A BIM story like no other

by Vicki Holmes, Digital Manager, Multiplex Construction

From professional princess to BIM ambassador, my career hasn’t exactly been linear.

After university I worked in theatre, telesales, facilities management, contract management, office management and eventually landed in a heap on the doorstep of the construction industry; bored, frustrated and looking for a temporary job whilst I carried on searching for my “real career”. Construction didn’t make sense to me at all. It seemed old fashioned and tired.

And then I came across the model for the project I was working on. It only represented half of the development, and the data was sketchy to say the least, but I saw so much opportunity there! My mind was spinning with ways that this could improve the industry and I wondered if anyone else was thinking the same thing about BIM.

Yes! There were people everywhere who got together to talk about how we could instigate this change. So I got involved. I joined the conversation. I found my bubble.

When it comes to BIM and digital construction I believe that simplicity and precision are key. When I first became a BIM Consultant my personal objective was to create efficient practices that reduce time spent on site and, as a result, reduce the environmental impact of the construction industry. That objective has developed over time, but never changed.

Almost two years ago I joined Multiplex. Most of the business needed to be up-skilled, but to be successful we needed to approach this differently; enrolling the whole company on a three-day Revit course wouldn’t cut it.

So I stepped out of my comfort zone and I left my bubble – I moved in to the Learning team and I began, with our Head of Digital Construction, to develop digital capabilities across the organisation, led from an established centralised business unit.

Moving from the Digital team was a massive risk for me; I was comfortable in my BIM bubble. Therefore in my BIM Show Live presentation I’ll be talking about my BIM hokey cokey (in, out, in… get it?) and how it was terrifying but necessary for the continued development of both myself and the organisation that I worked in.

Also, it’s important to check in on our wider bubble from time to time. It’s time for us to step out in to the mainstream, feel the light on our faces, and mingle with the masses to ensure that Business as Usual actually means BIM as Usual.

 

Vicki’s seminar, ‘Breaking out of the BIM Bubble’ will take place at 11.00am on Thursday 28 February.