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AECCafe Voice ![]() Sanjay Gangal
Sanjay Gangal is the President of IBSystems, the parent company of AECCafe.com, MCADCafe, EDACafe.Com, GISCafe.Com, and ShareCG.Com. AECCafe Industry Predictions for 2025 – ChaosJanuary 20th, 2025 by Sanjay Gangal
By Vladimir Koylazov, Head of Innovation, Chaos In 2025, the AEC industry will see the culmination of several trends that have been building over the past few years. To start, architects and designers will see huge improvements around more efficient building techniques. For decades, they have been striving to improve efficiency, but the process has been slow on the design side, as designers need to spend time fully realizing their creations, then send them off for a full energy analysis. It’s a slow, iterative process that can require multiple rounds of analysis, all of which take time and money. These inefficiencies are improving. Last year, Chaos launched Enscape Impact, a tool that can determine the energy efficiency of a building during the initial design phase. Designers receive energy efficiency data they need as part of their creative stage and have the power and freedom to make changes that can directly impact the project’s overall energy efficiency. This leads to more cost-effective projects and more energy efficient buildings, and will ultimately help to address escalating concern over sustainability. I predict that the need to build more sustainable, future-proof cities will be one of the most talked about trends in the coming year and could help the industry move in new directions. There will be a continued push to make cities more resilient and climate friendly through improvements to construction and climate-proofing new and existing builds. Changes to improve sustainability will be gradual, but urgency will build as temperatures continue to rise and natural disasters cause devastation around the world. Tools that can help are on the way, and tech companies, including Chaos, are focusing heavily on the need. As the archviz community unites around the evolving needs, tools will become more readily available. AECCafe Industry Predictions for 2025 – eQuorumJanuary 9th, 2025 by Sanjay Gangal
By Scott Brandt, President & CEO, eQuorum Engineering Workflow and Document Management Industry Trends for 2025 The future of engineering document and workflow management in 2025 is expected to be shaped by advancements in several key areas, driven by technological innovations and evolving business needs. The global document management market is predicted to grow to $14.29 billion by 2029, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 14.5% from 2024 to 2029. The workflow automation market, which overlaps with document management, is valued at USD 14.99 billion and is projected to reach USD 71.03 Billion by 2031, growing at a CAGR of 23.68% from 2024 to 2031. The combined market for both document management and workflow automation is expected to show rapid expansion as businesses increasingly digitize, and automate their operations. Due to increasing digital transformation initiatives, a shift to cloud-based solutions and the rise of automation and AI technologies. Here are a few significant trends and developments that will likely define the industry in the coming years. Read the rest of AECCafe Industry Predictions for 2025 – eQuorum AECCafe Industry Predictions for 2025 – AutodeskDecember 20th, 2024 by Sanjay Gangal
New trends in design and make technology promise to reinvent industry workflows over the next year. As we approach 2025, the industries that design and make our world are poised for continued transformation. Rapid advancements in technology are helping reinvent workflows across architecture, engineering, construction, and operations (AECO), design and manufacturing (D&M), and media and entertainment (M&E). From innovations in AI to improving data practices, we’ll see certain trends redefine how innovators create and build over the next year and beyond. Below, we check in with Autodesk leaders on what designers and builders should expect to see in 2025. Read the rest of AECCafe Industry Predictions for 2025 – Autodesk AECCafe Industry Predictions for 2025 – XYZ RealityDecember 20th, 2024 by Sanjay Gangal
By Waleed Zafar, XYZ Reality The big build: 2025 predictions for the data center industry2025 in the data center construction industry is set to be another wild ride. A dynamic landscape defined by rapid technological advances, escalating demand for computational power, and global challenges in resource availability. Owners, developers, builders, tenants and technology providers have learned the hard way in recent years that adapting to emerging trends in scale, sustainability, and execution efficiency is what maintains a competitive edge. As a new year gets underway and with so much change swirling around, what are the major trends to prepare for? Larger projects, standardized designs Firstly, data center projects and their scale are growing at an unprecedented scale, with facilities evolving from sub-50MW capacities to common 200MW deployments, and 1GW campuses emerging worldwide. While these ambitious projects offer immense opportunities, they also introduce complex challenges in planning and coordination. Real-time tracking and quality control will be crucial to ensure seamless execution and delivery. Larger projects demand stronger collaboration across construction teams, emphasizing precise data sharing to prevent cascading delays. Read the rest of AECCafe Industry Predictions for 2025 – XYZ Reality Shaping the Future of AEC with Forecasting and Growth Strategies: An Interview with Lucas Hayden, Senior Director of AEC Strategy at UnanetDecember 9th, 2024 by Sanjay Gangal
