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There's less than a year to go before it becomes mandatory for companies vying for Government business to be BIM Level 2 compliant. If you haven't already got your staff up to speed and raring to go - or if you are not already working on BIM projects - then there is little time left.

What does the April 2016 deadline entail? Essentially, that you can prove that you can commence to deliver BIM level 2 processes by that date - that you can commit to providing a federated Building Information Model, 2D contract documentation (the drawings and other information from the model) some means of sharing asset information - which obviously means COBie, the format that has been agreed throughout the industry, and the use of a Common Data Environment - which is basically the same thing.

There are also standards that you have to comply with, defined by BS/PAS 1992. For guidance on how to deliver all this the CIC (Construction Industry Council) has a Suite of Documents you can use, supported by Government Soft Landings and the new Digital Plan of Work, which validates and defines the level of information and detail required. Oh, don't forget Uniclass 2015 - something the Construction Project Information Committee (CPIC) set up a while ago to facilitate the organisation of information throughout all aspects of design in the construction industry.

So how do you prove you are BIM Level 2 compliant? First you have to be BIM certified. There are a number of reputable agencies who offer BIM certification. Before you approach them, however, the first step is to designate someone inside the office to be the BIM champion, tasked with the job of ensuring that all of the above is achievable. Their first step will be to find out what BIM certification requires of you, and to devise a new workflow in the office to achieve it - and then persuade you to adopt it! All the more reason for a guide to BIM then.