BIM Q&A: Understanding International BIM Standards and Their Classification

Building Information Modeling (BIM) technology has been promoted and adopted to varying degrees in many countries worldwide, including the United States, the United Kingdom, South Korea, Japan, and Singapore. International BIM technology standards can be broadly categorized into three main types:

1. Government-Mandated Standards: These are technical standards developed and issued by governments and their subordinate departments. They are mandatory national standards commonly used within the country but may differ from those of other nations, limiting their international applicability. For example, the US government has developed the National Building Information Model Standard.

2. Industry Recommended Standards: Proposed by industry associations or professional societies, these standards are not mandatory national regulations. An example is the German Intelligent Building Association’s 2006 publication, the “User Handbook Data Exchange BIM/IFC.”

3. Software-Specific Guidance or Requirements: These standards focus on particular application software. For instance, in 2011, the UK released the “AEC (UK) BIM Standard for Revit,” the “BIM Project Implementation Planning Guidelines,” and the “Coordination Requirements for Construction Installation Models and Delivery Spaces.”

In China, the government issued the “Unified Standard for Application of Building Engineering Information Modeling” in 2016, which officially took effect on July 1, 2017. Additionally, several other standards such as the “Storage Standards for Building Engineering Information Models,” “Delivery Standards for Building Engineering Design Information Models,” “Classification and Coding Standards for Building Engineering Information Models,” and “Application Standards for Building Engineering Construction Information Models” have been developed and are currently under review. With the ongoing enhancement of the BIM standards system, it is expected that BIM technology will advance rapidly in the near future.

The universal BIM standard system comprises three main components:

• BIM Standard Framework: Facilitates information sharing through classification coding, data exchange, and information delivery.
• BIM Basic Standards: Establishes the foundation based on three core standards—the Building Information Organization Standard, BIM Information Delivery Manual Standard, and Data Model Representation Standard.
• BIM Standard Classification: Based on the framework and basic standards, this category includes classification coding standards, data model standards, and process delivery standards.

According to a 2012 document issued by the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development of the People’s Republic of China, five BIM standards have been designated as national standard development projects. These are divided into three hierarchical levels:

• Level 1 – Highest Standard: The Unified Standard for the Application of Building Engineering Information Models.
• Level 2 – Basic Data Standards: Classification and Coding Standards for Building Engineering Design Information Models, and Storage Standards for Building Engineering Information Models.
• Level 3 – Execution Standards: Delivery Standards for Architectural Engineering Design Information Models and Delivery Standards for Manufacturing Engineering Design Information Models.

The highest-level standard, the “Unified Standard for BIM Application,” defines uniform requirements for application methods, data formats, and transmission protocols throughout the lifecycle stages of building information models.

The basic data standards include:

• Information Model Coding Standard: Specifies detailed classification requirements for model information to facilitate data conversion and transmission.
• Model Data Storage Standard: Provides guidelines for organizing and storing model information. Architects can store information using formats supported by application software or standardized formats to enable seamless communication and sharing among users, software vendors, and other stakeholders through BIM information delivery manual standards.

The execution standards cover:

• Delivery Standards for Building Engineering Design Models and Application Standards for Building Engineering Construction Models. These establish unified requirements for the completeness, storability, transferability, and interoperability of model information, supporting collaborative workflows across various disciplines and project participants.

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