Asem's grand designs are set to benefit new home buyers

- 11 Dec 17

Asem Al Bunni 

Bovis Homes architectural designer Asem Al Bunni, who recently brought history to life by creating a stunning virtual tour of one of Britain's lost landmarks, is now turning his attention to an innovative project to help new home buyers design their dream property.

Liaising closely with archaeologists and historians, Asem used computer software to produce a high-quality CGI fly-through animation of the 15th Century Greyfriars Priory in Leicester, featuring the original tomb of Richard III.

He played a lead role in researching, designing and building the Greyfriars animation, which is now housed at the King Richard III Visitor Centre in Leicester, as part of the Digital Building Heritage Group managed by Dr Douglas Cawthorne at De Montfort University.

Now Asem, who is originally from Syria, is a key member of the Building Information Modelling (BIM) team at Bovis Homes, exploring new ways to help customers become even more involved in the home-building process from a very early stage using similar technology.

Greyfriars Priory was destroyed during the Reformation 500 years ago, but the two-minute animation brings it back to life, including a close-up look at Richard III's elaborately-designed tomb.

"I was very passionate about the project right from the start," said Asem, who is based at Bovis Homes' West Midlands regional office in Coleshill.

"We used a variety of sources to ensure the animation provided an accurate representation of what we think the priory would have looked like.

"They included Dr John Ashdown-Hill's book 'Last Days of Richard III', medieval historians who specialise in ecclesiastical buildings and monuments, and research by archaeology expert Richard Buckley from Leicester University.

"It took me three days to design Richard III's tomb because the engravings on it were written in Latin and extremely ornate.

"I have a real passion for buildings in general, so it was a really interesting, collaborative project to be involved in and the outcome was fantastic."

Asem, an overseas-qualified architect who lives in Leicester, joined Bovis Homes this autumn to be part of the BIM project.

BIM is an intelligent 3D model-based process that gives architecture, engineering, and construction professionals the insight and tools to more efficiently plan, design, construct, and manage buildings and infrastructure.

Asem explained: "In basic terms, BIM is an integrated digital process that provides a full set of building information that is coordinated, consistent and reliable from early design stages through to construction.

"There is the potential for us to use augmented and virtual reality to allow home buyers to work with us and be involved in the design of their new home from a very early stage.

"It's a significant step forward in the house-building process that has major benefits for our customers - I'm delighted to be part of the project team."

To view the fly-through video of Greyfriars Priory, visit https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=roQHpgsSg4s

For more information about Bovis Homes and its new homes in the Midlands, go to www.bovishomes.co.uk