BIMvoice

Your IFC Model Is In The Wrong Place. Here Is How To Fix It | Hans Lammerts | openBIMvoice 15

In episode 15 of openBIMvoice, I talk with Elena Efremova about one of the hardest practical problems in openBIM: converting IFC models back into editable Revit models.
Elena has a background in architecture, construction robotics, and software development. Her work focuses on making IFC models useful again when the original authoring model is missing, when the model was created in another tool, or when a team only receives IFC but still needs to continue work in Revit.
We talk about why IFC roundtripping is so difficult, what gets lost during export, and why reconstruction is very different from simple import. We also discuss real project pressure, missing native files, market expectations, and the gap between open standards and everyday delivery.
A big part of the conversation is also about building and explaining technical BIM software. Sometimes “convert your IFC into Revit” is much clearer than leading with all the technical details.
The strongest point from this episode is simple:
IFC is not only a file format.
It is part of a much bigger workflow.
And when that workflow breaks, teams need practical ways to recover usable information and keep the project moving.
Find me on LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/petruconduraru/
Questions:petru@bimvoice.com

Is Practitioner Worth It For openBIM Specialists? Anil Bhattarai | The openBIM Practitioner 3

This is the third episode of The openBIM Practitioner.
In this series, I talk with people who have passed the buildingSMART Practitioner certification and ask them what the process was really like, what changed for them, and what others should understand before going for it.
My guest in this episode is Anil Bhattarai from Finland.
Anil works as an application specialist at Solibri, where his work sits at the intersection of openBIM workflows and model quality. He helps customers validate, coordinate, and deliver information correctly using openBIM standards.
He also recently completed a master’s degree in computing in construction, where his thesis focused on IFC schema visualization, labeled property graphs, and integration with the buildingSMART validation service.
In this conversation, we talk about why buildingSMART Practitioner felt like a natural next step for someone already working with IFC, BCF, IDS, bSDD, model validation, and openBIM standards every day.
Anil explains that Practitioner is not only about knowing theory. It checks whether you can reason through real openBIM delivery problems under time pressure.
We also talk about the Finnish context, where IFC based building permits are becoming part of the market reality, and why openBIM competence will likely become more important for BIM professionals, consultants, coordinators, and managers.
The main message is clear.
Practitioner is not the end point.
It is a starting point.
You still need real project experience.
You still need to stay close to the standards.
You still need to understand IFC, BCF, IDS, information delivery, validation, and how openBIM workflows work in practice.
And because the standards keep evolving, the professionals who stay close to them will be the ones who can navigate what comes next.
What we discuss:
Why Anil took Practitioner.
What his work at Solibri involves.
How his master’s thesis connects to IFC schema visualization.
Why Practitioner felt like a natural next step.
What surprised him about the exam.
Why time pressure matters.
Why practical tool confidence helps.
Why ISO 19650 and CDE questions required more thinking.
How certification adds credibility.
Where Practitioner skills matter most on a project.
Who should consider Practitioner.
Why hands-on openBIM experience matters.
Why BIM professionals should study buildingSMART standards directly.
How IFC based building permits are changing the Finnish market.
Why Practitioner can help demonstrate real openBIM competence.
Why Practitioner is only the beginning.
If you are working with IFC models, model checking, BIM coordination, information delivery, or openBIM standards, this conversation will help you understand what buildingSMART Practitioner can actually mean for your work.
Find me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/petruconduraru/
Questions: petru@bimvoice.com

Is buildingSMART Practitioner Worth It For BIM Pros? Lukas Gilbert | The openBIM Practitioner 2

