What sessions should Facilities / Operations attend at AECTechCon 2025?

Ah, another AEC conference... and I'll bet it's all geared toward Architects and GCs... or is it? 

Register for AECTechCon 2025 here. 

Spoiler alert... it is not. AECTechCon runs May 7th & 8th in St. Charles, Missouri, not too far from the STL airport. I've been to this conference many times over the years, and it just keeps getting bigger and better (Also? We were in this same venue last year and the food was EXCELLENT for all meals, way better than stale muffins, dry sandwiches, and salads in a shot glass like I've experienced at other places).

Coming from the owner's side, I know it's hard to find classes with our peers that actually apply to facilities, so I did the leg work for you and put together a list of classes that actually apply to our part of the lifecycle. Apologies for making multiple recommendations for some of the time slots, but there is a lot of good content, even for those of us who are not on the design, production, and construction side. 

There are different official tracks, but obviously the folks in operations can span such a wide variety of skills and tasks, that we would want to attend across multiple themes:

·       BIM/VDC

·       Innovation & Emerging Technologies

·       IT & Infrastructure

·       Safety

·       Workforce Development

DAY ONE

BREAKFAST – registration and food

Conference Opening – Leonard Teonjes, Alex Belkofer, and Travis Byerly

Keynote: Empowering the Next Generation of AECO - Dustin Burns

Democratizing Digital Maturity through Discovery - Eveart Foster

BREAK – Exhibit Hall Opens

The Power of Low-Code Automation – Carl Storms

OR Enhancing Construction Safety with QR codes – Joe Shyrock

BREAK

Modeling Sustainability: Embedding Data for Reduced Embodied Carbon in Architectural Design – Ryan Taube

OR Women in Construction – Kendra Brown (DFW Intl. Airport), Gwen Arenberg, Jamie Berzon, and Leticia Lago

LUNCH

Digital Twin (Design Data Management) for Operations – Melanie Stone (yes, plugging my own class, but for obvious reasons)

OR Reality Capture to BIM in Critical Environments – Aaron Johnson, Marc Cady, and Aurore Fournier

BREAK

Using Existing MEP Systems in a New Project – Ray Blowers and Geoff McCally

OR Getting Along: The Importance of Interconnectivity within your Systems – Victor Zhang and Jacob Shavel

OR The AI Advantage: Tools, Techniques, and Truths – Carl Storms

BREAK

General Session: Apps for Mental Health / Construction Safety

Closing Keynote: It’s Still Construction: Restoring Faith in Tech with the Craft Workforce – Sal D’ambrosia

HAPPY HOUR – Food, drinks, networking, and asking exhibitors questions

DAY TWO

BREAKFAST – Registration and food

Opening Keynote – Paperless Buildings: How, What, & Why of ConTech – Hamzah Shanbari

General Session: Bridging the Gap from Office to Field – Paul Hedgepath

Safety Talk with AGCMO’s – Brandon Anderson

BREAK

Enhancing Operations through Digital Delivery and Digital Twins – Mark Mergenschroer

OR Practicing AI using the fundamentals of Data & Processes in Construction – Juan Nunez and Jason Jiang

OR Building Trust and Innovation: Psychological Safety in AEC – Karen Taylor-Liggins

BREAK

Building Operations: Addressing the 95% of Wasted Construction Data – Mark Mergenschroer

LUNCH

Using Augmented Reality to Add Life to the Model – Tom Colyer and Nick Landzettel

OR Utilizing Technology to Minimize Incidents & Orchestrate a Culture of Safety, Efficiency, and Engagement – Tyfoom & VeeJay

OR Data-Driven Insights: Leveraging Dashboards for Effective Cost Analysis – Ryan Meyer

OR Leading Change: Empowering Teams for a Tech-Ready Future – Jeff Visnic

BREAK

Leading Digital Transformation Across Diverse Teams without Direct Authority – Brian Myers

