Welcome to AECWeekly! Avatech is a consultancy and systems integrator, also an Autodesk reseller and premier solutions provider, with 250 people, 21 offices and specialists in all areas of industry worldwide, and 13 of their offices house their infrastructure team of engineers. In the past 3-4 years, the company has grown significantly and staff is being added regularly to address the growth. Read about what is driving that growth in this week’s Industry News.
The next issue of AECWeekly will be published on the 8th January, 2007. We will take a winter break from December 24 until January 2. We are interested to find out what our readers' favorite technology gifts are, so send your faves to me at aeccafe-editor@IBSystems.com and tell why you like them. The staff of AECCafe and AECWeekly extend our best wishes to all of you and your families over this holiday season.
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Industry News
Avatech on Technology Trends
by Susan Smith
 |
Avatech is a consultancy and systems integrator, also an Autodesk reseller and premier solutions provider, with 250 people, 21 offices and specialists in all areas of industry worldwide, and 13 of their offices house their infrastructure team of engineers. In the past 3-4 years, the company has grown significantly and staff is being added regularly to address the growth.
The term “infrastructure solutions” is intended to denote an area including geospatial, civil, surveying. Avatech has an Infrastructure Solutions Division and a Building Solutions Division, as does Autodesk.
Although Avatech does do some implementations of geospatial products such as MapGuide and 3D Map, two trends characterize the company’s current growth in infrastructure: the growth of the implementation of Autodesk’s Civil 3D, and 3D laser scanning.
Avatech’s Bruce White, VP Infrastructure Solutions and Kevin Breslin, director of Professional Services, Infrastructure Solutions spoke about the how implementation opportunities are growing and Avatech is ramping up to provide a higher level of personnel as the verticalization of industries increases.
In large part, their recent work has involved working with customers to understand the change that Autodesk’s Civil 3D requires. Working with a model based technology versus a CAD drafting technology is a big transition for most firms. There is more up front set up involved with Civil 3D than with CAD. Once up on the system, most users find it easier because it’s intelligent. “We evaluate where a customer is and where they would like to be,” said White. “We offer training work with engineers, designers, users, and decide what supplemental training they need to get up to speed.” The implementation process involves customization, installation, research and development. Avatech’s team fine tunes software to customers’’ needs and requirements. “After that, we train them on software optimized for their purposes, so we carry them from where they are to where they want to be.”
Many of the users of Civil 3D came from using Land Development Desktop and although the rollout and implementation need to be planned, they are realizing productivity quickly. Civil 3D customers can be up and running on the product in one to two weeks, depending upon the level of customization required.
Another trend Avatech sees is in the area of 3D laser scanning. “Surveyors used to think laser scanning was a plant tool, now they think it’s a survey tool,” said White. Laser scanning covers a broad spectrum: survey, civil, plant design, architectural. It covers the entire AEC field and clients can own or rent it.
3D laser scanning can be used for numerous things and White said they are seeing an increase in its use by architects. Measuring HVAC systems, for use in 3D model software, and routing ducts are just some of the uses reported.
The most common application for 3D laser scanning is in field finish surveying software, and GPS overlay. Avatech has represented Leica since before they purchased Cyra Technologies in 1998. They train, implement, sell and rent the products.
Breslin said that people are competing against 3D laser scanning on a daily basis. “You need to get up on the technology and know what’s available, so you can look at different jobs and see if it’s a fit or not. If they want to do a rental, we can set them up, and when data comes back in, we can work with them on that.“
The process based training that Avatech offers changes the way people think. This is necessary because the technology requires a significant leap in understanding when going from 2D to 3D, much like the transition from the drawing board to 2D CAD.
With help setting 3D laser scanning, customers can be running the field equipment on their own. That’s not the end of the process however, just the beginning.
The deliverables for 3D laser scanning will change, noted White, and you’ll get to a point where the point cloud is the deliverable. “General Motors specified all plants in North America to be scanned for the 3D design department. The full deliverable is just a registered point cloud.”
