The new Ford Centre of Engineering and Manufacturing Excellence (CEME) building is located at the Heart of the Thames Gateway, the largest area of growth and regeneration in the U.K. It provides nearly 10,000 square meters of high-tech learning facilities, including conference facilities for 350 people, office space, IT and business centers, two auditoriums, six lecture theaters, 14 training rooms, 22 classrooms, and four specialist CAD/CAM rooms.

Throughout the project, the integration of MicroStation DGN data with intranet-based databases was critical in ensuring the management of complete building data. Through the use of tag sets, the project benefited from issue sheets and drawing registers fully synchronized with the DGN drawings. Door and window schedules and specifications were all produced as a by-product of the CAD model—true building information modeling (BIM).

This approach, tied with Sheppard Robson’s commitment to efficient design solutions and the use of Bentley software, permitted the completion of an extremely energy-efficient building that will cut CEME’s annual utility bill by about 25 percent.