There are more discussion threads on what BIM is then I care to mention or dive into. Usually it turn’s into a bowl of alphabet soup with VDC (Virtual Design and Construction) and IPD (Integrated Project Delivery) etc. and the fact is it means different things to different people. So I put up a poll on the website, and I feel fine about the argument that the people who A) come to my web site and B) respond to the poll are industry professionals with a vested interest in BIM and all it entails, otherwise, really how would you get here? Certainly not by googling, “Jersey Shore” or “Justin Bieber”.
My interest here was not to put a stake in the ground and define BIM. It was to see how the market defines it, and the market defines it as a ‘process’ that they understand that the ‘I’ (Information) is more than lip service but more interestingly, at least to me, is that Revit comes in second, even before “It’s a technology”. What impact does that have? For developers, I think a large one. If you are developing software for a BIM platform, and as much as we want open standards, seamless cross platform migration, etc, the fact is until is there is an open source BIM Engine / BIM authoring tool you have to choose, and if you are a developer it makes more and more sense to choose Revit, at least at first. Now all you Revit haters, let’s hear it ArchiCAD people, I don’t care what you think is superior technology, the world is littered with “superior” technology has beens never was. For my purposes I follow what’s market driven. The history of what technology takes off and why is more interesting, a’la the VHS vs. Betamax war, and why many people thought Sony lost with superior technology.
Why you chose what technology you chose, is entirely up to you and your process. I’m just the messenger.