Strategizing AI: From Blueprints to Algorithms – Cindy Baldwin & Scott Yates

Building Your Future: A Comprehensive Guide to BIM Career Development – Katie King and Adam Lega

BREAK

General Session: Boots on the Ground Embracing Field Tech – Jeff Montgomery & Panel

CLOSING – Alex Belkofer & Travis Byerly – Closing Remarks and Prizes 

Watch a video recap of past events: LinkedIn video

Digital Twin From the Owner's Perspective - AUGI Con 2024 Video

A few weeks ago, I was honored to be one of the few speakers chosen to present at the first ever AUGI Con 2024.

There were so many great questions and discussions from the attendees. 

The recording of that presentation is now live!

AUGI Con 2024 area - Digital Twin from the Owner's Perspective video 

(EDIT: Now also available on YouTube! Though you still need to go through the Community App to access the slide deck and handout.)

You do need to be registered as a member at AUGI.com first, and then the AUGI Community (available desktop and in an app) which will be checked against your AUGI membership (there is a free membership level available, so there is no cost involved). 

I was worried about going over on time and talked pretty fast, so it's probably only about a 30 minute presentation, with about 15 minutes of Q&A. (If this presentation sounds familiar outside of AUGI, I gave a very similar talk at AECTechCon here in St. Louis the following week.)

In addition to a video recording of the session, my slide deck, as well as a 10 page course handout that provides almost as much detail as the talk itself, are also available in the mighty AUGI Community. 

First it was "BIMwashing", now it is "TWINwashing".

Before we try to sell Digital Twin services to facility operators, let's discuss how owners are using your design data today. 

Understanding what an Integrated Workplace Management System, or Computerized Maintenance Management System, is will be vital to determining what your client actually needs from your construction documentation. 

Learning how few people will actually interact directly with your models can bring perspective of how facilities/operations curates technical documentation and makes updates throughout the lifecycle of their campus.

Who is the Owner

• Who are the stakeholders?
• How will they access your data?

IWMS

• What is an Integrated Workplace Management System?
• How does my data get ingested & updated over the lifecycle?

Project Closeout

• What handover mistakes are commonly seen from the AEC side?
• What mistakes are commonly seen from the Owner’s side?

How does Digital Twin fit in?

• What real world problem would a ‘Digital Twin’ solve?

In addition to giving definitions and background data, real world examples were also provided at each step, from my 20+ years of experience working in Facilities, networking with other Owners, and being a consultant who implements and supports facilities operations and management around the world.

Thank you to my team over at R.O.I. Consulting Group for highlighting my Digital Twin for FM session to our blog readers!

Smart Museum - Digital Twin at The Wright Museum

Last year, my team at R.O.I. Consulting Group was fortunate enough to be able to work on a great project with the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History as an IoT sensor partner (though I also like to think our experience with digital twin and facilities management issues and platforms came into play as well).

You may have heard about them from Autodesk University 2023, Operationalizing a Smart Museum: An Owner's Journey to Digital Twin. This talk was recorded and the slides and handout are available for download, and you get to learn about how they are creating the next generation Green museum.

We primarily worked with their Chief Sustainability Officer (CSO), Leslie Tom, and their Exhibit Designer, Korzell Coe. They have a lot of really interesting initiatives that their model and sensors will be the base for, and a big team behind them making the vision that they expressed become reality.

I have been meaning to share their AU presentation, and unfortunately had not gotten around to that yet... but what more perfect time than today? They've been working with Autodesk on a highlight video of their project and it just went live! 

Having worked in facilities for over 20 years, it is SO important for us to hear from the Owner / Operators of these campuses directly, what they are actually doing, the problems they are solving. Architecture, Engineering, Construction, and Consulting firms should not be trying to push technologies that facility engineers and space planners and energy managers do not need. It is a waste of effort on both sides and can lead to a lot of dissatisfaction of unmet expectations. So, really understanding where these owners comes from allows you as a service provider to recommend and provide something useful and wanted that solves the problems the building owner has, and brings them back to you as a trusted adviser and partner.

