BIM in Landscape Architecture

I don’t have a practice so it is all experimentation but I have been using and teaching Digital Projects for a couple of years. Also Grasshopper for Rhino (which is probably the most fun) and to some extent Archicad.

I have said it a few times on here, BIM and parametric software will be the industry standard in the future so it is worth trying to understand and learn it now. Because the point of the software is to incorporate all aspects of a project into one model LA’s will be left behind in collaborative work if we don’t pick it up. The ASLA paper that come out last year about BIM was ok but didn’t really go into the power of BIM and how to use it as a design tool.

Revit is similar to Archicad. They are both basically building tools and can be useful but haven’t really been developed for landscape yet. That isn’t to say they can’t be used for landscape as I have used Archicad before and found it to be pretty good.

BIM and parametrics is all in the relationships. You really end up manipulating space and relationship to other objects as well as the object itself. Revit is basically components you insert into a design that have information built into them, so what needs to happen is the development and inclusion of a set of landscape objects for site engineering and design.

Of course landscape and site planning will get integrated into BIM software. It is just a question of the components getting built. They aren’t going to just stop developing the software, it may take awhile but it will happen.

Having switched over to Vectorworks after using AutoCAD for many years, I was impressed to know that many have been using Vectorworks Landmark in performing SIM (Site Information Modeling) for some time now. The plant symbols are actually data objects that have the ability to be hybridized to be both 2D & 3D, so a landscape architect/designer could either “test” their ideas directly back and forth, or use it to present their ideas to the customer. Personally, I think the power of Vectorworks is both in this ability to marry the 2D and 3D aspects of our designs, but to use the data to make better decisions about how we design. The plant data can be used to make sure we are using drought tolerant plants where water is a concern, and sun loving plants where exposure is a concern, and native plants where we do not want to pollute the site with fertilizers and other controlling chemicals. The 3D site modeling tool allows a landscape architect/designer to model the site with the ideas they are proposing, and again test it for valid handling of the grades and balancing the site’s cut and fill. Being able to make reports from all objects placed in the site, such as plants, hardscapes, surface treatments, lighting, and other features, allows a designer to not only design more efficiently, but to report what their plans are proposing, quantifying the solution so that we can prove to our clients that when we approach the municipalities and planning authorities with our solution, they can see the rationale of our plans’ and their suitable response to the design standards. For those who think Revit might be a site solution to wait for, I would say Revit is BIM and Vectorworks Architect is too…but Vectorworks Landmark is SIM and why wait to see what Revit might do with the site when I can start doing it now with Vectorworks Landmark.

I was told directly from Autodesk development that they are not going to produce Revit for landscapes. Of course you can build a landscape in Revit, but you won’t have the BIM advantage.

Depends what you mean by BIM. Of course BIM means Building Information Modeling so perhaps LIM ( Landscape Information Modeling ) would be more appropriate. I use Vectorworks Landmark which allows me to work using a BIM (or LIM workflow).

I draw with landscape and architectural related objects, which have information assigned to them and then I can take this information off in worksheets and schedules. I take off Plant Schedules and Hardscape Schedules. Vectorworks Landmark also has a terrain modeling tool that allows me to show existing and proposed stages, from which I can also calculate Cut and FIll values. Is this what you had in mind?

Hi Michael,

I use ArchiCAD and the add-ons for ArchiCAD out of England and New Zealand. I have advanced skills and use BIM.
You can see my work at:
http://webshots.com/user/lindawjones1
and on this website under videos and pictures.

Linda Jones in California