Open BIM Quantities

As Open BIM Quantities is an Open BIM tool and is connected to the BIMserver.center platform, it offers several workflow options.

Data entry

BIM models / drawings

• Importing an Open BIM model designed in CYPE Architecture.
• Importing models in IFC format with IFC Uploader.
• Importing IFC models of buildings developed with IFC Builder.
• Importing projects designed in Autodesk Revit with the Open BIM - Revit Plugin.
• Importing models developed with different CYPE structural modelling tools. CYPECAD and StruBIM Steel are included in this list.
• Importing models developed with the different CYPE tools for system modelling. This list includes CYPEPLUMBING Sanitary Systems, CYPEPLUMBING Water Systems, CYPELEC Electrical Mechanisms, CYPELEC Distribution, CYPEGAS, CYPEHVAC, CYPEHVAC Radiant Floor, CYPEHVAC Ductwork, CYPELUX, CYPEFIRE and CYPETEL Wireless, among others.
• Importing DXF, DWG, PDF and JPG formats.

Cost database

• Importing cost databases in FIEBDC-3 format from CYPE's construction cost database Generador de precios.
• Importing cost databases in FIEBDC-3 format generated from other programs.
• Importing cost databases in CSV format.

Bills of quantities

• Importing bills of quantities from CYPE Open BIM programs.

Data output

• Exporting reports to HTML, DOCX, PDF, RTF and TXT formats.
• Exporting the bill of quantities to FIEBDC-3 format so that it can be processed by quantity surveying programs such as Arquimedes.

The tab activated by default when starting the program is the "Quantities of the BIM model" tab. It shows the following:

• a top toolbar where the main tools for managing the cost databases and setting the quantity criteria of the model can be found;
• a graphic window with its own toolbar, located on the right-hand side, where the different models incorporated in the job can be shown and hidden;
• the navigation and properties panels on the left-hand side of the screen;
• and a quantities panel at the bottom right, showing the quantity associated with each selected element.

On the other hand, the "Bill of quantities" tab also shows the following:

• a top toolbar where the tools for creating and editing the bill of quantities are located, as well as those for managing and creating reports;
• a graphic window with its own toolbar, located on the right-hand side, where the different models incorporated in the job can be measured;
• and a specific area to organise the bill of quantities, on the left-hand side.

When launching the application and clicking on "New", users are given the option of creating a "New job", which can then be integrated into an existing project in BIMserver.center.

There is also the option to "Create new project". In this case, the created project will be visible from BIMserver.center from that moment on.

Once the new job has been created, users then access the interface, in which the graphic window showing the model or models that have been imported is displayed.

Users also have the option of starting the project without being linked to the BIMserver.center platform. To do this, simply uncheck the "Link to a BIMserver.center project" box in the top left-hand corner.

Files can be shared or imported at any time while the project is in progress via the BIMserver.center tab located at the top right of every program.

In the "Quantities of the BIM model" tab, the "View" group of the main toolbar includes several tools:

• The hierarchy of the component tree can be changed via the "Entities", "Structure", "Layers", "Groups" and "Rules of measurement" buttons, depending on the type selected.
• The "Search" tool allows users to search for components by terms included in their class or name; and "Show" allows them to enable or disable the visibility of elements with no quantities in order to make it easier to carry out an orderly quantity process.

This hierarchical tree shows the different components or objects contained in the model.

The structure of the data presented in the component tree follows the scheme of the IFC standard.

There are two configuration possibilities depending on the active selection in the "View" group of the top toolbar:

• Entities
  This option displays a tree that organises components according to the IFC entity they belong to (IfcWall, IfcSlab, IfcSpace, etc.).

• Structure
  This option allows users to organise the tree based on the spatial structure inherited from the BIM model (site, building, floor, space).

Symbols

As well as the hierarchical listing itself, each line is accompanied by a symbol referring to its linkage status with the quantities:

The cost database can be defined in the "Quantities of the BIM model" tab, in the "Project" group of the main toolbar.

To add work sections, go to "Add work section" in the cost database being edited and enter a code and a summary. Key terms can also be entered, which can be detected by the "Search" tool.

Clicking on "Accept" will create the work section and display it in the centre of the window.

When selecting the work section created, all the data associated with it will appear in the lower part of the window. From here, the previously entered work section data can be modified.

By selecting the "Specifications" tab, users can add information about the specifications and even attach RTF or HTML files.

To add new work sections, users must go back to the "Items" root concept and repeat the above process.

However, to create sub work sections, users must click on one of the created work sections, and so on.

To add items, users must select the work section where they wish to include an item and click on "Add item". In the pop-up window, users enter the code, the unit, the rate and the summary, and define the type.

