The course “3D, BIM, and Digital Twins for Urban Planning” introduces managers and technicians to the essentials of 3D data in urban environments, emphasizing the importance of 3D geospatial data management and the integrated use of GIS, BIM and Digital Twins.

Managers will gain awareness of the complexities and opportunities of 3D in urban planning, while technicians will develop foundational skills in data integration and Digital Twin environments, preparing them for practical application.

Choose your course

For managers

The course for Managers aims to introduce the major concepts, definitions and facts related to our 3D urban environment. The needs for proper management of 3D geospatial data are becoming more recognized together with the implementation of new technologies, such as the use of Building Information Models (BIM) and Digital Twins. The course will zoom in on both aspects.

It is expected that the learners will have a solid understanding of 3D for urban planning, and will see the opportunities the use of 3D provides for their business. The managers will not learn how to tackle data interoperability in practice, but they will become aware of the complexity and need to invest in the topic.

More information

The course is conceived as a set of basic lectures to explain and frame 3D geospatial data and how they can be used in different contexts and applications. The lectures also provide the background on BIM and Digital Twins as technology, the international standards they are built upon, and more. Then the course will zoom in on respectively BIM and Digital Twins with focus on specific interoperability challenges, including an extensive demo on Digital Twins.

The course is organised in 3 modules and the total workload for the lectures is 4h.

Intended audience:

This course is designed for Managers (CEOs, project managers, COIs, …) who wish to explore the possibilities 3D, BIM and DT offer. Participants will gain the knowledge on the main concepts, technologies used, but also the challenges, and implications of 3D in the context of BIM and Digital Twins for urban planning.

Although the lectures are similar as for the Technicians, the way they are thought is different (wording, examples, dropping of technical details, more focussing on business opportunity and the value of 3D geospatial data).

Module 1 – Introduction to 3D geodata, BIM and DT

  • Introduction to 3D, BIM and Digital Twins (60 min.)
  • Examples of 3D, BIM and DT implementations and applications (60 min.)

Module 2 – Data interoperability challenges in BIM

  • Integration of GIS/BIM integration: introduction, use cases and workflow (60 min.)

Module 3 – Data interoperability challenges in Digital Twins

  • How Digital Twins work: example platforms and work flows (60 min.)

The total workload for the lectures is around 4h

Module 1 – Introduction to 3D geodata, BIM and DT

  • Describe and explain specificities of 3D geodata as compared to 2D geodata
  • Define and recognise BIM and DT as technologies for representing 3D urban data, and the business opportunities they provide
  • Identify and discuss the relevant 3D geospatial data standards and their characteristics
  • Identify and discuss examples of 3D, BIM and DT implementations and applications.

Module 2 – Data interoperability challenges in BIM

  • Describe and explain the principles of BIM-GIS integration and its benefits
  • Identify and evaluate the main challenges related to data interoperability in BIM-GIS integration
  • Identify and describe use cases, and best practices in BIM and GIS integration across various domains, identify relevant domains for the company.

Module 3 – Data interoperability challenges in Digital Twins

  • Identify different types of platforms / products used for building and using DT
  • Identify and discuss the advantages of DT platforms and the added value they (can) create for urban and environmental planning

The materials will be a mixture of presentations and videos.

Participants must have completed the “Introduction to Data Interoperability” course for managers, which provides a foundational understanding of data interoperability concepts and principles.

All the training material are produced by GIM and KU Leuven. The different modules (or lectures/assignments for that matter) are owned by their respective creators, which in some cases might be a joined ownership (e.g. when co-created).

Existing training materials will keep their existing license – if any such license exist – while newly created materials will get the Creative Commons Attribution Share-alike (CC BY-SA) license

The couse is using existing training courses developed by GIM, and materials coming from the projects BIRGIT , USAGE and RESIST.

Issuing of microcredentials is planned and more details will follow.

For technicians

The course for Technicians discusses 3D data, and interoperability challenges related to them. Indeed, to combine different data sets, a solid understanding of 3D geometric and semantic modelling is required, as well as knowledge and skills on the appropriate tools and processes for the use and analysis of the data. Maintaining a 3D urban database also puts additional requirements on processes as compared to the 2D case.

It is expected that the learners will have a solid understanding of 3D for urban planning, while they will also obtain basic skills to integrate BIM data in a GIS environment, and get first hands-on experience with Digital Twin environments that will allow them to prepare for next steps in 3D geospatial data handling.

