Sustainability has been the buzzword across many industries, leading to a global effort to promote business practices that focus on environmental responsibility.
The architectural design services industry is no exception. In fact, construction activities are considered major contributors to climate change because of their tendency to consume large amounts of naturally occurring resources, generate massive volumes of demolition waste, produce enormous carbon footprints during the fabrication and transportation of materials, and basically use too much energy to build anything. Construction is resource-intensive. The bigger the project, the more energy it consumes and the more waste it generates. It’s a crushing criticism, but otherwise, pretty accurate.
Cad Crowd helps designers and firms find the best BIM modelers, while our extensive experience has allowed us to vet many top BIM design experts who value sustainability. Here’s what we learned about the impact of BIM and how it can make your projects more sustainable.
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What exactly is sustainability?
According to the Brundtland Commission (formerly known as the World Commission of Environment), the word “sustainability” can be defined as an approach to development that fulfills today’s necessities without having to compromise the next generations’ abilities to meet their future needs as well.
To put it in the context of architecture, sustainability talks mainly about design and how to create living spaces that have minimum environmental impacts, efficient power consumption, and effective waste management. Therefore, an architectural product can be regarded as “sustainable” when it implements environment-friendly approaches to material selections, component fabrications, construction methods, power generation, building maintenance, and waste disposal. This doesn’t in any way suggest that architects only have to think about the ecological impacts of their designs; the buildings (or all other architectural products, for that matter) can still be aesthetically pleasing without losing their sustainability credentials.
It’s then no surprise that the architectural industry has become much more environmentally considerate in just about everything it does. Not only is it about addressing the persistent criticisms but also adhering to the new standards in efficiency. Thankfully, with BIM (Building Information Modeling) services, sustainable architecture is no longer a vague concept but a realistic objective.
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From 3D CAD to 6D BIM
Over the last several decades, 3D CAD (computer-aided design) software has been a major driving force in the construction industry and architectural study at large. The ability to see and modify a building as a three-dimensional model on a computer screen has played a crucial role in better workflow, increased efficiency, and improved productivity in general. You’ve probably seen some online renderings of fancy architectural concepts created using 3D CAD services, too; they’re not real buildings but only photorealistic digital assets to showcase what the software is capable of.
BIM takes the sophistication a step higher. It does everything a 3D CAD software can and adds to the equation three more variables, including time, cost, and building operation, hence 6D. When all those aspects are considered, it becomes much easier to plan for sustainability. BIM still uses 3D modeling, but the software can handle a larger dataset that includes every minute detail about the project, like Bill of Materials, off-site and onsite component fabrication techniques, potential green energy output, and power consumption from typical daily operations (such as HVAC), waste collection and recycling, and more.
How BIM can help reduce architectural carbon footprint
In addition to three-dimensional modeling and planning, BIM helps you make well-informed decisions about everything that matters in a sustainable design. Here are just a few examples.
Eco-friendly material selection
BIM and services companies allow you to choose from a wide range of construction materials. If sustainability is of the utmost importance, you can always go with certain materials that have the lowest environmental impact. Whether or not this would be the best decision will likely depend on the materials’ overall strength, workability, and durability. For example, it might not matter much if you’re choosing between steel or recycled steel as a load-bearing structure because both options have exactly the same properties anyway. That being said, the latter remains the better option as it takes much less energy to produce than the former.
Things can also get a little bit more complicated when it comes to flooring options. For instance, your client in a residential project wants to use hardwood flooring. Hardwood is indeed renewable, but it takes decades until you can possibly replace the trees harvested to fabricate your floor. Bamboos are also renewable, and they grow much faster than hardwood trees. The good thing is that reclaimed hardwood flooring is a viable option as well, but only if your client can approve the selection. BIM only facilitates the selection. You still have to make the decision.
