Building Information Modeling (BIM) is revolutionising the Architectural, Engineering and Construction (AEC) industry, and is fast becoming the buzzword in the industry, says Philip Lo.

An “as-built” 3D model, courtesy of InteliBuild.

BIM is showing up everywhere from magazines to conferences. But amazingly, few people, especially here in Asia, even know what it is, or realise the significant impact it is going to have on the design, construction and management of our built environment. Three dimensional models are already widely used in the AEC industry. Aside from being a visualisation tool, models are now being used from the upfront planning phase of a project, helping to identify various visual and environmental impacts a project might have on the surrounding neighborhood.