High Performance meets High Tech

Checking in from the Ecobuild America conference, which is actually several overlapping conferences simultaneously executed. And since the topics are mostly about integration, interoperability and a host of other “inters,” it is a bit like Shakespeare’s play within a play. And yet…

There is an educator’s track, networking and learning from each other’s experiments to create a successful learning environment where students will be excited and motivated to push through the initial learning curve, and spend the time necessary to learn the BIM software. While there are several variables of teaching methodology, there seems to be a growing consensus that students need to spend the time to gain a level of proficiency, so that they can start to understand the strategy behind the use of the tools – essentially to get past the mesmerization of the tool.

Other conference rooms contain the geeks – both those developing the software, and the champions for software integration into the AEC firms. There is an amazing array of applications in this family of software – from energy modeling to daylighting, pedestrian flows to classical clash detections. These folks seem to be converging on a common language of data storage on a remote SQL site. In other words, regardless of the application, the software people seem to have a method of working together.

Another track are the building scientists. This still seems to be set apart – possibly due to the nature of the group as primarily focused on residential construction – and possibly because they are using different software. For example, the majority of residential construction is not likely to be designed in 3D nor go through an array of energy modeling. The money just isn’t there. Yet the need is very strong.

So that is the ultimate play within the play. Can the software be scaled for residential? Can it be simplified, aligned and linked to the existing and ongoing building science knowledge? And who will be the party to deploy this information? For now, it is enough that these conferences are co-located, that these groups are beginning to interface, and that the brains are churning. It was a good day.