Air Force Center for Engineering
and the Environment
Integrity - Service - Excellence
Building
Information
Modeling in the
U.S. Air Force
Major Patrick C. Suermann
PhD, PE, LEED AP
1
Overview
 Personal
Intro
 Overheard…
 Air Force MILCON
 CENTCOM HQ,
MacDill AFB, FL
 Current Initiatives
 Future Initiatives
 Summary
Aim High! Fly – Fight – Win
Personal Intro
Aim High! Fly – Fight – Win
Overheard from the Field…
 “Sounds
like GIS only inside a
building”
 “BIM won’t take hold
until the school
house changes”
 “We can’t even get
our CAD 100%”
Aim High! Fly – Fight – Win
A7C - Our Priorities
Air Force
Leadership Priorities
1. Reinvigorate the Air
Force Nuclear Enterprise
2. Partner w/ the Joint &
Coalition team to win
today’s fight
3. Develop and Care for
Airmen and their families
4. Modernize our aging air
& space inventories
5. Recapture Acquisition
Excellence
5
Civil Engineering Strategic Goals
Goal 1: Build Ready Engineers
Provide more effective Civil Engineer
expeditionary and emergency response
and management capabilities to meet
current and emerging Air Force and
CCDR requirements.
Goal 2: Build Great Leaders
Organize, develop, enable, and retain a
trained and capable Total Force Civil
Engineer team ready to meet current and
emergent mission requirements
Goal 3: Build Sustainable Installations
Develop sustainable installations by
implementing asset management
principles for built and natural assets.
Everything
we do risk
isAim
aligned
to Air
Force
leadership
Fly
– Fight
–and
Win
“Sustain
inHigh!
infrastructure
facilities…”priorities
4
A7C Mission and Vision
MISSION
VISION
Provide, operate, maintain, and protect sustainable
installations as weapon-system platforms
through engineering and emergency response
services across the full mission spectrum.
Lead DoD by providing global combat support and
efficient, sustainable installations using transformational
business practices and innovative technologies to enable
the projection of global air, space, and cyber power.
Aim High! Fly – Fight – Win
CM Mission
Capital Investment Management
Capital Construction (MILCON):
Design and Construction Management
(DM/CM) for all active duty AF MILCON
projects (including BRAC & MFH)

FY09 & FY10 Awards By Month (MILCON/MFH/BRAC)
97%
50
45
40
99%
100%
92%
FY09 Project Awards
FY10 Proj Awards
Cum FY09 % of Pgm
Cum FY10 % of Pgm
97%
76%
85%
86%
99% 100%
100%
100%
88%
80%
Number Projects
35
57%
30
45%
25
20
37%
25%
23%
18%
10
27%
40%
43%
33%
15
48%
60%
59%
29%
20%
20%
5
2%
4%
0
Oct-FY Nov-FY Dec-FY
7%
9%
2%
Jan-FY
0%
Feb-FY Mar-FY Apr-FY May-FY Jun-FY
Jul-FY
Aug-FY Sep-FY
Dec
FY+1
Mar
FY+1
Jun
FY+1
Sep
FY+1
Sep
FY+2
Aimour
High!
Fly –facility
Fight – Win
“Modernizing
aging
inventories…”
On track for LEED
Platinum Certification
MILCON Funding Profile – FY10 PB
(Total Force: $1,301M)
As Enacted
PB/FYDP
$3,000M
$2,500M
ARRA
$2,000M
$1,500M
DERF &
Supplemental
$1,000M
Congressional
Adds
COCOM Support
$500M
AF PB
$0M
05
06
07
08
09
10
11
12
13
14
15
MILCON Strategy
• Enable AF mission (to include new missions)
• Bases are AF’s warfighting platform
 Facilities & Infrastructure
Aim High! Fly – Fight – Win
Flagship BIM: CENTCOM HQ
MacDill Air Force Base’s Central Command Headquarters rendering
Aim High! Fly – Fight – Win
A New Vision for CENTCOM


Envisioned as a “flagship facility for all of the Department of
Defense” – Lt. Col. Jay Beam
Project goals include:
 Flexibility for a changing mission
 Architecturally appealing
 Staff comfort
 Sustainable
 Innovative
Aim High! Fly – Fight – Win
Project-level Initiatives
MacDill Air Force Base’s Central Command Headquarters BIM-based building model
Aim High! Fly – Fight – Win
Traditional 2D and BIM
Processes Compared





Access to Information
Understanding of the Facility
Clash Detection
Level of Detail
Data Duplication
Aim High! Fly – Fight – Win
Labor Hours
Lessons Learned: Comparing
2D vs. BIM
Time
Graphic by: Patrick MacLeamy, FAIA
Aim High! Fly – Fight – Win
A BIM Set Apart: Describing
the Level of Detail

Architectural and Structural models included
 Wall stud sizes
 Parameter for
final paint
 STC and SCIF ratings
 Architectural precast
 Fall protection system
False Joints in Precast
Piles
Aim High! Fly – Fight – Win
Pump Room
Aim High! Fly – Fight – Win
CENTCOM BIM Highlighting
Mechanical
Aim High! Fly – Fight – Win
Lessons Learned: Sharing
the Model



Valuable at multiple stages
Clients able to make better informed decisions
Can have unforeseen consequences
Aim High! Fly – Fight – Win
Cost per SM Comparison
Total Cost ($ Million)
Total Square Meters (SM)
Total Cost/SM ($/SM)
HQ JICCENT
(traditional 2-D)
HQ US CENTCOM
(BIM-based)
114.6
24,962
$4,591
81.7
23,844
$3,426
Aim High! Fly – Fight – Win
Envisioning the Future of BIM