More information

The course is conceived as a set of basic lectures to explain and frame 3D geospatial data and how they can be used in different contexts and applications. The lectures also provide the background on BIM and Digital Twins as technology, the international standards they are building upon, and more. Then the course will zoom in on, respectively, BIM and Digital Twins with focus on specific interoperability challenges, as well as demo’s and assignments.

The course is organised in 6 lectures and 3 workshops with interactive assignments. The total workload for the lectures is 6h and for the workshops 9h. The total workload is 2.5 days.

Intended audience:

This course is designed for currently employed technicians (data managers, GIS technicians, ICT-oriented people …) who wish to upskill or reskill, as well as for job seekers looking to acquire knowledge and skills related to location data interoperability for 3D resources.

Participants will gain the knowledge and skills necessary to address the technical concepts, challenges, and implications of 3D in the context of BIM and Digital Twins for Urban Planning.

Module 1 – Introduction to 3D geodata, BIM and DT

  • Introduction to 3D, BIM and Digital Twins (60 min.)
  • Examples of 3D, BIM and DT implementations and applications (60 min.)

Module 2 – Data interoperability challenges in BIM

  • GIS/BIM integration: introduction, use cases and workflow (60 min.)
  • Managing BIM and GIS data: standards, tools and processes (60 min.)

Module 3 – Data interoperability challenges in Digital Twins

  • Specific data interoperability and integration challenges in DT (60 min.)
  • How Digital Twins work: example platforms and work flows (60 min.)

Module 4 – Interactive workshop and assignments for BIM and DT

  • Hands-on GIS/BIM integration (180 min.)
  • Hands-on preparing data to feed a DT (180 min.)
  • Hands-on using a Digital Twins (180 min.)

The total workload for the lectures is 2 days.

Module 1 – Introduction to 3D geodata, BIM and DT

  • Describe and explain specificities of 3D geodata as compared to 2D geodata
  • Define and recognise BIM and DT as technologies for representing 3D urban data
  • Identify and discuss the relevant 3D geospatial data standards and their characteristics
  • Identify and discuss examples of 3D, BIM and DT implementations and applications

Module 2 – Data interoperability challenges in BIM

  • Describe and explain the principles of BIM-GIS integration and its benefits
  • Analyze and discuss different integration methods and approaches.
  • Identify and evaluate the main challenges related to data interoperability in BIM-GIS integration
  • Identify and describe use cases, and best practices in BIM and GIS integration across various domains.
  • Identify and discuss in detail the standards in the BIM and 3D GIS world and analyse how they relate to each other.
  • Demonstrate how to handle different formats, coordinate systems, and other interoperability challenges.
  • Evaluate tools and software used for data exchange and visualisation of BIM and GIS data.

Module 3 – Data interoperability challenges in Digital Twins

  • Identify and discuss the specific data interoperability challenges for building and maintaining a DT
  • Explain how a DT is fed with new geospatial data layers and what the characteristics for such layers should be (formats, …)
  • Explain how a DT can ingest OGC web services and how they can make use of API’s
  • Identify different types of platforms / products used for building and using DT
  • Identify and discuss the advantages of DT platforms and the added value they (can) create for Urban and Environmental planning

Module 4 – Interactive workshop and assignments for BIM and DT

  • Demonstrate the use of basic functions using FME for data conversion between BIM and GIS formats.
  • Apply georeferencing techniques to BIM data.
  • Assess the accuracy and precision of georeferenced BIM data within GIS environments.
  • Explore and integrate different data layers in a DT: using 3D data models (CityGML)
  • Process and transform data for feeding the DT (BIM dataset, CS data)
  • Explore and experiment with the functionality of a DT platform and understand and illustrate the difference(s) between a DT and GIS
  • Integrate and use a BIM dataset of a building in a DT environment
  • Define scenarios and explore the impact of a new building on the urban environment

The materials will be a mixture of PPT’s, video’s, assignment descriptions, data and tools (GIS, ETL, different platforms in the cloud).

Participants must have completed the “Introduction to Data Interoperability” course for technicians, which provides a foundational understanding of data interoperability concepts and principles.

All the training material are produced by GIM and KU Leuven. The different modules (or lectures/assignments for that matter) are owned by their respective creators, which in some cases might be a joined ownership (e.g. when co-created).

Existing training materials will keep their existing license – if any such license exist – while newly created materials will get the Creative Commons Attribution Share-alike (CC BY-SA) license

The couse is using existing training courses developed by GIM, and materials coming from the projects BIRGIT , USAGE and RESIST.

