BIM: The technology rebuilding monuments and transforming water management
In 2019, fire destroyed part of one of Europe’s most iconic monuments. After five years of intense reconstruction and restoration efforts, Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris reopened its doors in December 2024. What few people know is that before the physical work began, the infrastructure had already been rebuilt — virtually. A 3D digital replica of the monument, created years earlier by an art historian, became a key tool for its restoration, enabling the recovery of architectural details with millimetric precision. The virtual saved the real.
Notre Dame, a witness to centuries of history, suddenly became a witness to innovation. Specifically, the power of a technology that is revolutionising essential sectors like construction and water management: BIM.
BIM (Building Information Modelling) is the foundation of digital transformation in engineering and construction. It is now becoming a key driver in the transformation of the water sector, changing how critical infrastructure like water treatment plants, supply networks, and sanitation systems are designed, built, and managed.
BIM is becoming a key driver in the transformation of the water sector, changing how critical infrastructure is designed, built and managed
It’s not the same to look at a static technical drawing as it is to navigate through an intelligent digital simulation. That’s the essence of this methodology, which allows the creation of a collaborative digital model containing all relevant data about an infrastructure throughout its lifecycle. It’s not just a 3D model. It’s a virtual replica of the real infrastructure that integrates information about materials, costs, timelines, environmental data, maintenance, and much more. This enables simulations and the anticipation of design and management issues.
A practical example: the renovation of a water treatment plant. Before the work begins, BIM makes it possible to visualise the entire network of pipes, valves, and connections before they physically exist. If something doesn’t fit, it’s detected in time. If an intervention needs to be planned, the exact location, timing, and method are known. The entire team works on the same version of the model, in real time, avoiding errors, duplication, and enabling daily coordination among all parties.
Construction of the Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP) in Tudela, Navarre.
A universe of possibilities
The use of BIM in public procurement is growing rapidly in Spain, with over 4,600 published tenders and a cumulative investment exceeding 15 billion euros, according to the Public Sector BIM Procurement Observatory of Spain. But this “new dimension” offers potential that goes far beyond. The technology that helped Notre Dame rise from its ashes is now present in projects all around the world.
BIM is a virtual replica of infrastructure that integrates information about materials, costs, timelines, environmental data and maintenance
The Shanghai Tower, the tallest building in China and the second tallest in the world, was designed with an asymmetrical shape to protect it from the wind. This design was made possible thanks to BIM technologies, which also enabled its construction to be completed 30% faster. The Emerson College building in Los Angeles (USA) used BIM technologies to ensure the entire building was efficient without introducing drastic changes to its overall design, facing the challenge of covering a vast area without affecting any of the surrounding buildings.
At Mexico City’s International Airport, the introduction of BIM technologies was key to integrating multiple platforms and coordinating the complex design of the structure, thanks to its tools for cross-disciplinary coordination and specific features for handling size and geometry. This technology was also crucial in the expansion of the Panama Canal, which posed a major engineering challenge due to the vast volume of work, detail, and dimensions involved.
In Spain, the recently renovated Santiago Bernabéu football stadium employed BIM for its design and management, creating a digital model of the stadium as the foundation for reliable and precise planning and execution of the works. A few years earlier, Madrid also saw the construction of the new Metropolitano Stadium, where the use of the BIM method was essential, as executing all its parts required extensive coordination, which was achieved thanks to virtual models. Moreover, this also allowed many of the stadium’s elements to be prefabricated.
In the water sector, Aqualia has integrated BIM into projects for wastewater treatment plants, drinking water plants, and desalination facilities
In the water sector, Aqualia has integrated BIM into projects for wastewater treatment plants, drinking water plants, and desalination facilities, where the entire infrastructure and processes have been digitised, modelled, coordinated, and managed to improve operation and maintenance. BIM is also being applied to urban supply networks, pumping stations, and sanitation systems, enabling more efficient and sustainable management, alongside CMMS (Computerised Maintenance Management Systems) and GIS (Geographic Information Systems) applications.
Remodelling of the Seawater Desalination Plant (SWDP) in Gran Tarajal, Fuerteventura, Canary Islands, and the SWDP in Mar Alborán, Almería.
A method for building knowledge
A BIM project begins by scanning an infrastructure using a point cloud through specialised software. This is a three-dimensional representation of an object or space, composed of a large number of individual points in a coordinate system. In BIM methodology, the term “modelling” refers to the process of creating a digital reconstruction and adding extensive data such as materials, costs, and scheduling.
The power of this tool is immense. A global, integrated, and precise vision allows for a clear and accessible understanding of the entire system (pipes, connections, valves) and optimisation of all project phases — from design and execution to commissioning and maintenance.
Advanced tertiary treatment for irrigation water at the Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP) of El Ejido, Almería.
The use of BIM in public procurement is growing rapidly in Spain, with over 4,600 published tenders and a cumulative investment exceeding €15 bn
BIM’s interoperability enables collaboration among professionals from different disciplines (engineers, operators, technicians…), improving coordination and responsiveness. Because BIM allows system simulations, failures or deviations can be anticipated before they occur, such as pipe or structural conflicts or scheduling issues. It also facilitates the automatic generation of technical documentation, simplifying review and approval processes.
From its BIM and Reality Capture department, Aqualia has conducted scans of countless hydraulic projects of various scales, including construction, expansion, and maintenance of wastewater treatment plants, drinking water plants, and desalination facilities. In total, more than 8,500 infrastructure scans have been performed, generating over 75 hectares of data in the form of point clouds. These data enable precise tracking of works, generation of As-Built plans (including all modifications made during construction), pre-construction decision-making, and element identification, among other uses.