December 2025: New Standard Bridges BIM and GIS Data in Information Technology

The rapid digitalization of data ecosystems in construction, geospatial analysis, and urban management receives a significant boost this December, as the latest international standard for linking Building Information Modelling (BIM) and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) is published. The new CEN ISO/TS 19166:2025 technical specification offers a practical conceptual framework for bridging critical data silos, enabling more effective information sharing and integration across the built and geographic environments. For professionals in the Information Technology and Office Equipment sector, this update marks a crucial step forward in harmonizing disparate data, streamlining digital workflows, and supporting advanced analytics for smart cities and infrastructure projects.

Overview

Integration between BIM and GIS has long been a challenge for organizations involved in facility management, construction, and urban planning. BIM excels at the detailed digital representation of buildings and infrastructure, while GIS provides context-rich information about their locations and surroundings. However, aligning these two models has been complex due to differing schemas, terminologies, and levels of detail.

The CEN ISO/TS 19166:2025 standard fills an essential gap by defining mechanisms for conceptual mapping from BIM data to GIS. This article details the scope, mechanisms, and impact of this new specification, helping industry professionals understand its applications, compliance pathways, and benefits for digital transformation initiatives.

Detailed Standards Coverage

CEN ISO/TS 19166:2025 – Geographic Information: BIM to GIS Conceptual Mapping (B2GM)

Full Title: Geographic information – Building information modelling (BIM) to geographic information systems (GIS) conceptual mapping (B2GM) (ISO/TS 19166:2025)

This technical specification sets out a clear conceptual framework for mapping information elements from Building Information Modelling (BIM) systems to Geographic Information Systems (GIS). The approach is specifically designed to facilitate access to the precise information needed for diverse user requirements across various digital and engineering domains.

Scope and Key Elements:

• The standard introduces three principal mapping mechanisms for conceptual conversion:

  1. BIM to GIS Perspective Definition (B2G PD): Addresses the representation of information from different use-case perspectives, such as urban facility management or emergency evacuation planning. This mechanism defines how data should be extracted and reshaped from BIM sources for user-specific needs in GIS.
  2. BIM to GIS Element Mapping (B2G EM): Dictates rules for mapping individual elements—such as doors, walls, or entire rooms—from the BIM schema to relevant constructs in GIS, considering the differences in structure and semantics between the two systems.
  3. BIM to GIS Level of Detail Mapping (B2G LM): Outlines methodology for translating the 'level of detail' used in BIM to the corresponding GIS LOD, crucial for applications like visualization or progressive data disclosure.

• The standard

  • Establishes definitions and requirements for conceptual mapping between BIM and GIS,
  • Defines the structure and components of mapping frameworks,
  • Guides the process of exporting information from one schema to another with clarity on mapping requirements.

Exclusions and Limitations:

• Physically integrating BIM and GIS schemas, bi-directional mapping, or coordinate transformation is beyond scope due to inherent complexity and ambiguity issues. The focus is squarely on conceptual mapping, not physical data model unification.
• The standard is not an implementation or application schema; it underpins conceptual mapping as a precursor to any data transformation or interoperability effort.
• For geo-referencing BIM within GIS positioning contexts, practitioners are pointed to related standards such as ISO 19111 and buildingSMART’s Information Delivery Manual (IDM) for Geo-referencing BIM.

Who Should Use This Standard?

• Organizations dealing with digital construction, facility management, and urban planning requiring consistent integration between design (BIM) and spatial (GIS) datasets.
• IT architects, engineers, quality managers, and compliance officers responsible for data workflows and interoperability in built environment and infrastructure projects.
• Stakeholders in smart city initiatives, public works, emergency service planning, and geospatial analytics.

Practical Implications:

• Enhances ability to leverage BIM data within GIS-centric applications, such as indoor navigation, asset management, emergency routing, and energy modeling.
• Facilitates query and visualization of building elements within the broader spatial context without forcing full data merging.
• Provides consistent rules and terminology for planning digital integration projects.

Notable Changes from Previous Editions:

• Revised key definitions (such as "class," "perspective," and "element"), aligning the terminology with current industry practice and model-based engineering standards.
• Updated conceptual diagram figures for greater clarity.
• Expands the mapping mechanisms to fit more diverse use cases, especially in the areas of LOD mapping and instance extraction.