This is the second episode of The openBIM Practitioner.
In this series, I talk with people who have passed the buildingSMART Practitioner certification and ask them what the process was really like, what changed for them, and what others should understand before going for it.
My guest in this episode is Lukas Gilbert from Germany.
Lukas works as a BIM manager and coordinator. He has around 10 years of BIM experience and recently completed the buildingSMART Practitioner path in Germany.
In this conversation, we talk about why he decided to take Practitioner after years of BIM project experience, why he paid for it himself, and why having a formal certification can make it easier to prove BIM competence.
Lukas explains that BIM experience is often hard to show. You cannot always share project files. You cannot always prove what you did on a project. And sometimes it feels like you are asking people to believe you.
We also talk about what Practitioner does not give you. It does not give you one solution for every project. It does not replace experience. It does not remove the need to work with real people, real models, and real project problems.
The main message is clear. Practitioner is not for complete beginners. You need real BIM experience. You need to understand why good information workflows matter. You need to work with tools and standards. And you need to be ready to read, practice, and take the exam seriously.
We discuss why Lukas moved into BIM from sustainability engineering, how openBIM shows up in his daily work, why clients want information that stays readable for many years, why Lukas decided to take Practitioner, why he paid for the certification himself, why BIM experience can be hard to prove through project references, what he expected from the training, why ISO 19650 and information management can feel dry but important, what Practitioner does not give you, why project experience still matters after certification, how the Master Delivery Information Plan became useful in his work, how Practitioner helped him move from coordination toward management thinking, how IDS fits into his work, why certification can matter when applying for BIM roles, who should consider Practitioner, why it is not a good fit for someone straight out of university, what the exam experience felt like, and why learning with other BIM professionals was valuable.
If you are considering buildingSMART Practitioner certification, this conversation will give you a realistic view of what to expect.
Find me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/petruconduraru/
Questions: petru@bimvoice.com

Bad IFC Data Makes Automation Impossible with Elena Efremova | openBIMvoice 14

In the fourteenth episode of openBIMvoice, I talk with Elena Efremova.
Elena has a background in architecture, construction robotics, and software development. She is working on one of the most difficult practical problems in openBIM: converting IFC models back into editable Revit models.
IFC is often treated as a simple exchange format.
But in real projects, things are rarely simple.
Sometimes the original authoring model is missing. Sometimes the model was created in another tool. Sometimes the team only receives IFC, but still needs to continue design or coordination work in Revit.
That is where the problem starts.
What we discuss:
IFC Back To Revit. Elena explains her work on converting IFC files into usable Revit models, not just imported geometry.
Why IFC Roundtripping Is Hard. What gets lost when models are exported to IFC, especially parametric logic, relationships, and editable authoring information.
Bringing IFC Models Back To Life. Why reconstruction is different from simple import, and why the goal is to make the model useful again for real project work.
Real Project Pressure. How tight deadlines and missing native files create practical demand for IFC conversion workflows.
The Gap Between Standards And Reality. Why open standards are important, but still do not solve every workflow problem automatically.
Software Development In AEC. Elena shares what it is like to build a technical openBIM service while the market is still learning what it needs.
Selling Technical BIM Solutions. Why the way a solution is explained matters, and why “convert your IFC into Revit” can be clearer than leading with the technical details.
Market Differences. We talk about Germany, Norway, and the Netherlands, and why openBIM adoption depends on contracts, culture, regulation, and client expectations.
The strongest point from this conversation is that IFC is not only a file format.
It is part of a much bigger workflow.
And when that workflow breaks, teams need more than theory. They need practical ways to recover usable information and keep the project moving.
Find me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/petruconduraru/
Questions: petru@bimvoice.com

buildingSMART Practitioner Is Not A Formality with Karim Abulazm | The openBIM Practitioner 1

This is the first episode of The openBIM Practitioner.
In this series, I talk with people who have passed the buildingSMART Practitioner certification and ask them what the process was really like, what changed for them, and what others should understand before going for it.
My guest in this episode is Karim Abulazm from Germany.
Karim works with BIM consultation, BIM management, and BIM coordination. He is certified as a buildingSMART Practitioner in openBIM coordination.
In this conversation, we talk about what openBIM looks like in real German infrastructure projects, why some clients are starting to require formal BIM competence, and why buildingSMART Practitioner should not be treated as a formality.
Karim shares how he moved from structural engineering into BIM, how openBIM became central to his work, and why the Practitioner certification helped him gain more confidence in coordination, IFC, semantic information, model validation, and project delivery.
We also talk about the reality of the exam.
The main message is clear.
Practitioner is not something you should walk into unprepared.
You need real BIM experience.
You need to understand the tools.
You need to practice.
And you need to take the exam seriously.
What we discuss:
Why Karim moved from structural engineering into BIM.
How openBIM shows up in his work today.
Why Deutsche Bahn takes BIM certification seriously.
What made Karim decide to take Practitioner.
Why the exam is not a formality.
Why practical experience matters before taking Practitioner.
What Practitioner gave him professionally.
What it did not give him.
Why IDS, BCF, IFC, semantic information, and model coordination matter in real projects.
How the certification changed how people saw his openBIM competence.
Why BIM coordinators need to understand more than software.
Who should consider Practitioner.
Why Practitioner can impact your career and project opportunities.
If you are considering buildingSMART Practitioner certification, this conversation will give you a very honest view of what to expect.
Find me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/petruconduraru/
Questions: petru@bimvoice.com

