Multidisciplinary, International and Linked to the Industry – Presenting the Teaching Team of Zigurat

When we talk about BIM, we also talk about collaboration. When we think about BIM, we always think globally. When we work in a BIM environment, we are prone to work more efficiently. This methodology is breaking all kinds of boundaries. And we are witnessing an evolution of the construction sector (and society) where the boundaries are relative, where the transformation involves more interaction than ever between professional profiles, tools and procedures of a project.

Experts from all around the world agree: "One of the principles of BIM is collaboration, so we must do everything in our hands to ensure that professionals understand how essential collaboration is in the development of projects.  And the projects nowadays aren’t necessarily local, on the contrary, they are based on internationality and for this we must learn to work with people from all over the world." This is how the Portuguese Nuno Pires, Consultant and CEO of ImasD Consult, and member of the teaching team of the International Master in BIM Manager in Portuguese, understands the essence of Building Information Modeling.

BIM Managers, a management profile

In this context, the figure of the BIM Manager takes on special relevance. In the words of José Luis Rodríguez Antúnez, BIM Consultant in COBIM, SAS and COMARQ-Panama and professor of interoperability of the International Master in BIM Manager of Zigurat: BIM managers have to know how to handle collaboration and how to organize the team. It is not just about understanding the different software, but also about knowing the scope and limitations of each of them in order to decide which one to use in each case and focus the team on efficiency and obtaining results." Eilif Hjelseth from Norway, professor of Zigurat's Master's in Global BIM Management, gives us his vision on the formation of a BIM Manager, which according to him is a management education: "I think that students should not feel as such, but rather they should act as managers. With Zigurat, participants forget that they are students, adopt a professional role, acquiring a deeper understanding than I have seen in other types of BIM education."

Global experience with BIM experts from around the world

As we explained in the article '5 tips to choose your BIM training', the reputation of the institution is key when choosing a Master, but so is its teaching team. Professionals who are referents in the sector being part of the faculty of the institution is synonymous with high quality. One of the essences of the team of teachers of Zigurat is its multidisciplinarity, internationality and its link with the industry, in order to ensure up-to-date training, focused on the needs of the market and with global perspectives. For Pieter Pauwels, professor of Zigurat's Master's in Global BIM Management, the challenge lies precisely in the plurality of teachers, but also that of the students: "I am from Belgium and therefore, I know the reality and way of working of my country. Having students from Kuwait and Latin America, for example, allows me to be connected to other very different environments. Environments with other regulations and other challenges in the use of technology. Knowing these differences is extremely valuable." We are using new tools and their adoption is different in each country, due to different ways of working, regulations, the experience of professionals, the existence of leaders who drive the transition, the involvement of the government, the budget etc. A global educational program, with participants and professors from different corners of the world, not only allows you to get to know these realities but also find possible solutions or become aware other ways of working more efficiently. The exchange of these experiences undoubtedly enriches the formation.

The projects are global, and you?

BIM teams are global, and that's why we have to train our minds to think globally. However, we must bear in mind that each project is physically in a specific location and, therefore, we must know how to work in each country. "I have the great joy of being in the front row of this show: a change in society, a change in behavior; that is so natural, we could say almost inevitable," reflects José Carlos Lino, civil engineer, CEO of Newton, and Director of the International Master in BIM Manager in Portuguese. When we ask him what it takes to make this change a reality on a global scale, he is clear about it: "Education and professional guidance that allows everyone in the world of architecture and engineering to realize how easy and the natural it is to apply the BIM methodology."