One thing we've found hard over the last few months is to get people in the architecture/building sector to understand how what we do with the built environment (e.g. with the Birmingham Library project) is different to what they do. For architects in particular it appears to be all about "look" - the better a computer image is to perfection (not reality) the better it is - regardless of the use. In our recent Built Environment white paper we presented the "whole life" model of a building that can be supported by virtual worlds - where the "social" dimension of the build is paramount.
This has led us to think that maybe the right message to get across is that there are 3 "models" that anyone involved in the built environment should be concerned with:
- the architects visual appearance model - what will it look like
- the engineer/builders structural model - how do we build it
- the social model - how do we use it
At present there is a lot of debate about Building Information Modelling (BIM) - the overlap between architects and engineers, but the Building Social Model (that which virtual worlds are ideally suited for) is getting overlooked. In the future (10Yrs+?) hopefully one platform will cover all three uses, but at the moment we need to find ways in which projects can explore all three dimensions, probably across 2-3 tools, but in the most cost-effective manner.
Leave a comment