READ AND WATCH on the Autodesk website

You can also Watch on LinkedIn. 

This video not only shows their beautiful facility, but explains their goals and some of the documentation issues they've had in the past, and how they moved past that and recreated record drawings for their facilities management and future planning needs, as well as to connect to sensors.

The video is only 4 minutes long, so please watch, BUT also I encourage you to carve out some time to read the article beneath it, as it delves into more of their drivers, the roi, sustainability, environmental and cultural awareness, historical artifact preservation, and much more!

Another article has been published about this project:

How the Wright Museum’s Digital Transformation is Leading the Way for Sustainability in Museums

Discover how the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History is leveraging smart technology to become a model of cultural and sustainable preservation.

Reality of BIM in FM - Podcast

This summer, I sat down with Angela Simoes and Jonathan Girroir from TechSoft 3D to discuss Digital Twin, and how that actually plays out in the real world.

• Apple Podcast
• SoundCloud
• YouTube

While I am currently a consultant, and have been since 2016. Most of my career was on the owner / operator side of the AECO industry. I will never try to convince our clients to use a solution I would not use in their shoes. 

In fact, one of the services that we offer here at R.O.I. Consulting Group is evaluating IWMS and IoT solutions for clients and making an informed recommendation to them, based on our knowledge of the platforms and their needs. So, my leadership and coworkers are of the same mind as me in this regard.

On a high level, we discussed:

1. What does it look like when an ideal model-based handover occurs and is ingested into the operations management system?

vs

2. What does handover actually look like and where does it go wrong?

Topics that were touched upon: 

• In this discussion, I explain why owners need a single file format for deliverables, and how those (either DWG or RVT) work with our IWMS / CAFM / CPIP systems.
• How BIM requirements are laid out in materials specs/SOWs.
• We do not get the deliverables that we spec and pay for, sometimes intentionally, sometimes due to shifting priorities.
• Collaboration between teams during design and construction is far overstated.
• There can be multiple points of failure during closeout and handover that results in clients not receiving editable documentation or consistent documentation.
• Every design team should have at least one programmer who can automate changes across a project. Don't do this manually, come on.
• Don't make assumptions on Facility Engineering requirements, ask why that spec is there.
• The IWMS is the single source of truth and touchpoint for most users, not the model.
• How databases have longevity and portability, ensuring long term maintenance.
• The model MUST to be editable, for maintenance corrections and future renovations.
• Keeping models up to date saves vast amounts of money on future projects not requiring surveying and redrawing.
• The biggest improvement in our segment of the industry is actually SaaS IWMS hosting (regular included updated) vs internal or consultant hosted (years between updates, so many customizations that upgrades are long and expensive).
• The design team needs to speak to the owner, meaning the operator... not the project manager. If you are involving the occupant, you can involve the FM team, too, include it in that process.
• See Also: Who is the Owner and how do they use your deliverables? 
• The technology is there, but the processes and coordination still have a long way to go.
• Scanning existing conditions is getting easier as devices become cheaper.
• Monitoring devices, sensors are so much cheaper and easier, you can DIY. For example, the Disruptive sensors that are plug n play. 
• Consumer level devices such as these are easier to get past Finance / IT, etc. compared to traditional BAS/BMS and hand surveying which is more complex and expensive.

2022 More Results for the IFMA ITC's Digital Twin Survey

IFMA Survey Summary: Expectations and Reality

 

Last year, R.O.I. partnered with IFMA’s ITC and Autodesk to run our first annual survey on the state of electronic documentation for building owners and operators. Autodesk recently published a whitepaper revealing the highlights of that survey, demonstrating current state and desired future state. Please download this document and see what the industry has to say!

 

The 2023 IFMA ITC Annual Digital Twin Survey is running now. The IMFA survey has closed, please keep an eye out for results.

