[编者按]

　　这篇文章是杰里·莱瑟林(Jerry Laiserin)最新撰写的。关于BIM的来历这个问题，此篇文章与本刊2011年4期发表的文章“比较苹果与橙子”一起，将会带给读者一个完整的解读。

　　今天我们大家所知道的BIM这一概念和术语，已经引起全球范围内的专业和行业的关注。BIM可以是“建筑信息模型”或“建筑信息建模”[1]的缩写。然而，不论是它的构思还是名称，都不是2011年才出现的，也不是2002年(当我在撰写已发表在《建筑创作》杂志上的“比较苹果与橙子”原文的时候)[2]，甚至在20世纪90年代或80年代也不是源头。BIM的概念、实现途径和方法论在30多年前就出现了，当时“建筑信息模型”这一术语已经流传至少15年了。在这段BIM的历史介绍中，我的个人光彩被难以避免地突出和放大了，如果在这里我无意中遗漏了某人的贡献，先表达我的歉意。

　　我所发现的、有记载的、最早关于BIM的概念是一个叫 “建筑描述系统(Building Description System)”的工作原型，它是由当时任职于卡耐基麦隆大学的查理·伊斯特曼在1975年发表于《AIA杂志》(现已停刊)上的。他的研究包括现在常说的BIM的概念：“互动地典型元素⋯⋯从同一个有关元素的描述中，获得剖面、平面、轴测图或透视图⋯⋯任何布局的改变只需要操作一次，就会使所有将来的绘图得到更新。所有从相同元素布局得来的绘图都会自动保持统一⋯⋯任何算量分析都可以直接与这个表述系统对接⋯⋯估价和材料用量可以容易地被生成⋯⋯为视觉分析和数量分析提供一个完整的、统一的数据库⋯⋯在市政厅或建筑师的办公室就可以做到自动的建筑规范核查。大项目的施工方也许会发现，在进度计划和材料订购上这个表述系统具有的优越性。”

　　随着早期对这项技术的商业化运作，20世纪70年代末〜80年代初的欧洲，特别是在英国，类似的研究与开发工作也在同时进行着。在20世纪80年代初，此项方法或途径在美国通常被称为“建筑产品模型(Building Product Model)”;而在欧洲，尤其是在芬兰它被称为“产品信息模型(Product Information Model)”;(在这两个词组中的“产品”一词都是被用来区别于“过程”模型的)。符合逻辑的下一步做法就是摘除主要因子：两个词组中都具有的“产品”一词，所以“建筑产品模型”与“产品信息模型”合并之后就会生成“建筑信息模型”这一词组。

　　我们今天所说的“Building Information Modeling”一词，在当初英文里面称为“Building Modeling”;它有史以来第一次被使用，是在1986年罗伯特·艾什(Robert Aish)发表的一篇论文中。他当时任职于著名的RUCAPS(Really Universal Computer Aided Production System)软件系统的开发商GMW计算机公司，之后任职于鹰图公司(Intergraph)和本特利公司(Bentley)，现在任职于欧特克公司(Autodesk)。艾什在那篇论文中发表了今天我们所知的BIM论点和实施的相关技术;它们包括：三维建模、自动成图、智能参数化组件、关系数据库、实时施工进度计划模拟等等。艾什应用RUCAPS建筑模型系统分析一个案例的方法来表达他的概念，该案例是伦敦希思罗机场3号航站楼的改造项目(具有讽刺意味的是，20多年后的今天在该机场5号航站楼的建设中对BIM技术的应用却被认为是该技术应用的先锋)。

　　从“建筑模型(Building Model)”到“建筑信息模型(Building Information Model)”是个小的跳跃，该词最初在英文中出现是于1992年G.A van Nederveen 和F.Tolman 的一篇论文中。这个术语实际上最早出现在1987年，van Meregen and van Dissel发表的论文(尽管是荷兰语的)。到1999年，Tolman教授发表的一篇关于“Building Information Modeling”的英文论文中，涉及到这个题目。

