AECCafe Industry Predictions for 2024 – Vectorworks

By Vectorworks Chief Executive Officer Dr. Biplab Sarkar

Dr. Biplab Sarkar

In the next few years, we can expect several significant shifts in the architecture and construction industry.

One of the most prominent trends will be the continuous increase in building reuse, rehabilitation, and historic preservation types of projects. This will be driven by a growing awareness of preserving our architectural heritage and reducing waste to move toward a more sustainable future.

A continued focus on low carbon emissions will also be a priority, with a new emphasis on wood construction as a strategy to reduce carbon. We expect to see more buildings designed to reduce energy consumption and carbon emissions, focusing on sustainable materials and construction practices.

Creating designs that are resilient to extreme weather events and rising sea levels is becoming increasingly important. Designs need to be flexible and adaptive to counteract the effects of climate change.

Another trend is a greater emphasis on improving occupant health and well-being through biophilic design and natural lighting. This will be especially important as more people become aware of our built environment’s impact on our mental and physical health.

In addition, there will be a more widespread use of BIM for performance simulation/energy modeling and analysis. This will allow architects and engineers to better understand how their designs will perform in the real world and to optimize their designs for energy efficiency.

Finally, clients will demand more insight into how materials impact the environment. This will require architects and engineers to understand the environmental impacts of different materials and communicate these impacts to their clients clearly and concisely. Efficient workflows will also be critical, with a focus on being able to communicate design ideas more realistically. Overall, we can expect the industry to continue to evolve and adapt to meet the changing needs of our society.

In terms of next-gen technology, it’s clear that AI will continue to be at the forefront of all design-focused industries. In the past few years, we’ve seen AI introduced as a possibility. Now, we expect to see more practical applications and implementations of AI in design workflows. Vectorworks is currently exploring AI integration into its software, such as AI image generation and visualization, a Vectorworks AI chat, and Vectorworks Performance Assistant. These future developments will deliver AI image generation features precisely at the point of use. The Vectorworks AI chat will use AI to allow designers to search resources using natural language for faster support. Finally, the Vectorworks Performance Assistant will be a tool to analyze the content of a Vectorworks file and point out settings, objects, or geometry that may be causing performance or memory issues and offer fix suggestions.

As the Internet of Things (IoT) grows, we’ll see more smart cities and the implementation of Digital Twin technology, allowing those in the AEC industry to share information more quickly and efficiently. Additionally, we can expect to see the emergence of BIM 2.0 and the UK BIM Alliance, which will revolutionize how we approach building and construction projects. With the rise of tools like ray tracing, we’ll also see more advanced visualization capabilities, allowing us to plan and execute projects better.

As we move forward, all of these trends will continue to evolve and shape future industries in 2024 and beyond.

About Author:

Biplab joined Vectorworks in 2000. He was made CTO in 2008 and has been CEO since 2016. In this position, his main responsibility is to provide strategic leadership by working with the Board of Directors and the Executive Management Team to establish long-range goals, strategies, plans, and policies for revenue growth and expansion of market share. As a part of setting these goals and enacting these strategies, Biplab seeks out technology and process innovations to ensure Vectorworks remains a best-in-class CAD and BIM solution for designers.

Category: Industry Predictions

This entry was posted on Wednesday, January 10th, 2024 at 10:11 am. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.