BUDAPEST, October 24, 2017 – The European Committee for Standardization’s BIM Working Group is focused on developing a coherent standard for the AEC industry in Europe. The BIM-based standardization will result in increased efficiency as well as huge ecological benefits. Nemetschek Group’s GRAPHISOFT, representing Hungary in the CEN Working Group, hosted the session.
The standardization of Building Information Modelling (BIM) is one of the biggest challenges the European AEC industry has yet to solve. Developed countries are implementing architectural standards based on the Open BIM platform aligning design and construction processes in a transparent and effective way. It will increase efficiency and decrease costs, and will contribute to global environmental protection as well.
In the European Union, nearly 20 million people are employed in the AEC industry, amounting to more than 10 percent of the EU’s GDP. However, the sector is responsible for over 50 percent of total greenhouse gas emissions, energy and raw material use as well as solid waste production. Contrary to other industrial and business sectors, AEC industry’s efficiency has barely improved in the last decades.
BIM-based standardization can be a revolutionary solution bringing about an economic and ecological breakthrough. The proposed standard covers architectural planning as well as the entire life cycle of construction projects, where design represents 1-3 percent, construction costs 20-25 percent and operational costs 72-78 percent.
Most construction problems are generated by insufficient or cumbersome cooperation between different professional branches (architects, mechanical engineers, structural engineers, etc.). Therefore, harmonizing the differences is of crucial importance. International standardization follows Building Information Modelling (BIM), and the Open BIM solution based on it, the former having its roots in Hungary-based GRAPHISOFT. Open BIM provides unique communication flow among the various engineering branches.
European bodies find it important to develop the construction industry as well. The European Committee for Standardization will complete the standardization process by 2019 in a three-year process. The new standard will support uniform, sector-wide operation across the continent.
The European Committee for Standardization (CEN) is a public standards organization involving 33 European countries. GRAPHISOFT represents Hungary in the CEN’s Working Group.
“I believe it is of the utmost importance that CEN’s BIM Technical Working Group (CEN/TC 442/WG1) holds its regular session in Budapest. That means not only Graphisoft’s but the entire Hungarian building sector’s commitment to international development,”
said Miklos Szovenyi-Lux, Graphisoft’s head of strategic relationships, who is the Hungarian representative in the CEN Technical Working Group’s strategy committee.
CEN’s BIM Working Group held its second annual session at Graphisoft’s Hungarian Headquarters September 11-12, 2017.
Representing Hungary, the Hungarian Committee for Standardization is taking part in the Working Group. GRAPHISOFT is a member of both committees. Graphisoft’s active involvement enables Hungarian construction participants to have first-hand information about European BIM standards. In Budapest, the session will take place in four working groups. The Committee has delegates from 18 member states including Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, United Kingdom, Finland, France, the Netherlands, Hungary, Germany, Norway, Italy, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland, Sweden, Slovakia and Slovenia. It is the first time that two non-European countries, Chile and Kazakhstan, also take part in the session as observers, upon the recommendation of GRAPHISOFT.