Digitization is a trend that affects all fields of human activity. It is a process that we cannot stop, and the construction industry is not left behind. It’s up to us whether we can take advantage of the opportunity that digitization offers us in the form of greater efficiency or, perhaps, lower error rates. The path to digital construction is the BIM (Building Information Management), which transfers building information into a digital environment and makes it much easier and more efficient to work with. An important element in this efficiency is also a functional classification system, which is adapted to the possibilities and needs of the digital environment, such as the CCI international classification system.
The classification systems used in the construction industry were so-called enumerative systems. This means they had the ambition to include all objects in their structure. Traditionally, these systems were arranged hierarchically, with individual classes and subclasses arranged in a tree structure. The disadvantage of this approach is considerable rigidity. The tree structure is usually huge, complicated, and quite rigid. That is, it allows for a single view of classification. However, the needs of different construction professions are different, often resulting in each profession using its classification system, which complicates collaboration.
Modern classification systems are therefore usually faceted. The different facets (tables) allow a different view of the object to be classified. The development of faceted classification systems has been made possible by digitization and working with information in the digital world using machine reading. By combining these views, it is possible to use one classification system across the entire life cycle of a building. This is how the CCI International Classification System was designed, which is directly based on the classification needs in digital information management using BIM. Its use is therefore also fully compliant with the ISO 19650 series of standards. It significantly supports clear information requirements, delivery and, most importantly, its value in sharing and further work throughout the construction lifecycle.
CCI offers a total of five basic phases – building entities, built spaces, functional systems, technical systems and components. In an analogue world, such a classification could be difficult, in a digital world, linking different views of a building is a piece of cake for machines. For example, we can look at a window as a “space access object” with a component code of QQA. But at the same time, it can be part of a ventilation system (functional – jj) and a build system of wall construction (technical – AD). Of course, it can be in a room (built space – AAB) or in a house (building entity – AAA). By combining the classification into all (or several) phases, each building profession can have its view of the classification and use it according to its needs. However, it will still be one classification system.