Chapter 10 dives into the technical standards that enable interoperability—the ability for models created in different software applications to exchange information without loss or corruption. The cornerstone of BIM interoperability is Industry Foundation Classes (IFC) , an open, neutral file format developed and maintained by buildingSMART International.
IFC is not a software product but a data schema—a structured definition of how building elements should be described. The chapter explains IFC through analogy: if you want to share a document, you might use PDF; if you want to share a spreadsheet, you use CSV; if you want to share a BIM model across different authoring tools (Revit to ArchiCAD to Tekla), you use IFC.
The current version is IFC4, with IFC5 in development. The chapter also covers IFC certifications: software products can be certified for import or export of IFC files, providing assurance of quality. Beyond IFC, the chapter discusses data dictionaries and classification systems. Classification systems organize building elements into hierarchical categories with standardized codes.
Uniclass (primarily UK) and OmniClass (primarily North America) allow a door to be described not just as a door but as a "20-minute fire-rated, single-leaf, steel door" with a unique code. These codes enable reliable quantity takeoffs, cost estimation, and comparison across projects.
The authors also cover Property Sets—standardized collections of attributes for each object type. A fire extinguisher, for example, has a standard property set including agent type, capacity, inspection interval, and mounting height. Using standardized property sets ensures that information delivered by one team can be consumed by another without re-interpretation.
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