Integrated Model-based Design
During design development, ATP’s architects
used Revit Architecture software. The ability to
create and visualize the design in 3D rendered and
perspective views of the underlying model helped
the design team better visualize the emerging
design and make more informed design decisions.
In addition, the bidirectional associativity between
the model and any view of the model, including
production drawings, kept the design and
documentation coordinated for optimized project
and change management.
ATP also used Revit Structure to design the mall’s
supporting structures, create framework plans,
and for integrated structural analysis. By relying on
an integrated modeling platform, ATP’s structural
designers referenced the Revit architectural
model for their design, minimizing errors due to
translation data loss or manual coordination with
the architects. Non-supporting components were
hidden, and then structural components such as
supports, beams, foundations, and loads were
Image courtesy of ATP Architects and Engineers
added. In parallel, the architects referenced the
emerging structural design for multi-discipline
clash detection and improved coordination. The
framing design was developed and the model
passed to the structural engineers for analysis. The
Revit Structure software simultaneously creates
a physical model for layout, coordination, and
documentation as well as an analytical model for
structural analysis, helping ATP reduce redundant
modeling efforts and streamline the analysis
process.
ATP piloted the Revit MEP software on this project,
using the software to design and document the
facility’s building systems, including the heating,
ventilation, electricity and sanitary systems. The
advantages of the integrated Revit platform and
the direct use of the architectural model were
particularly helpful for ATP’s MEP design efforts,
and the firm is now implementing Revit MEP for
future projects.
Transition to BIM
The strategy for utilizing BIM on this Siska
mall project was developed by b.i.m.m. GmbH,
a European technology firm offering BIM
implementations services. “As an integrated
interdisciplinary design firm, ATP’s in-house
groups provide all the design services needed for
a project such as this,” explains Anton Gasteiger,
b.i.m.m.’s managing director. “Revit is an ideal tool
for integrated design because all different design
disciplines access a central Revit project model
that is shared between users. For example, the
architect works independently in a local copy of
the model and the software synchronizes changes
made to that local model back into the master
project file. In turn, the architect refreshes the
local copy with changes from other users in other
disciplines such as the structural engineer and
the building technician. In this manner, all the
project design teams work in the same model
simultaneously.”
Because everyone involved in the project uses the
same building data model and can constantly add
to it in the course of the project, design processes
can run in parallel. One discipline builds on
another without any loss of information. Everyone
is accessing and adding to this central design
model, resulting in designs that are naturally
integrated and therefore better coordinated. With
BIM processes and software, discipline-specific
design workflows that were performed largely in
isolation are now closely integrated.
“The ability to work in an integrated fashion
using the Revit family of products has greatly
accelerated our design process,” says Oberrauch.
“For example, an architect inadvertently models a
support structure using an undersized beam. Since
all of the disciplines are accessing a shared design
model, the structural engineer immediately sees
the architect’s choice and provides feedback that
the beam size should be stronger.”
“Before using Revit, our design teams had
to manually coordinate their efforts, which
greatly increased the chances of errors,” add
Werner Blunder, architect and the head of BIM
management at ATP. “Using intelligent Revit
models makes our project designs more consistent
and coordinated. And whether a change is made to
a model, a schedule, or a floor plan, the software
automatically reflects that change across all
affected drawings and views.”
The ability to work in
an integrated fashion
using the Revit family
of products has greatly
accelerated our design
process.
—Gerhard Oberrauch
Lead Architect
ATP Architects and Engineers