Maintenance of Buildings Using BIM Methodology

Building maintenance is the responsibility of its owner which must use, whenever appropriate, a technician to perform the inspection. A good maintenance depends on the analysis of the anomalies detected during the inspection of the site. Building Information Models (BIM) have revealed themselves as a good tool when it comes to supporting maintenance actions, due to their ability to store enough information in one digital model. The aim of the proposed work was to implement the benefits provided by BIM on a software tool used as support to maintenance of buildings. During an inspection activity for maintenance purposes, the implemented application, containing a rigorous database, allows the user to identify each anomaly present in building components, directly onto the BIM model, automatically associating them with probable causes, repair methods and a photograph of the anomaly uploaded at the site. Therefore, gains in productivity and a decrease in the error probability can be achieved. The inspection data is stored in the BIM model, making it suitable for consultation when planning maintenance. Additionally, it was case study the interoperability between BIM modeling and visualizing software, regarding the preservation of information, especially in the standard format Industry Foundation Classes (IFC). This work contributed to demonstrate, not only that there are still problems concerning the interoperability between BIM software, but also the advantages of employing BIM for building maintenance purposes.