Video: Do designers use BIM content from manufacturers in their project designs?

Many building product manufacturers wonder whether architects and designers actually use manufacturer BIM content in live projects. The answer is yes.

From concept design through to documentation, architects and designers regularly rely on manufacturer BIM content to visualise products, communicate design intent and develop coordinated project models. When high-quality Revit content is readily available, it becomes easier to evaluate, specify and incorporate products into a project.

For manufacturers, providing professionally developed BIM content is no longer just a technical resource—it’s an opportunity to support design teams and increase product visibility throughout the specification process.

Key Takeaways

• Architects and designers use manufacturer BIM content throughout the design process.
• Manufacturer BIM content helps design teams visualise real products from the earliest project stages.
• High-quality BIM content influences product selection and specification decisions.
• BIM objects need to be both visually accurate and technically reliable.
• Manufacturers who provide BIM content gain a competitive advantage by making their products easier to specify.

Designers Use Manufacturer BIM Content Earlier Than You Think

A common misconception is that BIM content is only required during documentation.

In reality, architects and designers often begin using manufacturer BIM content during concept and schematic design, when clients want to visualise spaces using real products rather than generic placeholders.

Having access to manufacturer-specific Revit families allows design teams to incorporate actual products into their designs from the outset, creating more realistic presentations while reducing the need to remodel products later in the project.

Kellie Adler, Senior Architectural Technician BIM Manager at Arch:

It [manufacturer content] could be used as a very initial schematic design, and then it doesn’t need to be changed out later during any kind of documentation, design, tender design… So as early on as possible, using a piece of content saves us time later.

The earlier quality BIM content is available, the earlier manufacturers have the opportunity to become part of the design conversation.

Why Designers Use Manufacturer BIM Content

When designers find high-quality manufacturer BIM content, they’re doing more than downloading a Revit family—they’re actively evaluating that product for use in their project.

Rather than investing time creating custom families, architects prefer manufacturer content that is accurate, easy to access and ready to use.

Julia Allen, Design Technology Leader at Hassell:

Manufacturers don’t realise how important that content is to us, how time consuming it is for us to make it on a project, and also that if every individual person goes and produces and tries to model the same content, we’re going to get very different content back and the quality is going to be very different.

Designing with manufacturer BIM content allows project teams to make informed product decisions while maintaining consistency throughout design development and documentation.

High-Quality BIM Content Supports Specification Decisions

Providing BIM content is only the first step. The quality of that content has a direct impact on whether designers choose to use it.

High-quality manufacturer BIM content should:

• Accurately represent the physical product
• Perform efficiently within Revit projects
• Include meaningful product data and technical information
• Support coordination and documentation workflows
• Be intuitive and easy for designers to use

Fergus Hohnen, Global Practice Leader – Design Technology at Woods Bagot:

Manufacturers that do provide a quality library to designers have an advantage because ultimately, if it’s easier for us to incorporate a particular item in our [project] models, that’s what we’ll do. So the quality of manufacturer content is very important to us, to the extent that if it isn’t good quality, we won’t use it…

When BIM content performs well, designers can confidently integrate products into their workflows without unnecessary modification, saving valuable project time.

Why High-Quality BIM Content Matters

Architects and designers work under tight project deadlines and increasingly expect manufacturers to provide BIM content that is reliable, natively modelled and accessible.

Manufacturers who invest in high-quality BIM content make it easier for specifiers to evaluate products, improve project efficiency and reduce the effort required to incorporate products into live projects.

Connor Davy, Project BIM Manager at Grimshaw:

We will never use a piece of bad content or allow it to go into our models… It’s very easy to spot when something has maybe gone into a Revit model that shouldn’t because there’s a worsening of performance in the model… we’ll take it out straight away and work on a resolution.

As BIM adoption continues across Australia and New Zealand, providing quality manufacturer BIM content has become an important part of supporting architects, designers and consultants throughout the specification process.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do Architects Use Manufacturer BIM Content?

Yes. Architects regularly use manufacturer BIM content throughout concept design, design development and documentation. High-quality Revit families help designers visualise products, coordinate projects and produce accurate documentation.

When Do Designers Use BIM Content During a Project?

Manufacturer BIM content can be used throughout the entire project lifecycle. Many architects begin incorporating manufacturer products during concept and schematic design and oftentimes, use the same BIM objects throughout design development, documentation and coordination.

Does BIM Content Increase Specification Opportunities?

Making products easier to access and easier to use through the availability of BIM content significantly improves the opportunity for architects and designers to evaluate and specify manufacturer products during the design process.

What Makes High-Quality Manufacturer BIM Content?

High-quality BIM content combines accurate geometry and data, intuitive functionality and produces fit for purpose documentation. It should be lightweight and accurately represent the manufacturer’s product while integrating seamlessly into project workflows.

Ready to Make Your Products Easier to Specify?

Architects and designers increasingly expect manufacturers to provide high-quality BIM content that supports modern design workflows.

At IGS, we help manufacturers create, host and distribute professionally developed Revit content through BIMcontent.com, making products easier to discover, evaluate and specify.

If you’re looking to improve product visibility and support architects with manufacturer BIM content they can trust, get in touch with the IGS team to learn how we can help.