The Building Information Modeling Research Center, abbreviated as the BIM Research Center, was declared to be founded in Hao Ran High-Tech Building on Xuhui Campus of SJTU on 28 March, 2015. The guests from more than 60 varied institutions and enterprises, including the government departments, the institutions which specialize upon design, manufacture, operation maintenance and software development as well as the faculty and student representatives of SJTU were invited to attend the Founding Ceremony of the BIM Research Center.

Prof. Liu Xila, Head of the BIM Research Center, elucidated in his speech the challenges and opportunities which the BIM technology has encountered in the midst of its development in China. As the frontier research domain, the BIM technology, which innovatively integrates architectural engineering with information technology, is widely believed to trigger off the latest technological renewal in the trade of architecture. As a substitute for the conventional engineering blueprint and CAD drawing software, the BIM technology transforms the human intelligence and creativity into the standardized data on the basis of the computerized directory, displaying and processing system. The BIM technology is expected to be of great potential for the solution to the “information isolated island” in the wake of the construction of the “urban intelligence”.

The Seminar on the BIM Research and Application was held after the ceremony. The experts in the architectural studies exchanged warmly their opinions upon the application prospects of the BIM technology. The BIM Research Center is looking forward to the coordinated collaboration with the subdividing schools of SJTU, including School of Naval Architecture, Ocean and Civil Engineering, School of Mechanical Engineering and School of Electronic Information and Electrical Engineering, to seek for the new mechanism for the interdisciplinary studies.