A Thousand BIM – A Rapid Value-Simulation Approach to Developing a BIM Tool for Supporting Collaboration During Schematic Design

Abstract

A typical architectural design project proceeds as collaboration among professionals who have different expertise, values and priorities. The collaboration is needed to make designs both rich yet feasible, but the professionally different ways of thinking can also be a block on the way of design development. This paper takes the example of the relationship between developers and architects, who tend to have different evaluation criteria, methods, and processes. A BIM-based tool, A Thousand BIM, is introduced as a means to quickly generate possible building typologies on a given project site, with computation of expected total values expressed in simple financial terms. Its aim is to help a group of heterogeneous professionals to communicate in the same language, articulate criteria and priorities in multiple perspectives, and share rapidly simulated evaluations of schematic design variations. The implemented evaluation process considers construction cost per square foot, land value, and sustainability as well as other soft design values such as views and accessibility. It can take various market data as inputs to cost calculation, and the weight to each of the design values is dynamically adjustable. A professional can explicitly set them, and share the criteria, priorities, and results of value simulations with others in an enhanced collaborative process.