The BIM Execution Plan (BEP), is a necessary part for the development of a BIM project in engineering. It defines and ensures the actors who will intervene in a project, from the design and construction phase to the operation.
What is a BIM Execution Plan?
In Retain we understand that the BIM Execution Plan must be embodied in a document that supports and describes the methodology, tools, processes and formats to provide a solution to the BIM requirements of a project. It also defines how the work is monitored and executed in BIM.
Usually, this document is initiated before the contract is drafted, to inform the client or user of the expected global approach of the project, as well as the way it will be carried out.
After the contract is signed, a secondary BEP can be created to further define the final workflow of the BIM project.
Why should you define a BIM Execution Plan?
One of the keys to the success of a BIM project is the correct definition of the BIM Execution Plan. Creating this document makes it easier to meet budgets and timelines throughout the project.
The main advantages of the BIM Execution Plan are:
- Responsibilities and opportunities are set up by the parties involved in the BIM project.
- It helps to understand the goals to achieve the BIM implementation.
- It highlights the resources and training needed to properly implement the BIM project.
- It provides a reference point to describe the process for future projects.
- Provides an objective to monitor the progress of the project.
- Increases the level of knowledge of the team through improved planning.
What documentation can we generate for the BEP?
During the process of creating a BIM project, we can generate many documents. Among those related to the BEP stand out:
- PRE-BEP. This is the document prior to the formalization of the contract with a client after having defined the business requirements, involving the different possible agents that will participate in the BIM project.
- BEP. This document sets out the business requirements as well as the PIP (Project Implementation Plan, which serves to describe the techniques and resources), the methodology, the objective, the milestones and the deliverables.
- MIDP (Model Information Delivery Plan). This document is commonly confused with the BEP. The MIDP is the guide that we will prepare after the formalization of the contract with the client and it expresses how the project will be executed from the modeling and information provided. This document presents the roles of the project, strategies, the templates that will be used, the coast styles, lines and symbology. The CDE (Common Data Environment) will also be included, i.e. how the information will be exchanged during the project.
Recommendations for the correct drafting of the BIM Execution Plan
When a company is taking the first steps to address BIM projects, it often considers writing a standard BIM Execution Plan. It is a bad practice to try to contemplate a BEP in which the casuistry of all the clients are combined in the same document.
In these cases, Retain recommends preparing standards for each type of project or defining a standard for the projects that the company works with the most. This document should be versatile and in accordance with the projects it allows to cover.