Issuing of microcredentials is planned and more details will follow.

For managers

The course for Managers on “3D, BIM and Digital Twins for Urban Planning” aims to introduce the major concepts, definitions and facts related to our 3D urban environment. The needs for proper management of 3D geospatial data are becoming more recognized together with the implementation of new technologies, such as the use of Building Information Models (BIM) and Digital Twins. The course will zoom in on both aspects.

It is expected that the learners will have a solid understanding of 3D for urban planning, and will see the opportunities the use of 3D provides for their business. The managers will not learn how to tackle data interoperability in practice, but they will become aware of the complexity and need to invest in the topic.

More information

The course is conceived as a set of basic lectures to explain and frame 3D geospatial data and how they can be used in different contexts and applications. The lectures also provide the background on BIM and Digital Twins as technology, the international standards they are built upon, and more. Then the course will zoom in on respectively BIM and Digital Twins with focus on specific interoperability challenges, including an extensive demo on Digital Twins.

The course is organised in 3 modules and the total workload for the lectures is 4h.

Intended audience:

This course is designed for Managers (CEOs, project managers, COIs, …) who wish to explore the possibilities 3D, BIM and DT offer. Participants will gain the knowledge on the main concepts, technologies used, but also the challenges, and implications of 3D in the context of BIM and Digital Twins for urban planning.

Although the lectures are similar as for the Technicians, the way they are thought is different (wording, examples, dropping of technical details, more focussing on business opportunity and the value of 3D geospatial data).

Module 1 – Introduction to 3D geodata, BIM and DT

  • Introduction to 3D, BIM and Digital Twins (60 min.)
  • Examples of 3D, BIM and DT implementations and applications (60 min.)

Module 2 – Data interoperability challenges in BIM

  • Integration of GIS/BIM integration: introduction, use cases and workflow (60 min.)

Module 3 – Data interoperability challenges in Digital Twins

  • How Digital Twins work: example platforms and work flows (60 min.)

The total workload for the lectures is around 4h

Module 1 – Introduction to 3D geodata, BIM and DT

  • Describe and explain specificities of 3D geodata as compared to 2D geodata
  • Define and recognise BIM and DT as technologies for representing 3D urban data, and the business opportunities they provide
  • Identify and discuss the relevant 3D geospatial data standards and their characteristics
  • Identify and discuss examples of 3D, BIM and DT implementations and applications.

Module 2 – Data interoperability challenges in BIM

  • Describe and explain the principles of BIM-GIS integration and its benefits
  • Identify and evaluate the main challenges related to data interoperability in BIM-GIS integration
  • Identify and describe use cases, and best practices in BIM and GIS integration across various domains, identify relevant domains for the company.

Module 3 – Data interoperability challenges in Digital Twins

  • Identify different types of platforms / products used for building and using DT
  • Identify and discuss the advantages of DT platforms and the added value they (can) create for urban and environmental planning

The materials will be a mixture of presentations and videos.

Participants must have completed the “Introduction to Data Interoperability” course for managers, which provides a foundational understanding of data interoperability concepts and principles.

All the training material are produced by GIM and KU Leuven. The different modules (or lectures/assignments for that matter) are owned by their respective creators, which in some cases might be a joined ownership (e.g. when co-created).

Existing training materials will keep their existing license – if any such license exist – while newly created materials will get the Creative Commons Attribution Share-alike (CC BY-SA) license

The couse is using existing training courses developed by GIM, and materials coming from the projects BIRGIT , USAGE and RESIST.

Issuing of microcredentials is planned and more details will follow.

For technicians

The course for Technicians on “3D, BIM and Digital Twins for Urban Planning” discusses 3D data, and interoperability challenges related to them. Indeed, to combine different data sets, a solid understanding of 3D geometric and semantic modelling is required, as well as knowledge and skills on the appropriate tools and processes for the use and analysis of the data. Maintaining a 3D urban database also puts additional requirements on processes as compared to the 2D case.

It is expected that the learners will have a solid understanding of 3D for urban planning, while they will also obtain basic skills to integrate BIM data in a GIS environment, and get first hands-on experience with Digital Twin environments that will allow them to prepare for next steps in 3D geospatial data handling.

More information

The course is conceived as a set of basic lectures to explain and frame 3D geospatial data and how they can be used in different contexts and applications. The lectures also provide the background on BIM and Digital Twins as technology, the international standards they are building upon, and more. Then the course will zoom in on, respectively, BIM and Digital Twins with focus on specific interoperability challenges, as well as demo’s and assignments.