Please take a couple of minutes to chime in with information about your facility.

 

While you’re here, you might want to check out my prior article on the current state of electronic records and BIM requirements.

 

What Makes a Digital Twin?

 

Much like CAFM (Computer Aided Facility Management) and IWMS (Integrated Workplace Management System), what people believe a technology does or should contain is influenced by their respective needs. As a result of this survey, we see that the top component of a Digital Twin is a facility record model.

 

 Which Elements Are In Use Today?

 

The prior chart displays what facilities want from their technology adoption, as an end goal. They also shared what elements are already in use. We look forward to monitoring this during our annual surveys and seeing how the industry progresses.

 

Why Not Digital Twin?

 

For the respondents not yet utilizing a Digital Twin, a variety of obstacles were revealed. There are many replies citing a lack of resources (whether that be skills, funding, leadership support, or current large projects which would benefit), but nearly half of the negative replies indicate they cannot currently justify a business case.

 

Dominant Use Cases

 

For those who shared their expected business case, the most popular is supporting maintenance. Though, visualization for space and workplace management is not far behind. Commissioning a building and execution of jobs are fairly close in popularity as well. Some additional use cases were suggested, strategic portfolio planning, simulation, predictive design, and baseline comparisons.

 

 

Anticipated Business Benefits

 

When we asked, “Does your senior management see value in Digital Twin?”, a resounding 78% affirmed that they have support.

 

When queried, on a scale of 1 to 5, what are the most valuable benefits you expect from a Digital Twin initiative? All of the suggested benefits ranked strongly, indicating the importance for a wide range of functions. Receiving better deliverables and having an easier time keeping record documents up to date post-occupancy were valued most.

 

 

Please keep an eye out on notifications from R.O.I., Autodesk, and the IFMA Information Technology Community (ITC) announcing future results and surveys.

2022 Results for the IFMA ITC's Digital Twin Survey

IFMA Survey Summary: State of Digital Deliverables

Last year, R.O.I. partnered with IFMA’s ITC and Autodesk to run our first annual survey on the state of electronic documentation for building owners and operators. Autodesk recently published a whitepaper revealing the highlights of that survey, demonstrating current state and desired future state. Please download this document and see what the industry has to say!

The 2023 IFMA ITC Annual Digital Twin Survey is running now. Please take a couple of minutes to chime in with information about your facility. The IMFA survey has closed, please keep an eye out for results.

To prepare you for the next run of that survey, we would like to go over the first year’s questions and results more in-depth:

• What is your industry?
• How much of your records are available digitally?
• Do you require BIM for project deliverables?
• Why haven’t you adopted Digital Twin yet?
• What are the essential elements of a Digital Twin?
• What are the most important use cases you have for Digital Twin?
• What benefits are you expecting from your Digital Twin adoption?
• Where are you in the process of digitizing your portfolio and asset records?
• How are you planning to maintain your Digital Twin?
• Do you have support from Senior Leadership?
• Do you believe a single vendor can provide adequate features for your needs? 

Who Participated

The responses to this survey came from a variety of job roles across the industry, however, the majority came from Facilities Management and Corporate Real Estate Professionals. More than twice as many building systems (MEP/FP) AEC Professionals participated compared to Architectural.

To give you an idea of the type of work those roles specialize in, see the chart below.

Industry representation covers a wide variety of market specialties. Financial Services had the highest level of participation (16.8%), but Education (14.3%) and Commercial Real Estate (13.7%) were not far behind.

Current Electronic Records

Whatever goals we set for the future; it is important to assess where we are currently. The chart below illustrates what percentage of respondents reported having 50-100% of their documentation available electronically.

BIM Requirements

If applicable, do you require BIM deliverables for your new construction and/or renovation projects?

The answer is yes!

If you are wondering why BIM might be required on some projects, but not others, within the same facility, there can be a variety of reasons. Some might be budgetary, any projects over X amount will have room for documentation, but smaller ones may not. Renovations that only involve finishes but not MEP or structural components would also be a reasonable exception.

