Topic: Civil Model vs. Building Information Model

[Matt__W]

I'm working on a model release form for our C3D models and was wondering what the "industry standard" is for site/civil models.  Are they also referred to a "building information models" even though they're technically not part of the building?  Is there some other name or acronym for site models that I'm not aware of?

[MickD]

Hi Matt, I can't tell you much about the C3D export features or typical standards for export but the BIM standard file type is .ifc ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Industry_Foundation_Classes )
These can be exported from many cad packages and are usually viewed with app's like Navis Works and Tekla BIMSight (free and excellent BIM tool).

An ifc file is basically an xml file of basic classes that contain object information and can store the basic geometry for viewing and as much information about the object as you like (like xdata).
Very handy for collaboration and project management without needing special apps to view every type of model.

hth,
Mick.