ISO 19650 Updates – Proposed Terminology

By Paul Shillcock, Project Leader for ISO 19650-2 within ISO/TC 59/SC 13/WG 13

The ISO 19650 updates are out for public consultation, and one of the biggest talking points is ISO 19650 terminology – including proposed changes to familiar phrases like the BIM execution plan.

This article explains the ISO 19650 draft revisions on proposed terminology, why the wording is being reconsidered, and what the changes could mean in practice – for example, shifting towards terms such as information production plan, information management plan, and information production requirements as the language of Parts 2 and 3 is aligned.

Summary (ISO 19650 updates: terminology)

• Draft revisions of ISO 19650 are out for public consultation, and terminology is a key area under debate
• A terminology task force provides guidance across ISO standards, but decisions sit with national bodies and the subcommittee
• Proposed new terms aim to unify Parts 2 and 3 language, improve translation, and reduce confusion for newcomers
• Three “root” terms sit behind many proposals: management, production, and project

Watch: ISO 19650 updates – proposed terminology explained

Watch Paul Shillcock break down the terminology proposals and why they’re being suggested.

Context: why terminology is such a big part of the ISO 19650 updates

ISO has released draft revisions of ISO 19650 for public consultation, and one of the main areas up for debate is the proposed terminology.

Terminology is a long-standing challenge in standards. The ISO subcommittee has even established an international task force to oversee terminology across all the standards it publishes (not just ISO 19650). The task force provides guidance to working groups, but it does not make decisions. Final authority still sits with the ISO subcommittee and national standards bodies.

Why are new terms being proposed?

There are a few reasons the international working group is proposing new terms within ISO 19650:

1. To unify terminology across Parts 2 and 3
Existing Parts 2 and 3 use slightly different terminology in places, and the working group has had to align it.

2. To make translation easier internationally
Feedback from national bodies highlighted difficulty translating nuances in some terms – making adoption harder.

3. To reduce confusion for people new to ISO 19650
Some terms create avoidable ambiguity, especially for those new to information management and the ISO 19650 standards.

What new terms are being proposed? (three concepts to focus on)

The draft standards include several proposed terminology revisions. There are three terms worth focusing on – because they form the basis of many proposals:

• Management
• Production
• Project

The underlying idea is that activities and outputs are aligned either to information management or information production, and that information is managed and produced during a project – across all stages of the asset life cycle.

Management (proposed terminology direction)

From a management perspective, the working group is proposing new outputs that focus on information management activities, alongside existing outputs such as the “information management assignment matrix”.

Examples include:

• An information management strategy at organizational level, sitting alongside and supporting the asset management strategy
• An information management plan at project level, outlining how information is to be managed throughout the project
• An information management team at both organizational and project level, to oversee information management activities and outputs

Production (proposed terminology direction)

The term production has been used since 2007 in BS 1192 and continued in ISO 19650, both referring to “collaborative production of information” as part of their processes.

Now, the working group recommends the simpler term information production for Step 8 in the unified process. The proposal is to use this as the prefix for outputs used as inputs for information production activities – similar to the existing “information production methods and procedures”.

What that looks like in practice:

• Adding “production” to make outputs more specific (e.g. information standard → information production standard)
• Replacing similar terms like exchange, execution and delivery to keep language consistent across the unified process

Examples in the draft proposals include:

• Information exchange requirements → information production requirements (requirements for the information to be produced)
• BIM execution plan → information production plan (a plan for how information will be produced during an appointment – whether using BIM or another approach)
• Information delivery milestones → information production milestones (milestones against which information is to be produced, not just delivered)
• Delivery team → information production team

Proposed terminology mapping (current → proposed)

Below is a practical mapping of commonly used ISO 19650 terms to the proposed terminology direction described in the draft revisions (note: final wording is subject to the ISO 19650 consultation outcome).

Project (proposed terminology direction)

In the current standards, project is used extensively as a prefix to outputs in Part 2. In Part 3, this was replaced with asset in several equivalent outputs.

Example:

• Part 2: project information standard
• Part 3: asset information standard

The term project is often synonymous with design and construction of new assets (or major refurbishments), which made it harder to apply cleanly across the whole asset life cycle.

