Integrating process communication in building information models with IFC and LON

Building information modeling (BIM) establishes a rich data model over the life cycle of a building. The information gathered during the architectural design phase, engineering, and construction serves as up-to-date processing base for facility and building management during a building´s operation phase. Recent projects include more and more building automation system related modeling details to provide accurate product data information. This paper discusses enhancing BIM with process communication data, taking the Industry Foundation Classes (IFC) as BIM data format example and the Local Operating Network (LON) as building automation control network with functional profiles and network variable (NV) mechanism.