Germany’s extensive DIN standard system is embracing BIM, but its legally protected professional titles and fee scales are proving more of a barrier to BIM’s collaborative mindset.
Growth Through BIM author Richard Saxon explains: “The Germans have a particular problem in that [architects and consulting engineers] have a defined Plan of Work and fee scales, so changing that is highly disruptive. It’s not optional: it’s defined and protected in law.”
Autodesk vice-president Phil Bernstein adds: “The German industry is extremely conservative. The Americans will use a piece of software if it does 80% of what they want, whereas the Germans and Japanese want it to be exactly right. The adoption of advanced technology is behind.”
That is not the whole picture: Germany has some of the largest contractors in the world, and Zublin and Hochtief are said to be particularly advanced in BIM. Hochtief, via its Hochtief ViCon arm, is very active in the Middle East.
Germany is also catching up in its home market. In January, government minister Alexander Dobrindt announced the creation of Germany’s Digital Building Platform, a BIM task group set by trade associations to lay the groundwork for public sector BIM adoption, including “standardising of process and device descriptions, developing guidelines for digital planning methods and providing sample contracts”.
The platform is part of Germany’s ongoing Reform Commission for Major Projects – a committee of experts who are examining why a series of big public sector projects in Germany went badly over budget or were late.