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Future Insight

How do you mitigate the risks associated with automating building permit inspections with BIM?

Within the European Horizon ACCORD Project, together with buildingSMART International, VTT, and other experts, we published a paper on automating building permit checking based on Building Information Modeling (BIM). This article zooms in on the challenges as well as solutions surrounding this innovative development.


Digital permit control is hot 

Digitizing the permitting process with BIM is more topical than ever, and for good reason. The benefits are clear: increased transparency, faster processing and improved quality for all parties involved. But there are some caveats that you also have to keep in mind. Our experience has shown that when digitization is not managed properly, it can lead to loss of connection with daily practice, a false sense of security and unexpected extra work.


Risks and solutions

In our recently published paper, we identify some key risks of automating building permit inspections with BIM. In doing so, we offer practical tools to avoid these pitfalls. Our recommendations are simple but meaningful:


1. Keep information requirements simple and minimal 

2. Work together in a multidisciplinary team of legal, process and technology experts to define the checks

3.Take advantage of openBIM standards like IFC, IDS, BCF to ensure interoperability.


Read the full paper

Curious about all the insights? Read our paper and find out how to reap the benefits of digital permit control without losing sight of the risks. View the paper here.



Special thanks to the team: Rick Klooster, Léon van Berlo, Pasi Paasiala, Rita Lavikka, Gonçal Costa Jutglar, Katja Breitenfelder, and Konstantin Schneider.


Want to know more?

Want to know more? Then contact Jaan Saar:


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