　　与不断演变的名字和以学术界为中心的研发努力并行发展，通过BIM技术制造的商业产品(不论当时它们的商业名称为何)的发展也经历了一个较长的历史。许多软件的功能和运行方式都可归结为今天我们所说的模型生成工具，比如：AllPlan、ArchiCAD、Autodesk Revit、Bentley BIM、Gehry DigitalProject或VectorWorks。它们同样是早期商业软件努力实现的设计目标，如：出身英国的RUCAPS(前面提到过)变为Sonata和Reflexion;另外一个英国血统的Oxsys变成了BDS和GDS(后者以MicroGDS的名字仍然存在);法国血统的软件包括Cheops和Architrion(BOA中仍可寻到它们的痕迹);Brics(是个比利时系统，它为之前的Bentley Triforma、现在叫Bentley BIM的软件提供了核心技术);1984年，以美国为基地的Bausch & Lomb建模系统;ARRIS CAD 系统;Intergraph公司的Master Architect;还有一些其它的今天已经鲜为人知的软件(至少在我记忆当中是这样)。

　　2002年欧特克公司(Autodesk)收购Revit公司之前，亚历克斯·奈豪斯(Alex Neihaus)曾任Revit公司市场副总裁，根据他和前CEO的大卫·莱蒙特(Dave Lemont)的说法，“建筑信息建模(Building Information Modeling)”这个术语是由他们两人在一次位于美国新罕布什尔州曼彻斯特的欧特克公司办公室开会时独创的。当时他们正在忙于欧特克收购Revit的相关工作(这是2010年3月，他们两人在私下与本文作者沟通的)。从Revit公司首次正式发布Revit 1.0之前一年，到发布之后的一年左右，我为Revit公司的产品和市场战略进行了大量的咨询工作。在那段时间，我与大卫和亚历克斯进行了频繁而密切的协作，因而了解到大卫是个老成的经理人，而亚历克斯是个卓越的软件市场开发奇才。所以如果说，亚历克斯和大卫告诉我他们独创了“建筑信息建模”这个术语，没有借鉴任何前人的提示，我绝对相信他们。

　　对于亚历克斯·奈豪斯(Alex Neihaus)和大卫·莱蒙特(Dave Lemont)的雇主欧特克公司来说,不幸的是，独创和发现已经存在的事物不会给欧特克(Autodesk)的“原创”、“开发”或“推介”带来任何加分，不管是“建筑信息建模”或“建筑信息模型”的概念或术语;以下是个类似的例子：艾丽莎·格雷(Elisha Gray)在亚历山大·格雷姆·贝尔的工作室独立“发明”了电话技术，但是贝尔首先把这项技术在美国专利局注册成功。因此，今天贝尔被认为是“电话发明人”，而艾丽莎·格雷最多只会出现在历史注脚。

　　在大卫·莱蒙特(Dave Lemont)任欧特克公司(Autodesk)市场副总裁时，他同意欧特克公司使用“建筑信息建模”作为公司的市场营销术语。至于另外一位欧特克公司(Autodesk)副总裁菲利普·伯恩斯坦，是他第一次把“建筑信息建模”(英文)的三个单词的首字母“B”—“I”—“M”连起来发音的(BIM的发音类似于英文him和sim的发音)。

　　在2002年12月我首次试图推广这个名词，维基百科(Wikipedia.com， 2011年)也认为我是BIM一词的发明人。而在此之前，欧特克公司(Autodesk)在市场推广上使用他已经有好几个月了。在2002年我的文章“比较苹果与橙子”发表和2003年、2005年及2008年后续的一系列活动及会议之后，我试图围绕BIM使多家软件开发商达成共识。 虽然实际上我非常谨慎，但一些人还是误以为我就是那个创造、发明或开发了BIM名词或概念的人。尽管我从来没有表示过我就是那个人。虽然被一些好心的、过于热情的同辈人贴上“BIM之父(Father of BIM)”的标签，我倒是更愿意接受“BIM教父(Godfather of BIM)”这个无人认领的绰号;教父只是一个孩子的成年监护人，而并非其真正意义上的父亲。如果有任何人称得上“BIM之父”，那他肯定是查理·伊斯特曼。从上面提到他1975年发表BIM的先驱式的原型，到1999年发表文章“建筑产品模型”，再一直到今天，他贡献了三分之一世纪的时间来确定BIM的问题并不断探索改进建筑、信息与建模的解决方案。

　　The concept and nomenclature we know today as BIM – or Building Information Models and Building Information Modeling – have engaged professional and industry awareness on a global scale. However, neither the idea nor name of BIM is new – not as of 2011, not as of 2002 (when I wrote the original version of my previous article for Archicreation, “Comparing Pommes and Naranjas”), nor was it new back into the 1990s or 1980s. The concepts, approaches and methodologies of BIM date back more than thirty years, while the terminology of the “Building Information Model” has been in circulation for at least fifteen years. My gloss on this history, below, is necessarily condensed; my apologies in advance to any whose contributions I may unintentionally have slighted.

