Practice of using ARCHICAD in the Moscow bureau BADR5. About how to develop an internal BIM standard in a company and what results a systematic approach to design brings.
BADR5 - experts in custom design
Bureau of architectural and design solutions "Five" - BADR5 - is engaged in industrial and civil engineering. The company specializes in technically complex projects for which popular solutions are not suitable. Frequent practice in the bureau is the development and use of their own methods for calculating objects and structures. Among the BADR5 projects are hydraulic structures, high-rise buildings and buildings with large-span structures, projects in seismic zones and areas with complex geology (rocky, sandy, permafrost and other soils).
Success is in the integration of subcontractors
The explanation of why the architectural firm is able to successfully solve such non-standard tasks lies in the specialization of its employees. The company has formed a productive symbiosis of creative and design specialties. The staff of 97 people is not only architects (there are 33 of them), but also designers, constructors, engineers, specialists in fire systems.
Combining the efforts of all employees allows us to carry out a wide and varied range of design work - from hydraulic engineering to interior design. For example, when designing the territory of the Mishino residential complex, the bureau's specialists created a lake with an area of 1 ha. They performed a full range of engineering works - they drained the swampy, unsuitable for life area, transferred the earth masses, and formed an artificial reservoir.
The bureau conducts its projects "from A to Z", accompanying the customer throughout the construction process. And this is also helped by a broad specialization within the company.
“Our specificity is that we with the customer, figuratively speaking, sit in the same boat and go ashore only when the work is completed and the facility is put into operation,” - Sergey Michurin, managing partner of the BADR5 bureau.
Well-built CAD - process is also important
BADR5 has a clear structure for CAD software.
In ARCHICAD, the concept, facade and external elements are developed, that is, everything that makes up the concept of the project. Here, the architect forms a complete technical task for the visualizers, including the number of people in the pictures, their clothes, mood.
The sketchy parts of the project are transferred from ARCHICAD to Allplan using IFC. Further work is carried out in this program - detailed planning, reinforcement of structures, formation of working documentation.
The LIRA-SAPR software package is used to calculate structures and buildings. For elaboration of complex geometry, layout on the facade or artistic installation in the interior - Grasshopper tools.
Draft project in ARCHICAD - more than pretty pictures
The bureau developed and implemented a corporate design standard as a regulation. It is fundamentally different from the classic multi-stage scheme and includes two stages - an extended pre-design and design. As a result of this division, one third of the design work is carried out by BADR5 specialists in ARCHICAD.
In the bureau's standards, the sketching stage is a deep architectural study. Allied specialists are involved in the process. At the exit, the customer receives a package of documents, which already contains: calculations in LIRA-SAPR, agreed special technical conditions and fire safety standards, information on insolation. This amount of data allows the participants in the process to answer many important questions about the project, as well as make informed decisions.
“The result of our work at the first stage is not beautiful pictures, which, as a rule, differ significantly from the final result, but specific solutions for the developer. We spend more time developing the sketch. But these costs are more than compensated for in subsequent design work”, - Sergey Michurin, Managing Partner of BADR5 Bureau.
Build a city from ARCHICAD modules in a week
For the last 5-7 years, BADR5 has been actively involved in the design of large urban development projects. In this work, the main assistants of the bureau specialists are libraries of elements and ARCHICAD functionality.
The founders of the bureau began the process of creating libraries by developing a color palette in ARCHICAD. Gradually, the number of libraries grew. Now the company's base includes a wide variety of building structures, design elements and decor. The BADR5 designer just needs to "pull" the necessary element from the library, and then the program will calculate the volumes by itself, based on the specified information about the element.
With the help of the accumulated base of elements, the bureau can quickly enough produce a high-quality design solution, thereby securing a competitive advantage for itself. Thus, the company had a task to develop a general concept for the development of the central part of the city of Krasnogorsk in the shortest possible time. Using the types of sections and types of houses available in the bureau's database, the bureau's specialists provided a plan of the city district with all the details - the developed territory, gardens, schools within the specified time frame. Buildings were assembled from 9 types of sections, which were selected taking into account the structure of the site, number of storeys, wishes for architecture. Modular planning made it possible to promptly make changes at a building level of hundreds of thousands of square meters.
BIM-model is the main coherent and …
BIM modeling is a mandatory process in the work of BADR5. The model appears already at the first sketch works on the project and develops along with it, being filled with information. It provides constant communication between the participants in the process and the designed object, providing a high level of control.
The bureau has a separate employee, a BIM manager, who is engaged in setting up the model. Its tasks include managing design data: regulating all file relationships, tracking role assignments, and controlling the safety of the model.
“BIM modeling is on the side of the designers, allowing us to better control the situation on the project and make fewer mistakes. Thanks to this technology, the attitude towards architects in the professional environment has changed for the better, the trust of clients has increased,”- Sergey Michurin, Managing Partner of BADR5 Bureau.
… chief economist, or how to save 300 million rubles using a BIM model
The developer of the residential complex "Molodezhny" turned to BADR5 with the task of finalizing the project of the complex and optimizing its appearance. The architects were not allowed to change the structure, location on the master plan and the total volume of the building. After examining the existing drawings, the bureau staff completely revised the project.
The BIM model developed in ARCHICAD showed that the project contains design and engineering errors. So, for example, the grid of the columns of the building did not coincide with the grid of the columns of the parking lot above which it was located. To adjust the loads, the designers who previously worked on the project incorporated a huge concrete slab 1.5 meters thick into the project. The BADR5 architects redesigned the mesh, removed the slab, thereby reducing material costs.
“With the help of BIM modeling, we have achieved an impressive result: we increased the commercialization rate of the project, improved the appearance and layout of the building, and reduced the volume of useless space. As a result, design solutions have reduced the cost of building a residential complex by at least 300 million rubles,”- Sergey Michurin, Managing Partner of BADR5 Bureau.
Project-winner of the competition "BIM-Technologies"
In 2016, BADR5 won the tender for the design of the Tetris residential complex in Krasnogorsk. The BIM model for the selection was developed in ARCHICAD in two months.
In the same year, the bureau received a finalist diploma for this project at the First All-Russian competition "BIM-Technologies 2016".
The experience of the Russian company BADR5 has shown the versatility of using the OPEN BIM approach in design. By efficiently organizing processes and applying a wide range of high-quality, specialized solutions, the company creates consistent, high-quality models using a single language - the IFC format. BADR5 experts admit that IFC management in ARCHICAD is organized really well!
About BADR 5
Bureau of architectural and design solutions "Five" - BADR5 was founded in 2005. Business profile: general designer; integrated design, independent development of all sections of design and working documentation. A distinctive feature of the BADR5 company is the professional optimization of design solutions for residential buildings.
Features of the
- Design of complex development of territories (districts, quarters).
- Design of unique and technically complex objects, high-rise buildings.
- Design in seismic areas (up to 9 points) and in difficult geological conditions.
- Design of hydraulic structures.
- Design of complex engineering systems and structures.
- Inspection of buildings and structures, scientific, technical and laboratory support.
- Performing complex calculations of load-bearing structures.
About GRAPHISOFT
GRAPHISOFT® revolutionized the BIM in 1984 with ARCHICAD®, the industry's first CAD BIM solution for architects. GRAPHISOFT continues to lead the architectural software market with innovative products such as BIMcloud ™, the world's first real-time collaborative BIM design solution, EcoDesigner ™, the world's first fully integrated energy modeling and energy efficiency assessments of buildings, and BIMx® is the leading mobile application for the demonstration and presentation of BIM models. Since 2007, GRAPHISOFT has been part of the Nemetschek Group.
