# Building Information Modelling Facility Management (BIM-FM)
## 9 A New Approach to BIM-FM  
Key barriers to BIM-FM implementation discussed in Sections 6.4 and 6.5 included a lack of aligned procedures and standards between FM and other sectors. The authors believe that conceptions of BIM-FM previously outlined in Figure 4 do not adequately account for this misalignment. There remains an implicit assumption that BIM tools and procedures, originally developed for AEC purposes, can be expanded to incorporate FM needs/functions. However, expansion does not account for misaligned, sometimes, contradictory requirements, nor does it account for the vastness of FM needs. Furthermore, as previously established by a number of authors, the ability to pass on a BIM from the construction stage to the operation stage does not automatically make that model useable [7]. The authors would therefore like to propose a new conception of BIM-FM, as summarised in Figure 5. Within this new perception, the following apply:  
* The 'AEC-BIM' serves as an input for the BIM-FM system. This is the BIM created for new capital projects. This would require minimal to no changes to established BIM procedures, standards (e.g., ISO 19650) and tools within the AEC sector. The input of an AEC-BIM is envisioned as an optional step that would reduce BIM-FM setup time without excluding existing assets with no AEC-BIM. * The BIM-FM system is here treated as a new, separate entity. It should be a single system (although likely to consist of interconnected subsystems) that contains all information, and performs all functions required for FM and which maintains the visualisation benefits of the AEC-BIM by including a 3D model suitable to defined FM requirements. It is conceived as a system which will be populated and grow over time as new data is added, whilst retaining historical data. * The BIM-FM system should be able to output an AEC-ready BIM able to be used for new capital projects. This is particularly important given the growing trend towards retrofitting existing assets as opposed to new construction projects. The BIM-FM system would be defined by a new standard specific to the requirements of FM. Initial work for the definition of these requirements is included in Section 7. The standard should also incorporate new developments such as Digital Twin technology (Section 8). Whilst not confined by the existing BIM standards, the new system should utilise the established BIM exchange formats (e.g., IFC) to facilitate AEC-BIMs to be input/output to the system. A full definition of BIM-FM requirements would engender this expansion. Assuming the existence of a full definition of BIM-FM requirements and the technological capability to realise the system, an asset owner will need to carry out the following procedure in order to utilise the new approach to BIM-FM:  
* Define which of the BIM-FM requirements are applicable to their organisation;
* Create the BIM-FM system architecture to facilitate their defined requirements;
* Mandate compliance with their defined requirements for all internal and external actors. The first stage is comparable to the creation of a BIM Execution Plan (BEP), the preliminary stage of AEC-BIM implementation [19]. Once these steps have been realised, asset owners will be able to populate the BIM-FM system with existing asset information. Figure 5: A new approach to BIM-FM. For new constructions, provided the BIM-FM system is compliant with established data exchange formats and external actors comply with the mandated requirements, the project team should be able to easily transfer any required information from the AEC-BIM to the BIM-FM system. Whilst the perception of BIM-FM given in Figure 5 has not been formally proposed or implemented elsewhere, preliminary justification for the proposals made can be evidenced by the University of Birmingham (UoB) Estates department.