Long Term Digital Twin Management

When assessing whether or not a single software vendor was capable of providing a solution platform, 73% of respondents stated that they think it is possible.

Once a platform is selected, one needs to determine who will be responsible for maintaining their records over the long term. A majority (66%) of Owners intend to manage their Digital Twin in-house, whether than means utilizing an existing resource or expanding a team to hire specifically for those skills. Only 17% of respondents intend to outsource that work to a consultant at this point.

Please come back and read our next article on what facility owners and operators expect from a Digital Twin initiative, and where they currently stand with the various components of their smart buildings.

Tutorial: Creating a Basic Revit Model for Digital Twin testing

My company, R.O.I. Consulting Group, does Facilities consulting for a few IWMS and workplace management solutions. Not only are we using Autodesk Tandem for ourselves, we will also be coaching our clients through implementations or just Proof of Concept (POC) efforts.

So, let's say you want to try out Tandem without trying to justify expenses and write up RFPs and hire consultants, etc and just do it yourself.

First thought is that, at this point, Tandem will accept .rvt and .ifc formats only. 

If you don't have a Revit model yet, but want to proceed with testing, just download a trial of Revit LT and trace it. Eventually, you will want to have a full version of Revit, but if you need something to show people in order to get funding, this is a perfectly good place to start.

This is the current model of our offices, after I tweaked it and loaded it into Tandem. I'll add MEP components at some later time.

Following are the steps you can take to make a simple Revit model of one of your locations to start with. DISCLAIMER: To any design and construction side folks... we are not building from this, it is already built, please don't come at me for the lack of precision. I'm not showing how to design a project (because that is outside of my skillset). 

Creating a Revit Model for Tandem from a CAD Floorplan:

1.       Open Revit LT and create new project from Commercial – Imperial template

2.       On the Insert Tab, click Link CAD or Import CAD

3.       Navigate to your CAD file and select it.

TIP: Drag a folder from the navigation list to the shortcuts panel on the left, to make it easier to find your way back to this directory next time. (or click the Tools dropdown on the lower left of this dialog box to add this directory to Favorites or the shortcuts panel.) This tip works in AutoCAD and other Autodesk software.

4.       On the Architecture tab, click on the Wall dropdown to select Wall: Structural and trace the exterior walls and any known load-bearing walls in the floor plate.

5.       On the Architecture tab, click on the wall dropdown to select Wall: Architectural and trace the remaining walls on the floor plate.

6.       Add the columns to your model. This can be accessed through the Structure panel of the Structure tab, or the Build panel of the Architecture tab. Though on the structure tab, you are automatically selecting a structural column, on the Architecture tab, you must select between that and architectural columns.

a.       Start with the structural columns, as pictured on the right

b.       Then add Architectural columns where needed, as pictured on the left

 

7.       On the Build panel of the Architecture ribbon tab, click Door and insert doors where appropriate.

8.       On the same panel, click Window to insert windows where appropriate.

TIP: To hide your floorplan and assess the current state of your drawing, go to the Graphics panel of the View tab and click on Visibility / Graphics.

Navigate to the Imported Categories tab of the Visibility/Graphic Overrides for Floor Plan dialog box and uncheck the option ‘Show imported categories for this view’.

You can also control visibility by layer.

Click Apply and OK to save the settings.

Let’s compare the before and after below. You can see we still need to add casework, furniture, plumbing fixtures, and the Room objects… and I missed 3 Architectural columns I should have placed.

9.       We should first add Floor > Floor: Architectural from the Build panel of the Architecture tab. It will prompt you to select the bounding walls of your floor plate and will generate the floor object for you.

10.   For the casework, go to the Insert ribbon tab and the Load from the Library panel and click the Load Family button.