Norway Uses openBIM. So Why Are IFC Models Still This Bad? with Thor-Erik Johnsrud | openBIMvoice 13

In the thirteenth episode of openBIMvoice, I talk with Thor-Erik Johnsrud from Norway.
Thor-Erik has a practical construction background and now works with BIM, IFC, data, internal tools, and openBIM workflows in a Norwegian contractor environment.
Norway is one of the countries where openBIM, IFC, and model based delivery are already part of the industry.
But that does not mean IFC delivery works as well as it should.
The core idea is simple. Many projects ask for IFC, but they do not build the process, education, accountability, and communication needed to actually use the data.
What we discuss:
BIM From A Practical Construction Background. Thor-Erik shares how he moved from building houses on site to working with BIM and openBIM workflows.
IFC On Smaller Projects. Why openBIM challenges are not only a large infrastructure problem, and why smaller projects often struggle with data requirements.
The Data Nobody Uses. Why project teams often agree to requirements in kickoff meetings, but then ignore classification, quantities, materials, and useful model data during delivery.
Contractor Data Needs. Why contractors need reliable information for quantity takeoff, environmental reporting, cost logic, and production workflows.
Requirement Hierarchy. Why not all IFC requirements should be treated equally, and why classification, quantities, materials, relationships, and a few core properties may matter more than huge requirement lists.
IDS And BCF In Practice. Why these standards could help teams check and communicate model issues, but are still not used enough in daily project work.
Clients Accepting Bad Models. Why clients sometimes accept IFC models that do not meet their own requirements, and what that means for handover and asset information.
Tools Are Not The Answer. Why another BIM tool will not fix weak communication, weak accountability, poor education, or broken internal processes.
The strongest point from this conversation is that IFC delivery is not only a project issue. It is an enterprise issue.
Another tool will not fix your process if the organization does not understand what data it needs, who is responsible for it, and how it will be checked.
Find me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/petruconduraru/
Questions: petru@bimvoice.com

IFCMCP Changes How AI Works With IFC with Bruno Postle | openBIMvoice 12

In the twelfth episode of openBIMvoice, I talk with Bruno Postle, a UK based creator and contributor around IfcOpenShell, BonsaiBIM, IFC Git, IFC merge, and related open source tools.
This conversation is about IFCMCP and what happens when AI agents can work with IFC files through proper tools instead of treating them like plain text.
We cover IFC query tools, IFC edit tools, Model Context Protocol, Claude Code, Codex, Gemini, IDS validation, GitHub workflows, model rendering, AI generated design logs, and the limits of AI when it does not have enough building knowledge.
What we discuss:
Why AI Agents Need Tools. Bruno explains why chat based AI becomes much more useful when it can run tools on your computer. For IFC, this matters because the model is too structured and too complex to edit safely like normal text.
IFC Query And IFC Edit. Bruno created two command line tools around IfcOpenShell. One helps agents retrieve information from IFC files. The other helps agents edit IFC through the IfcOpenShell API.
IFC Git And Design History. Bruno shows how an agent can look at the Git history of an IFC file, inspect what changed, render images, and generate a design log that explains what happened over time.
IDS Validation And Fixes. We talk about using IDS files to catch issues, running validation through GitHub, and letting the agent fix problems when the error messages are clear enough.
Parallel Agents And Pull Requests. One of the strongest examples is using GitHub issues as tasks, then asking Claude to fix each issue in a separate branch. This starts to make IFC workflows look more like software workflows.
The Limits Of AI In BIM. Bruno is very clear that the AI still lacks building knowledge. It can guess costs, schedules, and geometry, but it needs correction, rules, and domain knowledge before it can be trusted on real projects.
The strongest point from this conversation is that AI will not become useful in openBIM because it can chat. It becomes useful when it can query, validate, render, edit, and learn from real IFC workflows.
Find me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/petruconduraru/
Questions: petru@bimvoice.com

