Argent Related will use Robert Bird Group’s (RBG) 4D virtual design and construction platform on the development of the £5bn 180-acre north London neighbourhood, Brent Cross Town.
Launched by the structural engineer late last year (https://www.bimplus.co.uk/news/robert-bird-aims-revolutionise-virtual-design-and-/), the RBG Reveal platform will be used to produce a 4D model of Argent Related’s and Barnet Council’s masterplan, incorporating the various stages of the infrastructure – including creation of the temporary roads and the development plots – to inform the construction sequencing and to avoid future programme clashes.
Previously known as Brent Cross South, the new development incorporates 50 acres of parks and playing fields which are central to the attraction for people to live, work and visit. Brent Cross Town will deliver 6,700 new homes for sale and for rent and will be a major new office destination.
Chris Dent, construction director at Argent Related, said: “We are pleased to be partnering with Robert Bird on this new innovation. By linking our design models to the delivery programme, 4D will allow us to leverage our existing data into a far more accessible and collaborative form. Whether online working remotely or in physical meetings, we will be able to rehearse our construction activities in the virtual environment and get a much clearer picture of the development from its enabling works to its occupation.
“By collaborating on the same platform, we can engage more effectively with our partners meaning we can design efficiently and construct safely. Visualising the project in this way gives us the power to make informed decisions on the phased build out of the scheme, as well as including live data from zero carbon initiatives to modern methods of construction and capture those lessons for further phases and other developments.”
Jarrad Warhurst, the RBG director responsible for the project, said: “This is just the kind of complex project for which the Reveal tool is perfect and is going to revolutionise virtual design and construction. It gives project stakeholders direct access in real time to navigate, explore, interrogate, and interact with each other to enable design and construction solutions, from any angle, at any stage of construction.”
Matt Marsden, who leads the RBG Reveal team, said: “We’ve purposefully built an environment that is easy to access and easy to use, putting the power to understand challenges and communicate solutions into everyone’s hands, while also looking great doing it. But don’t be fooled – this isn’t ‘Hollywood BIM’ – as it draws on the projects live data to deliver a highly accurate, interactive and intuitive 4D communication tool.”
Image: Cityscape Digital
