Ecobuild Media

Green Building Digest leads with an feature article on BIM (building information modeling), and an excellent look at the change that BIM is ushering in across the industry. You’ll need a free registration to read the entire article, but here is an excerpt.

“The key point is that BIM is not one piece of software that you just load up on a machine. It is an environment of technology that will allow all of these parties that participate in the building, founding and operation process to participate,” said Hoffer. “That includes the owner, architect, building engineer, civil engineer, sub contractors and more.”

She said that the benefit of BIM is that it allows users to create coordinated information which serves as a basis for analysis. This in turn allows for collaboration which is important for sustainable design and helps with the optimization of the process. “The idea of analysis is so important because sustainable design is asking us to predict the performance of the building, to predict how much energy we use, to predict how much carbon and emissions will be generated,” she said.

For those working in the realm of architecture, BIM tools provide an opportunity to optimize designs for concepts like energy and daylighting, said Hoffer.

In the area of mechanical, electrical and plumbing systems BIM tools provide an opportunity to gather information about building performance, predicting energy consumption along with water and power needs. In addition, within the BIM environment there is an opportunity to communicate between the building disciplines while providing imagery and analysis to help clients make decisions.

For civil engineers there are BIM tools that focus on topics like site selection with the goal of optimizing the site for things like erosion control, slope gradient management and storm water management.

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From Medill Reports: Washington.

WASHINGTON—At a recent Washington, D.C. green festival, one of the popular exhibits focused on House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s efforts to make the Capitol building greener. Her eco-friendly initiative, Green the Capitol, is already making headway inside and outside the building.

“She said we really need to green our own house, before she felt comfortable rolling out climate legislation for the rest of the country.” said Allison Rogers, the program manager for Green the Capitol.

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Collaborative, Real-time Design at Ecobuild Fall and AEC-ST Fall

I²SL in partnership with AEC Science & Technology, LLC is pleased to bring another Labs21 Course to the Washington, DC, area: The Labs21 Introductory Course: High-Performance, Low-Energy Design will be held in conjunction with the Ecobuild Fall and AEC-ST Fall events this December.

[ Register here ]