BuN | BIM and sustainability

  Copyright: © ICoM

Integration of existing sustainability criteria for infrastructure construction into the Building Information Modeling (BIM) working method.

Against the backdrop of current as well as future challenges, which arise primarily from climate change, there is a great need for action in the more sustainable design of infrastructure structures over the entire life cycle. One of the five strategic goals of the Master Plan BIM Bundesfernstraßen of the Federal Ministry of Digital Affairs and Transport (BMDV) is to optimize sustainability with the help of the BIM method. In this way, more sustainable and resource-saving construction methods can support the achievement of the Paris climate protection goals. For the further implementation of the BIM working method, the expert network BIM.Hamburg is therefore taking up the aforementioned strategic objective from the Master Plan BIM Federal Trunk Roads on behalf of the BMDV and, together with the ICoM, is developing new standards for a digital and sustainable working method in the construction sector.

There are already a number of approaches that attempt to combine digitization and sustainability in construction projects. In order to exploit the synergies of these megatrends, a holistic approach is required. In this context, it is important to note that fundamentally different framework conditions exist from the complex topic area of sustainability between building construction and infrastructure construction. The aim of the project "BIM and Sustainability" is to develop a model-based sustainability assessment for federal highway structures. It will be investigated to what extent existing evaluation procedures and criteria for sustainability assessment can already be mapped via the BIM method. The aspect of sustainability implies ecological as well as economic and social factors. In the development of the procedure, the focus is primarily on ensuring interoperability and the use of open data exchange formats in the course of the openBIM idea. First practical applications will show the technical feasibility as well as the automation potentials of the connection between BIM and sustainability.

Finally, the results of the project will result in a practical guide for a partially automated approach at the federal level. Based on these results, an outlook will be given on which next steps should be taken for a continuous use of the BIM method in the context of sustainable construction, taking into account the entire life cycle.

The project is being worked on jointly by the BMDV as part of the implementation of the Master Plan BIM Bundesfernstraßen on behalf of BIM.Hamburg, represented by the Landesbetrieb Straßen, Brücken und Gewässer Hamburg (LSBG) and the Hamburg Port Authority AöR (HPA). ICoM is primarily involved in conceptualizing the BIM integration of sustainability assessments based on open data exchange formats in the course of the openBIM idea.