On February 24, Contech was hosting a conference <http://www.contech.qc.ca/grandes-rencontres/gr-details.php?code=2001> on BIM, a whole day dedicated to the promotion of the multiple benefits of BIM and the new construction technologies. I was really interested in all the presentations and I was not the only one. I came out with the feeling that each one of the hundred participants left with the same thought in mind: making BIM a priority for their company. This new found interest leads me to think that Quebec is finally on its way to close the gap between the province and the rest of Canada and the United States in the area of implementation and use of the digital construction processes.

Unlike many events on the subject, most of the construction industry disciplines were present at the conference. Even the real estate owners and property managers were there, which is a good thing for the industry because the rise of BIM is conditional to convinced owners who demand the use of it right from the start on a project.

A conference by Jean-Pierre Dépelteau, lawyer, allowed to break through the principal obstacle from a professional stand point, i.e. the responsibility of the information. Thus, exchanging 3D models instead of CAD drawings doesn’t make a difference in the contractual terms. On the contrary, the concept of BIM itself will force the professionals to collaborate more closely as a dedicated team toward the achievement of the project’s goals.

The only cloud in this clear sky: the absence of representatives of the construction phase such as contractors or fabricators. None of the speakers came from the construction sector either, although they are an important link in the realisation of BIM projects, as much as the designers.

Presently, there is a marked gap between BIM for design and BIM for construction that results in the benefits of 3S models not reaching the construction phase of the projects. This distance comes, mainly, from the classic project structure DESIGN-BID-BUILD that separates almost completely the designers and the constructors. To close it, we’ll have to take calculated risks as multidisciplinary teams.

Will you be one of the precursors who will dare disrupt the classic project structure to apply BIM from design to construction?