AECCafe Today 
Susan Smith
Susan Smith has worked as an editor and writer in the technology industry for over 16 years. As an editor she has been responsible for the launch of a number of technology trade publications, both in print and online. Currently, Susan is the Editor of GISCafe and AECCafe, as well as those sites’ … More » President’s Better Buildings Initiative promises to put commercial real estate industry in recovery modeMarch 8th, 2011 by Susan Smith
According to an independent analysis conducted by Architecture 2030, and released in a Fact Sheet, illustrates that the President’s Better Buildings Initiative (BBI) can put the nation’s commercial real estate (CRE) market on the road to recovery, creating at least 300,000 new U.S. jobs and boosting tax revenue to begin putting money back into federal, state, and local coffers. Bentley’s first annual corporate updateMarch 3rd, 2011 by Susan Smith
Bentley Systems held its first annual corporate update yesterday, which was not an earnings call, as they are a privately held company. Coupled with that update was the announcement of the acquisition of SACS, an integrated finite element specialized offshore structural analysis software, the launch of iWare Apps to facilitate the use of Bentley iModels, and new sustainable licensing through what the company is calling “annual portfolio balancing.” Each product launch announced – SACS and the iWare Apps – circles back to structural analysis, an area that Bentley is focusing on a lot. SACS opens up offshore oil & gas industry to Bentley, where previously they have focused on onshore accounts. iWare Apps extend iModel which provides integrated structural modeling (ISM) methodology for the creators and consumers of structural project information across multiple vendors’ apps. Conference call on Obama’s Plan for Better BuildingsFebruary 3rd, 2011 by Susan Smith
Hello, everyone, I just received today this letter from Ed Mazria, who lives here in Santa Fe, NM. He wrote about his conference call with The White House today announcing Obama’s Plan for Better Buildings, which he describes here: February 3, 2011 I just finished a conference call with The White House announcing President Obama’s Plan for Better Buildings: a plan to create tax credits for commercial building energy reductions similar to that called for by Architecture 2030 in the “CRE Solution”. This is a dramatic step toward addressing the commercial real estate (CRE) crisis. The White House plan calls for the current commercial buildings efficiency tax deduction of $1.80 per square foot, known as 179 D, to be changed to a tax credit (this is roughly equal to the $3 to $4.50 per square foot deduction called for by Architecture 2030). Since, * 90% of all commercial buildings are small (under 25,000sf), most are single establishment occupied (81%) and many are owner-occupied; it is important that a commercial tax credit be made transferable, meaning a building owner can sell or transfer the credit in order to make the efficiency renovation. Many of you, including architects attending AIA Grassroots this week in Washington, DC, have contacted us seeking information about the CRE Solution. This new development provides an important opportunity for you to educate your Congressional representatives about the President’s plan. For information on the CRE crisis, see http://architecture2030.org/the_problem/problem_economy and Edward Mazria ZW3D 2011 sneak previewFebruary 3rd, 2011 by Susan Smith
Check out this YouTube video for ZW3D 2011 Direct. It is a 3D CAD system hoping to rival AutoCAD and other popular 3D CAD products. Promotional materials claim that it will be able to import data faster than popular existing systems.
Coming soon: SolidWorks LiveBuildings AEC productJanuary 27th, 2011 by Susan Smith
At SolidWorks World this past week a new AEC type product was announced: SolidWorks Live Buildings (SWLB). Its focus is on offering designers and architects an immersive environment to quickly design structure, floor layout and even put in furniture. Positioning the building for better sun access may also be possible with the product, making it a candidate for building sustainability. Watchers say the product feels like SketchUp at first glance, with similar abilities to pull in information from other models and drag and drop information. |
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