In the case of an unjustified item without breakdown, it is specified as an "Unclassified" item.

If necessary, key terms can be associated.

When clicking on "Accept", the item is created and displayed in the previously mentioned work section.

When selecting the created item, the parameters entered can be modified in the lower panel. In the different tabs, users can also carry out the following:

• add a description;
• insert documents providing graphical information;
• inserting attached documents;
• enter specifications associated with the item;
• incorporate technical information such as physical properties, environmental data and the LER code of the waste;
• and/or associate the previously defined waste to the item.

Item with breakdown

To create an item with a breakdown, the items that it is made up of must be created beforehand.

To do this, go to the "Resources" line and click on the "Add item" button. Establish the type ("Labour", "Machinery and auxiliary resources", "Materials" or "Generated waste") and write its code, unit, price and summary. Subsequently, the key terms are associated and users click on "Accept".

Once the resources have been defined, and by clicking on an existing item, the "Add concept to the breakdown" option is selected.

Enter the concept code or search by text by clicking on the blue arrow. Define the quantity per item and click on "Accept".

Once the concepts have been added, the price of the item will appear according to the defined breakdown.

Cost databases in CSV format can be imported from the "Import CSV" option in the "Import/Export" group of the toolbar of the cost database and project database management panel.

The CSV file must contain the columns with the information for the "Code", "Type", "Unit", "Summary", "Quantity" and "Price" fields. The index of each column can be specified from the file import configuration panel. Users can also specify the character set, the index of the first line of text to be imported and the field separator.

Just as with the FIEBDC-3 format files, Open BIM Quantities allows users to choose whether to remove the previous data from the cost database before importing it or updating it.

Commercial information can be entered from the "Commercial entities" option in the "Project" group in the toolbar of the cost database management panel and the project database.

When clicking on it, a menu is displayed from which the data of the commercial entities involved in the project or the cost database can be defined. The requested fields are: "Code", "Summary", "Name", "CIF/NIF", "Web" and "E-mail". It is also possible to add several addresses for the different types of commercial entity ("Central", "Delegation" or "Representative") indicating location, telephone, fax and contact details, among others.

Additionally, to associate the commercial entities to the concepts, the "Commercial entities" field of the editing panel of work sections and items must be selected. The previously created code must be established or selected from a list using the blue arrow button.

A rule of measurement is a set of rules that allows the filtering of components and the definition of operations needed for their association with items and their correct measurement. Since it is obviously related to cost databases, it supports a similar work section structure.

Under "Rules of measurement", the "Add" button allows detailed sets of rules to be created. A name for the new rule to be created and a work section structure to organise them must be specified (it is also possible to select "Empty").

Once the set of measurement rules has been created, the different rules of measurement must be included. To do this, click on the "Edit" button at the top of the screen.

Then, using the "Add" option in the "Rules of measurement" panel, enter a name for the new rule of measurement and click "Accept". This will then be divided into three panels:

1. The left panel shows a column with the rules of measurement included in the set.
2. The right-hand side displays the following:
   • the "Selection" panel at the top,
   • the "Items" panel in the middle,
   • and a description field for a "Rule of measurement".

Entering formulas or constants

Entering variables

Variables linked to the different entities of the IFC standard can be used to define the reference, the "line of detail" and the tags.
The format for entering a property or quantity is as follows:
${.parent(parent component)}->${{Property/Quantity},{Set},{Parameter}}
For example, to obtain the name of the storey where the component is located, the variable would be as follows:
${.parent(IfcBuildingStorey)}->${{Property},{BaseProperties},{Name}}

To make it easier to enter these variables, a list of all IFC entities available in the model has been added and is displayed by clicking on the blue arrow button next to the "Reference" and "Detail line" fields or in the "Tags" list. An "Entity" field will appear with two options: "Component" and "Parent component". When selecting the latter, the element to which the reference is made must be indicated, from those possible according to the IFC standard.

With the rule of measurement selected, click on the "Assign codes" option above the "Rules of measurement" panel. The reference cost database is displayed next to this option.

This operation opens a new window that allows users to navigate through the work section structure of the reference cost database.

A number of tools are displayed at the top of the panel:

• Add. Allows users to add the item selected from the cost database to the rule of measurement.
• Assign. Used to replace items previously associated with the rule of measurement with new items from the cost database.
• Assign all. Used to replace items previously associated to the rule of measurement with items from the cost database that have the same code.
  In the pop-up window, the "Assign work section code" option can be unchecked or checked, allowing users to keep their own coding or to adopt the coding of the cost database, respectively, according to their needs.
• Work sections. Collects the work section structure of the cost database and assigns it to the work section of the quantity criteria.
• Search. Allows users to search for a concept included in the cost database; the tool searches by text, summary, code or key term.
• Synchronise. When activated, it allows any of the items selected in the "Items" panel of the rules of measurement to be located in the cost database.
• Selecting the reference cost database. A drop-down list is used to select a cost database from the existing ones.

