Make Sure To Get As-Builts After Renovations
April 13, 2011
Today's tip is about renovations to existing buildings and the importance of update-to-date as-builts. In today's economic environment, many facility managers are choosing to renovate existing buildings rather than build new.
One of the most important steps to a renovation project happens after the renovation is complete. Make sure to get up-to-date as-builts so that you, or your successors, aren't surprised if the building is renovated again some time in the future. If a building is renovated frequently over the course of its life, it may be completely different in a lot of ways than originally built. Up-to-date as-builts expedite the design and construction processes because they help limit the number of surprises.
As-builts show details of the facility that are essential for doing future renovations or improvements efficiently. Knowing exactly where and how every conduit and outlet is connected and what lies behind each wall can mean that there are no surprises, like accidentally shutting off power to an area that was slated to remain in service during a renovation.
If a contractor or designer uses Building Information Modeling, or BIM, it may be a good option to deliver the as-builts electronically. That way, especially if there is an electronic BIM file of the entire building, as-builts can be a matter of tweaking the BIM file, as opposed to redrawing the part of the building that was renovated.
It's easy to let this step of the renovation slide if you didn't plan for it initially. So as part of the bid process when hiring a contractor or designer, include a stipulation that as-builts be delivered after work is completed.
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