Well we have only gone and done it!!!! In recognition that the HOK business is committed to BIM, the 5th November 2009 is our official HOK BIM day, where we wave good bye to the term CAD.
Over the years, the term CAD, has meant many things to many people…for instance CAD can mean………
- Computer Aided Drafting
- Computer Aided Design
- Computer Assisted Design
- Computer Assisted Drafting
The list, I am sure, can be added too. The word CAD, for many, references the idea of 2D rather than 3D. As many of you may be aware, HOK is fully committed to BIM and BuildingSMART as part of its strategy, so it made good business sense to align things, which has meant dropping the term CAD in favour of BIM. This has been a huge task on the part of our Firmwide IT and BIM managers.
So with this name change, job titles will change; CAD managers will become BIM managers, technicians will become BIMbos???? probably not. So why you ask, the 5th November? Well the 5th is Guy Fawkes Night or Bonfire Night an annual celebration on the evening of 5 November. It marks the downfall of the Gunpowder Plot of 5 November 1605, in which a number of conspirators, including Guy Fawkes, attempted to blow up the Houses of Parliament, in London, United Kingdom.
Therefore, it made natural sense to blow up the term CAD and replace it with BIM!!! :-)