AAMA Develops BIM Standard

The American Architectural Manufacturers Association (AAMA) has developed a standard for fenestration products within building information modeling (BIM) programs. During its National Fall Conference, which took place September 20-23, the AAMA BIM Task Group met to discuss the need for a standard addressing fenestration products within BIM with a goal to ballot a copy of the document by September 2010.

"The AAMA BIM Task Group will be the driving force in identifying important attributes of fenestration products to incorporate into BIM tools, making it easier for specifiers to utilize these building products in their projects," says Rich Walker, AAMA president and chief executive officer.

During the meeting of the task group, chairman Mike Turner (YKK AP America Inc.) presented thoughts on how to create an AAMA BIM standard, as there is variation in specific models across the industry.

According to Walker, the purpose of developing a standard for commercial fenestration products is to better assist users of BIM files in understanding the level of information contained within the manufacturer's model. A standard will benefit the overall industry by standardizing the data contained within the model so that BIM can be implemented across a broad range of products efficiently and effectively.

The task group is currently in the process of preparing content for a survey that will be distributed to architects, specifiers and general contractors. Once the survey content is developed, a link to the completed survey will be posted on the AAMA website. The survey results will then be reviewed at the AAMA 73rd Annual Conference to be held February 14-17, 2010, in Palm Springs, Calif.