How BIM Technologies structures BIM coordination for complex London projects
On complex construction projects, poor communication is rarely a small problem. In fact, it is often the root cause of delays, rework, and risk. For BIM Technologies, a leading BIM consultancy in the United Kingdom, clear and accountable project communication is essential when coordinating multi-million-pound developments in the heart of bustling London.
Since adopting BIMcollab as their default BIM collaboration platform, BIM Technologies has transformed how coordination issues are identified, communicated, and resolved. Over the years, this has brought them structure, transparency, and efficiency to over 80% of their projects.
Background: About BIM Technologies
BIM Technologies provides digital support for design and construction projects across the UK, working with clients who increasingly mandate BIM delivery in line with UK BIM Framework and ISO 19650 standards. Their consultants support model coordination, issue management, and information management throughout the project lifecycle.
Many of the projects BIM Technologies is involved in are large-scale residential developments in central London, often valued between £500 million and £1 billion. These projects are typically constrained by dense urban conditions, underground infrastructure, and proximity to rail lines, making accurate coordination and timely issue resolution critical.
The challenge: Finding an easy way to scale and enable consistency
Before implementing BIMcollab for Model Quality Assurance, BIM Technologies relied on internally developed software to track and manage issues. While functional, it lacked the usability, integrations, and scalability required to support complex, multi-stakeholder projects.
Additionally, coordination issues were often communicated inconsistently — frequently via email — leading to fragmented information, unclear accountability, and increased risk of data being lost or misunderstood.
With multiple stakeholders using different authoring and coordination tools, BIM Technologies needed a single platform that could connect everyone without adding complexity.
The solution: A user-friendly platform that streamlines collaboration and issue management
BIM Technologies transitioned to BIMcollab, which quickly became their primary communication and coordination platform. As Senior BIM Manager Stephen King remarks, the ease of use was immediately apparent, even for first-time users.
A key advantage of BIMcollab is its seamless integration with industry-standard tools such as Solibri, Revit, Tekla, and Navisworks. This allows all project stakeholders — regardless of software preference — to collaborate using a shared, open issue management workflow based on BCF. Stephen notes:
As our clients and their consultants work with different software tools, a solution that connects them all is key. BIMcollab is the optimal solution for this.
One of the most valuable features for BIM Technologies is the use of multiple viewpoints per issue. Issues can include several screenshots, each linked directly to the relevant location in the model. As Stephen explains, “We can easily group clashes by categories and levels and then report a whole clash group to an issue, containing a viewpoint of each clash if needed.”
He adds that “The report is easy to digest and can be easily filtered. The issues refer to the location in the model, contain who is accountable and what the deadlines are. This enables accountability and helps us manage our clashes more efficiently.”
To drive consistent adoption, BIM Technologies embedded a BIMcollab workflow into their BIM protocol, ensuring all stakeholders understand how issues should be logged, reviewed, and resolved.
The results: Efficiency, consistency, and traceability across projects and teams
Today, BIMcollab is used on more than 80% of BIM Technologies’ projects and serves as their main communication and Model Quality Assurance tool throughout project delivery. Once stakeholders experience the benefits of structured issue-based coordination, adoption increases rapidly. As Stephen observes:
What we see is that initially in a project, our stakeholders tend to communicate coordination issues via emails. However, once we show them a much more efficient way, they actively start using BIMcollab.
BIMcollab enables BIM Technologies to manage not only clashes, but also missing data, fire safety considerations, buildability concerns, and general modelling errors, all within a single, structured environment. According to Stephen, “BIMcollab helps us to manage a project in a structured way. It helps to track not only coordination issues but also missing data in the models. It holds people accountable, is the planner for our projects, and ensures no data gets lost.”
Issues can be communicated via the platform’s interface, shared links, or clear, well-annotated reports tailored to the needs of different stakeholders. Designers can open issues directly in their authoring tools, while clients can review issues visually through reports or using BIMcollab’s model checking tool, BIMcollab Zoom.
A practical example of how the platform is used is in BIM Technologies’ bi-weekly coordination meetings. Issues are identified and shared ahead of time using dashboards in the platform. During the meeting, issues are reviewed live in Navisworks via the BIMcollab BCF Manager, with actions, responsibilities, and deadlines assigned in real time. Afterward, a report is published and shared, creating a clear and traceable record of decisions and actions.
Conclusion
For BIM Technologies, BIMcollab has become far more than an issue tracker. It is the backbone of structured project communication. By centralizing coordination, improving accountability, and connecting every stakeholder to the model, BIMcollab helps BIM Technologies deliver complex projects efficiently, with less coordination risk and clearer communication.
As Stephen King concludes:
I love software such as BIMcollab. I like to do things as fast and efficiently as possible. BIMcollab enables me to do that.
