Forget 3D modelling, 4D is the future, says Disney consultant

4D CAD systems will mean quicker and more efficient construction. That is the message Martin Fischer will deliver to the Construct IT conference in Bromley, Kent this week. Fischer has been developing the revolutionary 4D CAD system with Disney, through work on an extension to Disneyland California.

Time-sequenced design

As well as height, width and breath, 4D modelling includes the dimension of time. This will allow construction managers to model alternative sequences to constructing a building, before starting work on site, to see which would be the most effective.

Fischer said 4D modelling was currently costly and difficult to manage, which was preventing its widespread use, but that the benefits were huge. "With 4D CAD, construction and planning alternatives can be assessed realistically in the context of time and space.

It enables project managers to create and update realistic schedules quickly, and to integrate the temporal and spatial aspects of a schedule."

He added that communication between the project team would be improved using 4D modelling, and schedules could be updated and communicated immediately, on the model. "Construction managers, architects, engineers and clients will be able to evaluate alternatives more quickly and with a clearer vision of the process," he said.

And it would also mean arguments about what would, or would not work, could be avoided. "Modelling of temporal and spatial aspects of a project can justify the decisions that jeopardise and hinder the completion of many construction projects," said Fischer.

Although the construction industry in the UK has been slow to take up 3D modelling, Fischer warned that ignoring 4D would be a lost opportunity for the industry. "4D models show that the project team can understand a construction schedule more quickly and completely than with traditional construction management tools," and lead to savings on cost, time and avoid disputes.