BIM for industrial plants
on what is already installed, not on new build
Doing BIM for an industrial plant means rebuilding the model of an operating facility from how it is actually installed: it is measured with a laser scanner and modelled on that measurement — structure, equipment, piping and services — until you have an as-built model faithful to the real plant. This is the parent page for industrial BIM projects: which disciplines they include, what your plant receives and what it is used for, sector by sector.
Before getting into the subject: what BIM is and how it differs from the software that draws it →
Modelling an operating plant is not the same as new build
Almost everything written about BIM assumes a new design as the starting point. In industry the opposite is true: the plant has been running for years and does not match the drawings from when it was built.
BIM for building construction starts from a design on paper and orderly geometry. An industrial BIM project starts from a measured reality: a factory that has been extended and modified dozens of times, with a far higher density of equipment and pipework than an office building and a space between slab and services that can be equivalent to a whole storey. That is why the first step is not to draw, but to capture what is there with a laser scanner and rebuild the model on that measurement.
An industrial plant is an asset that never stops changing: equipment comes in, lines are moved, sections of pipe are replaced. The as-built BIM model is the faithful copy of that real condition at a given moment, and the basis on which the next intervention is decided. That is A3D’s field: industrial BIM for the plant that already exists, not for the one still to be built. If you want the detail of that distinction, we explain it in the two paths of BIM.
An industrial BIM project does not start from a blank drawing: it starts from the measured plant. The real condition is captured with a laser scanner and the as-built BIM model is rebuilt faithful to what is there today, the basis on which any works are planned.
The disciplines of an industrial BIM model
An industrial BIM model is not a 3D mock-up: it brings several disciplines together in a single coordinated model, each with its own data. Modelling them together is what makes it possible to detect clashes between them before anything is touched on site.
- Structure and envelope The shell that supports everything Columns, slabs, roof and enclosures of the building, with their real geometry, including what has become deformed or been modified over the years. It is the reference from which all the other disciplines hang.
- Process equipment Reactors, tanks, machines The manufacturing equipment, with its footprint dimensions and the operating and maintenance clearances. Modelling an item of equipment in BIM makes it possible to check that it can be reached and operated, not only that it fits.
- Piping BIM The process pipework The pipework that carries fluids, liquids and gases, with its real diameters, materials, flanges, welds and bend radii. Piping BIM guarantees access to every weld and every change of material for maintenance.
- Services (MEP) HVAC, electrical, fluids The services of an industrial building, ranked as main and secondary. Building services BIM respects requirements such as the continuous gradient of a steam line and validates that it does not clash with another duct or with the structure.
- Access and safety Walkways, routes, distances The industrial access points, safety walkways, evacuation routes and distances to be kept between elements. They are modelled to verify that the plant can be operated and maintained safely.
- Coordination The federated model All the disciplines are brought together in a coordinated model and reviewed with clash-detection tools such as Navisworks, which maps the whole assembly and locates clashes between services or with the structure before they appear on site.
We do this work every day. If you want us to look at the critical disciplines on your plant, start by measuring the real condition.
What your plant receives from a BIM project
An industrial BIM project produces concrete, verifiable deliverables, in standard, editable formats, which remain the property of the plant. Each phase provides something useful in itself.
- The navigable point cloud The measurement of the real condition, a metric replica of the plant that you navigate and measure with a lightweight viewer, on your own computer. It is already useful documentation before a single model exists. What a point cloud is →
- The as-built BIM model The faithful reconstruction of the measured plant — structure, equipment, piping and services — with every element recognised as an object with its data. The complete step is explained in scan to BIM.
- 2D as-built drawings Plans, sections and isometrics extracted from the model, which match the real plant and not the design from twenty years ago. What as-built drawings are →
- The metadata of every object The information attached to each element — which equipment it is, which material, which specification — checked with the operator or plant manager, who knows which pipe is in use and which is disused.
- The digital twin, kept up to date The model can be safeguarded and updated as the plant changes, on a CDE document platform accessible to all parties. Your plant’s digital twin →
We do this work every day. If you want to know which deliverables fit your next job and with what scope, we go through it with you.
Industrial BIM use cases, sector by sector
Industrial BIM solves the same underlying problem — deciding on the real condition of the plant — but each sector experiences it with its own demands. These are the environments where A3D works.