The proposed direction is to keep the term project, but distinguish between:

• An asset-related project (where an asset is created, refurbished or maintained), and
• A project to manage and produce information, which can occur at any stage of the asset life cycle

Summary: what this means for the ISO 19650 updates

Overall, the working group is proposing:

• A clearer focus on information management and information production activities and outputs, and
• A more precise use of project, to make terminology relevant across the full asset life cycle

The consultation process is your opportunity to influence which terms are included. I’d encourage you to share your thoughts through the commenting process.

Read: Paul’s Personal Reflections on the Proposed Terminology

In this LinkedIn post, Paul shares his own perspective on the proposed terminology – offering a more informal, behind-the-scenes look at the thinking that shaped the draft standards.

Read Paul’s reflections on LinkedIn →

More in this ISO 19650 updates series

This article is part of a short series unpacking the ISO 19650 updates.

• ISO 19650 Updates 2026: What’s Changing in Parts 1, 2 and 3
  
• ISO 19650 Updates 2026: Proposed Unified Information Management Process
  

Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about the proposed ISO 19650 terminology changes and how they may affect information management practices.

Why is ISO 19650 terminology being reviewed?

Terminology is being reviewed to unify terms across ISO 19650 Parts 2 and 3, improve international translation, and reduce confusion for organizations implementing the standards.

Are these terminology changes final?

No. The terminology proposals form part of the Draft International Standards and remain subject to public consultation and international consensus.

Does this remove BIM from ISO 19650?

No. The proposed changes focus on clarifying terminology rather than removing BIM or its application.

Why replace “BIM execution plan”?

The proposed change to information production plan aims to avoid method-specific terminology and instead focus on the activity of producing information – whether BIM is used or not.

Who decides which terms are adopted?

Final decisions on terminology are made by the ISO subcommittee and national standards bodies following the consultation process.

Does “information production” mean creating new information only?

Not necessarily. In this context, “information production” is used to describe the set of activities that result in information being produced to meet requirements and milestones. These activities are included within step 8 of the proposed process.

Will ISO 19650 terminology changes affect templates and processes?

Potentially, yes. If terms like “BIM execution plan”, “delivery team”, and “information exchange requirements” are replaced in the final publication, organizations may want to update their document titles, role labels, and template wording to stay aligned – even if the underlying intent of the outputs remains similar.

What is the difference between an “information management strategy” and an “information management plan”?

In simple terms, a strategy is typically organizational and longer-term (setting direction and principles), while a plan is typically project-level and appointment-specific (setting out how information will be managed for that project, by whom, using which processes and resources).

Is “information production requirements” the same thing as EIR (Exchange Information Requirements)?

It’s broadly the same intent – defining what information needs to be produced, when, and to what level/format – but the proposed term aims to be clearer and more consistent with the unified process language (focusing on production rather than exchange).

Why change “delivery team” to “information production team”?

“Delivery team” can be interpreted as a contractual or construction-focused term. Information production team is intended to describe the function more precisely: the appointed parties responsible for producing information to meet the requirements and milestones.

What are “information production milestones” and how do they relate to delivery dates?

They are checkpoints by which information should be produced to support decisions and downstream activities. In practice they may align with (or sit ahead of) contractual delivery dates, but the wording emphasises that the milestone is about having the information ready – not just sending it.

How should I interpret “project” vs “asset-related project” in the proposed wording?

The idea is to avoid “project” being understood only as design/construction. An asset-related project is about creating, refurbishing, or maintaining an asset, while a project (in the information management sense) can exist at any stage to manage and produce information for that asset.

What should organizations do now if the terminology is still in draft?

Avoid rushing to rename everything. Instead, track the proposed changes, note which internal documents/templates would be affected, and prepare a light-touch mapping (old term → proposed term). That way you can update quickly if the wording is confirmed.

How can I comment on the ISO 19650 draft revisions?

Use the public consultation route provided by your national standards body (the mechanism varies by country). If you’re involved through an industry group, you can also coordinate comments so they reflect practical impacts on implementation, training, and international consistency.

Multimedia Summary

• Video: Overview of the proposed terminology
  
• LinkedIn: Paul Shillcock’s personal reflections on the proposed terminology process
  

About the Author

Paul Shillcock

Paul is the project leader for ISO 19650-2 and has been directly involved in the development of ISO 19650 standards for over a decade, contributing to international working groups and helping organisations around the world implement information management best practice.