Civil information modeling adoption by Iowa and Missouri DOT

Building Information Modeling (BIM) is often perceived as a software tool that is applicable solely for designing and constructing buildings. BIM is more than just a software tool. It is a process that can enhance collaboration between project participants through three dimensional (3D) intelligent models, and it can be effectively used for designing, constructing, operating and managing any type of facility, including those for horizontal infrastructure. According to a recent smart market report by McGraw Hill, an increasing number of horizontal projects are now taking advantage of a process that is similar to BIM. In order to recognize the special needs of horizontal projects, the Civil Information Modeling (CiM) moniker has been adopted by the participants of these projects to describe the process that is equivalent to BIM. Some innovative contractors for horizontal projects are the early users of CiM and some state Departments of Transportation (DOTs) have also started adopting CiM. Furthermore, some DOTs also take advantage of advanced data collection technologies, such as LIDAR, that generate surveying data in 3D point cloud form which can be used as basis for 3D design that allows the entire workflow to be in 3D format. This paper presents content regarding the analysis results of interviews conducted with officials of the Iowa and Missouri DOTs who are involved with CiM implementation. It reviews the driving forces and challenges, as well as the benefits of using 3D intelligent models throughout the project development process and on into the operation and maintenance stages from DOT's perspectives. It explores current CiM practices while providing a gap analysis that defines what remains to be done in order to fully implement CiM.