Innovative design and operation through BIM.
The Kathleen Kilgour Centre is a new radiotherapy clinic at Tauranga Hospital. Procured by the Bay of Plenty DHB under a Public Private Partnership (PPP), it is setting New Zealand project management and design precedents through its use of Building Information Modelling (BIM) processes and technologies, combined with integrated project delivery methods.
The building’s design and construction have been co-ordinated with virtual models and BIM will also aid in its operation, maintenance and management over its lifetime. The underlying philosophy for this project has been to provide a high quality environment for the patients who use it and the staff who work there.
BIM was used as a collaborative planning tool on this project, providing for a high level of communication and information sharing between the project partners and client. Throughout the construction phase the main contractor and subcontractors developed as-built models and these were combined with the digital operations and maintenance data.
Although not grand by scale, the project involved input from more than 60 consultants and the building is technically complex. It was important to work through the design details with user groups to ensure their requirements were met and to agree the optimum configuration of work spaces, patient care areas and the placement of high value medical equipment, such as CT scanners. The virtual models created with BIM greatly assisted this, enabling the client and users to visualise the end result.
The Kathleen Kilgour Centre needed to be built within a tight timeframe. This was achieved with collaborative and integrated project delivery methods enabled by BIM.
BIM has underpinned an innovative approach to the design, construction and operation of the Kathleen Kilgour Centre. Most importantly, BIM reduced the risks on the project. It was designed with fewer clashes and issues than could be expected on a technically complex project. Better co-ordinated building and data sharing using BIM technologies reduced re-work.
BIM provided a high level of visualisation that could be missed by traditional design methods. The term “build before you build” best describes how digital prototyping with BIM was used to test the design. It provided the opportunity to explore different options with the client. Better understanding of the plans encouraged better feedback and a fitfor-purpose result.
BIM will continue to add value to this project beyond construction through the use of YouBIM, a cloud based, facilities management tool. It is believed that this is the first project in New Zealand to use YouBIM.
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Project duration:
2012 - 2014
(approx 2 yrs)
BIM Uses:
Existing conditions modelling
Design authoring
Design review
Engineering analysis
3D co-ordination
Digital fabrication
Record modelling
Facilities/asset management
