Software

Better BIM design and cost analysis with ARCHLine.XP and Namirial Regolo BIM

The BIM (Building Information Modeling) technology allows you to manage all the information related to the design and construction of a building. The use of an open format for data exchange, such as the Industry Foundation Class (IFC ) standard, allows the use of the same file to share all the information of a building among the various subjects (architects, engineers, insulation designers, maintainers, etc.) involved in the life cycle of the building itself and between different software platforms.

Thanks to BIM, it is, therefore, possible to speed up and optimize the entire design phase of a building, including the economic aspect. Consider, for example, the opportunity offered to monitor the economic commitment of a building during the whole design phase, in which several subjects may be involved and therefore a continuous exchange of information is required. Or the possibility to quickly evaluate the costs related to different design and construction solutions.

BIM allows to improve the cost estimation process as information on volumes, areas, etc. they are extrapolated directly from the 3D architectural model with consequent reduction of errors, mainly due to the use of formulas and/or omissions, and an increase of the precision in the detection of the quotas.


ARCHLine.XP Namirial BIM

Through ARCHLine.XP Namirial BIM, based on the BIM Authoring software ARCHLine .XP, and its integration with Regolo BIM, it is possible to elaborate the “dimension” BIM-5D that is the management of costs related to an architectural project.
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Image source: Ingenio

ARCHLine.XP Namirial BIM allows you to import any IFC file, also generated by other BIM Authoring programs, to view and analyze its 3D model and to extract all the necessary information from the BIM Tool Namirial Rule BIM for the compilation of the metric calculation and BIM Tool Namirial  Termo BIM to perform energy analysis of the building.

The BIM Authoring ARCHLine.XP allows the realization of the architectural project through powerful and flexible editing functions. Each element inserted in the model (such as, for example, a wall) is modeled as an entity (or object) characterized by both the graphic appearance, as it happens for any CAD program, and by physical and geometrical properties (lengths, volumes, areas, etc.). This allows interoperability and data exchange between BIM software compliant with the IFC standard.

Namirial Rule BIM

Namirial Regolo BIM is the BIM Tool that allows you to draw up a metric calculation starting from the model transferred by ARCHLine.XP when the “model compute” function is started. The operation to quantify all the costs related to a processing is also called Quantity Take Off (QTO).

All entities present in a BIM model, edited by the BIM Authoring program or imported from IFC files, are displayed in Namirial BIM Rule, each with its properties. For every single graphic entity, it is possible to define one or more “rules”, ie elements that allow the entity to relate with price list items, measurement models based on their geometric properties and machining categories. Each rule contributes to the compilation of the calculation through the insertion, in the appropriate category, of the list item connected to it and of one or more lines of measurements according to the BIM model. This working method allows to quickly update the metric calculation when the BIM model changes. After making the necessary changes to the architectural model, it is sufficient to repeat the operation of passing data from the BIM Authoring program to Regolo BIM to have, quickly, the metric calculation updated both in the structure (processing categories) and in the quantities of the measurements. Cost estimation can also be reviewed quickly by modifying the rules.

You can use filtering and grouping functions to associate a single multi-entity rule in a single operation. Using filters ensures that any new entities entered into the BIM model are automatically counted in the metric calculation.

The creation of filters and rules is speeded up and facilitated by the presence of basic archives, Drag & Drop functions between different projects and specific procedures that allow associating entities with already defined rules.

Through graphical highlights, the program indicates at any time which entities are associated with associated rules and any rows of connected measurements. A filter function is provided that shows only the entries and measurements related to the selected BIM entities.

The price lists, shared with the Namirial Regolo program, can be compiled by the user or downloaded from the Namirial website.

The connection between ARCHLine.XP and Namirial Regolo BIM takes place in real time and it is always possible to graphically identify, within the architectural model, the entity on which it is operating and have a complete view of the work performed. However, it is possible to unite the two phases by allowing different subjects to deal with architectural planning and cost estimation. Also, in this case, the metric calculation can be “synchronized” to the BIM model through the simple exchange of an IFC file.
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Image source: Ingenio

The integration between the two software allows having, in addition to the properties provided by the IFC standard and generally used by the other BIM Tool, additional information on the entity that can be used during the compilation of the measurement model. You can use the minimum (internal) or maximum (external) length of a wall that delimits a room, the geometry (height, length, thickness, etc.) of the individual layers that make up a wall or a floor and other parameters specific to each single type of entity (walls, floors, roofs, etc.). This allows for very detailed and accurate metric calculations. By combining the information relating to the stratigraphy of the structures to the filter functions provided by the program, it is possible to calculate the cost related to the use of a certain material (such as an insulator) in the composition of a wall and evaluate, with a few simple steps, the best scenario from an economic and planning point of view.

The processing categories (defined by the user through the rules) that make up the structure of the metric calculation can also be linked to the properties of the BIM entities. For example, it is possible to make the program automatically divide the measurements associated with the fixtures according to the plans provided for in the architectural model and in which the windows have been placed.   The structure of the metric calculation will, therefore, be dynamic and always synchronized with the BIM model.


Integration with Namirial Regolo

The metric calculation made with the Namirial Regolo BIM can be opened and printed in the Namirial Regolo. Furthermore, it is possible to make all the modifications and integrations necessary to include any items not foreseen or unrelated to the BIM model and thus obtain a more exhaustive cost estimate.

Since Regolo and Regolo BIM operate on two distinct documents, it is possible to make different subjects evaluate, even simultaneously, different aspects of the metric calculation: one closely related to the architectural model and the other to all that not directly attributable (graphically) to the BIM Authoring program.

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Image source: Ingenio

At any time, through the new function of comparison and union of metric calculations present in the Namirial Rule 3.4, it is possible to align the Regulus metric calculation with that of the Regulus BIM. During the comparison, all the variations made in the BIM Rule and related to the calculation section linked to the BIM model will be indicated. Every single change can be accepted or ignored in the document present in Regolo.