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Architecture vocabulary · Drawings and Representation

BIM

Meaning in architecture, with examples

/bɪm/abbreviationCommon term

In architecture, BIM means: Short for building information modelling: designing with a shared 3D model in which each element, such as a wall or window, carries data like material, size and cost.

In Turkish: yapı bilgi modellemesi, BIM

How it is used

Common in larger offices and international projects; Revit and Archicad are popular BIM tools. Teams build a BIM model, coordinate it with engineers and check for clashes. Plans, sections and schedules are generated from the same model.

Example sentences

  1. The client requires all drawings to be produced from a BIM model.

  2. The BIM coordinator found a clash between a duct and a beam.

Common collocations

  • BIM model
  • BIM coordinator
  • BIM software
  • clash detection
  • CADShort for computer-aided design: software used to produce precise two-dimensional drawings and three-dimensional models instead of drawing by hand.
  • modelA small three-dimensional version of a building or site, made of card, wood, foam or 3D-printed parts, used to study a design or to present it.
  • working drawingsThe detailed, fully dimensioned set of drawings that a contractor uses to build a project, including plans, sections, elevations, details and schedules.
  • beamA horizontal structural member that carries loads across an opening or between supports and transfers them to columns or walls.

This word in other fields

The same English word can have a different meaning in another field:

More terms: Drawings and Representation

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