United Kingdom to Assist United States with Their National BIM Program
A major development for the US built environment sector was announced late last month, with a two-year collaboration to set the foundation of a US National BIM Program.
A memorandum of understanding has been signed between the National Institute of Building Sciences (NIBS) and the UK’s Centre for Digital Built Britain (CDBB). The organisations will work together to develop a roadmap for the US National BIM Program, based around the strengths of the UK model and in alignment with the ISO 19650 international standard for BIM.
BIM as a concept is built around synergy and collaborative strength, so it is logical that experts from both nations will work together to share knowledge and establish best practice for the good of the global industry. The US National BIM Program will benefit both the public and private sectors as our industry continues to work toward better productivity and performance.
NIBS President and CEO Lakisha Ann Woods said, “The mission of the U.S. National BIM Program is to convene industry stakeholders to lead the development and broad deployment of next-generation national information management standards and practices focused on significantly improving the built environment delivery and operation processes. We are thrilled to work with CDBB as a collaborative partner to address these global industry opportunities.”
CDBB Head of International Adam Matthews said, “This partnership continues the global trend of knowledge sharing between countries that is accelerating and aligning the construction sector’s digitalisation journey. It marks the culmination of two years of close joint working between the two countries – by working together to innovate the built environment we can create better outcomes for people and places.”
The agreement was announced during a Digital Construction Week Connect webinar. For more on the ISO 19650 international standards released in 2019, take a look at our blog post on the subject.
A Path to Better BIM in the United States
It’s no secret that the UK is a forerunner for BIM adoption on the world stage, given their mandated requirement for BIM Level 2 on all centrally procured construction projects since April 2016. Surveys show that BIM awareness and adoption has been steadily rising across the United Kingdom in recent years, with the majority of respondents believing that cost efficiency, coordination and delivery speeds have improved thanks to BIM.
While the US was the first nation to implement BIM, the methodology has lost some of its momentum in recent years. If the National BIM Program can achieve its stated aim and deliver a consistent, practical framework for projects across the United States, we can expect to see an uptick in BIM implementation in the coming years.
Despite the current lack of standardisation, many US businesses are already experiencing the benefits of BIM workflows thanks to advanced software platforms that boost collaboration.
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