China’s largest airport renovation and expansion:<\/strong><\/p>\n openBIM Soltuions:<\/strong> IFC 2×3, IFC 4, IFC 4.3, IDS, BCF, bSDD<\/p>\n Phase: <\/strong>Construction (2020-2025)<\/p>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\tThe Challenge\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n How do you coordinate 200+ organizations from 4 countries and regions, managing over 25,000 builders across a 5-year construction timeline while ensuring seamless data exchange across 10+ specialized disciplines?<\/p>\n\t The Scale Challenge<\/strong><\/p>\n\t The Standards Gap<\/strong><\/p>\n\t When the project began in 2020, China’s national BIM standards only covered basic areas like delivery, classification, and data storage. Critical gaps existed in information management, data dictionaries, and automated compliance checking-insufficient for a project of this complexity.<\/p>\n\t The Coordination Problem<\/strong><\/p>\n\t “This project required a fundamentally different approach to digital collaboration. We needed internationally recognized standards that could work across all our partners’ preferred tools and workflows.”<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tProject Leadership, Guangdong Airport Authority\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t Why traditional approaches fail:<\/strong><\/p>\n As a buildingSMART Strategic Member since 2024, Guangdong Airport Authority had pioneered the introduction of openBIM technologies into China’s Civil Aviation Administration industry standards.<\/p>\n\t For Terminal 3, the decision to adopt openBIM was strategic:<\/strong><\/p>\n\t Global Collaboration<\/strong><\/p>\n\t With 200+ organizations from multiple countries, vendor-neutral standards were essential. openBIM enabled each party to work in their preferred tools while maintaining data consistency.<\/p>\n\t Standards-Based Foundation<\/strong><\/p>\n\t Scalability Through Automation<\/strong><\/p>\n\t Manual coordination was impossible at this scale. openBIM’s machine-readable standards enabled automated clash detection, compliance checking, and quality validation across disciplines.<\/p>\n\t Lifecycle Value<\/strong><\/p>\n\t Properly structured openBIM data flows seamlessly from design through construction into operation and maintenance, maximizing the digital investment’s long-term value.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t The project successfully harmonized international openBIM standards with national and civil aviation BIM standards, creating a unified framework.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t By building on familiar tools (Revit, Tekla, Bentley) enhanced with openBIM workflows, teams adopted new methods while leveraging existing expertise.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t IDS (Information Delivery Specification)<\/a> provided automated validation, creating 5,100+ verification rules that ensured consistency without manual checking.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\tSolution in Action\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n The project established:<\/strong><\/p>\n Guangdong Airport Authority independently developed an IDS Toolkit to bridge requirements and validation:<\/strong><\/p>\n Published a civil aviation data dictionary on bSDD platform with 31 custom properties and 70 specialized classes, aligned with IFC schema and Chinese aviation standards.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t The project pioneered integration of openBIM with smart devices:<\/strong><\/p>\n Collaboration Efficiency<\/strong><\/p>\n\t Cost Savings<\/strong><\/p>\n\t Design Quality Improvements<\/strong><\/p>\n\t Construction Efficiency<\/strong><\/p>\n\t Intelligent Construction Performance<\/strong><\/p>\n\t Sustainability Impact<\/strong><\/p>\n\t The project demonstrated that successful BIM implementation relies on four critical elements:<\/strong><\/p>\n Only when these elements align can data truly deliver value across project lifecycle.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t For Large Infrastructure Projects:<\/strong><\/p>\n\t Start with clear information requirements (AIR\/PIR\/EIR) before model production. Invest time in requirements definition to save exponentially more during coordination.<\/p>\n\t For International Collaborations:<\/strong><\/p>\n\t Neutral standards are essential when teams span countries and cultures. openBIM enables “work how you prefer without limiting others.”<\/p>\n\t For Technology Innovation:<\/strong><\/p>\n\t Build on open standards rather than creating proprietary solutions. Standards-based data unlocks integration with emerging technologies like robotics and AI.<\/p>\n\t For Sustainability Goals:<\/strong><\/p>\n\t Digital workflows enabled by openBIM reduce material waste, enable carbon tracking, and optimize resource usage-contributing measurably to environmental targets.<\/p>\n “Through openBIM, we established a comprehensive digital ecosystem that enabled intelligent construction and will support intelligent operation and maintenance. The integration of IDS, IFC, bSDD, MVD, and BCF allowed us to efficiently manage information requirements, create models, conduct inspections, and share data across all project participants. The CDE enabled efficient project information management and greatly promoted data reuse throughout the lifecycle.”