I’m going to keep things simple and choose base cabinets and some countertops. Feel free to check the standard families and replace the generic ones with something that reflects what is actually built out in the space. You might also find a site like BIMObject useful in locating a variety of furniture, fixtures, and other Revit families.

11.   Once your families are loaded, use the Project Browser on the left side of the screen to find your item, expand any available options, then right-click on that option and select Create Instance from the menu.

12.   Add elevators and other building components as needed.

13.   Follow the steps for creating a Room object here. You’ll want to make use of the Room Separator tool, to add bounding lines to any spaces without doors to break them up and to cubicle areas. And then use the Room tool to add the final room object with the remaining space around the cubicles. 

Wondering why I insist on polylining (sic) cubicles? 

I explained the reasons in this article. 

14.   Update the room tags to reflect the type of space and the room numbers being used, by clicking on the tag text.

15.   Under the Room and Area panel of the Architecture tab, click the down arrow to access the Color Schemes function. You can shade the rooms by Name or other parameters.

16.   Once you have your scheme established (it should be generated automatically, but you can adjust colors and hatches if you like), you will need to enable it in the Graphics pane on the left, using the Color Scheme field.

17.   Now it is time to upload our model to Tandem. Open your project from the home page, click the Files button on the left and select Import Model. We should not have any Phases to choose between in the new model we created, so all we do is name the floor in the Label field.

Now you have a basic model. You can go back and tweak things as you notice issues. 

For example, our lobby couches had been moved, and one of the elevators was facing the wrong direction, and some walls are glass instead of drywall. 

It is super easy to replace a model in Tandem once you have modified it. Just click on the name of your model in the Files tab and you'll get the Update Model dialog box. 

Video Tutorials

Get Started with Tandem - https://intandem.autodesk.com/resource/get-started-with-tandem/

Create a site, import model, work with filters to look at elements, add template to help with assets

Capture Asset Data - https://intandem.autodesk.com/resource/capture-asset-data/

Specify a facilities template and map assets, it applies parameters and counts as tagged assets

Capture data – select assets in viewer and assign data in properties panel

Working with the Inventory in tabular format (can export/import data using Excel)

Defining Tagged Assets - https://intandem.autodesk.com/resource/defining-tagged-assets/

• Asset is an object (furniture, equipment, door)
• Parameters are properties we want to track (installation date, mfr, warranty end date, etc)
• A group of parameters is called a Parameter Set
• Classification – way to categorize objects, we can create what we want or use existing (master format, uniformat)
• Different types of facilities might have different data needed
• Can apply parameter individually by Element or as a group by Type
• We create a template and include the classifications and parameters to include

Specify Data Requirements - https://intandem.autodesk.com/resource/specify-data-requirements/

Revit and Room Bounding for Cubicles and FM

A few weeks ago, I was tagged in a thread on Twitter. 

A designer, seeking to improve processes and workflow, was asking how to improve their client's method, because they felt it could be done more effectively. 

That's the type of seeking I LOVE to see. 

Except... the client was already doing what they had to do for their lifecycle and could not change it.

The question came down to cubicles, and storing data related to it. He felt that the addition of rooms/room bounding lines was labor and effort that was not necessary. But, I was able to confirm for him... 

Cubicles need to be rooms. 

Why? 

Glad you asked. 

When a Facility Owner / Operator connects their Revit Model to their IWMS [disambiguation], the room records in Revit will connect to the room records in the target database. 

Everything in asset management systems start with a room record.

The reason Facility Managers specify design output / handover / deliverables in .RVT or .DWG is that their CAFM has a plug-in that installs with either of those programs (and those programs only), which connects known entity types in Revit with specific tables in the IWMS.

Any data that are a part of those specific types of entities in Revit, will populate as metadata into the appropriate records (and all of their interconnected tables) in the database.

It was only through a mutual connection that I was randomly brought into this conversation to speak for the owner's side. So, please... ask your FMs WHY before you go assuming they are wrong in their approach and move forward with your ideas for improvement after that point, if they are still needed.

