Spain: IFC adoption accelerates in construction, driven by an ambitious national policy

1. Spain integrates BIM into its national construction modernisation strategy

For several years, Spain has been developing a structured policy to accelerate the digital transformation of its construction sector.

This approach materialised on 27 June 2023 with the Council of Ministers' approval of the Plan for the Incorporation of BIM Methodology in Public Procurement (Plan de Incorporación de la Metodología BIM en la Contratación Pública), officially published in July 2023.

This national programme aims to gradually integrate BIM methodology into public procurement for construction, infrastructure, conservation and the operation of works.

Three objectives structure this policy:

• Improve the efficiency of public spending and project management.

• Promote digital collaboration between different stakeholders.

• Develop interoperability and the use of open standards to ensure technological independence.

The Spanish government thus considers BIM not only as a modelling technology but also as a means of modernising information management throughout the life cycle of works.

2. A progressive schedule for integrating BIM into public procurement until 2030

The national plan provides for a progressive increase in BIM requirements according to the estimated value of the contracts concerned.

Schedule of the Spanish BIM Plan published in 2023. Thresholds are subject to revision in accordance with public procurement rules. The plan concerns the State's public administrations and bodies within its scope, and not automatically all Spanish construction contracts.

In October 2026, Spain is therefore in an important phase of this transition. BIM requirements have already progressed for the public contracts concerned, while the 2027 and 2030 deadlines herald a more advanced use of digital information.

This evolution encourages professionals to go beyond the simple production of digital models to develop processes capable of producing, checking, exchanging and exploiting reliable data.

3. The IFC format at the heart of interoperability required by the Spanish State

One of the major aspects of the Spanish BIM Plan concerns the use of open standards.

The official text explicitly identifies the IFC (Industry Foundation Classes) format, defined by the UNE-EN ISO 16739 series of standards, or an equivalent scheme, for the exchange of graphical information and associated data.

This orientation meets an essential requirement: to allow the different actors of a project to collaborate without imposing the use of a single proprietary software package.

The IFC format notably facilitates:

• The exchange of models between architects, engineers and companies.

• The structuring and qualification of technical information.

• Coordination between disciplines and the checking of deliverables.

• The extraction of quantities and properties of works.

• The transmission of data necessary for operation and maintenance.

The plan also provides for the possible use of BCF for managing observations and COBie for structuring certain information related to assets.

The challenge is therefore broader than compatibility between software: it is about ensuring that the data produced during a project remains accessible, understandable and reusable.

4. Adoption that is already measurable in the Spanish market

The evolution of the Spanish public market confirms a progression of projects integrating BIM requirements.

According to data from BIM public procurement observatories relayed by buildingSMART Spain, the year 2025 recorded:

Source: buildingSMART Spain, analysis of 2025 BIM tenders. These data measure contracts with BIM requirements, and not the number of IFC files actually produced or edited.

These figures illustrate a significant evolution: the progression of BIM no longer only concerns the number of projects, but also their economic importance.

Railway infrastructure, public works and complex operations are particularly important drivers of this trend.

Adoption remains uneven across territories, however. Catalonia, Madrid, Andalusia, the Valencian Community and the Basque Country are among the territories identified as particularly active in buildingSMART Spain studies.

5. The government supports professionals in this transformation

Spain does not limit its strategy to the introduction of new requirements in tenders.

Public authorities are also developing mechanisms aimed at encouraging the acquisition of the skills necessary for the use of BIM.

In 2026, the Ministry of Transport and Sustainable Mobility notably published a subsidy scheme intended for professional organisations to finance training in BIM applied to public procurement.

Subsidies can reach €43,000 per beneficiary, with a mandatory financial contribution of 20% of the training project cost. This is support for eligible professional bodies, and not direct aid for the purchase of software for all companies.

In parallel, the European Commission has supported Spain in the implementation of its BIM strategy for public procurement, particularly in terms of best practice, training and modernisation of processes.

This approach reflects a fundamental reality: the adoption of BIM and IFC depends as much on human skills and the organisation of processes as on technological solutions.

6. From IFC production to practical use: a new step for Spanish companies

The integration of IFC into public procurement creates new responsibilities for construction stakeholders.

Producing an IFC file is a first step. But having a file does not automatically guarantee that the information it contains is consistent, correctly classified or directly usable.

Professionals must gradually be able to:

• Verify the quality and compliance of the information contained in IFC models.

• Correct, enrich and restructure object properties.

• Harmonise classifications and data from multiple disciplines.

• Prepare deliverables adapted to the specific requirements of clients.

• Use data for quantity take-offs, technical analyses, reporting or asset management.

This evolution is particularly important in the context of public procurement, where information requirements can vary depending on projects, clients and delivery phases.

The transition from model production to structured data management thus represents a decisive step in the BIM maturity of organisations.

7. Simplebim: supporting the evolution of IFC practices in the Spanish market

In this context, Simplebim responds to a growing need: making IFC information directly usable in business processes.

Its approach allows work on model data independently of the original design software.

Simplebim notably allows for the selection of relevant information, the restructuring of properties, the automation of recurring processing and the preparation of IFC files adapted to specific uses.

This capability becomes particularly interesting for organisations that must meet contractual BIM requirements while controlling the quality and consistency of their deliverables.

The challenge is not simply to add software to an existing environment, but to rethink certain working methods to reduce manual handling and devote more time to high-value activities.

From this perspective, support from BIM and IFC experts also plays an essential role in transforming technological features into operational processes adapted to each profession.

8. Towards 2030: IFC as the information heritage of Spanish construction

The Spanish national strategy opens perspectives that go beyond the design and construction phases alone.

The Spanish National Geographic Institute (IGN) notably plans to receive data from As-Built BIM models in IFC 4.3 format or higher, according to applicable specifications, for their integration into national geoinformation databases.

This orientation illustrates an ambition for digital continuity between constructed works, their technical data and territorial information systems.

As BIM requirements progress, professionals will have a greater need to master not only the creation of models but also their transformation, checking and reuse.

Spain thus has a public framework favourable to the development of more structured Open BIM practices. It remains, however, to measure, over time, the effective quality of deliverables and the uptake of IFC by all stakeholders, particularly small and medium-sized enterprises.

Conclusion: a digital transformation that places data at the centre of projects

Spain has initiated a structural evolution of its construction sector, supported by a national schedule, interoperability requirements and training initiatives.

The IFC format occupies a central place in this dynamic because it allows the value of a project's information to be decoupled from the software used to produce it.

For Spanish companies, the next challenge is to move from model exchange to the mastery of structured, verifiable and reusable data.

Technology makes transformation possible. Human expertise makes it operational, sustainable and value-creating.

It is in this complementarity between open standards, specialised tools and professional skills that the digital future of the Spanish construction sector is being built.