To transfer an item from the reference cost database to the created rule of measurement, select the item to be associated and click on the "Add" option, located at the top of the open window.

Another window corresponding to the item will then open, in which all the fields in the "Data" section will have been automatically filled in with those corresponding to the selected item.

The "Measurement" section must be completed by establishing the measurement criteria for the previously filtered elements.

For example, to measure the columns by their net volume, simply call the "NetVolume" parameter by clicking on the blue arrow to the right of any of the partial dimensions (B, C and D) and select the parameter shown in the list (if necessary, enter a text for the search, e.g. "volume"). The rest of the fields in the "Measurement" section are left blank then click on "Accept".

The graphical interface itself allows quick rules to be created by directly selecting objects and properties.

In the 3D view or in the component tree of the "Quantities of the BIM model" tab, select the object to be added as a new rule of measurement, and from the parameter table, click on the selection parameter that is to be used to link it to the new rule of measurement.

After this selection, simply click on the "Quick rule" button, located at the top right of the parameter table, and a pop-up window will appear where users can edit the created rule, add or modify the parameter in the "Selection" section, or add items, among others.

These quick rules shall be incorporated into the active measurement criterion and can be re-edited from "Sets of measurement rules".

In the "Quantities of the BIM model" tab, in the "Project" group of the main toolbar, there is a "Tables of amounts" option, which is used to configure and display tables of amounts and to use the information contained in the model components in these tables.

The configuration of the tables of quantities can be exported in a file (".bib804") in order to be used in other projects.

Tables of amounts can be exported in CSV format, which can be easily read in a spreadsheet program. It is also possible to generate a document with the table reference and export it in multiple formats (PDF, DOCX, TXT, HTML or RTF). Both options are available by right-clicking on the table of amounts reference and selecting "Export" or "Report", respectively.

The "Bill of quantities" tab contains tools for generating and managing the bill of quantities.

From this window, users can manage the general parameters, certificates, cost databases and project databases. There are also options for importing and exporting in BC3, manually editing the bill of quantities, managing its visualisation, generating reports and updating the quantities, among others.

Under the "Bill of quantities" tab, in the "Project" group of the main toolbar, the general parameters of the project can be reviewed or modified.

The "General parameters" window includes the following tabs:

• Currency. Allows users to change the currency used and the position of the currency symbol (to the right or to the left).
• Decimals. Allows users to modify the number of decimals of amounts, prices and quantities/yields.
• Percentages. Allows users to add percentages for contingencies, general expenses, industrial profit, and the below budget coefficient, and to incorporate a series of user-defined taxes.

In the "Bill of quantities" tab, in the "Project" group of the main toolbar, users can find the "Certificates" option, which allows them to register and manage work certificates, even in projects integrated in an Open BIM workflow.

The main bill of quantities window displays the result obtained after updating the quantities. A colour code identifies the different items:

• work sections and sub work section are shown in black text;
• the items are shown in blue, if they are correctly defined (if the price of the concept has not been defined, they are shown in mustard colour, as well as the codes of the higher levels);
• and the quantity detail lines are shown in green.

The secondary bill of quantities window shows the rest of the associated information, distributed in four tabs: "Data", "Breakdown", "Waste" and "Certificates". The breakdown of items, in the "Breakdown" tab, shows the different simple concepts in green (in red if any of them does not exist in the reference database).

The "Project database" tool, included in the "Prices" group of the top toolbar, allows users to carry out a particular configuration of the job in progress (without affecting the active cost database).

Among the possibilities it offers, the following stand out:

Price adjustment

This button allows users to modify the performance coefficients of the original cost database (labour, machinery or price).

Price increment

With this tool, the prices of the concepts contained in the database can be adjusted according to a "Factor". In addition, the application allows users to indicate the nature of the concepts ("Unclassified", "Labour", "Machinery and auxiliary resources" and "Materials") on which the operation must be applied.

Adding concepts from the cost database

This tool allows users to add items from the cost database to the rule of measurement.

The bill of quantities can be modified manually either from the "Edit" group in the top toolbar of the "Bill of quantities" tab or from the menu that appears by right-clicking on the structure in the main window.

Adding work sections

To add a new work section, click on "Add work section". To create a new sub work section, click on the header of an existing work section, enter a "Code" and a "Summary" and click "Accept". The work section will be created in the default order and will be displayed in the main bill of quantities window. The displacement tools ("Displace upwards" or "Displace downwards") can be used to relocate the new work section in the structure. The data entered can also be modified from the bill of quantities sub-window.

