Following the construction of the multipurpose arena of Quebec City, Centre Videotron, where the contractor had used a digital model for construction, the Building Management Service (Service) of Quebec City chose to maintain the BIM approach for future projects valued at over 2 million dollars. The intention was to go beyond the goal of minimizing cost overruns and modelling. In fact, adopting digital best practices “in extenso” for the management of parks and buildings owned by the City seemed the only way to go!
This was not unrelated to the asset management awareness that was already fully present throughout the Service. Indeed, digital practices were meant to serve information management over the entire lifecycle of the cities built assets: from acquisition to decommissioning, including operation, maintenance, and capital investment phases. In brief, the goal was to facilitate access to the right information at the right time, both internally and externally. What an undertaking, right? Here is the story of our journey… and we are just at the beginning of it!
Knowing that modelling and digital information management were there to stay, running two parallel project methods (BIM and 2D projects) was not an option. For this reason, Quebec City did not start with one BIM pilot project; the BIM approach was rather authorized on all new constructions over 2 million dollars.
Numerous challenges come with such a transition in a department of 295 employees who are in charge of acquiring, managing, and maintaining a real estate portfolio worth 2,475 billion dollars. Here are a few examples:
To realize our ambitions, a strategic approach was developed with our partner BIM One. During the implementation process, specialists from their firm have been involved with us to offer support to our organization.
At first, information workflows and management processes were analyzed and mapped. To do so, end-users and project staff members were interviewed. Then, to meet the asset lifecycle information needs during the BIM process, we applied the following approach:
Nowadays, to preserve data quality and remain agile, a continuous improvement loop is required to fine-tune existing documents and methods.
Knowledge development. All employees who are (or were) involved with BIM and the Better Information Management program were trained and closely mentored. Suppliers were also closely monitored and supported during the projects.
Additional Documentation: Supporting documents were produced to facilitate internal and external knowledge transfer.
Custom Tools: They were developed to facilitate daily execution. Dashboards help collect, visualize, and assess data regarding the control quality process. One of the most advanced tools is a semantic enrichment base dynamo script to automatically number equipment and fill parameters (Masterformat, Uniformat, description, etc.) from a single 4-letter code.
Benefits are diverse and have already been proven. Lately, we started collaborating with other City departments and other public owners in a joint force effort to support the digital transformation of our construction industry. Regarding our buildings, many reviews of models were held with the Universal Accessibility Committee as well as operation and maintenance staff members. Communication during these meetings is enhanced with the use of 3D representations (models).
From an economic standpoint, Quebec City has not experienced any additional construction costs where the BIM process is being used.
Regarding the future, Quebec City is geared towards building management efficiency considering its rapidly growing real estate portfolio. With time, seamless access to asset information will be beneficial to all staff and citizens.
Louis Tremblay, responsible for the initiative for the City, reflects on the journey: “We want to implement BIM as an owner, a manager, but also as an exemplary institution. We know that the industry maturity level is uneven, and it is perceptible. However, being a client, we have a role to play in this digital transformation. Fortunately, the implementation strategy is robust and functions with various BIM maturity levels.”
Moreover, by integrating digital practices at the building acquisition stage, Quebec City will eventually decrease its carbon footprint by strengthening analytical capacity regarding component useful life, energy consumption, water consumption, and material choices.
