Fixing Late BIM Reviews & BIM Approvals🔎

What Are BIM Reviews and Approvals, and Why They Matter?

BIM reviews and approvals aren’t just red tape, they’re essential quality control steps that help ensure projects’ models, data, and deliverables meet ISO 19650 standards and client requirements & essentially client needs.

So if you’ve ever been confused by the difference between:

✅ What’s the difference between a Model Audit and Model QA?
✅ Who’s responsible for signing off the BIM Execution Plan (BEP)?
✅ When exactly should BEPs, models & data be validated and approved?

Then, this BIM blog is for you 👇

Why do we need BIM Reviews, Audits & Approvals?

• ⭐ To catch mistakes early, before they snowball into costly problems

• ⭐ To ensure everyone’s working from the same, accurate information

• ⭐ To make sure deliverables are fit for purpose, technically and contractually

• ⭐ To reduce rework, delays, and finger-pointing later on

Who benefits from them?

• ⭐ Clients – They get what they asked (and paid) for

• ⭐ Design teams – They avoid wasting time fixing late-stage issues

• ⭐ Contractors – They build from clean, coordinated data

• ⭐ Facilities managers – They inherit reliable information for operations

In simple terms?

BIM Reviews & Approvals is like proofreading a book before it goes to print ⭐⭐⭐⭐ You don’t want to find typos after it hits the shelves❓

BIM reviews do the same, making sure the BIM deliverables tells the right story, at the right time!

Audits vs Quality Assurance 👇 What’s the Difference?

There’s often confusion between BIM Model Audits and Model QA — but they’re not the same thing.

✅ Model or Data QA is usually done internally, by the team who created the model or data. It’s about checking your own work for completeness, structure, naming, data consistency, and alignment with the agreed BEP — before submission.

🕵️‍♀️ BIM Audits, on the other hand, are usually external or independent reviews, carried out by someone not involved in the production. They provide an objective check to ensure project-wide standards, client requirements, and information protocols are being followed — including things internal QA may miss.

In short:

• QA checks your own work

• Audits check the project-wide process and compliance

Both are essential — but they serve different purposes, happen at different times, and involve different people.

Who’s Responsible for BIM Reviews & Approvals?

Before we dive into the types of reviews, here’s who’s typically responsible across different stages & review types:

🟨 Appointing Party (Client, Asset Owner or Delegated Information Manager)
🟨 Project Information Manager (separately appointed by the Owner, Contractor or Project Management team)
🟦 Lead Appointed Party (Main Contractor or Lead Consultant often Architect or Engineer leading design coordination)
🟧 Task Teams (Architects, Engineers, Specialists, as well as, discipline BIM Coordinators & BIM Managers)

What Reviews, AUDITS & Approvals Are Actually done and When?

Each project role (Appointing Party, Lead Appointed Party, Task Teams, etc.) has specific review responsibilities at different RIBA stages. Skipping or mistiming these checks leads to confusion, misaligned models, and costly fixes later.

Below is a clear breakdown of BIM Reviews, Audits & Approvals across the RIBA PoW stages, mapped to each key role in accordance with ISO 19650 principles & best practice:

🟨Appointing Party (or Delegated Employer Information manager e.g. BIM KARELA)

Capability & Capacity Review

📅 RIBA Stages 2, 3 & 4 (Tender stage)
📅 Before appointing any Delivery Teams

BIM Execution Plan (BEP) Audit

📅 Pre-appointment BEP: at each Tender Return
📅 Post-appointment BEP: reviewed twice or more
🔁 First review: During mobilisation of the Design Team (RIBA 2 or 3)
🔁 Second review: After Contractor appointment, before Stage 4 begins

📝 Note: On some projects, the BEP is managed directly by a Project Information Manager appointed directly by the Client.

Information Model Audit

📅 Before each major submission (Planning, Technical Design, Construction, Handover)
📅 Especially at the end of RIBA 3, 4, and 5
🔁 Repeat before final model acceptance

Project Information Model (PIM) Audit

📅 End of RIBA Stage 5 (Practical Completion)
📅 Or just before official handover to FM

Asset Data Validation

📅 RIBA Stage 6 (Handover)
📅 Can begin in late Stage 5 to avoid delays

🟦Lead Appointed Party + Lead Designer (delegated ProjecT Information Manager e.g. BIM KARELA)

Information Model & Data Audit

📅 Mid-stage & prior to each Information Exchange
📅 End of RIBA Stages 3, 4, and 5
🔁 A recurring QA/QC checkpoint

Information Handling – Audit Trail

📅 Ongoing throughout the project
🔁 Reviewed monthly or aligned with submissions to CDE

🟩Lead Appointed Party or PROJECT INFORMATION MANAGER + Task TeamS = Shared

BIM Coordination Review

📅 Start with monthly meetings
📅 Increase frequency to every 1–2 weeks (as needed)
📅 Always before coordination milestones / submissions
🔁 Ongoing throughout RIBA 3–5

🟧 Task Teams (Engineers, Architects & other Designers)

Model Quality Assurance (QA)

📅 Internal check before each model submission
📅 Aligned with model progress reviews or discipline milestones

Reference Information Review

📅 At the start of each RIBA Stage
📅 Before modelling begins (especially after major updates to reference files)

Information Review

📅 Internal review at the end of each RIBA Stage
📅 Before exporting COBie or Asset Data

❓ Still confused about who does what, and when?

Grab our free BIM Review Cheat Sheet (PDF) and keep everything clear at a glance 👉 Download BIM Review Cheat Sheet

Want to go deeper into topics like information requirements, COBie, BIM audits, facilities management, or ISO 19650 compliance?

📚 Check out our #BIMTalk blog: bimkarela.com/bim-talk
🔍 Need expert help? Explore our BIM Audit Services