Making collaboration in construction projects more successful

"ALLPLAN has always been committed to openBIM, as only open standards enable the successful implementation of BIM workflows in heterogeneous system landscapes," says Thomas Müller, Product Manager Interoperability at ALLPLAN. "Open data standards contribute significantly to the advancing digitalization of the construction industry. They are the basis for efficient data exchange and ensure that processes run largely smoothly thanks to compatible data," he adds.

More transparency through standardized workflows

OpenBIM supports transparent BIM workflows through a standardized, open data flow which enables project stakeholders to participate in construction projects regardless of the software they use. This is done with the help of IFC, the open standard format for the exchange of building and model data. In the Allplan 2021 version, the quality of the import and export of IFC models has been further improved in order to create walls, ceilings or columns with openings even from geometrically simplified IFC data.

Simple data exchange directly from Allplan

In addition to the IFC interface, other interfaces are available for data exchange with project partners for common exchange formats, including DWG, DXF, DGN and PDF, but also for Rhinoceros 3D, SketchUp, CINEMA 4D, Google Earth or Lumion. As part of a technical preview, the direct import of Revit files is possible for the first time with Allplan 2021. This means that Revit models can be read into Allplan and used without prior conversion to IFC format. During the import, largely native Allplan objects such as walls, columns, slabs, beams, windows, doors and roofs are created.

Allplan Bimplus for efficient data management

The extended integration of the cloud-based technology of Allplan Bimplus within Allplan 2021 enables new workflows and secure data management throughout the entire project lifecycle. Silvy Santosa, BIM specialist at the Dutch construction company BAM Infraconsult, stated: “Bimplus enabled anyone on the project to view our live design reinforcement model from anywhere, giving the entire team a much better insight into the design than if we had relied on drawings.”

In addition to direct connectivity to solutions such as MS Excel, MS Project and other modeling tools, Allplan Bimplus provides apps such as SCIA AutoConverter which converts architectural and building models into models for structural analysis. This supports an open BIM based approach and better collaboration between architects, structural engineers and designers.

Cooperation with specialized software providers

ALLPLAN cooperates with a large number of software providers both within the Nemetschek Group, such as Precast, NEVARIS, SCIA, FRILO, SOLIBRI and Spacewell, and with specialists such as ESS, Scalypso, BIMQ, Prevera, BIM-AR, Card1 and Bechmann, to complement ALLPLAN’s product portfolio.

Further information: https://www.allplan.com/workflows/interoperability