- Pharmaceutical and cleanrooms GMP environments where every intervention goes through Quality. The as-built BIM model coordinates priority (clean utilities) and secondary services, verifies accessibility for operation and supports the documentation required by an audit or the qualification of a change.
- Chemical and petrochemical Process plants with dense piping, where an out-of-date P&ID or isometric holds up a job. The model gives back the pipework and instrumentation faithful to what is installed, and serves as the basis for the ATEX zone classification documentation.
- Food and beverage Agri-food process factories that extend a line or change layout while production continues. The model makes it possible to validate the layout of the new equipment before a crane is moved.
- Water and environment Treatment plants with complex civil works and service galleries. Digitising the real condition puts in order documentation that is usually scattered across several interventions.
- Logistics and warehouses Industrial buildings that are reconfigured for a new activity. The as-built survey provides the reliable basis for designing racking, docks or an extension with the real measurements.
- Support for engineering firms When an engineering firm needs modelling capacity, BIM coordination or bespoke Revit families for its industrial project, A3D acts as reinforcement. Support for engineering firms →
We do this work every day. If your sector is here and you have a job coming up, we go through it on your plant.
Start by knowing what is actually installed
An industrial BIM project is only as good as the measurement it is built on. That is why the useful step, before planning any works, is to capture the real condition of the plant and rebuild its as-built model faithful to what exists. From there, every intervention — an extension, an equipment relocation, a tender — is decided on real data, not on an archived drawing.
A3D uses laser scanning to rebuild the as-built BIM model of industrial plants that are already built, faithful to the measured real condition, and keeps it up to date as the plant changes.
Frequently asked questions about BIM in industry
The answers to the most common searches about industrial BIM projects, piping and building services.
What is BIM for an industrial plant that is already built?
It means rebuilding the BIM model of an operating facility from how it is actually installed. Instead of starting from a new design, the plant is measured with a laser scanner and modelled on that measurement: structure, process equipment, piping and services as they stand today. The result is an as-built model faithful to the real plant, the basis on which an extension is planned, an item of equipment is replaced or works are put out to tender with everything anticipated in advance.
Which disciplines does an industrial BIM model include?
An industrial BIM model brings several disciplines together in a single coordinated model: the structure and envelope of the building, the process equipment, the piping or pipework that carries fluids and gases, the HVAC, electrical and fluid services (MEP), and the access, walkways and safety distances needed to operate and maintain the plant. Modelling them together makes it possible to detect clashes between disciplines before anything is touched on site.
Does production have to stop to do BIM for an industrial plant?
It does not. The real condition is captured with 3D laser scanning while the plant is running: the scanner measures the geometry of the surroundings station by station while activity continues. Routes and access windows are planned with the plant team. The as-built BIM model is then rebuilt from that measurement, in the office.
What is piping BIM, or BIM for industrial building services?
Piping BIM models the pipework that carries fluids, liquids and gases with its real characteristics — diameters, materials, flanges, welds, bend radii and gradients — not as a line on a drawing. Building services BIM does the same with HVAC, electrical and fluids, establishing hierarchies between main and secondary runs. Modelling them in BIM makes it possible to check maintenance access and detect clashes with the structure or between ducts before building.
What are BIM projects used for in the industrial sector?
Industrial BIM projects are used to decide on the real condition of the plant: validating an extension or the relocation of an item of equipment before a crane is moved, putting a tender out with an identical as-built basis for all bidders, documenting the installation for an audit or inspection, and keeping documentation up to date as the basis for maintenance. Every element of the model carries its data, so it serves to query, measure and plan, not only to visualise.
How does industrial BIM differ from BIM for building construction?
BIM for building construction usually starts from a new design and a building with orderly geometry. Industrial BIM almost always starts from a plant that already exists and has been changing for years, with a far higher density of equipment and pipework and a space between slab and services that can be equivalent to a whole storey. That is why industrial BIM starts from measuring the real condition and requires process libraries and specifications of its own that generic templates do not provide.
And yours, what state is it in?
If your plant is already built, the useful step is to know where you stand before planning any works. Tell us about your plant: an A3D specialist tells you in 15 minutes where to start, which area to survey first and with what scope.
Want the technical detail? Review how to go from scan to BIM model or how much it costs to digitise a plant.