The application of BIM technology in China has entered its 15th year and is now experiencing rapid growth. Policies at both central and local levels have been continuously introduced, significantly driving its development. However, many challenges remain. Today, the author will discuss the development prospects and application challenges of BIM technology.
1. Challenges Facing BIM in the Engineering Industry
The domestic engineering industry is currently undergoing an upgrade and transformation to fully leverage the advantages offered by BIM. This shift in production processes will lead to a restructuring of the labor division within the industry. With BIM’s introduction, the engineering industry chain is expected to expand vertically and horizontally.
Starting from the planning stage, downstream contractors, subcontractors, specialized teams, material suppliers, and even on-site construction technicians need to be capable of working with BIM models created by upstream vendors. According to contract terms, they must add value to these models for subsequent stages. This cycle continues until it reaches the end users. The adoption of BIM also enables more diverse sectors—such as property management, equipment manufacturing, software information services, technical training, and certification—to integrate into the engineering industry chain, thereby increasing the overall output value of both Hiroshima and related industries.
Individuals within this expanded and deepened industrial chain will enjoy more and better opportunities, often forming strategic alliances to target specific markets. If this transformation is successful, manufacturers lacking BIM capabilities may lose the ability to compete in large or complex projects in the near future. How to adapt to these changes and secure a favorable position amid the global engineering market reshuffle is a critical issue for China’s engineering industry.
2. Managing 3D Engineering Technology
Until recently, 2D CAD dominated China’s drawing environments, and BIM did not offer architects substantial design support. The key difference between BIM development and current 2D workflows is the integration of information management with engineering technology—one of the main barriers to BIM adoption.
Previously, 3D visual simulations without BIM focused mainly on visual representation, emphasizing material realism and lighting effects as competitive features among software. While these visuals help architects and clients communicate design concepts, the models lack practical value and often differ significantly from actual construction, leading to perceptions of imagery as “deceptive.”
Simply emphasizing visual expression limits usefulness to the initial planning and design phases and offers little support for construction and operations management. BIM, by contrast, adopts the concept of “building a house” to create information-rich models, whereas traditional 3D simulation is more about “drawing a house” with striking visuals. 3D engineering information management focuses on the entire building lifecycle, aiming to apply the model from design through to operation.
By integrating design and engineering information at each stage, BIM helps prevent errors in design and cost estimation—a practical and vital benefit often overlooked by many architects. This oversight leads to frequent design changes during construction. As BIM matures in engineering information management, it is hoped that architects will increasingly recognize its importance. The changes BIM applications will bring to China’s architectural design are certainly exciting to anticipate!
That concludes our discussion on the development prospects and application challenges of BIM technology. I hope this article has been helpful to everyone!
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