2025 VDCLEx

CONTENT EXPIRES: December 31, 2027 Owner organizations are increasingly leveraging VDC to drive digital transformation in their capital projects. This session explores how owners are updating their digital delivery standards and requirements, and how these evolving standards impact design-build teams. The session will examine the alignment of owner requirements with national standards and best practices, and discuss strategies for effective stakeholder engagement, focusing on how VDC facilitates collaboration between owners, designers, and builders. Through real-world examples and practical insights, attendees will learn how to leverage VDC to not only meet owner requirements but also to enhance project outcomes, improve communication, and foster innovation in design-build projects. This session will provide design-build teams with actionable strategies for navigating the evolving landscape of VDC standards and delivering successful, standards-compliant projects.

CONTENT EXPIRES: December 31, 2027 While not all projects are Design-Build, it shouldn’t stop teams from leveraging Design-Build best practices to help drive faster schedules, reduce project risk, and support greater collaboration. This presentation will highlight how two projects with very different starting points were able to take advantage of real-time coordination, robust technology solutions, and a diverse set of BIM Uses. In addition to exploring how BIM can make hard bid problems into Design-Build solutions, we’ll explore how early collaboration can be expanded in to successfully deliver prefabricated solutions as we look to learn from the past and push the industry forward. Join us for an interactive presentation and panel discussion between three different Design-Builders bringing their unique perspectives one on Design-Build (and VDC) Done Right.

CONTENT EXPIRES: December 31, 2027 Over the years project delivery methods have seen a wave of changes- from traditional delivery approach to Design-build and IPD. In the ever changing landscape of project delivery, it's critical to constantly innovate and reimagine our traditional VDC coordination workflows, to foster collaboration and create impact. The Sutter Health Santa Clara RAC is a tenant improvement project consisting of 3 buildings. It is a capstone project for Sutter leveraging collaborative project delivery methods. The project aims to maximize “speed-to-market” strategies and construction methodologies to set up the project for success. The VDC workflow was strategized and incorporated into schedule using the Last Planner System, from validation stage of the project and spread out over all phases of construction. Starting from existing structure validation to Tier-based coordination approach and finally Coordination handoff for installation, team collaboration was key to each stage.

CONTENT EXPIRES: December 31, 2027 The challenge on large, high-stakes projects isn’t just making a plan—it’s executing it. In this session, leaders from a $1B hospital project will share how they used Virtual Design & Construction (VDC) not just for coordination, but as a central force for aligning trades and driving execution in the field. Working under an Integrated Project Delivery (IPD) contract, McCarthy partnered closely with four key trades—Performance Contracting Inc. (Framing), Morrow Meadows (Electrical), Frank M. Booth (Mechanical), and Pan Pacific Mechanical (Plumbing)—to push BIM coordination to an unprecedented level. The team advanced the model to LOD 400, coordinated dense MEP systems in tight spaces, and deployed automated layout to translate design directly to fieldwork. This panel explores how the team used VDC as a proactive risk mitigation strategy, then extended its value through a new multi-trade layout workflow. By aligning around a shared model and using automation to deliver layout data to the field, each trade worked from a single source of truth, cutting errors, reducing rework, and compressing the schedule.  Attendees will hear directly from the GC, trades, and roboticist on how they executed a collaborative, builder-driven coordination process and brought the model to life with one-to-one accuracy on-site.

CONTENT EXPIRES: December 31, 2027 The University of Arizona's Applied Research Building (ARB) project showcases how VDC-enabled collaboration throughout the entire project lifecycle delivers measurable results. With only 99 RFIs-most of which were confirmations the project highlights the ROI of BIM and reality capture when applied intentionally. From Day One, a VDC Lead was established to define the conditions of satisfaction and drive engagement across a fully virtual Big Room kickoff. Early alignment on BIM expectations, including a well-defined LOD matrix, BIM execution plan, and Lean modeling strategies embedded in Part A of the contract, fostered deep collaboration between design teams and trades. A focal point of this collaboration was the $1M Thermal Vacuum (TV) chamber—purchased off eBay. With limited available specs, remote laser scanning of the equipment in storage and the on-site concrete pit enabled early coordination. The TV Chamber became central to the project's sequencing as the building had to be constructed around this piece of equipment. Model-based field verification ensured accurate placement on install day, affirming the power of VDC as a real-time coordination tool. By leveraging reality capture, target clearance parameters, and streamlined model updates, the team empowered both project execution and future facilities management with data-rich, owner-focused deliverables.

CONTENT EXPIRES: December 31, 2027 Virtual Design & Construction (VDC) has evolved from an innovation on the horizon to a mission-critical capability in the built environment. But for many design-build teams, especially at small to mid-sized firms, the question remains: how do we make VDC real, scalable, and impactful - today? This session explores how organizations are unlocking the real-world value of VDC - delivering tighter coordination, faster decisions, and better outcomes. We'll look at how VDC workflows can scale across different project types, sizes, and complexities, showing that success isn't reserved for mega-projects. Most importantly, we'll discuss why the "we've arrived" moment for VDC is here: the tools, processes, and potential are ready - and the opportunity is yours to capture.