LAS VEGAS — In the world of architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC), rapid project turnaround, effective forecasting, and maintaining high levels of productivity are essential. Yet, as firms increasingly balance immediate project needs with long-term growth opportunities, industry leaders are recognizing a need for more sophisticated tools to anticipate and capitalize on future trends. At the 2024 Trimble Dimensions Conference in Las Vegas, Lucas Hayden, Senior Director of AEC Strategy at Unanet, offered insight into how Unanet is empowering firms to thrive in this complex landscape. At the conference, Hayden presented Unanet’s approach to providing tailored solutions for AEC firms, with a particular focus on their CRM and ERP technologies. “Our mission is to unify and streamline the workflows that AEC firms naturally use,” Hayden said. “Through our ERP and CRM tools, we enable firms to simplify operations, improve accuracy in forecasting, and ultimately, optimize their decision-making.” By addressing operational bottlenecks, Unanet helps firms improve profitability while encouraging a growth mindset that prioritizes not only project completion but also strategic planning for future opportunities. Insights from the AEC Inspire Report 2024Unanet’s annual AEC Inspire Report, which has become a cornerstone reference for industry trends, serves as both a benchmarking tool and a guide for forward-thinking firms. The 2024 edition of the report, released just before the conference, gathered insights from over 350 executives across construction, architecture, and engineering firms, exploring a range of topics from project forecasting to business development. A Conversation with Trimble’s Nathan Patton: How Robotics, Data, and AI Are Reshaping ConstructionNovember 25th, 2024 by Sanjay Gangal
LAS VEGAS — The Trimble Dimensions Conference in Las Vegas offers a rare glimpse into the construction industry’s future. This year’s gathering featured innovative tech on display, underscoring a drive to redefine how projects are managed and built. Central to this vision was Nathan Patton, Trimble’s Product Marketing Manager for Construction Technology, who shared insight into the possibilities that AI, robotics, and data capture bring to construction. With his background as a former surveyor, Patton is as much a storyteller of Trimble’s journey as he is an advocate for its transformative potential. Patton’s path to Trimble is notable. Before joining the company, he was a surveyor using Trimble’s equipment on job sites. “I was a customer of Trimble long before I ever came to work here,” he explained. This gives him a unique perspective as someone who understands the practical realities of Trimble’s technologies and what they mean for the people using them. His role today involves taking Trimble’s sophisticated innovations — tools like terrestrial scanning, mobile mapping, and cloud data management — and distilling them into solutions that construction firms can understand, trust, and deploy. Bentley Systems Enhances Carbon Analysis Capabilities to Tackle Infrastructure’s Carbon FootprintNovember 13th, 2024 by Sanjay Gangal
Vancouver, B.C.— In a decisive step towards making infrastructure more sustainable, Bentley Systems announced the launch of its new Carbon Analysis capabilities at the Year in Infrastructure Conference. The enhancements, available in the iTwin Experience platform, are aimed at simplifying carbon impact assessments, enabling engineers to systematically integrate carbon analysis into their design processes. The new features promise to streamline the traditionally complex task of carbon reporting by automatically aggregating data, integrating carbon metrics, and offering 3D visualizations of carbon impacts. Chris Bradshaw, Bentley’s Chief Sustainability Officer, unveiled the Carbon Analysis capabilities at the conference, underscoring their role in addressing a critical aspect of global emissions—embodied carbon. “Given that up to 80% of today’s greenhouse gas emissions are linked to infrastructure, it’s essential that we find ways to significantly reduce the carbon impact of new construction projects and renovations,” said Bradshaw during an interview. “Our new capabilities help engineers visualize carbon data and make informed decisions early in the design process.” Tackling Embodied CarbonEmbodied carbon refers to the greenhouse gases emitted during the construction of an asset, accounting for everything from material extraction to manufacturing. These emissions represent a significant portion of infrastructure’s environmental impact—often well before an asset is even put into operation. As Savina Carluccio, executive director of the International Coalition for Sustainable Infrastructure, highlighted, “By 2050, embodied carbon from new infrastructure could account for nearly half of the world’s carbon footprint.” Bentley’s Carbon Analysis capabilities provide a “cradle-to-gate” assessment of embodied carbon, offering a more comprehensive understanding of an infrastructure project’s environmental cost. The system simplifies the integration of carbon data by linking Bentley’s iTwin platform with third-party carbon assessment tools, such as EC3 and One Click LCA. This approach allows users to dynamically visualize carbon impact changes across different design iterations, facilitating real-time decision-making. Morpheus Technology Group: Revolutionizing Application Integration for the Construction IndustryNovember 4th, 2024 by Sanjay Gangal