Your data has SO MUCH LIFE beyond the construction or renovation you are currently working on. And sometimes, a little more effort is necessary to fit with our myriad other systems, but it makes less effort in the long run throughout the lifecycle.

Also, do not ask the PMs on the client side about BIM standards, they have high turnover and don't know why the FMs do 99% of what they do. If you want an actual answer, find the SME in the receiving facility, working with the CAFM, they'll be able to tell you. 

Curious about the roles and responsibilities on the post-construction side? 

I explain PMs, FMs, SMEs and other related groups in this article. 

There was an Autodesk Discussion Group thread ages ago (intended to be working with FMDesktop but it still applies) to how we need cubicles to be Rooms in Revit today with ARCHIBUS or Maximo or Tririga or FM:Systems FMInteract et al. if you would like to verify what I have stated here.

Want to learn more?

You can listen to this podcast where I discuss document handover for facilities clients. 

For further information on who the owners are, and how they access and utilize your data throughout the lifecycle of the building, please see this video presentation.

Here are two back to back presentations on BIM in FM, the first speaker is from Penn State. We did not collaborate beforehand, but both of our presentations aligned. THESE are the issues important to FM.

Lastly, I'll point you to this podcast episode of BIMThoughts on how Facilities is more than just HVAC. Having multiple people involved in the discussion, it is a far more organic discourse and touches on a variety of facilities concerns.

Story time!

This specific (massive) renovation project was back before I mandated BIM in my facility, so we were only discussing AutoCAD deliverables, but serves as a perfect example of communication saving time, and lack of communication wasting time:

Contractor #1: Asked me why we needed layer standards and why we needed one plotted output sheet per dwg file.

A1: we need layer standards so we can quickly identify and merge content, or quickly locate specific items during an emergency (I worked in a hospital). 

He countered with, do you merge the sections and details into those plans? Do you search for layers in sections and details?

No. No we do not. Sections and details are searched for by their identifier and not merged. BAM, he saved his team a load of effort, because he could skip schedules and details and sections that did not matter to us (which I noted in later revisions of the standards). 

A2: We needed one plotted output sheet per file (example Sheet M1 is one file, Sheet M2 is another file), because we used a document management database. Any of the 200 people on the maintenance staff could filter through a dozen pieces of information and drill down to just the 'blueprint' that they needed. They click the link and that specific file comes up and they can access it through a DWG viewer quickly and easily, in case of emergency. 

No worries, he ran some type of script that duplicated his files and then removed all but one of the layout tabs, bam, one layout tab per file.

Contractor #2: Never spoke to us at all. Just told their PM who told our PM that the CAD standards were stupid and unattainable and would take over a year to complete, etc. 

That PM (I'm looking at you, Leslie Hoffman! <3 ) called a meeting with their designers, both PMs, and me to talk it out face to face.

A1: Layers are impossible to translate with any speed or accuracy. 

... they were renaming them by hand. 

Never used a layer translator or script or anything. I told them point blank that Contractor #1 had completed all of their revisions in less than 2 weeks, though their scope was larger. I delicately suggested they should hit Google or ask me for suggestions on how our other contractors are handling their compliance. (As an aside, EVERY design team, should have at least one person on staff who is capable of scripting changes on a large scale. That's why we have computers instead of drafting tables these days, for efficiency. I shouldn't be the one responsible for teaching my contractors this stuff, FMs have other things to do.)

A2: Cropping model space to meet the single layout requirement was impossible with any speed.

~blink blink~ 

They took (and I could see where they'd think this) our requirement for document management regarding a single layout to mean that not just layouts were being manipulated but what they showed in model space. Model space was not ever mentioned in my documents (I later added clarifying language that only Layouts applied, modelspace could remain the same without impacting us). 

BONUS ANSWER: They did not ask, but it was worth stating, our RFP included our specs for deliverable, it was part of a bid, and was available to them from before the project even started. Why were those standards not read until handover?

