What Is Building Information Modelling (BIM)?
BIM is an information-rich three-dimensional digital model of a building and its elements — the basis of modern coordination, quantity take-off and management.
More than 3D
Every element in the model — a column, a pump, a door — is an object with its own properties: dimensions, material, specification, cost and schedule. Further dimensions are added: 4D for time, simulating the build; 5D for cost, taking off and pricing from the model; and beyond, for operation and maintenance.
Its value for quantities and cost
Taking quantities off the model reduces manual measurement error and updates them automatically with every design change; and clash detection between the structural and the mechanical before execution saves expensive rework.
In the Saudi market
Major and government projects increasingly require BIM, and a contractor ready for it holds an advantage in both prequalification and execution. The practical starting point is pilot projects and models supplied by the consultant, put to work on take-off and coordination before building an in-house modelling capability.
Worked example
A clash detection exercise on a hospital found 1,240 clashes between ducts and beams, all resolved on the model before execution — with the avoided rework estimated at 3–4% of the value of the MEP works.
FAQ
Does BIM replace bills of quantities?
It generates their initial quantities more accurately, but structuring the contract items, pricing them and managing them remains engineering and contractual work — which is what platforms such as Etimadco are for.
Put this to work with Bill of Quantities (BOQ) Software
Structured, accurate BOQs: upload, validate, price and export in one platform
Explore Bill of Quantities (BOQ) Software