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There is No BIM Like Home

Hello BIMfans,

Last year on the 10th of October I went through the biggest milestones of my life (so far!) the fiancée and I got the keys to our first house.  However, once the initial excitement wore off I was actually stunned at how archaic the whole process is.

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We had bought the most expensive item we might ever buy, and all of the information was given to us as loose disparate bits of paper; this was 2015 not the 1980s!!

However, I came up with a solution.  My work at BRE is principally focused around Building Information Modelling (BIM), so I decided that I could apply my skills and knowledge around BIM to produce an Information Model about my house.  Not only that, as BRE’s mission is to “Build a better world together” I decided foolishly bravely to share what I have done so that others can benefit from the experience; so then There’s No BIM Like Home was born.

There’s No BIM Like Home documents my journey from a pile of paper to an intelligent set of information about my home.  Currently still ongoing, the blog carefully considers various elements of the BIM Level 2 process that will culminate with a set of full BIM Level 2 deliverables.  So far, the graphical model I’ve developed has helped me in a number of ways.  I have used it to send quantities for builders to quote against, and plan out where I am move furniture around the house.  In addition, all the data I have about my house means that the warranty documents for my Thermostat and the FENSA certifications for my windows are available at a push of a button.  In the future, I will be able to uses it to run my own SAP Calculations, and test what retrofit options will work best.

The blog itself includes a number of different elements.  There is:

  • The BIM blog, where I am progressing my information model based on a series of Plain Language Questions I wrote myself about my information needs;
  • Smart Homes blog, a new feature where I will be discussing the smart home products I have such as my Nest Thermostat, Philip Hue lights, and Amazon Dash buttons;
  • Documents, free to view and download compliant BIM Level 2 documents I have created for my home including core briefing and execution documents;
  • Engagement, Interactive elements such as this Stereo Panorama of my living room that can be used with VR glasses; and
  • Discussion, where I post opinions pieces such as my piece ‘The Great British BIM Off’ where I compare Construction with Baking.

This blog is done by me in my spare time, not because I have nothing better to do (despite what my ‘friends’ may lead you believe!); but because I have seen through my work at BRE the real value in having good asset data, and to be perfectly honest; if it is good enough for the UK Government, it is good enough for me!