NextGen BIM Award 2025: emerging excellence in Italian BIM awarded

Prize and jury

The NextGen BIM Award was born with the aim of creating a bridge between the academic and professional world by valorising works that contribute to developing a BIM culture that is open, collaborative and applicable to daily practice.

The symbol of the award, the Möbius strip, elegantly underlines the concept of a continuous cycle of improvement and transformation, embodying the very essence of the BIM process and the path of the young designers who make it evolve every day.

Leading the jury, made up of leading figures from the AEC scene, were Giuseppe Semprini (architect at Renzo Piano Building Workshop) and Amani Chahin (engineer at Jacobs), references from the cultural network of BIM (K)now!.

Marco Culicigno – Best Degree Thesis

University of Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”
Thesis: “HBIM and augmented reality for the management and maintenance of historic buildings”

Having graduated first in Industrial Design and then in Architecture – Interior Design and for Autonomy, Marco Culicigno has always shown a particular interest in the dialogue between new technologies and architecture, with the aim of making the project not only more efficient, but also more sustainable and intelligent. Culicigno’s thesis, discussed with the supervisor Prof. Arch. Nicola Pisacane, is entitled “HBIM and augmented reality for the management and maintenance of historic buildings” and explores the integration between Heritage Building Information Modeling (HBIM) and augmented reality (AR) applied to architectural heritage. The chosen case study, Casa Molitierno, allowed us to develop a three-dimensional digital model capable of collecting technical, material and plant information, aligning it with physical reality thanks to augmented reality. Culicigno underlines how the most important aspect of his work lies in the possibility of viewing data directly on the building in real time, via tablets or viewers, transforming BIM into an operational and interactive tool: this approach allows for more informed maintenance interventions and a more complete use of the building even by a non-specialist public.

Receive the NextGen BIM Award 2025 for the Best Graduation Thesis it represented for Marco Culicigno an important recognition, not only of the technical value of the work, but also of the ability to propose an original and applicable approach. Marco considers the award a confirmation of the centrality of the new generations in the digitalisation process of the sector, where BIM can become an integrated tool throughout the entire life cycle of the building, communicating with technologies such as artificial intelligence and real-time monitoring systems.

Giulia Doro – Best Master’s Thesis

Polytechnic of Milan – Master Fratelli Pesenti
Thesis: “BIM in the naval sector – Development of the Italian restaurant case study on Deck 7 of Megane Cruise”

Graduated in 2016 in Building Engineering-Architecture at the University of Padua, Giulia Doro initially worked in the architectural facade sector, before specializing in advanced modeling of structures and management of information flows through Tekla Structures and Trimble Connect. In 2024 Doro chose to further expand his skills by enrolling in the II level University Master “BIM for Project and Contract Management in Construction Works” at the Fratelli Pesenti Master School of the Polytechnic of Milan. His thesis, discussed with Prof. Giovanni Franchi and correlated by Carlo Grossi, is entitled“BIM in the naval sector – Development of the Italian restaurant case study on Deck 7 of Megane Cruise” and represents an example of BIM application outside traditional construction contexts.

The Megane Cruise case study demonstrates how BIM can be used to manage the design, construction and maintenance of naval spaces, integrating Tekla Structures for the structural part, Revit for architecture and Archicad for the furnishing and management of the restaurant on board. Thanks to the use of a CDE collaborative environment – ​​Trimble Connect – Doro coordinated IFC models, managed variants and optimized communication between designers. The most relevant aspect concerns the application of Facility Management (6D BIM) in the naval sector, with the creation of an information database for the ordinary and extraordinary maintenance of the ship, synchronizing materials, personnel and timing with the navigation of the vessel. The result is a prototype of a Naval Digital Twin, capable of guaranteeing efficiency, sustainability and control throughout the entire life cycle of the vessel.

Recognition as Best Master’s Thesis it represented for Giulia Doro a confirmation of her professional vision: BIM can become an integrated and strategic method, not just a modeling tool.

Valentina Sulis – Best Thesis for Innovation, Giuseppe Nucera Special Prize

University of Florence
Thesis: “BIM for facility management, management of the real estate assets of the University of Florence – Case study: the Rectorate Headquarters”

During her academic career in Architecture at the University of Florence, Valentina Sulis encountered the world of BIM, deepening it thanks to the thesis led by Professors Eng. Carlo Biagini and Arch. Luca Marzi. The award-winning work explores the potential of BIM applied to Facility Management, focusing on the management and conservation of the real estate assets of the University of Florence, with a particular focus on the Rectorate, a complex historic building. Sulis’ thesis created an integrated digital model, enriched by virtual reality (VR), which allows you to simulate interventions, verify critical issues and anticipate design and management solutions. The use of BIM as an operational and management tool allows not only more accurate and sustainable planning, but also a concrete approach to the maintenance and cultural enhancement of historic buildings.

Valentina Sulis’ project received the Giuseppe Nucera Special Prize – Innovation Categorya recognition that celebrates the ability of the work to open new perspectives and trace innovative routes in the digital landscape of BIM, awarded as the best work for Innovation among all the Master’s and Degree theses.

The value of the NextGen BIM Award

The NextGen BIM Award does not only reward academic results, but enhances the human and professional potential of young people, stimulating experimentation, dialogue between academia and the professional world and the diffusion of an advanced digital culture in the construction sector. The winners demonstrate how BIM can be applied in different contexts: from the conservation of historical heritage with Marco Culicigno, to the complex management of ships with Giulia Doro, up to the optimization of facility management and cultural enhancement with Valentina Sulis. The award also confirms the importance of supporting initiatives that promote talent, passion and commitment, creating opportunities for growth, discussion and collaboration between young professionals, students and companies in the sector.

In summary, the first edition of the award represents not only an academic and professional recognition, but also a symbolic and concrete moment for the sector: BIM is not just digital modeling, but an integrated and operational method, capable of transforming the design, management and maintenance of buildings and complex spaces. As Vittorio Andrea Sellaro recalled “the NextGen BIM Award is not a goal, but a starting point: an invitation to continue experimenting, creating connections and believing in the value of shared knowledge”.

Final conference BIM (K)now! 2025

We remind you that the final conference of the BIM (K)now! cycle this year it will be held on 28 November 2025 at La Sapienza University of Rome (Faculty of Architecture, Aula Magna di Fontanella Borghese, 2.30 pm) >> View the poster here and sign up (4 CFP for engineers, activity valid for maintaining BIM certifications).