Course Syllabus

Revised Syllabus (Live document is updated)

Syllabus CE587 - Christiansen_Spring25.pdf

Syllabus CE587 - Christiansen_Spring25_Rev1.pdf

CE587 Building Information Modeling

Civil and Environmental Engineering

Spring 2025

 

Instructor:

Michael Christiansen

MChristiansen@wpi.edu

508 922 0615

Virtual Office

 

Textbook (and/or other Required Materials):

For most lectures, there will be required and recommended readings. Where possible, please try to take a close look at the readings before the corresponding session is posted.

The required reading material will be primarily drawn from:

• BIM Handbook: A Guide to Building Information Modeling for Owners, Designers, Engineers, Contractors, and Facility Managers, 3rd Edition by Rafael Sacks, Chuck Eastman, Ghang Lee, Paul Teicholz , published by John Wiley & Sons, 2018

 

Supplementary reading material will be distributed in class or posted on myWPI (CANVAS platform) the course website. Students may also be referred to other material posted on the Internet

 

Course Description:

This course introduces the concept of Building Information Modeling (BIM) which is a relatively new approach in planning, design, construction and operation of constructed facilities in a technologically enabled and collaborative fashion.

The course reviews fundamental concepts for using BIM as the interface to collaborate and integrate a project. It also reviews technologies that support the BIM approach and provides discipline-specific perspectives on BIM. The course format includes formal lectures, computer laboratory sessions, student discussions based on assigned readings and a project developed individually or collaboratively by the students throughout the course.

As technological integration and construction complexity increase so does construction lead times as well as cost. To stay competitive companies have sought to effectively shorten the construction times of projects by managing the design and construction development efforts using collaborative approaches supported by rapidly advancing information technology. With the technological collaboration, the final product allows prefabrication to be used more effectively.

Prerequisite Courses:

This course introduces the topic at a graduate level. Basic knowledge of computers. Exposure to professional practice in any area of the Architecture / Engineering / Construction / Facilities Management (A/E/C/FM) industry is desirable. Students are not permitted to receive credit for CE 587 if they have previously received credit for CE 585 or CE 590A-BIM.

 

Learning Outcomes:

In this course, four important aspects of BIM are taught:

• Fundamental organizational and information technology principles/concepts forming the base for the BIM approach.
• Perspectives from different BIM users involved in the lifecycle development of projects
• Implementation approaches to achieve efficient levels of collaboration and knowledge integration among the project participants
• Hands-on and practical use of principles and tools to effectively use in a workplace environment.

By the end of the term, you will be able to develop a deep understanding and an ability to effectively utilize BIM during the project lifecycle of a project.  These learning outcomes will consist of:

• Analyze the pro and cons of different BIM approaches used by the industry
• Apply methods to leverage current technology within the build environment
• Create data rich models that allow fabrication of a industry that does not historically prefabricate materials

Communication:

This class will be delivered online during the Spring 2024 semester. The content of the class will be posted reviewed and discussed online in the course website (CANVAS platform) weekly according to the course schedule. This material includes lectures, reference readings, homework assignments and their corresponding solutions as well as questions related to the term. Computer Labs will be given to the students and/or films related to the course material may be posted. Online discussions with the instructor will be scheduled as arranged.

 

Virtual office hours will be Thursday from 7 – 8:00 P.M. EST and appointments are available by request. Use the following Zoom link to meet for virtual hours. Please contact me via email, I will respond within 24hrs. Please request office hours at the minimum of one business day.

 

Join Zoom Meeting

 

Course Approach:

• Start and end days for each week will be the following: weeks begin on Monday at 7am and close on Sunday at 11:59pm. All work submitted after Sunday at 11:59 for that week will be deducted as noted below in the late submission policy.
• This course will run for 16 weeks
• The content of the class will be posted reviewed and discussed online in the course website (CANVAS platform) on a weekly basis. This material includes lectures, reference readings, homework assignments, and their corresponding solutions as well as questions related to the term. Computer Labs will be given to the students and/or films related to the course material may be posted. Online discussions with the instructor will be scheduled as arranged.
• See the provided matrix guide under assignments for an overview of the course deliverables. The live CANVAS modules supersede the referenced matrix.

 

Course Requirements:

Grade Determination Breakdown:

Evaluation of assignments, lab exercises and term project will be based on the thoroughness, correctness, organization, presentation, and punctuality of the submitted solutions. Solutions to the assignments will be worked out individually or in some cases these will be worked in groups. The final grade of the course will be assigned on an individual basis.

All homework will be distributed and submitted electronically using myWPI website for this course. Homework is to be submitted before 12 MIDNIGHT (11:59 PM) on their respective due dates as shown in the Course Schedule and posted on the course website. Because feedback on the answers will be provided directly in the submitted file, you must submit your homework in the electronic format specified in the assignment.

Grade Rubric:

What follows is a possible grading scheme for a 10 point lab or reading discussion assignment.  Every Assignment is a little different, but the rubric can be used below as a guide.

For Lab and Reading Discussion content, the scoring for each problem could be based on the following criteria.

