Information transfer between two heritage BIMs for reconstruction support and facility management: the case study of the Chalet of the Countess of Edla, Sintra, Portugal

Abstract This paper presents and analyses two distinct Building Information Models (BIM) developed for the same heritage building, the Chalet of the Countess of Edla, located in Sintra, Portugal. This building, incorporated in 1995 in the UNESCO’s World Heritage List within the Cultural Landscape of Sintra, was severely damaged by fire in 1999, and two distinct BIM-based solutions were developed afterwards, in 2009 and 2020. The instances followed two approaches, the first being a rehabilitation-oriented digital representation, while the second is a centralized resource for building maintenance. In this study the distinct features and characteristics of both models are discussed, highlighting the importance of information transfer from the model set up during the reconstruction to the later, which was surveyed to document the “as-built” construction. An example of this is the complementarity between the two models, which allowed the incorporation of building features, including non-visible constructive elements, from the first model into the management-oriented BIM.