AECO Innovation Lab and partners launch digital twin research project
TORONTO, Ontario, February 6th, 2023
Would you believe it if someone told you there was a way to speed up development approvals by over 50%, while ensuring data accuracy, and enhancing collaboration with all levels of government and industry experts? Singapore and Helsinki, Finland, have seen massive improvements since digitizing their processes which now include building information model (BIM) and digital twin technology to improve decision making and streamline their development processes. In Singapore, building permit durations dropped from 102 days to 25 days, with the number of forms reduced from over 700 to 231. In Helsinki, digital twin technology is helping inform regional planning processes by providing data on things like energy use, water consumption, and sunlight exposure for the city’s buildings.
For those who work in Canada’s AEC industry, this might seem like a distant dream compared to current reality where many regulatory organizations still rely on inefficient paper-based methods. With a mission to address digital infrastructure gaps in the AEC industry and associated regulatory bodies, AECO Innovation Lab with partners like RESCON and buildingSMART Canada, are blazing the trail to help turn this dream into reality.
Led by AECO and made possible by Mitacs Accelerate Grants Program, one of the largest digital twin research projects in Canada has officially begun. With $1.32 million in funding, over the next five years, research teams from Carleton University, École de technologie supérieure (ETS) Montreal, Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU), the University of Waterloo, and the University of British Columbia (UBC) will examine key challenges holding the AEC industry back and explore possible solutions using digital twin technology.
“In order for AECO to develop a reliable guide for development approval applicants, we first need to untangle the complex regulatory requirements. It’s a common request we’ve gotten from many industry experts to clarify all the regulations and regulatory bodies involved in the application process”, explains Claudia Cozzitorto, who is the Chief of Operations of AECO Innovation Lab and Executive Director of buildingSMART Canada. Working alongside municipal and regional governments, conservation authorities, and industry authorities, the eight research teams will be divided into two streams. The first stream will examine how regulatory agencies can improve the current development approvals process to enable digital twins and automation. The second stream will identify potential solutions using digital twins to address economic, environmental, and social challenges such as sustainability and affordable housing.
The eight sub-projects provide a glimpse into the digital future where these technologies are embedded into regulatory systems and processes. One sub-project under the first research stream exemplifies this by investigating how the development of BIM standards will help facilitate automated code compliance checking. Creating Canadian standards for BIM submissions would provide industry a clear set of rules and enforce uniformity, which can then support robust automation tools like automated code compliance checking. For Canadian regulatory agencies, consistency in BIM submissions and automation would be invaluable in providing better quality submissions, and minimizing errors; ultimately, accelerating the development approvals process.
Digital twin technology combines BIM with geographic information systems (GIS). By acting as a bridge between the digital and physical world, digital twin technology utilizes real-world data to create simulations that can inform predictions. Harnessing the significant opportunity digital twin technology presents, a sub-project under the second research stream seeks to develop a framework for cities to use digital twins to support sustainability efforts. Digital twins can offer real-time and historic data about environmental outputs and trends like carbon emissions. As Canada aims to be carbon-neutral by 2050, using digital twins can provide new insights and opportunities for regulatory agencies to respond to multi-faceted challenges and reach progressive climate goals.
Although Canada remains the only G7 country without a BIM mandate, AECO Innovation Lab and its partners like RESCON and buildingSMART Canada, believe in the vision of a more efficient digital future. Research discoveries from these studies will immediately benefit Canadian regulatory agencies who can use these findings to make better informed development decisions. The research findings will also be used to build the foundation for AECO’s future full-service development approval system, which you may know as the One Ontario initiative. Supported by academic experts and industry partners across the country, this historic research undertaking is the exciting first step in addressing digital infrastructure gaps in the AEC industry.
The team at AECO Innovation Lab is looking forward to keeping you updated on this journey to better support the development community.
For updates and partnership opportunities regarding One Ontario, please email oneontario@aecoinnovationlab.com.
Want to take part in the research behind BIM as a legal document, sustainability efforts, or digital twin technology? We have lots of opportunities for industry partners to work with our research teams. To inquire about research partnerships, please email info@aecoinnovationlab.com.
Interested in BIM standards in Canada? Become a buildingSMART Canada member and get involved in shaping the narrative here: https://buildingsmartcanada.ca/membership/
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