<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tGuangdong Airport Authority\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\tContractor Perspective\n\t\t\t\t “By using openBIM, we referenced many insightful international use cases and implementation methods. Through IDS, IFC, bSDD, MVD, and IFC Validation, we efficiently managed information requirements, created models, conducted inspections, and shared data. The integration of various discipline models through IFC format and collision checks identified over 1,000 design issues, reducing indirect project losses by \u00a52.6 million. The CDE has enabled efficient project information management.”<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tChina Construction Third Engineering Bureau Group Co., Ltd.\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\tDesign Perspective\n\t\t\t\t “In the T3 building structure deepening process, we resolved 796 design issues and optimized 256 design areas, improving our collaborative control capabilities. IFC-based coordination addressed 119 slab depression conflicts, 201 annotation issues, 158 reservation and embedment conflicts, 50 stair and ramp problems, 157 collision conflicts, and 111 structural consistency issues-saving an estimated \u00a546.4 million to date.”<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tCentral-South Architectural Design Institute Co., Ltd.\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\tEngineering Perspective\n\t\t\t\t “In the airfield pavement construction process, we adopted ‘model-driven integrated construction technology’ where the design reference model was imported into digital front-end devices. Through hydraulic equipment guided by IFC data, the construction state was adjusted according to specifications, achieving digital construction management. Construction efficiency reached 545 m\u00b3\/h-more than 100% higher than traditional leveling efficiency, with over 50% improvement in overall efficiency.”<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tAirport Construction Engineering Co., Ltd.\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n buildingSMART International publishes case studies to demonstrate the real-world value of openBIM standards and services including IFC, IDS, BCF, and bSDD. We showcase diverse implementations to inspire innovation and guide adoption.<\/p>\n Featured in this case study:<\/strong> Guangdong Airport Authority<\/p>\n\t buildingSMART International does not endorse specific commercial products. Company information is provided for educational context. Organizations interested in similar approaches should evaluate multiple solutions and consult with openBIM professionals.<\/p>\n Sweco Norge – The Randselva Bridge<\/strong><\/p>\n The Randselva Bridge is the world’s longest bridge built without the use of any drawings, only BIM models.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t Auckland Airport – Foodstuffs HQ<\/strong><\/p>\n Development of open digital standards and solutions for buildings across all sectors and throughout their lifecycle.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t Project Pontsteiger<\/strong><\/p>\n Project entailed more than 50 disciplines delivering IFC, over 350 unique IFC’s, and over 3500 different versions of IFC.<\/p>\n\t Winner of the openBIM Awards 2025, Construction for Buildings Category Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport Terminal 3 Expansion Location: Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China | Status: Construction Phase Company: Guangdong Airport Authority…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":31,"featured_media":32896,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"class_list":["post-32874","page","type-page","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"wpsp_post_type":null,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.buildingsmart.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/32874","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.buildingsmart.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.buildingsmart.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.buildingsmart.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/31"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.buildingsmart.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=32874"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.buildingsmart.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/32874\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.buildingsmart.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/32896"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.buildingsmart.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=32874"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}\n
\n\t\t\tCoordinating China’s Largest Airport Expansion\t<\/h2>\n\t
\n
\n
![\"GAA](\"https:\/\/www.buildingsmart.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/bb-plugin\/cache\/GAA-logo-300x300-circle.png\" "\\"GAA"){kind=logo}
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n