FM integration better defined
Level of detail standards
More content available
Contractors participating earlier
Aim High! Fly – Fight – Win
Aim High! Fly – Fight – Win
Creating a Culture of BIM
 GSA:
BIM Guides
 USACE: BIM Road Map
and COS website
 VA has BIM Plan
 USAF has DPs, WBDG
site, BIM Flight Plan
Aim High! Fly – Fight – Win
http://www.wbdg.org/references/afbim.php
ralph.sinkfield@us.af.mil
Aim High! Fly – Fight – Win
Program-Level Initiatives:
The Need for Design Standards
DESIGN
GUIDES
DYNAMIC
PROTOTYPES
STANDARD
DESIGNS
5% Design
Design-Build
(Scope &
Criteria
only)
90%
Design
Design-Bid-Build
Performance
Criteria
Based
Module
Based
Examples:
Aircraft Hangar
Administration
Flight Simulator
Examples:
Dormitory
Fitness
Center
Security
Forces Ops
Prescriptive
Based
Examples:
Munitions
Igloo
Firing Range
Dog Kennel
The key for Dynamic Prototypes: MODULARITY
Aim High! Fly – Fight – Win
(Site
Adapt)
Dynamic Prototypes
Scenario: Dormitories
Choose a unit type module
Replicate, assemble, and arrange
modules to fit the site
Apply walls & roof
Integrate on the site
Import the Basic
Module into project file
Aim High! Fly – Fight – Win
Program-Level Initiatives:
Dynamic Prototypes Applications
Cannon AFB
McGuire AFB
Aim High! Fly – Fight – Win
Facility Candidates for
Dynamic Prototypes

Dormitory
NOW!
 Fitness Center UNDERWAY!
 Squad Ops
 Munitions Igloo
 Combat Arms Range
 Dog Kennel
 Administration
UNDERWAY!
 Fire Station

Lodging
 Dining Facilities
 Control Tower/RAPCON
 Security Forces UNDERWAY!
Operations
 Library
 Youth Center
Facility types which are repetitive and have modularity
Aim High! Fly – Fight – Win
Policy-level Initiatives:
FY10+ MILCON Delivery Strategy




Building Information Modeling (BIM) based designs
required for all future vertical construction
 FY10 inserts
 FY11 MILCON and later
All vertical, eligible construction projects will be
certified LEED Silver at a minimum
Standard RFPs and Designs will be used to greatest
extent possible/practicable
Apply asset management principles
Aim High! Fly – Fight – Win
27
RFP Contract Language
 Design-Build
or
Design-Bid-Build
 BIM Scope of
Services
 Minimum
Requirements

BIM will be linked to
performance based
specifications

Format





Design Requirements
Submittals
Output
Handoff
Electives: Cost
estimating, project
scheduling and COBIE
initiatives are
Contractor
implementation
electives
Aim High! Fly – Fight – Win
Strategies and tactics used to
successfully implement BIM



Strategic
 BIM Flight Plan, Alliances, WBDG site, etc.
Operational,
 Dynamic Prototypes, Revit Template, etc.
Tactical
 Hands-on BIM classes, grass roots efforts
“Carrots”
 Scope Maximization, improved design value
 “Sticks”
 Mandates

Aim High! Fly – Fight – Win
Autodesk Blanket Purchase
Agreement (BPA)



Send questions about the Autodesk BPA and AF
Civil Engineering’s Autodesk software portfolio to:
henriquez_tomeka@bah.com
AF/A7CRT Software Portfolio Manager
Agreement between DLT Solutions and AF/A7CRT
 5-year purchase agreement
 AF Civil Engineering only; use of BPA is required
 Volume discount schedule
 All Autodesk products and services (e.g.,
software training) available
Autodesk Revit and Navisworks network license
software is being served from AFCEE (for now)
Aim High! Fly – Fight – Win
Expectations
 Expect
a learning curve
 Expect Attachment F mins
 Expect firms to follow their
own BIM Ex/Imp Plan
 Expect firms to answer more
design questions earlier
 Expect a “build to the model
mandate (or mentality)”
Aim High! Fly – Fight – Win
Software Rollout



AF blanket purchase agreement
3 Kickoff Workshops
 PMs, 3E5s, engineers, and
architects
Long-term Training at AFIT, Ft.
Leonardwood, USAFA
Aim High! Fly – Fight – Win
32
BIM Flight Plan: Leverage
Facility Life-Cycle IM
Information Value
Information developed during each phase of facility
life-cycle transitions and degrades at each handoff
points to be partially recollected at additional cost.
Solution: use standard framework to collect and
share information as it is generated on a
continuous basis.
GOAL: Continuous
Information Development
WASTE
Design
Planning
Operations,
Sustainment
Construction
Time
National Institute of Building Sciences (NIBS)
Aim High! Fly – Fight – Win
Populating S-File Data
S-File
Properties
for Revit
room
object
S-File
Space
Usage
Schedule
Revit Worksession – Room plan and S-Plan Schedule
views
Aim High! Fly – Fight – Win
OSCRE
fields
Summary/Conclusion

Personal Experience


“What can be done?”



“If you don’t choose,
others will choose for
you.”
Air Force Initiatives
Dynamic Prototypes
“What has to be
done?!”



Moving from the
technology to the culture
BIM Flight Plan
BIM in Asset
Management
Aim High! Fly – Fight – Win