This paper describes a procedure for quality assessment in architectural design based on Building Information Modelling (BIM) technologies and investigates how the evaluations can affect the decision-making process. Based on techniques already defined in the literature, a method of evaluating the BIM processes and BIM model based on the definition of a BIM Quality Assurance (BIM-QA) that is applied through BIM Quality Control (BIM-QC) will be shown. The proposed method integrates into a general BIM methodology and its common procedures several tools and approaches. The method uses customised checklists and queries performed on a database management system that also perceives data from the use of model-checking software in order to achieve data that will be used for the evaluation of quality. The method was validated by applying the procedure to three projects in Italy, where quality issues play a fundamental role and influence the design solution on public building with health care functions. It was found that the procedure for integrating QA/QC into a design process based on BIM provided a range of possibilities for assessing quality during the design process.

In recent years we have been experiencing an ever-increasing number of Building Modeling Modeling (BIM) and Visual Programming Language (VPL) approaches in the architectural design field. These experiments have inspired new research strictly focused on exploring values, criticalities, and the advantages of applying these combined methodologies in the Cultural Heritage domain. This integrated approach has emphasized the benefits derived from HBIM. The next step is to critically evaluate the application of BIM and VPL processes used in the management and valorisation of museum heritage, pursuing both parametric and algorithmic approaches. The research group worked on building a model that shared the BIM hierarchical structure and the flexibility of the VPL methodologies. Semi-automatic procedures were developed within a rigorous BIM workflow, with the help of Autodesk and McNeel tools, to show and manage complex museum management phenomena. These procedures aimed to respond to three different objectives. First, the need to associate information from the Facility Report to the individual BIM components to predict and monitor the conditions in which museum collections are found. Second, the intention to measure the attractiveness of the artifacts within the exhibition project and the design effects for a correct prefiguration of visitor flows. Third, the elements involved included the exhibition area obtained from an HBIM model (converted into a visual field through interoperable processes), the digitized collections (the attractive elements), the users and, finally, the numerical evaluation of the visibility of specific objects within collections by simulating the human point of view. Once automated, the devised procedures can be considered a prototype to support curators in controlling and improving the efficiency of the exhibition layout.

Nowadays, 3D digital imaging proposes effective solutions for preserving the expression of human creativity across the centuries, as well as is a great tool to guarantee global dissemination of knowledge and wide access to these invaluable resources of the past. Nevertheless, in several cases, a massive digitalisation of cultural heritage items (from the archaeological site up to the monument and museum collections) could be unworkable due to the still high costs in terms of equipment and human resources: 3D acquisition technologies and the need of skilled team within cultural institutions. Therefore, it is necessary to explore new possibilities offered by growing technologies: the lower costs of these technologies as well as their attractive visual quality constitute a challenge for researchers. Besides these possibilities, it is also important to consider how information is spread through graphic representation of knowledge. The focus of this study is to explore the potentialities and weaknesses of a newly released low cost device in the cultural heritage domain, trying to understand its effective usability in museum collections. The aim of the research is to test their usability, critically analysing the final outcomes of this entry level technology in relation to the other better assessed low cost technologies for 3D scanning, such as Structure from Motion (SfM) techniques (also produced by the same device) combined with dataset generated by a professional digital camera. The final outcomes were compared in terms of quality definition, time processing and file size. The specimens of the collections of the Civic Museum Castello Ursino in Catania have been chosen as the site of experimentation.

This contribution explores the application of the BIM methodology in the context of built heritage (HBIM). Specifically, it investigates how this methodology has evolved in terms of modeling techniques, viewed through the lens of Drawing as a critical aspect of its implementation. By considering these perspectives together, the paper aims to identify the primary advantages and limitations of HBIM, highlighting the need for defined workflows to effectively manage and deconstruct the intricate architectural elements found in the Palazzo del Collegio dei Nobili, which represents Turin's brick buildings from the Savoy Baroque period.