From IFC Files To Structured Data with Simon Dean | openBIMvoice 11

In the eleventh episode of openBIMvoice, I talk with Simon Dean, a BIM Lead working on major infrastructure delivery in the UK.
Simon has worked on major infrastructure projects for many years, and in this conversation he shares what openBIM looks like when it is used on a large live project with thousands of IFC files, client requirements, validation workflows, and real delivery pressure.
The core idea is simple. IFC is not just a file format. It is a schema. Once you understand that, geometry becomes data, requirements become checkable, and openBIM starts to become much more practical.
What we discuss:
IFC 4.3 In Real Delivery. Simon explains what it takes to move from testing IFC 4.3 to actually delivering it on a major infrastructure project.
IDS As The Starting Point. Why Simon recommends starting your IFC journey with IDS, because it forces you to understand requirements, structure, and what good information delivery should look like.
Industrializing IFC Delivery. How a large project team handles thousands of IFC files from a supply chain and moves toward a repeatable validation process.
IFC As Structured Data. Why thinking about IFC as a schema changes how you approach geometry, data, validation, reporting, and AI.
Data Lakes And AI Agents. How structured IFC data can connect to data lakes, reporting, and future AI assisted workflows.
Training Through Real Examples. How Simon’s team uses exemplars, runbooks, and regular BIM crew sessions to build internal capability.
Client Requirements And Adoption. Why openBIM adoption becomes more serious when clients ask for structured information that supports long term asset management.
The strongest point from this conversation is that openBIM becomes much more practical when you stop thinking only about CAD files and start thinking about structured data, requirements, and repeatable validation.
Find me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/petruconduraru/
Questions: petru@bimvoice.com

Why IFC Is Becoming Standard in Germany with BIM Lead Michael Burij | openBIMvoice 10

In the tenth episode of openBIMvoice, I talk with Michael Burij, a BIM and digital planning lead based in Berlin, about why IFC is becoming a practical necessity on German projects.
Michael shares how public procurement rules, mixed software environments, and real coordination needs are pushing teams toward openBIM workflows. We talk about IFC exchange, agile coordination, model quality, client expectations, and why BIM works best when it is treated as a communication method, not just a software topic.
The core idea is simple. openBIM becomes much more useful when teams stop treating it like a final export and start using it as part of the planning process itself.
What we discuss:
Why Germany Uses IFC. Why public procurement rules and mixed software environments make IFC the practical way for different disciplines to work together.
BIM as Communication. Why Michael sees BIM less as a software issue and more as a set of communication methods for complex projects.
Start Simple, Then Improve. Why teams should not get stuck debating attributes and data requirements before they even establish a working process.
Agile Coordination in Practice. How regular model exchanges, sprint based planning, and coordination plans help move projects forward step by step.
Cleaning Up the Data Later. How messy model data can be mapped, structured, and improved instead of expecting perfect delivery from every design team from day one.
What Comes Next for BIM Roles. Why Michael believes BIM experts may increasingly shift toward coaching, simplification, and tool development.
Find me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/petruconduraru/Questions: petru@bimvoice.com

From 2D Drawings to IFC: How a Quantity Surveyor Replaced His Workflow with openBIM | openBIMvoice 09

In the ninth episode of openBIMvoice, I talk with Stefano Verugi, a quantity surveyor who took an unusual path into openBIM. Instead of starting with IFC models from designers, he began by converting 2D drawings into IFC models himself so he could extract quantities in a more structured and reliable way.
Stefano works on railway and infrastructure projects in Ghana and has rebuilt his workflow around IFC, Bonsai BIM, and structured information. We talk about quantity takeoff, data analysis, open source tools, SketchUp, Blender, and why IFC can give quantity surveyors much more than geometry.
The core idea is simple. When a quantity surveyor works with structured model data instead of disconnected drawings and spreadsheets, the job becomes less about chasing quantities and more about analyzing real project information.
What we discuss:
From 2D Drawings to IFC. How Stefano moved from traditional quantity takeoff into IFC based workflows by modeling from drawings and extracting quantities from structured data.
Why the Old Workflow Breaks. Why manual takeoff from drawings is slow, repetitive, and fragile when project information changes.
Better Accuracy and Better Control. How building the model himself helps Stefano verify drawing quality, spot missing information, and produce more reliable quantities.
openBIM for Quantity Surveyors. Why IFC is not just useful for designers and coordinators, but also a strong workflow foundation for QS work.
Structured Data Over Spreadsheet Chaos. Why properties, quantities, classifications, and standard naming structures give Stefano a better system than disconnected Excel workflows.
Learning openBIM the Hard Way. What made the transition difficult at the start, what helped him push through, and why community support matters.
Find me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/petruconduraru/Questions: petru@bimvoice.com