Development of an Integrated BIM-3D GIS Approach for 3D Cadastre in Morocco

With rapid population growth, there is an increasing demand for vertical use of space. The wide spread of complex and high-rise buildings, as well as the increasing number of infrastructure above or underground, requires new methods for efficient management of land property. 3D cadastre has, thus, become a necessity for land administration. However, the success of 3D cadastral systems relies on the definition of legal and institutional frameworks and requires implementing performant technical solutions. The potential of BIM and 3D GIS in this field has been demonstrated by several authors. However, cadastral development is strongly related to the national context of each country in terms of laws, institutions, etc. In this paper, an integrated approach based on BIM and 3D GIS for the implementation of a 3D cadastre in Morocco is presented. This approach demonstrates the relevance of such integration for the efficient management of cadastral information. First, a Conceptual Data Model (CDM) based on an extension of CityGML, was proposed for the management of cadastral information in Morocco. Then, a BIM modeling process was developed according to the model’s specifications and then translated to CityGML format. After that, a 3D Geodatabase was implemented in ArcGIS based on the proposed CDM. Our method was applied to a case of co-ownership building, showing several difficulties and limits in terms of 2D representation. The results show several advantages in terms of representation and management of 3D cadastral objects. In addition, some improvements are proposed to extend the concept of co-owner share to a volumetric calculation.