Congratulations to the team at HOK in Washington DC for winning a 2011 AIA Technology in Architectural Practice BIM Award!  Their submission for the Consolidated Forensic Laboratory earned them a citation in the category of “BIM Excellence.”

The AIA TAP BIM Awards competition has been an annual event since 2005 that originally focused on drawing automation to improve coordination, speed and accuracy. In 2011, the jury evaluated projects on the merits of  using BIM to support sustainable design solutions and proactive project management. The chair of the AIA TAP Knowledge Community - Calvin Kam, AIA – states: “the goal is to push the field from representation to integration, simulation, automation, and optimization.”

HOK’s project architect Timothy O’Connell accepted the award at the AIA National Convention in New Orleans, LA. Tim remarked, “This is one of those projects that had a lot of different dimensions. We were trying to collocate three independent groups so they could work more efficiently. There was a lot to coordinate and we had to figure out how to make all the pieces come together.”

BIM allowed the owner, contractor, and the design team to work together to craft the design, coordinate delivery, and control costs throughout the process. It was a critical tool in fitting the program into the space and later in developing the building’s skin and exterior fenestration.

Some facts from the award submission:

• Actual contract value was $30 million less than the original design estimate of $165 million
• The construction schedule was shortened by 6 months
• Energy modeling achieved an expected 26% energy reduction over the ASHRAE 90.1 standard
• On track for LEED Platinum certification

Read more about the awards on the AIA website.