Constant communication is a fundamental human need, and the development of a language that allows us to communicate fluently is surely what lies behind our evolution as a species and as a society. That’s how important it can be. a unified channel for the transmission and exchange of information.
For these reasons, in recent history, where workflows are mostly digital, the interoperability The reliability of the computer systems that support day-to-day work tools plays a fundamental role in the selection of software and operating systems in work environments. This is even more important in the fields of architecture, engineering, and construction, where software is more complex and specialized to meet the needs of these sectors.
A History of Interoperability
This series of factors led one of the world’s most renowned software development companies in the fields of architecture, engineering, and construction (Autodesk) to promote the formation of a consortium among major companies in the sector toward the end of the last century. Thus, in 1994, the consortium was formed with AT&T, HOK Architects, Honeywell, Carrier, Tishman, and Butler Manufacturing, among others, the Industry Alliance for Interoperability.
The main objective of this consortium was to explore options for improving the operational functionality and compatibility between different software programs specializing in each sector. The result of this partnership was the development of the IFC format, which promised to enable the easy exchange of information regardless of the software used to create it.
The consortium eventually became a nonprofit organization that promotes the use of IFC-format files for information exchange; it changed its name to BuildingSMART, with a strong global presence and strategic partners in every country. In Spain, Structuralia was officially recognized as an associate center of BuildingSMART Spain in 2021.
Why is interoperability so important?
As we mentioned at the beginning, exchanging information is a basic necessity, and interoperability is about just that—but on a much broader scale. In the field of e-government, the European Commission provides one of the clearest definitions of interoperability, defining it as: The interaction that involves the participating organizations sharing information and knowledge through their business processes by exchanging data between their respective information and communications technology systems.
Within the architecture, engineering, and construction sector, interoperability takes on particular importance within the BIM. Ever since this methodology arrived to revolutionize workflows, moving toward an environment that is much more collaborative than the traditional one CAD, the exchange of information between the various software programs or tools involved in the development and execution of projects has become essential.
And although the major software providers in the sector can offer all the necessary tools within a closed format, it is important that there be “open” alternatives, such as Open BIM, that allow for the free and effective exchange of information outside of these closed formats. IFC is one of the main open formats that support the existence and interoperability of OpenBIM.
What makes At the vocational training level, it is so important to convey the importance and usefulness of these types of formats, which are key to interoperability in the BIM world. That is why, at Structuralia, among the wide range of BIM master’s programs available, even though it is Autodesk Authorized Training Center We give over-the-air broadcast formats like IFC the attention they deserve.
What kind of information can an IFC file contain?
An IFC file is typically used to share three-dimensional models or geometries—information that is extremely valuable to architects, engineers, and builders—but its true scope goes far beyond that. The IFC format, to put it very simply, establishes guidelines or a framework so that information can be transmitted from A to B with as little loss as possible.
These guidelines or frameworks function in the same way that spelling does in conveying written information, with the difference that the format IFC supports many different types of information. In other words, it not only contains a parallelepiped embedded in a wall, but it is also capable of associating the geometry with the necessary alphanumeric information to identify the geometry as a door that has a doorknob and is made of a specific material with specific properties.
That is why it is so widely used in the BIM environment, where The information that accompanies a geometry is just as important as the geometry itself. Without this feature, BIM interoperability would be limited to the proprietary formats of individual software vendors, thereby reducing the potential of a methodology based on collaborative and interdisciplinary work.
On the other hand, it is important to understand the limitations of an information exchange format such as IFC. IFC It is not an “editable” file”, this means that you cannot work directly on an IFC file; it must first be imported into the native file format of the software you are using so that it can be modified. Afterward, to share the information, it must be exported back to the IFC format; this works very similarly to how a PDF file works.
Benefits of the IFC Format
We have already made it clear that interoperability is one of the main advantages of the IFC file format, but it is not the only one. Using IFC gives BIM professionals the freedom to access a wider range of BIM tools without the limitation of having to migrate information from one to another, and therefore, adjust the financial investment in software to the scale of each project or organization.
At the same time, it acts as a barrier to the monopolization of the BIM ecosystem by large software providers, and provides resources for developing new BIM tools that are compatible with industry giants such as Revit and Archicad.
And finally, they make it possible for BIM to be adopted by public institutions involved in urban planning and public procurement. The IFC is the format that transparent and open enough to become the standard which allows public entities to receive, manage, and transmit BIM information without any bias.
