The BIM Before the BIM, Nervi’s Lesson in Parametric Among Architecture Structure and Construction

The relationship between Cultural Heritage and the current digital technologies allows us to critically analyze the Modernist period (1920–1960) and its preeminent figures, who reshaped their environment utilizing practical testing, scientific knowledge, and new technologies. Pier Luigi Nervi is one of the main characters. He considered that proper geometric design involved proper structural and architectural design. Nervi’s system was based on scale models, which let him test the structure and analyze its stability. Stability of structures was one of the fundamental principles of the Nervian approach, along with efficiency and economics. From a theoretical perspective, his methodology is still valid, and it suits the current practice of Building Information Modelling (BIM). The scale model is replaced by a digital model, which is essential for static analysis through FEM (Finite Element Method) that manage complex shape figures. The contribution by Nervi to the history of construction...