The course is organised in 6 lectures and 3 workshops with interactive assignments. The total workload for the lectures is 6h and for the workshops 9h. The total workload is 2.5 days.

Intended audience:

This course is designed for currently employed technicians (data managers, GIS technicians, ICT-oriented people …) who wish to upskill or reskill, as well as for job seekers looking to acquire knowledge and skills related to location data interoperability for 3D resources.

Participants will gain the knowledge and skills necessary to address the technical concepts, challenges, and implications of 3D in the context of BIM and Digital Twins for Urban Planning.

Module 1 – Introduction to 3D geodata, BIM and DT

  • Introduction to 3D, BIM and Digital Twins (60 min.)
  • Examples of 3D, BIM and DT implementations and applications (60 min.)

Module 2 – Data interoperability challenges in BIM

  • GIS/BIM integration: introduction, use cases and workflow (60 min.)
  • Managing BIM and GIS data: standards, tools and processes (60 min.)

Module 3 – Data interoperability challenges in Digital Twins

  • Specific data interoperability and integration challenges in DT (60 min.)
  • How Digital Twins work: example platforms and work flows (60 min.)

Module 4 – Interactive workshop and assignments for BIM and DT

  • Hands-on GIS/BIM integration (180 min.)
  • Hands-on preparing data to feed a DT (180 min.)
  • Hands-on using a Digital Twins (180 min.)

The total workload for the lectures is 6h (= 1 PD) and for the workshops 9h (=1.5 PD, ½ day each). The total workload is 2.5 days.

Module 1 – Introduction to 3D geodata, BIM and DT

  • Describe and explain specificities of 3D geodata as compared to 2D geodata
  • Define and recognise BIM and DT as technologies for representing 3D urban data
  • Identify and discuss the relevant 3D geospatial data standards and their characteristics
  • Identify and discuss examples of 3D, BIM and DT implementations and applications

Module 2 – Data interoperability challenges in BIM

  • Describe and explain the principles of BIM-GIS integration and its benefits
  • Analyze and discuss different integration methods and approaches.
  • Identify and evaluate the main challenges related to data interoperability in BIM-GIS integration
  • Identify and describe use cases, and best practices in BIM and GIS integration across various domains.
  • Identify and discuss in detail the standards in the BIM and 3D GIS world and analyse how they relate to each other.
  • Demonstrate how to handle different formats, coordinate systems, and other interoperability challenges.
  • Evaluate tools and software used for data exchange and visualisation of BIM and GIS data.

Module 3 – Data interoperability challenges in Digital Twins

  • Identify and discuss the specific data interoperability challenges for building and maintaining a DT
  • Explain how a DT is fed with new geospatial data layers and what the characteristics for such layers should be (formats, …)
  • Explain how a DT can ingest OGC web services and how they can make use of API’s
  • Identify different types of platforms / products used for building and using DT
  • Identify and discuss the advantages of DT platforms and the added value they (can) create for Urban and Environmental planning

Module 4 – Interactive workshop and assignments for BIM and DT

  • Demonstrate the use of basic functions using FME for data conversion between BIM and GIS formats.
  • Apply georeferencing techniques to BIM data.
  • Assess the accuracy and precision of georeferenced BIM data within GIS environments.
  • Explore and integrate different data layers in a DT: using 3D data models (CityGML)
  • Process and transform data for feeding the DT (BIM dataset, CS data)
  • Explore and experiment with the functionality of a DT platform and understand and illustrate the difference(s) between a DT and GIS
  • Integrate and use a BIM dataset of a building in a DT environment
  • Define scenarios and explore the impact of a new building on the urban environment

The materials will be a mixture of PPT’s, video’s, assignment descriptions, data and tools (GIS, ETL, different platforms in the cloud).

Participants must have completed the “Introduction to Data Interoperability” course for technicians, which provides a foundational understanding of data interoperability concepts and principles.

All the training material are produced by GIM and KU Leuven. The different modules (or lectures/assignments for that matter) are owned by their respective creators, which in some cases might be a joined ownership (e.g. when co-created).

Existing training materials will keep their existing license – if any such license exist – while newly created materials will get the Creative Commons Attribution Share-alike (CC BY-SA) license

The couse is using existing training courses developed by GIM, and materials coming from the projects BIRGIT , USAGE and RESIST.

Issuing of microcredentials is planned and more details will follow.