expansive glass on the east side gives you an illuminated view into the council chambers at night. The City of Happy Valley wants people to drive by and see their City Council at work."

The design emphasizes the important role of citizens in government through transparent building features and egalitarian access points like its low-key front door. Public spaces and secure private areas are separated by style and structure. The secure area of the building, which is designed to serve as an emergency operations center in the event of a disaster, reveals the strength of its enhanced structure through an exposed steel frame.
Public spaces are warm and welcoming, with wood glulam beams and a soaring ceiling. A secluded courtyard in the northeast corner acts as a gathering place for Happy Valley residents as they enter their new civic building.

The new city hall will house City Council chambers and Administration offices, as well as Building, Planning, Engineering, Community Development, and Community Services departments.
Jason Tuck, Community and Economic Development Director, was the City's project manager for the new construction, and could not be happier with the process. "DLR's use of Revit (Autodesk's BIM software) resulted in a lack of major change orders, which certainly evidenced a smooth project," he says. "There were zero unforeseen changes. What changes occurred were owner driven.

"Also, the coordination between the architect, contractor, and construction team was excellent, which helped detect and