07.10.2019
Can BIM models help to save lives at the new Stavanger University Hospital in Norway? World champions in BIM modelling Torgeir Fadnes and Kristoffer Tungland of COWI explained how this might be possible at the Nordic Edge Expo conference in Stavanger.
In the process of exploiting the data from BIM, there is a need for closer collaboration between technologists, medical researchers and users.
This is one of the conclusions from World champions in BIM modelling Torgeir Fadnes and Kristoffer Tungland of COWI for how to use a BIM model in the operational phase after picking up lots of ideas from technologists and potential users on this year's Nordic Edge Expo conference in Stavanger.
Together with Nordic – Office of Architecture, they used BIM models in the design phase, but now they also want to use the models in the operational phase.
"We have had a lot of good input on how this can be done,” explains BIM manager Kristoffer Tungland of COWI.
“You can see for yourself that the model can be used to find your way around a large building complex, and that you can use it to simulate extreme scenarios which put great pressure on logistics at the hospital. We have to remember why we are building a smart hospital in the first place; it’s not because we want a smart building but because the people using the building have to be happy with it,” says Fadnes.
One practical example is where a doctor needs life-saving equipment, such as a defibrillator, in a hurry. If this is fitted with a sensor, we will be able to see where it is in the model and just press a button to find the quickest way to it.
Project director for Stavanger University Hospital (SUS2023), Kari Gro Johansen also talked about the benefits of standardised solutions for patient rooms and bathrooms in the model. When you replace an element in one project space, the same happens in all other rooms. She is also pleased with the international recognition the project has achieved.
“We are naturally proud to have been chosen as the world’s best digital project. The most important thing for us about using the BIM model is to have an all-digital construction site. That is quite ground-breaking in itself - a building site without paper drawings. BIM gives you very structured data, which is a big plus from using the model,” says Johansen.
In 2018, Tungland and Fadnes were on the winning team when SUS2023 came out top in the AEC Excellence Awards, also known as the world championships in BIM modelling. It all came about because they had to enhance the Autodesk modelling software themselves when they set out to design the hospital. Read more here.
May Kristin Haugen
Head of Communication
Communication NO, Norway
Tel:
+47 97745057
mkha@cowi.com