White also predicts that 3D laser scanning will follow the pattern of everything else in technology: it will become lighter, cheaper, faster and smaller. When 50% of the market has it, then other firms will adopt it.
“3D laser scanning is the fastest technology adoption cycle we’ve has seen in the last 15 years for the surveying industry,” said Breslin. 3D laser scanning provides surveyors an ability to venture into facilities and areas they wouldn’t be able to access otherwise.
Matt Mason, director of software development, Building Solutions, Mike Haddad, vice president, Building Solutions, and Beau Turner, solutions consulting manager, talked about their team’s focus on architecture, structural engineering, mechanical engineering, and construction. Their job is to buy technology, work with sales and technical groups, and do fulfillment work. Ultimately, they focus on delivering an integrated system, which is integrated into a customer’s current business processes.
A lot of growth is taking place in this area, and still coming from Avatech’s traditional clients. The MEP market is moving more into 3D modeling. Haddad said that “everyone is still doing 2D,” but structure is also coming online. The majority of their work is coming from the architecture side, as well as design/build.
“We’re getting into more integrated practice concepts, with more collaboration early on,” said Turner. “We show clients how to do a five year plan and how to get there.”
“We’re now focused more now on the projects themselves, less on let’s get your whole company trained. We’re seeing more of the structural side, and MEP side,” Turner continued. “The Revit platform has taken off for us. As there are many things we’re only able to do from Revit, our scope and services has changed accordingly.”
Mason said that they want to create a “shared resource within the company.” Owners are driving their firms to implement technology, to go from drafting culture to modeling culture. “We want Avatech to be the kind of company, where owners say we want to engage over the whole project, get different design teams working together. From a software development perspective, there’s an opportunity to take what’s available from Autodesk and other partners to deliver point solutions for architect, engineer and contractor.
Mason noted that some forward thinking clients want to make use of the Revit BIM model, take Revit BIM data and push it out to other systems like SharePoint. “Some engineering firms want to have better workflows between Building systems and NavisWorks for roundtrip workflows for interference detection and resolution, for example. They want to take a lot of pieces and tie them up to support the kind of workflow people want to have to envision a better process. We’re seeing more of this. We didn’t previously do too much of that kind of work.”
According to Turner, more customers are moving from straight BIM to Building Lifecycle Management (BLM). “The GSA are wanting BLM all the way to Facilities Management. Once customers see the progression from the BIM, other commercial companies will want to do the same.”
Acquisitions/Agreements/Alliances
Deltek, provider of enterprise management software for project-focused organizations, announced a new channel strategy that utilizes both domestic and international distributors in the Deltek Partner Program to target small to mid-sized businesses (SMBs) in the architectural/ engineering (A/E), management and IT consulting industries. The SMB market for these industries represents a significant opportunity for Deltek and its partners, with more than 350,000 domestic firms alone in the A/E, management and IT consulting industries, according to American Business Information.
Primavera Systems, Inc., announced that it has acquired two companies: ProSight, Inc., a portfolio analysis solutions company based in Portland, Ore., and Pertmaster, Ltd., a risk analysis and mitigation solutions company based in the United Kingdom.Announcements
Nemetschek North America announced that Spanish-language versions of VectorWorks Fundamentals, VectorWorks Architect, and RenderWorks 12.5 are now available. Enhancements to VectorWorks 12.5 include support for Apple® Macintosh OS X operating on the new Intel®-based Macintosh, Adobe® PDF import and export support-including batch export, and support for Google(tm) Earth's KML files, as well as overall speed and performance improvements.Bentley Systems, Incorporated announced that the city of Franklin, Tennessee, has joined Bentley's Municipal License Subscription (MLS) program.
Bentley's MLS offers municipalities all the software they need to design and manage all their infrastructure for a fixed annual fee based on population. The breakthrough program enables them to improve productivity and reduce administrative costs by outfitting their entire mapping and engineering organizations with fully integrated software for GIS and engineering workflows. This leads to improved services and more efficient government.
