BIM and Computational Design for Manufacturing companies

Today we want to share with you the lean and modular factory approach, using BIM and Computational Design, that we developed for Arcadis and its client. 

Manufacturing companies need effective tools for planning their investments, with boards of industrial groups often evaluating investments of hundreds of millions of euros for the construction of new factories. 

Pivotal choices for the company’s future depend on the right location, the right layout of the factory in relation to the plot of land, and accurate costing from the early stages. 

Manufacturing companies need designs of standardized and replicable buildings. 

The BIM-based modular approach that we developed for Arcadis can provide industrial clients with complete and detailed information right from the start, at feasibility stage. 

The process includes an in-depth study of the client production processes that deconstructs the factory plant into minimal modular elements and identifies their aggregation rules. 

A BIM model is then created for each of these elements and developed to the appropriate level of detail.  

A visual programming script, using Dynamo, follows a “Lego Bricks” approach to manage the composition of modular elements using aggregation rules. 

Through a dedicated visual interface, the client can identify the composition that best suits their needs and define one or more scenarios. 

For each of these scenarios, the script will automatically manage the aggregation of the elements to create a complete factory masterplan, with all the pre-modelled parts. 

The result will be a BIM model of the building to the desired Level of Detail, containing graphical and non-graphical information such as performance metrics, operational parameters or costs, allowing data extraction and analysis needed for our clients to make better informed decisions. 

This model also allows generation of Virtual Reality presentations in just a few clicks, enhancing client experience.