Last week we finally got to host BILT ANZ 2020 in Sydney at the International Convention Centre. It had been 34 months since the BILT ANZ community got together and 29 months since I attended the last BILT event in Edinburgh, Scotland, in October 2019. Despite all the challenges that we have faced globally since our last event, we have seen Bushfires, Covid, and Flooding, and we finally were able to get together.
I must admit I truly have missed the annual dosage of BILT in my life. The 3-days of learning, networking, and catching up with the ‘BILT Family’ at BILT ANZ last week was the energy recharge I needed. BILT is one of the biggest things I have missed in the past 2-years.
Despite this event being about half the size of previous events in Australia, it was a great way to bring BILT ANZ back after being put on hold for so long. The sessions run by the presenters were once again top-notch. Sitting and listening through 2 x keynote presentations and 12 x 75-minute sessions, I have to say I have walked away with a lot. I have notes, ideas, and a long list of research and development projects that will take me well over 2-years to implement.
Apart from my committee role at the event to introduce speakers, I participated in a panel discussion on ISO 19650. I also enjoyed contributing to round table discussions on BIM templates. The lesson I learned from participating in these discussions was the lack of a strong understanding of ISO 19650 by the broader BILT community. As we move forward, I feel we need to provide the industry with some more clarity on the purpose of both ISO 19650, the relevant tasks and potential templates and guidance that will help move the industry forward.
On top of the high-quality, insightful presentations, the networking and late-night discussions with other industry experts have generated several exciting ideas in my head. Ideas that I look forward to investigating further over the coming months.
The other thing that I enjoy, which is sometimes under-rated, is the opportunities to talk to new software and technology providers that are part of the exhibition. Those that know me well know that I enjoy testing software and technology. It is fun to try tools and pull them apart to see if they can improve how I work. This year it was great to see some new tech in the exhibition space, compared to our long-term partners.
With BILT ANZ 2020/21 Sydney now closed out, I am back at my desk and looking forward to 24 – 26 November when BILT ANZ heads to the Gold Coast. Registrations for the event are already open, and abstracts for presentations will open in the next couple of weeks. After speaking to several people at our Sydney event I do look forward to seeing the quality of the submissions that we will see, and the resulting schedule that is put together leading into the event.
I look forward to catching up with you in November on the Gold Coast!
