BIM behind the rebuilding of Notre Dame

BIM is being used by the team tasked with restoring the Notre Dame cathedral.

The day after the historic cathedral caught fire earlier this year, the French government got in touch with Art Graphique Patrimoine (AGP), a company specialising in 3D digitisation and modelling of cultural heritage monuments. AGP had scanned Notre Dame from 2014 to 2016 using helicopters, drones, and terrestrial scanners.

With the BIM, it’s getting everything: MRI and medical scans, blood tests, a full check-up. We can’t heal it without a proper diagnostic

Thie fire on 15 April caused the church's roof and spire to collapse, although other parts of the building were saved by firefighters at the scene. 

 “We are treating Notre Dame the way a greatly traumatised patient would be treated in hospital,” Gaël Hamon, the CEO of AGP.

“With BIM, it’s getting everything: MRI and medical scans, blood tests, a full check-up. We can’t heal it without a proper diagnostic.”

The government wanted AGP to digitally rebuild the cathedral using the data that had been collected. The process took just two months, using six ‘super calculators’ and the full team. The BIM modelling is set to be completed at the start of 2020, with the actual restoration work to commence afterwards.

(image:  Andrew Tallon - Associate Professor of Art at Vassar College)