Structural BIM coordination · DIADICA Proyectos e Ingeniería S.A.S.
DÍADA BIM
Scope. Modelling of the project structure, received as CAD drawings or as the IFC from the analysis software, and coordination with the architecture. Clashes are settled with the designer before drawings are issued. The final model is delivered in IFC4, readable in whichever BIM software the project team uses.
Video · 57 s
DÍADA BIM in one minute
The demo project's steel-frame house with basement, built in construction order: foundation, retaining walls, anchors, the two framed levels and the roof. The levels then separate, the concrete turns transparent to show the anchors, and the tour continues through the dashboard: a member with its data, the issues with their decisions, the quantities and the model quality. It closes with the timber roof coloured by demand-to-capacity ratio.
Work method
Geometry resides in the model, reinforcement comes from the design bar schedule and each change is recorded in a decision log. A beam whose section changes is corrected in one place, and the drawings and quantities that depend on it are updated from that change.
- 01
Project information
The starting information may be CAD drawings, the IFC exported from the analysis software or another consultant's model. It is filed as the reference for the initial revision.
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Structural model
The model is built in IFC4 with levels, naming and design properties on every element. The information is checked for completeness before coordination begins.
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Coordination
Clashes are checked against the architecture and between members of the structure itself. Each issue is logged with its view, owner and status, and its closure is tied to the technical decision behind it.
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Revision closure
Changes are made in the design first and then in the model. Each revision is compared with the previous one to confirm that only the agreed items changed.
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Delivery
The closed model produces the coordinated drawings, the quantities and the project dashboard. Drawings are issued once no open issues remain.
Steel, concrete, masonry, timber and guadua
The workflow varies with the material, because each analysis program exports different information.
Steel
When the design comes with its own IFC, the model starts from that file, which contains exact sections, lengths and orientations; plates, bolts and stiffeners are added from the connection calculations. When the design arrives only as drawings, the model is built from them.
Concrete
Geometry is closed first and reinforcement is modelled last, taken from the final bar schedule; if modelled earlier, any section change during coordination forces it to be redone. In congested joints the reinforcement is modelled bar by bar.
Masonry
It follows the same order as concrete. Openings, penetrations, tie columns and bond beams are coordinated first, and grouted cells and reinforcement are added at closure.
Timber and guadua
Each sawn timber, glulam or guadua member is modelled with its section, structural group and the design moisture content set by NSR-10 Title G. Joints (bolts, plates, connectors and mortar-filled internodes) are modelled as parts from the design calculations; trusses, framing and frames come out with their complete parts list.
Sample projects
From calculation to coordinated delivery
Two real projects, without project or client names: a timber roof at the calculation stage and a steel-frame house coordinated with the architecture, in the format delivered to the client.
Design viewer · timber roof
A 25.6 × 20.6 m ES5 timber roof designed under NSR-10 Title G: rafters, hips, purlin beams and posts bearing on an existing concrete frame. The viewer is generated from the calculation data: each member shows its section, length and demand/capacity ratio. It is used to check the design and to present it to the client.
Go to the viewerCoordination dashboard · steel-frame house
A steel-frame house with a basement, retaining walls and concrete foundations. The coordinated model is published in the same dashboard delivered to the client: 3D model by level, a data sheet for each element, quantities and issues closed with the designer. The IFC file is included for use in any BIM software.
Go to the dashboardProject 1 · Design viewer
Timber roof in 3D
Roof model generated from the calculation, before drawings are produced. It supports orbiting, a north–south cut and querying the section and length of each rafter, hip or post. The “Color by D/C” mode colours each member by its demand/capacity ratio.
Project 2 · Coordination dashboard
Coordinated steel-frame house
Client delivery dashboard, issued once the structure has been checked against the architecture and the clashes closed with the designer. Steel-frame house with a basement and retaining walls. The model can be orbited and filtered by level; each element opens its data sheet, with quantities and issues alongside. The dashboard interface is in Spanish.
IFC4 model of the project
IFC4 file with the same properties as the dashboard, to open in any viewer or coordination program.
Deliverables
IFC4 model
Open format, readable in any BIM viewer or program, with the design information in every element.
Issues in BCF
Clashes in the open BCF format, each with its view, owner and status.
Coordinated drawings
Plans, sections and details generated from the model with DIADICA's drawing standard.
Quantities
Concrete, structural steel, light-gauge members, reinforcement, timber and guadua, broken down by level and by element for cost estimating.
Sheets and details
Steel, timber or guadua trusses, connections and joints with their parts, sections, lengths and weights.
3D dashboard
The project's model, quantities and issues, available from a computer or a phone.
Revision control. Each model revision comes with its comparison against the previous one, recording the change, its cause and the decision that supports it.
BIM coordination request
The coordination scope and deliverables are defined from the available information and the project stage.
Request BIM coordination