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Off-site prefabrication
Not every little piece of the building component has to be assembled onsite. BIM gives you the means to manage off-site prefabrication, which often involves partial installation, before transporting the components to the main construction area. Such an approach is not exactly unique or new and has been used forever to avoid unnecessary use of space, tooling, and, yes, labor. Both modular construction and off-site prefabrication features in BIM can help your project reduce material waste, power consumption, and emissions associated with transportation. Since everything is data-driven, computerized, and visualized in 3D, you don’t have to worry about inaccuracy.
Save power with natural lights
An effective way to save power is to turn off the lights and open the windows instead, but like many other things, it turns out to be much easier said than done. BIM software, through 3D modeling services, offers countless configurations for window layouts, sizes, and positioning to give you a better idea of what configuration works best in any design. More than just a digital modeling service, BIM simulates how the windows and ventilation affect natural light penetration and heating. You can tinker with a lot of options in the software interface to find the best configuration so that the occupants don’t rely too much on artificial lighting and electricity-hungry AC. This helps reduce power consumption but without sacrificing occupants’ comfort.
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Environmental analysis
One thing that separates BIM software from typical 3D CAD modeling programs is its ability to offer detailed environmental analysis of a construction project. A lot of things can affect how a building functions or consumes energy, and BIM offers a clear overview of how a building can minimize its power usage.
For example, some materials can absorb heat and retain a comfortable temperature in a house all year round without having to use too much power for heating and cooling. When the temperature outside fluctuates, “thermal mass” materials like concrete or stone masonry help keep the inside temperature steady; drywall made of PCM (phase-change material) has also been found effective in reducing HVAC power consumption. And if the budget allows, water (such as a small indoor pool) has an excellent thermal mass as well.
Another important part of environmental analysis is the feasibility of solar panel installation. Based on the building/house orientation, elevation, and the topographic maps of the area, BIM might be used to measure sunlight duration and the potential amount of solar energy absorbed by a building’s roof and facade. BIM is not actually a solar modeling software, but it comes with capable features to offer useful insights into solar feasibility. You might need additional data, such as solar irradiation and PV cell specifications, to get more accurate results. If you happen to partner with BIM service providers based in the United States, most of them have additional tools to create a detailed simulation for solar panel installation, energy output estimation, and efficiency rate.
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Proactive approach to sustainability
You can say that everything about BIM forces you to be proactive in finding the right solutions to achieve sustainable architecture. Its three-dimensional modeling allows you to be creative in design optimization, whereas the environmental analysis opens the door to maximum energy efficiency. The good thing is that BIM does it all not only over the course of the construction activities but continuously even after the building is completed.
The integration makes it easy to devise computerized (automated) monitoring for any building. For example, you can set a predetermined range of power consumption or solar energy generation; if the data falls outside of the range, it’s a sign that there’s a problem with the electrical system. It can be a faulty appliance, loose connection, wiring issues, etc. Thanks to early problem detection and constant monitoring, the building manager can pinpoint the root of the problem before the efficiency suffers too much.
Sustainable architecture is all about creating green designs that blend resource conservation and energy efficiency. The challenge is to make sure that all the reductions in power consumption and the use of non-renewable materials do not negatively affect the occupants’ well-being. And when the architectural planning and design firm’s focus is on environmental concerns, chances are you can’t do much better than tapping into the power of BIM software to help plan and monitor the entire project. At the end of the day, BIM is more than just a software, but a state-of-the-art methodological approach to sustainability that’s applicable at any stage of a project, from design and construction to building operation and maintenance.
BIM professionals at Cad Crowd
Although it’s easy to throw around the terms “sustainable architectures” and “green buildings” when planning for a project, creating a design that does prioritize resource conservation, functionality, and comfort at the same time is a monumental task. BIM is great and all, but you can only make it work to its full potential in the hands of a professional.
Cad Crowd is home to experienced BIM service providers in the United States. Every firm and independent freelancer in Cad Crowd has been vetted for technical skills, educational background, and BIM expertise to ensure their abilities to work effectively as part of your team.
Give Cad Crowd a call and get your free quote today.
