TonicDM: Project Information Management for AEC

When TonicDM was launched nine years ago as a solution for PIM (Project Information Management) in AEC, the field of PIM was relatively new with only one player, Newforma Project Center. Fast forward to now and the field of PIM is still very sparse, with the flagship application, Newforma Project Center, being phased out in favor of a new cloud-based solution that Newforma is developing. TonicDM was cloud-based to begin with, so it did not have to pivot. It could concentrate, instead, on continuing to develop its technology to better serve its customers, which now include several leading architecture and engineering firms, many of which have switched over to TonicDM from Newforma.

URL: https://www.aecbytes.com/review/2024/TonicDM.html

Vive l’Héritage: Why Former Olympic Stadiums Struggled and Legacy, and How BIM Can Help

Hosting the Olympics Games is expensive and challenging, especially when it comes to stadiums and infrastructure. Until recently, host cities did not have access to the sort of technology that can enable organizers to build and plan stadiums with costs, sustainability, and legacy in mind. But with the 2024 Paris Olympics, that is no longer the case.

In this article, Marc Nezet, Chief Strategy Officer & Chief Division Officer of the Operate & Manage Division of the Nemetschek Group, discusses how technologies like BIM, AI, and digital twins, that are reshaping the construction industry, can be used to develop Olympic stadiums more efficiently, cost-effectively, and sustainably, enable sporting events to be carbon-positive, both now as well as for their legacy use in the future.

URL: https://www.aecbytes.com/viewpoint/2024/issue_116.html

Graphisoft 2024 Innovate Event: Paris Olympics Athletes’ Village, Toronto’s Pier 27, and Spain’s Morph Estudio

Inauguration of the Athletes' Village in February 2024.

Graphisoft continued its 2024 series of Building Together events with an Innovate event held last month that was specifically focused on how architectural firms were making innovative use of its technologies for extending their design capabilities on many fronts, including parametric design, sustainable architecture, open collaboration, cloud platforms, and managing extremely large projects. These were demonstrated by the firms themselves, and the event featured a variety of fascinating case studies, starting with the Athletes’ Village for the 2024 Paris Olympics. Kickoff to the world’s biggest sporting event is barely two weeks away, so it was doubly exciting to learn about a project that will be responsible for providing rest and relaxation to the athletes, as well as a space for them to recharge, as they go through the grueling schedule and competitions of the Games.

URL: https://www.aecbytes.com/feature/2024/GraphisoftInnovate2024.html

From Complexity to Clarity at AtkinsRéalis

In this article, Dr Avgousta Stanitsa, Associate Design Researcher, and Sukhmit Singh, Digital Solutions Lead at AtkinsRéalis, show how, at the Building Design Research and Innovation (R&I) unit at AtkinsRéalis, they are generating impactful, emergent insight from data connectivity, dynamic technology ecosystems and continuous knowledge capture — and using it to enhance their design processes.

URL: https://www.aecbytes.com/feature/2024/AtkinsRealis.html

Technology in Construction Webinar: Case Studies from ES Global and Laing O’Rourke

A couple of months ago, I attended an online webinar in which ES Global and Laing O’Rourke, two leading UK construction companies, shared how they were using cutting-edge technologies on their projects. It was part of the “Digital Building Week” event put together by the organization, Building Design. In addition to discussing the technologies, the firms also presented case studies showing how the technologies were being leveraged to enhance efficiency, reduce costs, and meet project deadlines.

URL: https://www.aecbytes.com/newsletter/2024/issue_132.html

Xyicon: Asset Information Modeling for AEC

The concept of BIM or “building information modeling” in AEC is so well established by now that it does not even need to be explained any more to any AEC professional, just as we stopped clarifying CAD as “computer-aided drawing” once it had become ubiquitous in AEC firms. There are now more solutions for BIM and BIM-adjacent tools than one can count. As an offshoot of BIM, the concept of CIM or “city information modeling” has also seen some traction, with a few dedicated solutions already available.

However, the information modeling of the individual assets that need to be accommodated in our buildings, which we can refer to as “asset information modeling” or AIM, is, by and large, still a service that is provided on a consulting basis rather than a category of software solutions that are available to buy and use. Which is why I was intrigued when I came across Xyicon as a potential solution for AIM in AEC.

URL: https://www.aecbytes.com/review/2024/Xyicon.html

Making the Case for Mandatory BIM in Public Construction Projects

Public construction projects are among the largest public investments we make. They represent a significant portion of public capital and ultimately form the backbone of public infrastructure.

Public construction projects, however, are notoriously complex and are frequently bogged down by delays or cost overruns.

Which is why, according to Carl Veillette, chief product officer for Newforma, it would be wise to consider Building Information Modeling (BIM) mandates for public construction projects, since BIM has proven to be one of the most impressive tools for improving efficiency and quality in construction.

URL: https://www.aecbytes.com/viewpoint/2024/issue_114.html

Graphisoft Building Together 2024 Collaborate Event

Last month, Graphisoft held the first of its Building Together events for 2024, one that was focused specifically on collaboration in AEC. In addition to highlighting Graphisoft’s solutions for collaboration, the Collaborate event provided an in-depth look at a customer case study showcasing this collaboration in action: the Nivy Centrum project in Bratislava, Slovakia by the firm SIEBERT + TALAŠ ​ (Figure 1). This article provides an overview of the event, which also helped to provide a snapshot of current status of Graphisoft’s solutions for the AEC industry.

URL: https://www.aecbytes.com/newsletter/2024/issue_131.html

Build the Future ALLPLAN Summit 2024

Last week, Nemetschek’s leading AEC technology brand, ALLPLAN, held a virtual event to provide an overview of its growing technology stack, which now includes the structural engineering solutions, SCIA Engineer and FRILO, in addition to its flagship BIM application, Allplan, the steel detailing and fabrication solution, SDS2, and the collaboration platform, Bimplus.

In addition to showcasing its products and their latest capabilities, the two-day event also included several examples of customer projects from around the world that have been implemented with ALLPLAN’s solutions. This article captures some of the highlights from the event, along with an overview of Nemetschek’s new dTwin solution for digital twins that was also presented.

URL: https://www.aecbytes.com/feature/2024/AllplanSummit2024.html