Integration Today Using Open Standards: BIMStorm™, Rotterdam to Los Angeles and Beyond

The author reports that he often gets asked: “what BIM platform should we use?” We all like simple decisions. Vanilla or chocolate? PC or Mac? Revit, ArchiCAD, VectorWorks, or other BIM? We like sticking to a brand. For BIM, “open standards” is the “new brand” we need to stick to. Information stored in proprietary formats will become irrelevant in this information centric age. Organizations hat understand this will flourish like the Internet and those that do not will fade like a Betamax. BIMStorm™ was proof that a stunning amount of collaboration and change is possible today with many tools. Yet, tools do not matter. BIM does not matter. Data and knowledge is valuable and BIM is just a container for data. What does matter is how data is exchanged and the process in which it’s exchanged. The “new brand” gives us broader choices on how data is used which will liberate the industry to get down to business. Technology is not the barrier to change, the cultural shift in how we collaborate is the challenge.