Hobart is the first full-line commercial food equipment manufacturer to become a member of the U.S. Green Building Council, the nation's foremost coalition of leaders from every sector of the building industry working to promote buildings that are environmentally responsible, profitable and healthy places to live and work.
Awards
Further validating Graphisoft's position as the leading provider of Virtual Building solutions, ArchiCAD 10 won a highly coveted spot on Cadalyst's 2006 All-Star Award roster. The award seeks to recognize products reviewed by the Cadalyst Lab Reviews Editors in the second half of 2006 that truly standout as exceptional products among those that earned Highly Recommended ratings. These products offer the best-of-the-best when it comes to sleek and sophisticated functionality and powerful and measurable benefits for users.
The Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) celebrated the opening of the first design-build roadway project in Virginia. The transportation infrastructure improvements provide access to a new container terminal which will double the shipping capacity of the Hampton Roads port and fuel the economic growth of all of Virginia.AVEVA, a provider of plant design and engineering lifecycle solutions, is proud to announce that it has won the techMARK company of the year award 2006. techMARK, is a specially developed segment within the London Stock Exchange's Main Market and is one of the world's leading markets for shares in companies at the forefront of innovative technology. The award was presented at the 7th annual techMARK awards dinner on November 30th at The Royal Lancaster Hotel in London.
Oce Imagistics Inc. has been awarded two "Pick of the Year" awards from Buyers Laboratory Inc. (BLI). BLI, the leading independent office equipment test lab and business consumer advocate, recognized Oce Imagistics performance with two Fall 2006 "Pick of the Year" awards in the fax-centric multifunctional category:
-- fx2080: "Outstanding High-Volume Fax-centric Multifunctional Imaging System"
-- fx3000: "Outstanding Mid-Volume Fax-centric Multifunctional Imaging System"
New Products
In keeping with the Company's tradition of delivering products that revolutionize how buildings are designed and built, Graphisoft announced a major update to its Virtual Construction suite of applications and services. The new version incorporates completely new mechanical, electrical and plumbing functionality. Already installed at owner/developers, project managers and major construction companies throughout the world, the 2007 product release will further accelerate the adoption of Virtual Construction within companies, and speed the time to project realization.Sage Software announced the availability of MyAssistant, a new software program that integrates with Sage Timberline Office to create a "virtual assistant," providing reminders and prompts for important business events.
The program is the first value-add solution for Sage Timberline Office clients offered by Sage Software Premier Solutions Partner Innovative Software Design, a Lake Oswego, Ore.-based company founded by former Sage Software employees with more than 30 years of construction and real estate-specific technology development experience. Premier Solutions Partners develop technology solutions that integrate with Sage Software Construction and Real Estate products, including Sage Timberline Office and Sage Master Builder, to help address customers' unique business needs.
Dexter + Chaney will showcase the latest version of its Forefront(TM) Construction Suite at Technology for Construction 2007 (January 23-26 at the Las Vegas Convention Center, booth #S13139). Forefront Construction Suite features 30 integrated modules that handle project management, service management, human resources, document imaging, remote connectivity and data sharing for construction companies of any type.
upFront.eZine Publishing, Ltd. releases Tailoring AutoCAD Rendering, a brand new ebook title about rendering 3D models with AutoCAD 2007 software from Autodesk.
Learn more about Tailoring AutoCAD Rendering, read the full table of contents, and view select pages at the
Upfrontezine website
.
|
Macworld Conference & Expo 2007 | |
| Date: |
January 8 - 12, 2007 |
| Place: |
Moscone Center
San Francisco, CA USA |
| Macworld Conference & Expo is the world’s most comprehensive event for the Mac operating system. Only Macworld brings together the loyal yet diverse base of Mac users in creative services, education, entertainment, application development, enterprise and small office/home office environments. Combining in-depth educational sessions with displays of innovative products
and solutions on the exhibit floor, Macworld Conference & Expo offers professionals and consumers alike the opportunity to discover the latest developments and hottest products in the Mac industry | |
You can find the full AECCafe.com event calendar here.
To read more news, click here.
-- Susan Smith, AECCafe.com Managing Editor.