At Autodesk University 2024 in San Diego, the construction tech world took note as Morpheus Technology Group (Morpheus) showcased their innovative approach to seamlessly integrating construction project management data with financial systems. In an exclusive interview, Randy Nolan, CEO of Morpheus, and Guy Barlow, Vice President of Sales, shared the company’s mission, the evolution of their platform, and their future plans. What started as a modest effort to bridge gaps in data has now grown into a powerful solution for some of the largest players in the construction industry. A Mission Born from Industry DemandFounded in 2001, Morpheus’ inception was driven by an industry-wide need for better synchronization between project management and accounting systems. As Nolan recalled, “The industry was demanding integration, and we saw an opportunity to step in and solve the problem.” Initially, Morpheus’ focus was on integrating just two core applications—a necessity at the time due to the industry’s heavy reliance on disparate systems for project management and financial accounting. But as technology and business processes evolved, so did Morpheus’ capabilities. Now, more than two decades later, Morpheus’ Frameworks platform addresses a growing need for adaptability, as construction companies increasingly use a variety of software applications. The platform is designed to integrate systems seamlessly, reducing manual entry and ensuring that project managers and accounting teams are always working with the same data. “Our core belief is that everybody implements cost management differently,” Nolan said. Frameworks reflects this philosophy, allowing each company to tailor integrations to their specific processes and workflows. Building a 3D Future: How Bentley Systems and Cesium are Transforming Infrastructure Through Open-Source InnovationOctober 29th, 2024 by Sanjay Gangal
The Year in Infrastructure Conference, hosted by Bentley Systems in Vancouver, became a stage for showcasing the future of digital infrastructure, with a compelling keynote from Patrick Cozzi, founder of Cesium and now Bentley’s Chief Platform Officer. Cozzi took attendees on an in-depth journey through Cesium’s path from a visualization tool for aerospace to an industry-defining, open-source geospatial platform now powering Bentley’s ambitious vision for infrastructure engineering. Cesium, known as an open-source platform for creating highly detailed 3D applications, has made significant strides since Bentley’s acquisition, demonstrating a groundbreaking approach to digital infrastructure. Addressing a full auditorium, Cozzi highlighted Cesium’s evolution and Bentley’s vision to create a world where digital twins, geospatial data, and 3D models work together seamlessly, all powered by Cesium’s robust capabilities.
Reinventing the Future: Autodesk’s Bold Vision for AI, Sustainability, and the LA28 Olympics at Autodesk University 2024October 21st, 2024 by Sanjay Gangal
Autodesk University 2024 delivered an inspiring keynote by President and CEO Andrew Anagnost, offering a bold vision for the future of AI, sustainability, and how these transformative forces are set to reshape industries. This year’s keynote featured in-depth conversations with Casey Wasserman, Chairperson of LA28, and Raji Arasu, Executive Vice President and Chief Technology Officer of Autodesk. Together, they explored Autodesk’s groundbreaking role in the upcoming LA28 Olympic and Paralympic Games, its application of artificial intelligence (AI) across industries, and the lasting impact of technology in a rapidly changing world. AI for Practical TransformationAnagnost opened with a candid discussion about the gap between AI’s hype and its current usefulness. He acknowledged that while much of AI’s promise remains unfulfilled, Autodesk is laser-focused on creating AI tools that deliver practical solutions today. “Technologies come with a lot of hype, but our focus at Autodesk is on AI that works for you today, delivering tangible productivity and creativity gains,” Anagnost said. His message was clear: Autodesk is driving AI innovation that empowers users across industries, from architecture to manufacturing to entertainment.
One of the standout initiatives presented was Project Bernini, Autodesk’s groundbreaking AI model. Bernini allows designers to generate fully realized 3D objects in minutes, a process that would have traditionally taken hours or even days. This AI tool is already proving to be a game-changer in streamlining design workflows, with the potential to enhance creativity while eliminating repetitive tasks. “Bernini exemplifies how AI can augment your creativity and productivity,” said Arasu, emphasizing that Autodesk’s AI is designed to solve real-world problems, not just theoretical challenges. Arasu elaborated on how Bernini allows designers to prompt AI using natural language, sketches, or images, creating a new era of rapid ideation. “We want AI to enhance your skills, not replace them. The creative work that you do is so complex and so special—AI cannot solve for your ingenuity,” Arasu said. |