Method for Evaluating a Building Information Model

This paper discusses a method for evaluating building information models from the point of view of different disciplines. The ultimate goal is to provide a methodology for decision-makers on an Architecture, Engineering, and Construction (AEC) project, where they can follow the status and performance of the BIM model at each project milestone, from different aspects, in a comparable manner. This methodology requires an evaluation method that aggregates data input by the designers. Interpreting BIM models is complex – multi-dimensional, in fact, considering the meta-information added to it. Therefore, the aggregation process is not trivial and may differ in several cases. We build up multi-dimensional diagrams to chart the possible factors of the evaluation, besides introducing aggregation rules and visualizations. For such a method, it was essential to analyze BIM ontologies in order to establish a precise definition for each concept: milestones, building parts, indicator metrics, etc. We describe an example project workflow where our method works in theory, while we give a practical solution how to add the evaluation data to the BIM model with CAAD software.