　　The earliest documented example I have found for the concept we know today as BIM was a working prototype “Building Description System” published in the now-defunct AIA Journal by Charles M. “Chuck” Eastman, then at Carnegie-Mellon University, in 1975. Chuck’s work included such now-routine BIM notions as:“…interactively defining elements… deriv[ing] sections, plans, isometrics or perspectives from the same description of elements… Any change of arrangement would have to be made only once for all future drawings to be updated. All drawings derived from the same arrangement of elements would automatically be consistent… any type of quantitative analysis could be coupled directly to the description… cost estimating or material quantities could be easily generated… providing a single integrated database for visual and quantitative analyses … automated building code checking in city hall or the architect’s office. Contractors of large projects may find this representation advantageous for scheduling and materials ordering.” (Eastman 1975)

　　Comparable research and development work was conducted throughout the late 1970s and early 1980s in Europe — especially in the UK — in parallel with early efforts at commercialization of this technology (see below). During the early 1980s this method or approach was most commonly described in the USA as “Building Product Models” and in Europe — especially in Finland — as “Product Information Models” (in both phrases, “product” was used to distinguish this approach from “process” models). The next logical step was to verbally factor out, so to speak, the duplicated “product" term, so that “Building Product Model” + “Product Information Model” would merge into “Building Information Model.”

　　The first documented use of the term “Building Modeling” in English — in the sense that “Building Information Modeling” is used today — appeared in the title of a 1986 paper by Robert Aish, then with GMW Computers Ltd., makers of the legendary RUCAPS software system. Aish, who subsequently worked for Intergraph and Bentley and is today with Autodesk, set out in this paper all the arguments for what we now know as BIM and the technology to implement it, including: 3D modeling; automatic drawing extraction; intelligent parametric components; relational databases; temporal phasing of construction processes; and so forth (Aish 1986). Aish illustrated these concepts with a case study applying the RUCAPS building modeling system to the phased refurbishment of Terminal 3 at Heathrow Airport, London (there is, in my opinion, a bit of historical irony in the fact that some twenty years later, the construction of Terminal 5 at Heathrow was often cited as one of the “pioneering” case examples of this technology).

　　From “Building Model” it was but a short leap to “Building Information Model,” for which the first documented use in English appeared in a paper by G.A. van Nederveen and F. Tolman (van Nederveen & Tolman 1992). The term actually had appeared, albeit in Dutch, as early as 1987 in a paper by van Meregen and van Dissel, (van Meregen and van Dissel, 1987). By 1999, there was a sufficient body of research published in English on Building Information Modeling for Professor Tolman to publish a survey of the literature on the subject (Tolman, 1999).

　　In parallel with the evolving name and R&D efforts centered in academia, commercial products implementing the BIM approach (under whatever commercial moniker at the time) also have a long history. Many of the software functions and behaviors ascribed to today's generation of model-authoring tools, such as AllPlan, ArchiCAD, Autodesk Revit, Bentley BIM, Gehry DigitalProject or VectorWorks, were also the design goals of earlier commercial software efforts such as: the UK lineage from RUCAPS (cited above) to Sonata and Reflex; another UK lineage from Oxsys to BDS and GDS (the latter still available as MicroGDS); a French lineage that included Cheops and Architrion (the spirit of which lives on in BOA); Brics (a Belgian system that provided the technology core for Bentley’s Triforma, now Bentley BIM); the US-based Bausch & Lomb modeling system of 1984; the ARRIS CAD System; Intergraph's efforts with Master Architect; plus many others, now but dimly remembered )at least, within my recollection).