Adding items

To add a new item, go to the header of the work section in which it is to be included and click on the "Add item" tool. Enter a code for the concept (the blue arrow allows an existing one to be used in the project database), and define a factor and a performance.

Adding quantity detail lines

To add new quantity detail lines, users must place themselves on the item they wish to include them in and select the "Add quantity detail line" tool. In the pop-up window, then select "Quantities", so that the detail line is of this specific type, and add a comment and tags. The quantity values in the four available fields (A, B, C and D) are also filled in and renamed if necessary. By default, the program operates by multiplying the values of these four fields and ignores values equal to zero. Additionally, the unique identifier (GUID) corresponding to the element being linked can be associated to the BIM model and can be consulted in the "Quantities of the BIM model" tab.

If a quantity detail line of type "Partial subtotal" or "Accumulated subtotal" is added, the quantities resulting from the previous quantity detail lines shall be added partially or accumulatively, respectively. If the "Expression" type is selected, a formula may be entered which operates on the quantity detail lines below it, using the quantity values (A, B, C and D).

Other useful tools

As well as creating concepts, the other tools allow us to copy, delete or use the clipboard tools on any existing concept ("Copy", "Cut" and "Paste"). The "Copy" tool appears twice with a different icon. One of them allows users to duplicate work sections, items and breakdown concepts, and the other one works in the same way as the "CTRL+C" command, which needs "Paste" in order to appear in the bill of quantities structure.

Another useful tool is "Sort tree", which allows users to sort the bill of quantities by work sections or by items.

From the "3D View" panel of the "Bill of quantities" tab, users can measure drawings imported in DXF, DWG, PDF or JPG formats, as indicated in the section "Quantities of BIM models from the 3D view".

Simply put, after the import, the measurement tools ("Measure length", "Measure area", "Measure angle", "Count the number of objects", "Measure the area of objects", "Measure the volume of objects") included in the top left part of the "3D View" in the "Bill of quantities" tab, as well as the blue arrows located in the edit panel of the quantity detail lines next to the field of each variable (A, B, C and D), in order to assign the value of the measurement made on the work area to the variable.

In the "Bill of quantities" tab, the "Visualisation" group of the main toolbar includes several useful tools for bill of quantities management:

• Columns. Activates the following columns:
  • General parameters
    Highlights the tags assigned to the quantities lines or the percentage of the quantity taken from the BIM model.
  • Environmental data
  • Waste
  • Certificates
• Rebuild tree. Facilitates the visualisation of work sections and items, and allows the following:
  • "show only the first work section level";
  • "only show work sections";
  • "show work sections and items";
  • "expand all".
• Search. Locates concepts based on text strings present in your code or summary.
• Filter. Filters the information displayed according to the tags previously assigned to the quantities lines.

Within the "Bill of quantities" tab, in the "BoQ reports" group of the main toolbar, the necessary features for generating bill of quantities reports can be found.

The generation of reports will be performed immediately; simply click on the "BoQ reports" option and activate the required reports from those available:

• Quantities
• Cost breakdown structure 
• Priced bill of quantities
• Priced bill of quantities (Table)
• Detailed priced bills of quantities 
• BoQ summary
• Specifications
• Environmental impact indicators
• Construction and demolition waste
• Certificate-to-origin
• Certificate summary

The configuration of these reports allows for the inclusion of additional data (project, location, developer, author and date), visible in the different reports to be generated.

The tool also allows users to restrict the reports to those elements that meet a filter condition by tag.

Many of CYPE's programs are connected to the BIMserver.center platform and allow collaborative work to be carried out via the exchange of files in formats based on open standards.

Please note that, to work on BIMserver.center, users can register on the platform free of charge and create a profile.

When accessing a program connected to the platform, the program connects to a project in BIMserver.center. This way, the files of the projects that have been developed collaboratively in BIMserver.center are kept up to date.

In the "Quantities of the BIM model" tab, in the "BIMserver.center" group of the main toolbar, users can find the features needed to use Open BIM Quantities together with other tools in BIMserver.center.

Importing and updating BIM models

The "Update" button can be used to update the information contained in the models previously imported into the project or to import new models if desired.

The status of the project and of the different files linked to the project (dates, changes, source applications, etc.) can also be viewed at any time.

Exporting the BIM model for sharing with other users

Using the "Share" button, the information contained in the model developed with Open BIM Layout can be exported to BIMserver.center.

During the export process, users can specify whether to export the bill of quantities reports, the bill of quantities in FIEBDC-3 format and/or the results for the written documents of the project.