More than a third of the 200 construction project and program owners surveyed by the Construction Management Association of America said they have used Building Information Modeling (BIM) on one or more projects. BIM is being adopted at an accelerating rate, according to a survey published in Building Design + Construction.

Building Information Modeling (BIM) refers to the use of digital information on a building project, such as cost, schedule, fabrication, maintenance, energy, and 3-D models. BIM is used for design decision-making, production of high-quality construction documents, predicting performance, cost estimating, construction planning, and managing and operating the facility.

Source: Building Design + Construction

Several publications include AEC St. Louis on their lists of online AEC industry publications (otherwise known as blogs).  Check them out - you’ll find lots of good information.

• Green Buildings NYC
  
• Construction Marketing Ideas
• Architectural Ruminations
• Urban Review St. Louis

Construction Marketing Ideas, which publishes regional construction newspapers in several Canadian and U.S. cities, has reviewed AEC St. Louis and called our blog “the first truly effective regional construction industry marketing blog in the U.S. or Canada.”

After a month of looking for examples, editor Mark Buckshon said that AEC St. Louis is “so far the only example I’ve discovered that combines the blogging model with a solid regional marketing focus.”

We appreciate the kudos, but even more than that, are glad for the feedback that we’re on the right track for our readers in the local architecture, engineering and construction industry.

So, after listening to a pair of PR industry podcasters talk for months about their new company Crayon’s presence on Second Life, the Web-based virtual world, I finally went to the site, created an avatar and took a look around the other night. My conclusion - very interesting, but I can’t imagine yet how this applies in my world.

And then the next day, this headline showed up in my email - “Second Life and Google Earth are transforming the idea of architectural collaboration.” It makes sense! In Second Life, anyone can design buildings within the site, and they can do it on a group creation platform. Great for collaboration, great for showcasing projects.

According to an article in Engineering News Record, “we may see architects lead clients on tours through a 3D-modeled Google Earth with a view of the firm’s buildings. In Second Life, multinational firms could create meeting rooms to foster interoffice collaboration.” Universities already are using Second Life to collaborate on class projects and companies are hosting virtual lectures that attract architects from all over the world.

I’m sure that this is one of the many Web-based technologies that will transform the work world in 2007. My advice? Stay tuned in, check out the technologies for yourself and do everything you can to stay ahead of the pack.