Hospital project in Norway realises value through an IFC approach

The Akershus University Hospital, near Olso, a mix of new build and refurbishment, is harnessing IFC software to achieve a range of aims. First, responding to political demands for lower operational costs, an IFC project model was created to help bring down operational and whole-life costs. Secondly, the new entrance building – a non-critical part of the hospital – is being used as a test case for the use of IFCs throughout a project. The IFC project model for the entrance building is being sent out to contractors for tendering during 2005. This is not the first-ever use of a project model in tendering – the railway station in Munich did much the same – but it shows just how far IFCs have come in the last few years.

IFCs are widely used at Akershus, in what has been dubbed an ‘IFC project’. The project includes the integration of different applications and information. Thanks to the integration, an astonishing flaw in the design was uncovered: 57 rooms which required a water connection had not been provided with one. Better to discover this at the design stage than during construction.