Brands's List: Living Buildings and Communities

• Why not model the whole city?

• The business opportunity offered by such a digital city may not be totally obvious. Consider the management of key infrastructure projects such as waste, water, energy and transport. The drive towards achieving sustainable, yet desirable and economically successful cities has only just begun. In China, for example, whole cities are being planned and constructed. Dongtan eco-city required a city model to test urban strategies for its infrastructure and there are plans in place to connect the city model to a smart metering system to capture valuable energy usage information streams – a digital dashboard for the city. For cities with aging infrastructure and a scarcity of greenfield sites, there is a need to capture what is already built to explore new projects, better maintain existing investments and renew worn-out utilities. A digital city could be a valuable resource for every stage of development, from cradle to grave — or with a sustainable mindset, cradle to cradle.

    

   However, while the engineering and planning may concern us, many times the initial budget and justification comes from cities’ economic development agencies. This is because these agencies usually have the budget to attract new businesses into their cities. Making a digital city is a cost efficient way of marketing, as opposed to creating a couple of cool fly-overs and getting a little airtime on television. People are able to visit the virtual model and it can be brought to life by many different departments to capture and improve planning and construction.
• In short, all the technology is now in place to build complex, intelligent 3D digital cities.
• LandXplorer Studio Professional software that enables data aggregation and modelling on a macro or ‘city’ scale. Looking at the design landscape, the use of information modelling is bringing all the essential processes together — we are moving from file-based to model-based collaboration, which enables Building Information Management (BIM) on a city scale
• In addition to GIS and 3D formats, LandXplorer Studio Professional supports CityGML, which is the industry standard for exchanging city model data.
• not like Google Earth
• You have to be able to factor in utilities, networks, roads, rail, and buildings and then be able to analyse, simulate, and collaborate on that data
• pool three, four, or ten or more projects together and it becomes great value. The more you use it, the higher the return. Cities live and breathe, they are always changing and being renewed. Here, a city model can be an invaluable tool to capture and store what was, accurately document what is, and test what will be.”
• So there is never one model, just lots of data sources in different domains, frequently reinventing the wheel.
• bring all this data and geometric information into a spatially referenced database and share it, there are massive benefits. The model can then be used for traffic simulation, energy analysis, hydrology, slope analysis, or flood and pollution simulation. Sensors can be placed in the actual buildings or bridges and accessed from within the model.
• But before anyone can even think of building a digital city, the benefit has to be sold to all the various stakeholders, the local government departments and private firms in order to get their buy-in
• a ‘Digital Cities’ pilot provides a great forum for all the departments to come together and have a positive discussion as to how they can benefit from sharing their data,
• With LandXplorer Studio Professional it is possible to take existing co-ordinated data and build a digital city in an afternoon
• Later, using LiDAR (Light Detection And Ranging) and photogrammetry, exact roof pitches, overhangs and textures can be added.
• There is talk of getting architects to post proposed buildings to an online model, managed by the city.”
• According to Mr Eberhard, typical budgets for digital cities range from US$50,000 to US$300,000.
• There has been a big shift in the past couple of years with aerial image providers such as Digitalglobe (www.digitalglobe.com), Navteq (www.navteq.com), Terrametrix3D (www.terrametrix3d.com), where geospatially accurate, texture-mapped 3D city maps are available for purchase off the shelf. LIDAR laser scanning technology is revolutionising surveying; city models are almost a commodity.”
• One of the most impressive 3D plans comes from architectural modeller and illustrator, GMJ. Its laser-scanned GMJ ‘CityModel’ is highly accurate, down to the satellite dishes on houses.

• Many firms license areas of GMJ’s CityModel to use in development of new projects or to apply for planning.

    

   GMJ has been using the model to examine and simulate the impact of global warming on the city, producing some startling images depicting the impact of a six metre water rise in the capital.  The online exhibition was launched to coincide with the G8 Summit held in Japan last year, and aimed to increase public awareness of the predicted rise in sea levels.
• so all that is now required is the buy-in of the right people. Digital cities are viable, easy to generate and offer huge benefits. They are slowly becoming a reality, though the majority of funding appears to be coming from institutions that are looking to drive economic development.
• GMJ has also put the model to great use as part of its own online ‘London Futures’ exhibition, which offered visions of future city transport, clean energy generation and space saving solutions. Unfortunately, any future vision also needs to address the potential impact of global warming and the aerial view displayed here shows the effects on London of a six metre rise in sea level at spring high tide. The CityModel was used to predict the water levels across the capital for a number of alarming, yet thought provoking, images.

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• David Morris
    Director of Virtual Construction,  EMCOR Construction Services

   

  David Morris, Director of Virtual Construction for EMCOR , has over thirty years of experience performing and directing all phases of piping and mechanical systems for Commercial, Hospitality, Industrial, and Power Generation construction.  Current duties include improving BIM processes and sharing best detailing and virtual design practices across the 80 EMCOR group companies.

   

  Mr. Morris is well known as an industry activist for Integrated Project Delivery, BIM and Process Transformation and has presented to AIA, CURT, AGC, MCAA and other industry functions related to Virtual Construction and Building Information Modeling.

   

  As a participant in the 3XPT committee through the Construction User’s Roundtable Process Transformation Committee, Chairman of Associated General Contractors BIM Forum Subcontractors Subcommittee, Vice-Chairman of the BuildingSmart Alliance Board of Directors and Director of the Quality of Life and Visualization, Simulation & Analysis Programs, Mr. Morris brings a practical and commercial perspective to the use of technology in construction.