 

Score	Lab/Discussion Exercises
9-10	Nothing is missing.  The answer is complete and correct showing all content
8	Nothing is missing.  The answer is complete but contains a few critical concepts not captured
4-7	Accurate work.  The answer shows understanding but has significant missing concepts
1-3	The answer contains some correct ideas but it is lacking the necessary work toward the solution.
0	No work or no work that will lead to a solution.
	Presentation & Project Content
9-10	Clear and complete.  A joy to read.
8	Clear but possibly missing justification.
6-7	Organized, but lacking insight or explanation.
4-5	Hard to follow or poorly organized. Lacking explanations.
0-3	Illegible

 

Grading will be based on:

Reading Assignments (25%)

Class Exercises (5%)

Lab Assignments (35%)

Term Project (35%)

Final course grades are based on a student’s performance as follows:

The term project for this course is divided into several phases with partial and final deliverables. The term project consists in developing a Case Study defined by the student and approved by the instructor.

If a term project is conducted in a group of two or more students, the group needs to submit only ONE DOCUMENT for each submittal. Each member will get an individual term project grade depending on her/his efforts and contributions as evaluated by her/his partner in the group. There is the expectation that such evaluation will be filled INDIVIDUALLY and maintained CONFIDENTIAL. It is also expected that team members will behave PROFESSIONALLY and HONESTLY while filling out the evaluation. As a result of this evaluation, each individual will receive a grade equal to the term project grade times a multiplier. This multiplier can be lower or greater than one.  Working effectively and contributing equally to the group’s effort implies that both individuals get the same grade. However, in the case that unequal contributions by the members of the group occur, the final grade of each group member may differ. Lab exercises that are prepared by a group will also be graded accordingly.

  Assignments: Refer to Canvas for actual dates, the matrix is an example of the course from week to week. February and Spring break will be adjusted within Canvas to align with the current WPI calendar. The syllabus will not be updated to align with Canvas and canvas supersedes this schedule.

 

Late Work Policy:

10% PER DAY WILL BE DEDUCTED from late problem sets or term project phases up to a maximum of five days.  PROBLEM SETS AND TERM PROJECT PHASES RECEIVED AFTER FIVE DAYS WILL NOT RECEIVE ANY CREDIT.  Under certain extenuating circumstances, extensions may be granted.  Please contact the instructor before the due date if an extension is required.

 

Class Participation Expectations and Criteria:

Collaboration among students on lab exercises and other assignments to be completed individually is encouraged but limited to discussing concepts and clarifying issues. Nonetheless, each student is expected to produce his or her own solutions to the homework problems. For further discussion, please see the section on Academic Integrity.

 

Technical Requirements:

It is planned to use, to a large extent but not exclusively, the following

software applications in this course:  

 

• Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, Access, PowerPoint)
• Autodesk Revit & Navisworks

 

Some of this software can be downloaded from the course web site or from

the vendor’s web site under a license agreement with WPI. Some of this

software is available only through the WPI-CCC network. Previous

knowledge of this software is not required.

 

If you are having difficulty with technical difficulties or software, please reach out to its@wpi.edu

 

Library Access:

As a student at WPI, you have access to a variety of resources through the library.  Use the link here to access databases, e-journals, and/or e-books.  You will be required to log in with your WPI username and password to access materials.

 

POLICIES

Academic Integrity:

You are expected to be familiar with the Student Guide to Academic Integrity at WPI that is downloadable from here. Consequences for violating the Academic Honest Policy range from earning a zero on the assignment, failing the course, or being suspended or expelled from WPI.

Common examples of violations include:

• Copying and pasting text directly from a source without providing appropriately cited credit
• Paraphrasing, summarizing, or rephrasing from a source without providing appropriate citations
• Collaborating on individual assignments
• Turning in work where a good portion of the work is someone else’s, even if properly cited

 

Academic Accommodations:

We at WPI strive to create an inclusive environment where all students are valued members of the class community.  If you need course adaptations or accommodations because of a disability, or if you have medical information to share with us that may impact your performance or participation in this course, please make an appointment with us as soon as possible. 

Students with approved academic accommodations should plan to submit their accommodation letters through the Office of Accessibility Services Student Portal.  Should you have any questions about how accommodations can be implemented in this particular course, please contact me as soon as possible. 

Students who are not currently registered with the Office of Accessibility Services (OAS) but who would like to find out more information regarding requesting accommodations and what that entails should plan to contact them via:

Email: AccessibilityServices@wpi.edu and/or

Phone: (508) 831-4908.

On Campus – Unity Hall

 

Mental Health:

WPI’s Student Development & Counseling Center (SDCC) staff are available for students in need of support: contact them directly and confidentially by phone at 508-831-5540 or email at SDCC@wpi.edu; or stop by their office at 16 Einhorn Road.

 

The I’m Concerned About a Student form provides a venue to connect with WPI services if you know of a student who is struggling and needs outreach.

 

The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is a free, 24/7 service that can provide individuals with support, information, and local resources regarding suicide. Call them at 1-800-273-TALK (8255) or visit www.suicidepreventionlifeline.org. There is also Suicide Awareness & Prevention information on the WPI website.

 

If there is a chance someone is in imminent danger of suicidal action, WPI Campus Police can be reached at 508-831-5555 (or call 911 if off campus).

 

 

Grading Policy:

Final course grades are based on a student’s performance as follows:

Letter Grade	Percentage
A	90 - 100
B	80 - 89
C	70 - 79
D	60 - 69
F	< 60

Course incompletes may be granted if the major part of the course is completed; however, no additional credit can be given for missed class discussions or teamwork beyond the end of the course. In addition, in the case of an incomplete, the student is responsible for handing in the final work within 2 weeks.  After this time, an incomplete grade changes to a failing (F) grade.