Talk of Interoperability
July 21, 2008
There is plenty of hot stove talk regarding software interoperability in the AEC (architectural, engineering, and construction) market these days.
Last week’s announcement between Autodesk, www.autodesk.com, San Rafael, Calif., and Bentley Systems, www.bentley.com, Exton, Pa., in which the rival design software providers agreed to expand interoperability between their AEC software portfolios, was an important step towards expanding the value of BIM (building information modeling).
The two companies plan to exchange software libraries to improve the ability to read and write the companies’ respective DWG and DGN formats in mixed environments.
According to the Bentley Website, this agreement impacts BIM workflows in the sense that the two companies’ respective tools are complementary when used both concurrently and within repetitive workflows.
Both companies will also facilitate work process interoperability between their AEC applications through supporting the reciprocal use of available APIs (application programming interfaces).
While this effort is to be applauded as an important step towards allowing information to be shared more collaboratively, some in the industry are disappointed the companies are using APIs and file format sharing and not IFC (Industry Foundation Classes). IFC is a data model designed by the Intl. Alliance for Interoperability, www.iai-international.org, for the purpose of facilitating interoperability using non-proprietary standards.
Proponents of IFC point to BIMStorm as the example for the potential of using open standards. Created by Kimon Onuma, www.onuma.com, BIMStorm is a series of workshops that in essence bring together hundreds of AEC professionals form around the world in a virtual environment. BIMStorm LAX in December 2007, for example, brought together a wide cross section of AEC professionals to design more than 60 Los Angeles city blocks (50 million sq.ft.) in realtime.
The product used by the group was the ONUMA Planning System (OPS). This Web-based collaboration tool is built on open standards, and allows information to be shared with project participants using any design and analysis software they wish. Since that time, many other BIMStorm projects have been hosted around the country.
Still, this is not to say the methods used in BIMStorm are the perfect answer either. The truth of the matter is the use of open standards is not widespread in the AEC. As the push for interoperability continues, this latest announcement from Autodesk and Bentley is not the final piece in the puzzle, but is a step in the right direction.
It will certainly be an interesting trend to watch, regarding the future of BIM.