Integration of HGIS/HBIM to Reveal and Reconstruct the Vanished Metal Bridge Heritage of the Chinese Eastern Railway Main Line

Integration of HGIS (Historical Geographic Information Systems) and HBIM (Heritage Building Information Modelling) constitutes a high-precision, efficient, and sustainable method for conserving cultural heritage (CH), particularly in instances characterized by large-scale distribution and spanning multiple historical periods, with extensive archival material. HBIM not only aids in the preservation of remaining structures but also facilitates the revelation and reconstruction of invisible elements. The Chinese Eastern Railway (CER), a key industrial and linear cultural heritage site in northeast China, has a variety of metal bridge heritage, many of which are documented and seen solely in historical archives until now. These bridges, designed and constructed by Russians at the outset of the 20th century, serve as crucial components of the CH along the CER while also showcasing the technological advancements and application developments in metal structures along the railway. We propose a method of integrating HGIS/HBIM to conserve the integrity of the heritage and this methodology has been validated through two case studies. A historical database was established for collection and exhibition archives in QGIS®. Concurrently, Autodesk® Revit was employed to reconstruct bridge models, incorporating material information and GPS coordinates based on the Industry Foundation Classes (IFC). Subsequently, we utilized FME® Workbench to bridge the gap between BIM and GIS. This approach promises to enhance the richness and integrity of the CH along the CER, offering a sustainable solution for its preservation and management.