Integrating an Architectural Engineering Undergraduate Program with Building Information Modeling

The University of Texas at Austin’s (UT-Austin) Civil, Architectural, and Environmental Engineering (CAEE) department has taken several steps toward improving the preparation of architectural engineering students with respect to modern engineering tools, including the computing tools commonly used in engineering practice. This is most evident in the integration of building information modeling (BIM) throughout the architectural engineering (ARE) undergraduate program curriculum, from early design (building envelope design/massing), to integrated engineering systems design (structural and mechanical integrated with architectural design), and analyses beyond design, such as scheduling and cost estimating. BIM was identified as a unifying aspect of the ARE curriculum. Starting in fall 2008, the ARE faculty began to introduce BIM into the ARE curriculum one year at a time, starting with the freshman year. By fall 2011, it had been introduced into our capstone course, ARE 465. In 2013, an entire course entitled ARE 376, Building Information Modeling for Capital Projects, was added to the curriculum as a technical elective. The introduction of BIM into the ARE program is intended to improve the preparation of students with respect to design, including the computing tools commonly used in engineering design. This paper describes experiences of UT-Austin’s CAEE department in implementing BIM across the ARE undergraduate curriculum, carried out over a period of 10 years. Implementation steps, courses affected, and lessons learned to date are documented.