What are the primary goals of creating a building model? Who are the key stakeholders?
◦ What does each of them need from the model?
◦ What do they care about most, and where do those priorities conflict?
A drawing is a picture of a building. A model is a description of one.
◦ What questions can you ask a model that you cannot ask a drawing?
Models can give more insight into structural overlaps and clashes than drawings can. You can use a model to predict how stresses will change across the structure if a load bearing wall is moved, or what the total volume of a material needed for a certain part of the project is.
◦ Are there things a drawing still communicates better? Give an example.
A drawing can better communicate the “feel” or intended “vibe” of a building by removing the clutter that comes with models. Without the clutter of piping or texture, for example, a drawing can better convey the spaciousness of a room and how light would enter.
This course splits the work across Forma, Revit and Forma Data Management.
◦ What is gained by using a different tool for concept, documentation and coordination?
Concept tools allow us to quickly test certain constraints and ideas without needing to complete full specific documentation. The documentation tool (Revit) allows us to be more precise and apply the concept design at the necessary scale with additional complexities. Using a different tool for coordination allows easy access to the models and easy syncing that is accessible.
◦ What tends to get lost in the handoffs between them?
Automated area calculations can’t be done when moving from Revit to Forma as the adjusted shapes aren’t readable by the same forma software that can perform calculations on forma designs. Similarly, structures moved from revit to forma can’t be specifically edited in forma. Syncing changed can also cause misalignments that must be manually edited after transfers.
◦ Who on a real project team is responsible for making sure nothing is lost?
BIM managers are responsible for making sure nothing is lost and that models are moving cleanly without corruption between the two tools. Design leads and architects are responsible for ensuring that specifications, such as microclimate simulations, are unadjusted between forma and the rigorous detailing and design process in Revit. BIM managers control the transition while architects ensure that architectural intent isn’t lost in the transition.
Where should a building model actually live?
◦ What are the practical consequences of a model living on one person's laptop?
The model’s accessibility and progress is directly attached to the owner of the laptop. If they get sick or go on vacation, the model becomes inaccessible. The model can also be constrained by the laptop’s individual storage, memory, and processing ability.
◦ What changes when the model lives in the cloud, for the designer and for everyone else?
The model can be worked on by multiple people at once and isn’t bound to a specific person’s hardware, making it more accessible. This makes it easier for the design team to both view and work on the model.