They could have started out using AIA layering and ensuring their pipe labels were done correctly, instead of going back to fix it later. Set up one template file up front that complies, and use that for everything dealing with our projects. Easy-peasy at the end.

What a Facility Owner wants you to know

    I cannot count how many times I have spoken to the AEC industry on a perspective from the Owner's side. It is so important to have our voice heard, for design teams to learn from us as we learn from them and we meet together to create a sustainable lifecycle for our buildings and data.

    But with the last team who approached me, I was not sure what to present on, and the organizer, Karen Kensak, suggested something like Digital Twins. I was like, UGH not another shiny technology, when people do not even deliver what they are contracted for most of the time. 

    So... that became the topic of my conversation. They do not record their presentations, so I decided to record my own and post it, because it is a really important discussion. 

    Behind every technical analysis I have responded with over the years, is a disappointment that most design teams are not consistently meeting contracted requirements. 

    Yes, I lay plenty of blame on the Owner's side, from the PMs not understanding or caring to Finance closing out books and sending out final payments before requirements have been met... but just because someone lets you get away with something, does not mean you should.

    If you do not care to watch an entire video, and prefer podcasts instead, I did touch on some of the same topics (although a little less forthrightly) on an episode of BIMThoughts last year. After hearing the playback of that interview, I felt I should make a presentation addressing how I always dance around the real issue for us owners, but did not get around to it... until today.

    We have such passion and energy in our industry, among those of us who share knowledge. But not everyone is like us. They do not understand or do not care or have too many time pressures, whatever the issue is, if we close the loop, it will benefit all of us.

if you do not see a video embedded here, try switching your browser to "View Web Version" or click directly on this YouTube link. 

    Not only will it make the next renovation easier, faster, and cheaper for all parties involved, it should help our economy as a whole. As I refer back to (yet again) the NIST study that shows that there are billions of dollars of lost information in our industry every year, most of which is borne by the capital facilities portion, aka, our clients.

    I also mentioned in my talk, the article I wrote about the 'alphabet soup' of acronyms for FM, so here is the link: TLA/FLAs for FIM/IWMS

Facilities Management Q&A forum: https://www.augi.com/forums/forumdisp... Salary Survey 2021 https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/2021AUGIsurvey Are you looking for a new job? https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/2021JobSearch

BIMThoughts episode on BIM in FM (and Data)

The crew over at BIMThoughts invited me to speak to facilities management issues for their listeners. I swear, it was a lot more fun than FM sounds. 

Podcast on YouTube

We spoke about everything from contracts to project management, reality capture, ground penetrating radar, CAFM, IWMS, CMMS, BAS or smart buildings, key control, security, data silos, asset management, lease management, hot-desking, occupancy planning and projection, densification and de-densification due to the pandemic, pivoting workspaces from in person meetings to virtual meetings, paper to CAD, CAD to BIM, paperless offices, digital twins, data exchange, energy management, waste management, consumer level existing conditions assessment tools, The Incredibles and the Three Amigos.

It kind of makes my head spin. But, we facilities folks are the crux of our buildings... the starting and ending point of renovations and expansions. I'm pretty proud of all that we touch and the data that we receive, supply and look after with such care.

The FM SME who receives the construction documents at the end of a project has the vital charge of curating their components for all of the other stakeholders on the owner's side. 

Show Notes

• Episode Hashtag: #MoreThanJustHVAC
• Here is where you can find Melanie on the World Wide Web:
  • Website: Mistress of the Dorkness
  • LinkedIn: Melanie Stone
  • Twitter: @MistresDorkness
• A great post from Melanie’s Blog
  • What does an Owner want with BIM?
• Looking for a job in occupancy planning?
  • Company looking to fill a lot of occupancy planning & related roles

This is a sketch of the episode done by Jisell Howe, it’s awesome! You should also check out her blog.