RC108 SeptOct2023 - Magazine - Page 36
TECHNOLOGY
that will be transformed as part of this project.
At a community awareness event held in Union Station,
the team had the live model shown on a large-scale TV
screen, and it was the biggest draw of the event. We
walked users through the commands, and, within a few
minutes, they were able to navigate through the model
with minimal guidance. It was very well received by the
people who tried it, and it helped to put into perspective
the scale and design of the new platforms and concourse.
There was a wide variety of people who used the VR,
including station operations staff who were interested in
what we are building to transit enthusiasts who spent over
half an hour walking around the model. It was accessible
and easy to use. Many people commented that it was great
that we were sharing so much information about the project, and the model was very cool.
BIM creates better projects
On the project development side, the main benefit of using
BIM is the creation of a single source of truth through the
model and through a CDE (Common Data Environment)
which all team members use. BIM is not just model delivery—it is data delivery and data analytics. With proper
The rail and transit sector has benefitted greatly
from the integration of BIM, both for project
development and community relations.
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RENEW CANADA – SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2023
education of all partners involved, it allows everyone to
have a single source for information on project design,
and where requests for changes can be tested to understand how they will impact the overall project.
Working on a project delivering through BIM ensures
all data is generated from the models. In turn, this allows
team members picking up the models to have confidence
the 3D data they are working with reflects a specific submission, milestone or point in time. This allows design
and construction to consume the models for clash review,
VR, 4D, quantity review, and as-built creation.
The rail and transit sector has benefitted greatly from
the integration of BIM, both for project development and
community relations.
For the design team, delivery through BIM ensures
linear (track, utilities, civil etc.) and buildings (mechanical, architectural, electrical, etc.) teams can get on the
same page regarding project coordination and stay on the
same page throughout the project. That has significant
advantages for both teams, as the need for changes can
be shown in real-time, and the impacts on other parts of
the project can be demonstrated. As an example, if there
is need to change positions of platform lighting infrastructure, and its associated wiring, you can then see how
this will impact where infrastructure can come into the
building, additional lengths of wire needed, and then be
able to accurately understand the cost of that change for
the rest of the surrounding infrastructure.
As we continue to adopt technologies that make our
work more efficient, it’s important to also appreciate
how these innovations can help us in our ability to
communicate with people impacted by the infrastructure
we build.
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METROLINX
At a community awareness event held in Union Station, a live model of the USEP was shown to transit users on a large-scale TV screen.