　　According to Alex Neihaus, Vice President of Marketing at Revit Technology prior to its 2002 acquisition by Autodesk, he and Dave Lemont, former CEO at Revit Technology, independently coined the term Building Information Modeling during a meeting at Autodesk’s Manchester, New Hampshire location in May of 2002, where both Neihaus and Lemont worked for a time following Autodesk’s Revit acquisition )private communication to the author, March 2010). I had consulted extensively to Revit Technology regarding product and market strategies for approximately one year preceding the initial product launch of Revit 1.0 and for another year afterwards. During that time I collaborated closely and frequently with Dave and Alex and I know Dave to be a masterful manager and Alex to be a brilliant wordsmith of software marketing. If Alex says he and Dave coined the term Building Information modeling independently and with no foreknowledge of prior usage of and literature about the term, then I absolutely believe it.

　　Unfortunately for Autodesk, Neihaus’ and Lemont’s employer at the time, the mere fact of independent coinage, creation or discovery of something that already existed does not earn Autodesk credit for “originating,” or “developing,” or “introducing” either the concept or the terminology of Building Information Modeling and Building Information Models. By way of analogy, Elisha Gray “invented” the telephone independently of the work of Alexander Graham Bell, but Bell brought his efforts to the attention of the US Patent Office first. Thus, Bell is to this day acknowledged as “inventor of the telephone,” while Gray rates at best an historical footnote.

　　In the event, usage of “Building Information Modeling” as a marketing term by Autodesk was approved by Dave Lemont, in his role at the time as a Vice President of Marketing at Autodesk. To Phil Bernstein, another Autodesk vice president, goes credit for first pronouncing the initials “B”–“I”–“M” as a convenient acronym for Building Information Modeling )with “BIM” pronounced to rhyme with “him” or “sim”).

　　By the time of my first attempt to popularize the term in December 2002, as credited to me by Wikipedia (Wikipedia.com, 2011) Autodesk had then been using it for marketing purposes for several months. In my “Comparing Pommes and Naranjas” (Laiserin, 2002) and subsequent events and conferences (Laiserin, 2003, 2005, 2008), I tried to craft a multi-vendor consensus around it. Notwithstanding my actual, modest role, some people incorrectly belief that I was the one who “coined” the term and/or “originated” or “developed” or “introduced” the term and/or concept. I have never claimed such distinction for myself. Rather than “father of BIM” — as a few well-meaning but over-enthusiastic peers have labeled me — I prefer the unattributed epithet “godfather of BIM,” in the sense that a godfather is an adult sponsor of a child not his own. If anyone deserves the title "father of BIM," surely it is Chuck Eastman. From his 1975 pioneering prototype system cited above to his 1999 text, Building Product Models (Eastman, 1999) and to the present day, Chuck devoted a third of a century to defining the problems and advancing the solutions of Building, Information, and Modeling.

　　感谢：本文中的一些评论较早前曾出现在查理·伊斯特曼与其他人合作出版的《BIM手册》一书的前言中，该书由John Wiley & Sons出版社于2008年发行。我还想对以下同仁表示感谢，感谢他们在收集BIM概念和术语的早期历史资料方面所给予的无私帮助：Bo-Christer Björk, Hanken University, Finland; Arto Kiviniemi, VTT, Finland; Heikki Kulusjarvi, Solibri, Inc., Finland; Ghang Lee, Yonsei University, Korea; Robert Lipton, National Institute of Standards and Technology, USA; Hannu Penttila, Mittaviiva Öy, Finland.

　　ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS: An earlier version of some of these comments previously appeared in the Foreword to The BIM Handbook, Eastman, et al, published by John Wiley & Sons, 2008. I also wish to thank the following individuals for their generous assistance in documenting the early history of the BIM concept and terminology: Bo-Christer Björk, Hanken University, Finland; Arto Kiviniemi, VTT, Finland; Heikki Kulusjarvi, Solibri, Inc., Finland; Ghang Lee, Yonsei University, Korea; Robert Lipton, National Institute of Standards and Technology, USA; Hannu Penttila, Mittaviiva Öy, Finland.