Key highlights:

• Outlines a robust conceptual mapping method between BIM and GIS domains without requiring physical schema integration.
• Establishes standardized terminology and mechanism for perspective-based data transformation and export.
• Supports modular, staged implementation of BIM-GIS data workflows for practical, real-world scenarios.

Access the full standard:View CEN ISO/TS 19166:2025 on iTeh Standards

Industry Impact & Compliance

By introducing a standardized conceptual mapping approach, CEN ISO/TS 19166:2025 promises to:

• Eliminate ambiguity and inconsistency when translating design/building models into geographic digital twins.
• Reduce project costs and risk associated with ad hoc data transformation methods.
• Enable more strategic asset management, urban planning, and facility operations by streamlining information retrieval from BIM sources in spatial applications.
• Lay the groundwork for compliance with data governance, digital twin, and smart infrastructure mandates worldwide.

For compliance, companies should:

• Review internal BIM and GIS data usage processes against the standard’s conceptual framework.
• Identify projects or departments where data alignment and migration are problematic or create inefficiencies.
• Update technical documentation and data exchange protocols to reference the new mapping definitions and mechanisms.

Compliance Timeline & Considerations:

• The standard takes effect immediately but, as a technical specification, is subject to review and possible elevation to a European Standard within three years.
• Organizations leading in digital transformation and public sector projects are often early adopters.
• Early implementation offers a competitive advantage in governmental tenders and corporate digital twin initiatives.

Benefits of Early Adoption:

• Reduced integration friction and greater certainty in cross-domain data exchanges
• Improved project collaboration across multidisciplinary teams
• Enhanced capacity for real-time digital twin visualization and analysis

Risks of Non-Compliance:

• Data silos persist, limiting cross-functional insight and innovation
• Increased cost and risk in project execution and handover
• Potential for missed opportunities in smart city and infrastructure modernization programs

Technical Insights

Adopting CEN ISO/TS 19166:2025 requires:

• Familiarity with both BIM standards, such as Industry Foundation Classes (IFC), and GIS standards, such as Geography Markup Language (GML).
• Understanding semantic differences between LOD (Level of Detail) in GIS and LOD (Level of Development) in BIM, as clarified by the standard.
• The mapping mechanisms outlined enable staged transformation, so implementers can start conceptually before investing in complex physical integrations.

Common Themes Across Mechanisms:

• Focus on perspective-based data extraction: Tailoring exports to match user roles (e.g., facility manager, urban planner, first responder).
• Explicit mapping rules: Using UML notation, implementers can document and automate how BIM elements map to GIS features.
• Level of Detail orientation: Matching the granularity of information to the decision-making context (from block models to fine-grained operational data).

Implementation Best Practices:

1. Start with a Pilot: Select a representative project and document current pain points where BIM-to-GIS translation is required.
2. Map the Workflows: Use the standard’s perspective, element, and LOD mapping mechanisms to articulate the required data exchanges.
3. Update Data Templates: Revise data exchange agreements and technical templates to align with the standard’s definitions.
4. Engage Stakeholders: Train cross-disciplinary teams on the distinctions and mapping approaches between BIM and GIS data.
5. Monitor & Review: Use the annexes from the standard as guidance for test suites and instance examples to verify conformance.

Testing and Certification Considerations:

• The standard includes normative and informative annexes (such as abstract test suite, example mappings, and rule descriptions)
• Organizations may develop or leverage software tools to facilitate mapping and verify conceptual compliance before/during physical data transfers.

Conclusion / Next Steps

The December 2025 publication of CEN ISO/TS 19166:2025 marks a pivotal advance in Information Technology standards, addressing a long-standing digital integration challenge between BIM and GIS. By providing a clear, consensus-based conceptual mapping framework, the standard empowers organizations to:

• Eliminate interoperability bottlenecks between design/building and spatial data environments
• Simplify planning, documentation, and implementation of cross-domain digital workflows
• Position themselves at the leading edge of digital transformation, smart infrastructure, and data-driven asset management

Recommendations for Organizations:

• Familiarize project teams with the conceptual mapping mechanisms and terminology introduced
• Review ongoing and planned projects to identify opportunities to leverage the new standard for BIM-GIS alignment
• Monitor the evolution of this technical specification for potential migration to a full European Standard
• Access and study the standard in full, using authoritative platforms such as iTeh Standards

Stay current with developments, case studies, and related standards at https://standards.iteh.ai, and prepare your organization for the next era of smarter, more integrated digital infrastructure.