As the mindset around promoting and applying BIM technology shifts from asking “Why?” to “Why not?”, more and more engineering projects are requiring BIM integration. However, there’s a growing concern about the phenomenon of “BIM for BIM’s sake.” This trend is troubling. If it continues to grow, it risks undermining years of progress in BIM adoption and fostering an unhealthy environment where BIM becomes merely a virtual exercise without practical value, particularly in China. Such development is unsustainable.
First, let’s clarify what “BIM for BIM’s sake” means. Simply put, it refers to using BIM technology solely to showcase the technology itself or to fulfill contractual obligations, without delivering meaningful assistance to the engineering process. In some cases, it even creates obstacles. For example, demanding highly detailed and visually accurate models without considering whether the significant investment of time and human resources brings proportional benefits to the project. BIM technology offers the ability to simulate and coordinate various scenarios within virtual space to solve integration issues across disciplines ahead of time, ensuring the project proceeds smoothly, safely, and on schedule.
It’s important to remember that all BIM activities in virtual space are meant to support engineering activities in the physical world. While BIM models are inherently abstract, our approach must remain practical. So, how can we avoid falling into the trap of “BIM for BIM’s sake”? Here are some personal insights for your consideration.
1. Enhance BIM education and training for owners, focusing on practical engineering benefits
One key step is to strengthen BIM education and training for project owners. Supervisors and relevant personnel—especially engineers—should understand the vital role owners play in BIM adoption and application. Owners need to select BIM projects that align with their actual needs, goals, and available resources, recognizing that BIM is a tool, not an end in itself.
Owners should emphasize the tangible benefits BIM technology brings to projects. For instance, during design or construction, the level of geometric detail and attribute data precision in BIM models should be tailored to the intended application. The priority should be on how BIM supports integration between design and construction, rather than on how detailed or visually appealing the models are.
When BIM applications truly benefit the contractor, they usually adopt them willingly, often without imposing extra costs on the owner. Of course, owners may desire aesthetically pleasing models for presentation, but if those models serve only the owner’s interests, additional fees should be paid to the contractor for their development, rather than expecting model processing to be provided free of charge.
Another example is the delivery of reports on BIM collision detection during design or construction. I’ve heard of cases where owners request detailed reports outlining every identified conflict and the measures taken, aiming to prove BIM’s effectiveness by sheer volume. This can lead contractors to invest excessive time and resources simply to generate such reports, sometimes at the expense of actual project benefits. BIM is ultimately a tool to prevent design or construction conflicts; if no conflicts are found during required reviews, the objective has been achieved.
2. Establish clear model delivery criteria, with associated costs borne by the provider
Next, consider model delivery. To maximize BIM’s benefits, it must be applied beyond construction—to facility operation and maintenance. Therefore, it’s reasonable for contractors to deliver BIM models that support these phases to owners. However, this requires owners or their appointed facility managers to have the capability to use the models, establish clear delivery standards, and conduct proper acceptance checks.
Because these models primarily serve the owner’s operational needs and offer limited construction-phase assistance, their development costs should be covered by the owner. Unfortunately, in practice, owners often lack follow-up plans for model use, have not defined delivery standards, and cannot perform model acceptance. Yet, they still demand “refined” models at various lifecycle stages, independently verified by the owners, fearing that lax requirements might favor contractors.
This approach wastes resources and provides no real benefits for subsequent applications. Such demands should be minimized whenever possible.
3. Commit to creating new value with BIM to accelerate the construction industry’s advancement
Finally, our BIM applications should go beyond simply completing projects on time, within quality standards and budget. We should aim to create new value, using BIM to achieve goals that were previously unattainable due to technical limitations. By doing so, we can accelerate the construction industry’s transformation in the era of Industry 4.0.
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