BIM is revolutionizing design and construction—but what does that mean for building owners and occupants? How can you leverage the power of BIM to help your clients as well as grow your firm's revenues?  

Building owners know that BIM data is valuable—they just don't know how to get it. The 2009 McGraw Hill BIM Smart Market report states that 70% of owners report a positive ROI from BIM while a building is in construction. However, design and construction are only a fraction of the building's lifecycle and cost.FM:Systems offers Lifecycle BIM™—a comprehensive approach to expanding BIM into the operational phase and allows AEC firms and building owners to partner in driving down building lifecycle costs.

In the past three years, building information modeling (BIM) has emerged as a revolutionary new technology in the building industry. It provides accurate, timely, and relevant information that is centralized, giving everyone access to the same data and greatly improving communication and collaboration for all stakeholders. But while BIM has certainly proven its value in building design and construction, can it support the facility management phase of a building's lifecycle? YES.

• Benefits of BIM for Facility Managers improved space management by integrating building data with HR data, organizations can reduce vacancy and ultimately achieve major reductions in real estate expenses.
• Efficient use of energy BIM can help facilitate the analysis and comparisons of various energy alternatives to help facility managers dramatically reduce environmental impacts and operating costs.
• Streamlined preventive maintenance Information about building mechanical equipment stored in BIM models can be valuable in creating a database needed for ongoing preventive maintenance.
• Economical retrofits and renovations A "living" BIM model provides an easier means of representing three-dimensional aspects of the building. Better information about existing conditions reduces the cost and complexity of building renovation and retrofit projects.
• Enhanced lifecycle management Some building design professionals are embedding data on life expectancy and replacement costs in BIM models, thereby helping an owner understand benefits of investing in materials and systems that may cost more initially but have a better payback over the life of the building.

The FM:Interact BIM Integration Component enables Autodesk® Revit® users to connect their BIM models to FM:Interact, a Web-based suite of IWMS software for space management, facility maintenance, real estate portfolio management, sustainability and more. FM:Interact maintains a live integration between the model and the system, allowing AEC and FM professionals to share information throughout the building lifecycle.

Key Capabilities 

Create live, bi-directional links between Revit models and the FM:Interact Web-based application Connect BIM data from design, construction and renovation to facility management and operations

Manage FM:Interact Space Management inventory, allocations and occupancy in Revit Synchronize building components in Revit models with building equipment data in the FM:Interact Facility Maintenance Module

Publish floor plans from Revit models to FM:Interact—enabling anyone in the organization to view floor plans in a Web browser

There are many phases in the life of a building, each with its own set of managers, requirements and data. Inevitably crucial information is lost with every handoff—wasting time and money and leaving much room for error.

The FM:Interact BIM Integration Component helps to leverage the data in BIM models to improve communication and collaboration between architects, engineers, contractors and facility managers as a building evolves. This provides an opportunity to share building information during initial design and construction, building operations, and renovation or retrofit projects.

FM:Systems is Autodesk®’s Preferred Industry Partner for Facility Management. FM:Systems works closely with Autodesk to bring the benefits of BIM to the operations phase of the building lifecycle, driving greater productivity and significant savings.  FM:Interact integrates with three Autodesk products: AutoCAD, Revit® Architecture, and Revit MEP software. Integration means there is a live link between AutoCAD and Revit with FM:Interact, enabling information to be both pushed and pulled into the system and maintaining real-time data in all solutions.

About FM:Systems 

As Autodesk's preferred industry partner for facilities management, FM:Systems brings the benefits of BIM to the operational phase of the building lifecycle. The FM:Interact BIM Integration Component provides live links between Revit models and FM:Interact's Web-based facility management software—improving communication and collaboration between AEC firms and building owners.

About Autodesk

Autodesk, Inc. is a world leader in 3D design, engineering and entertainment software for the manufacturing, building and construction, and media and entertainment markets. Since its introduction of AutoCAD software in 1982, Autodesk continues to develop the broadest portfolio of state-of-the-art software to help customers experience their ideas digitally before they are built. Fortune 100 companies—as well as the last 15 Academy Award winners for Best Visual Effects—use Autodesk software tools to design, visualize and simulate their ideas to save time and money, enhance quality, and foster innovation for competitive advantage.

About Kal-Blue

As an Autodesk Value Added Reseller and a Certified Business Partner of FM:Systems, Kal-Blue is a leader in providing the building industry with solutions to improve design, construction, and facility management operations using Building Information Modeling and data management.  Kal-Blue provides software, implementation, training, and support services for all products they sell.

At Kal-Blue we help owners, architects, engineers, and construction professionals understand how to take BIM past design and construction and implement it as a tool to improve Lifecycle Management.  Lifecycle BIM is connecting the design and construction processes directly to facility management.  This integrated approach will maximize the BIM process throughout the entire life of the building.

Kal-Blue and FM - Where We Fit

Kal-Blue acts as the conduit for the owner, design team, and construction teams to work together toward the goal of providing a data rich project delivery using BIM. We have assembled an industry leading tool set that includes Autodesk, FM:Systems, and McGraw Hill Construction to provide the best solutions for our clients.  Our professionals will work with each project team to establish workflows, processes, and rules for defining and collecting the vital data needed to improve owner handover.

BIMconx™

Kal-Blue has created a unique process that helps owners assure they get the data they need to operate their buildings.  We work with owners staff members to establish the building asset data vital to improve operations.  This data may include asset information, space data, and more.  Kal-Blue's unique BIMconx™ process establishes a solid foundation for data collection within your Revit® models.  This data is then cataloged and easy to integrate into FM:Interact or other CAFM solutions.

For more information about BIMconx™ services contact Kal-Blue at info@kalblue.com.