　　注释

　　1 “建筑信息模型”或“建筑信息建模”：此处文章英文原文的用的是“Building Information Model”和“Building Information Modeling”。对于这两个词组在英文中的区别很清楚，但是两个英文词组的含义，或者说，如果翻译成中文后的表述就不是很明确了。在中国大陆地区，曾经(即使现在也会见到)把“Building Information Modeling”译成“建筑信息模型”的，是明显的错误翻译。如果这样的话“Building Information Model”就变得无法翻译了。本文译者曾经在很多场合讨论过这两个词组的含义与中文翻译方法。本文并不是在此推销以“建筑信息建模”来作为“Building Information Modeling”的中文翻译，只是要与另外那个词组区分开来。国内业界现在也有一种建议，就是不要对BIM(或Building Information Modeling)进行翻译。仅使用“BIM”这种英文缩写即可，这也未尝不可。就像CAD不必被翻译一样。

　　2 “比较苹果与橙子”：这是莱瑟林的一篇经典文章，本刊把它翻译并发表于《建筑创作》2011年4月期的BIM专栏上。

　　参考文献

　　1. Aish, R., 1986, “Building Modelling: The Key to Integrated Construction CAD,” CIB 5th International Symposium on the Use of Computers for Environmental Engineering Related to Buildings, 7–9 July.

　　2. Eastman, C., 1975, “The Use of Computers Instead of Drawings,” AIA Journal, March, Volume 63, Number 3, pp 46–50.

　　3. Eastman, C., 1999, Building Product Models: Computer Environments, Supporting Design and Construction, CRC

　　4. Laiserin, J, 2002, “Comparing Pommes and Naranjas,” The LaiserinLetter™, December 16, Issue 16, http://www.laiserin.com/features/issue15/feature01.php

　　5. Laiserin, J, 2003, “The BIM Page,” The LaiserinLetter™,http://www.laiserin.com/features/bim/index.php

　　6. Laiserin, J, 2005, “Conference on Building Information Modeling: Opportunities, Challenges, Processes, Deployment,” April 19–20, http://www.laiserin.com/laiserinlive/index.php

　　7. Laiserin, J, 2008, “BIM4builders Conference,” May 11–13, http://www.bim4builders.com

　　8. Tolman, F., 1999. “Product Modeling Standards for the Building Construction Industry: Past, Present and Future,” Automation in Construction, December, Volume 8, Number 3, pp 227–235.

　　9. van Meregen, and van Dissel, “Bouw Informatie Models,” IOP series, 1987–1989.

　　10. van Nederveen, G.A. & Tolman, F., 1992, “Modelling Multiple Views on Buildings,” Automation in Construction, December, Volume 1, Number 3, pp 215–224.

　　11. Wikipedia, “Building Information Modeling,” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Building_Information_Modeling

　　(所有网络最后链接时间为2011年4月1日)

　　作者：杰里·莱瑟林，ACADIA的督导委员会委员 国际设施管理协会、美国建筑师协会(AIA)的全美董事会成员 卡内基麦隆

　　大学校长咨询委员会成员 美国退伍军人部《BIM执行导则》的技术编辑 《建筑实录》、CADence和Cadalyst等杂志的

　　特约编辑和专栏作家

　　翻译：王新，美国XTWO国际有限责任公司合伙人、设计总监，BIM战略顾问，美国国家建筑科学院(NIBS)成员，

　　buildingSMART联盟成员，美国“国家BIM标准”(NBIMS)委员会委员

　　收稿日期：2011年4月

　　原文发表于杰里·莱瑟林(Jerry Laiserin)先生的网站，网址为www.laiserin.com，本刊与美国的王新(XinWang)和杰里·莱瑟林本人合作，将对杰里·莱瑟林有关BIM的系列文章进行全文转载，以飨读者。该文章的英文版权属于杰里·莱瑟林先生，经他本人授权由XTWO公司合伙人、BIM战略顾问王新(美国)担任翻译、由《建筑创作》杂志社在中国编辑出版，该文章所有中英文版未经我社和合作方的允许不得再使用、编辑、出版或再以任何方式发表或转载在其他媒体上。

　　This article is originally published on Mr. Jerry Laiserin’s website (www.laiserin.com). ARCHICREATION has reached an agreement with Xin Wang (U.S)and Jerry Laiserin privately to reprint full text of articles about BIM written by Jerry Laiserin. The copyright of the article’s English version belongs to Mr. Jerry Laiserin. With authorization from Mr. Jerry Laiserin, the article is translated into Chinese by Xin Wang,a partner and BIM strategy consultant of XTWO(U.S.), and published in China by ARCHICREATION. Both Chinese and English versions of the article aren’t allowed to be reused, edited, and published in other media through any other manners without the permission of ARCHICREATION and our partners.