\n\t\t\tBuilding on International Standards\t<\/h2>\n\t
\n
Can international standards be applied nationally?<\/h4>\n\t\t\t\t\t
Can our teams learn these new approaches?<\/h4>\n\t\t\t\t\t
How do we validate data quality across so many sources?<\/h4>\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\tAn Integrated openBIM Ecosystem\t<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tCore Framework\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tToolkit\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tAviation-specific Extensions\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tIntelligent Construction Integration\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\tCore Framework\n\t
\n\t\t\tISO 19650 + openBIM\t<\/h3>\n\t
\n
![\"\u9a91\u697c\u666f\u89c2\"](\"https:\/\/www.buildingsmart.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/\u9a91\u697c\u666f\u89c2.jpg\" "\\"\u9a91\u697c\u666f\u89c2\\"")
\n\t\t\t\t\t\tToolkit\n\t\t\t\t![\"\u4e2d\u592e\u5546\u52a1\u533a\"](\"https:\/\/www.buildingsmart.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/\u4e2d\u592e\u5546\u52a1\u533a.jpg\" "\\"\u4e2d\u592e\u5546\u52a1\u533a\\"")
\n\t\n
![\"11-\u884c\u674e\u5927\u5385\u5ba4\u5185\u6548\u679c\u56fe\"](\"https:\/\/www.buildingsmart.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/11-\u884c\u674e\u5927\u5385\u5ba4\u5185\u6548\u679c\u56fe.jpg\" "\\"11-\u884c\u674e\u5927\u5385\u5ba4\u5185\u6548\u679c\u56fe\\"")
\n\t\t\t\t\t\tIntelligent Construction Integration\n\t\t\t\t![\"\u6c34\u65cf\u9986\"](\"https:\/\/www.buildingsmart.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/\u6c34\u65cf\u9986.jpg\" "\\"\u6c34\u65cf\u9986\\"")
\n\t\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
![\"2-\u5256\u900f\u89c6\u56fe\"](\"https:\/\/www.buildingsmart.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/2-\u5256\u900f\u89c6\u56fe.jpg\" "\\"2-\u5256\u900f\u89c6\u56fe\\"")
\n\t\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.buildingsmart.org\/wp-content\/plugins\/bb-plugin\/img\/pixel.png\"){kind=tracking}
\n\n\t\t\tCritical Success Factors\t<\/h4>\n\t
\n
\n\t\t\tWhere openBIM Required Further Development\t<\/h4>\n\t
\n
\n\t\t\tLessons for Your Organization\t<\/h3>\n\t
\n\t\t\tStakeholder Voices\t<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tOwner Perspective\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tContractor Perspective\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tDesign Perspective\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tEngineering Perspective\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\tOwner Perspective\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t![\"CCTEBG](\"https:\/\/www.buildingsmart.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/bb-plugin\/cache\/CCTEBG-logo-300x300-circle.png\" "\\"CCTEBG"){kind=logo}
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t![\"CSADIC](\"https:\/\/www.buildingsmart.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/bb-plugin\/cache\/CSADIC-logo-circle.png\" "\\"CSADIC"){kind=logo}
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t![\"ACEC](\"https:\/\/www.buildingsmart.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/bb-plugin\/cache\/ACEC-logo-circle.png\" "\\"ACEC"){kind=logo}
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\tAbout This Case Study\t<\/h3>\n\t
\n\t\t\tExplore buildingSMART Standards and Services Used in this Project\t<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t
![\"bSDD-logo1.1\"](\"https:\/\/www.buildingsmart.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/bSDD-logo1.1.png\" "\\"bSDD-logo1.1\\""){kind=logo}
\n\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t![\"IFC-logo1.1\"](\"https:\/\/www.buildingsmart.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/IFC-logo1.1.png\" "\\"IFC-logo1.1\\""){kind=logo}
\n\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t![\"BCF-logo1.1\"](\"https:\/\/www.buildingsmart.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/BCF-logo1.1.png\" "\\"BCF-logo1.1\\""){kind=logo}
\n\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t![\"IDS-logo1.1\"](\"https:\/\/www.buildingsmart.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/IDS-logo1.1.png\" "\\"IDS-logo1.1\\""){kind=logo}
\n\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\tSuccess Stories\t<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t
![\"aec-randselva\"](\"https:\/\/www.buildingsmart.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/aec-randselva.jpg\" "\\"aec-randselva\\"")
\n\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t![\"Foodstuffs_awards\"](\"https:\/\/www.buildingsmart.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Foodstuffs_awards.jpg\" "\\"Foodstuffs_awards\\"")
\n\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t![\"016_Pontsteiger_\u00c2\u00a9Ossip](\"https:\/\/www.buildingsmart.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/016_Pontsteiger_A\u00a9Ossip-1.jpg\" "\\"016_Pontsteiger_\u00c2\u00a9Ossip")
\n\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\tSubscribe to our newsletter today!<\/strong><\/h3>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tSubscribe\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"