14 Dec 2020

Convergence in Building Design: Better Project Delivery Workflows

Better Project Delivery Workflows - collaboration

Autodesk University 2020 launched on November 17th with multiple product announcements, vision statements, hundreds of robust pieces of learning content, and much more. But one theme, in particular, was very clear throughout the conference - Autodesk wants to help you Reimagine Possible and gain that competitive edge. COVID-19's impact has changed the way we work forever.  The shift to a more digital, connected, and virtual future is calling on you to unleash innovations that deliver new benefits, experiences, and value. There is no time like the present to invest in the Autodesk tools that will get you there.

But how exactly are we going to create the New Possible? By ushering in the Era of Convergence. Convergence is the next stage of digitization, leading to the digital blending of previously separate technologies, processes, and digital and physical assets; the reshaping of industry structures and markets; and entirely new combinations of products, services, and experiences.

To help show you the true value of Convergence, we are posting a blog series on Convergence in your Industry.  Start off by reading Convergence with Forge, as our cloud platform underpins much of what can be done for each industry. Then below you will find pieces of Architecture & Building Engineering on-demand AU content that teach you more about this phenomenon and show how you and your industry can capitalize on Convergence as an opportunity for innovation and growth. 

Architecture & Building Engineering and Convergence

Forge for Building Design

We know the digital transformation for architects and engineers has been accelerated by the pandemic. In the Forge for Building Design program, Vikram Dutt, Associate Vice President of Building Design Strategy & Marketing, and Greg Fallon, Vice President of Platforms & Technology Strategy advise how Forge provides many of the tools that can help you take advantage of the shift and Convergence. BamCore exemplifies Convergence between the Construction and Building Design industries. From design to manufacturing to construction, you will hear how they've coordinated workflows sustainably. AECOM utilized Forge to build dashboards that would allow them to visualize data and harness insights to make their design teams more impactful and better modelers while saving time and money. You also hear from software developer GTP who have a solution for their customer DSI. In trying to resolve disjointed model coordination between various disciplines, in this story, they explain how Forge is helping bring together virtual design capabilities and coordination from the office to the fabrication shop to the construction site. 

Architecture, Engineering, and Construction Keynote

In the AEC Keynote, Nicolas Mangon, Vice President AEC Strategy & Marketing at Autodesk, said “Digital transformation has gone from a nice-to-have to a must-have across every phase of design and construction." And Autodesk certainly has big plans to capitalize on the new ways of making that enable this digital transformation to be accelerated. To name a few of the keynote highlights:

  • Nicolas Mangon, Vice President AEC Strategy & Marketing at Autodesk, highlighted the acquisition of Spacemaker
  • Leona Frank, Senior Industry Marketing Manager for Infrastructure at Autodesk, introduced Autodesk BIM Collaborate.
  • Vanessa Bertollini, Sr. Industry Marketing Manager – AEC Thought Leadership at Autodesk, introduced Autodesk Tandem, bringing digital twin to BIM.
  • Jim Lynch, Vice President & General Manager, Autodesk Construction Solutions at Autodesk, announced three new products for Autodesk Construction Cloud built on a unified platform and common data environment – Autodesk BuildAutodesk Quantify, and Autodesk BIM Collaborate
  • Amy Marks, Head of Industrialized Construction Strategy and Evangelism at Autodesk, shared more about Autodesk’s strategy and vision for industrialized construction. 
  • Digitized workflows enabled the teams building the Bangalore Airport to go to remote site management overnight when the lockdown started.
  • Federating access to project data and models enabled Norconsult to reduce the production of drawings by 97%.
  • BIM-based processes in DfMA enabled Bryden Wood to lower embodied carbon by 19% and reduce labor by 35%.

To read more about the top construction news and how all the announcements from the AEC Keynote highlights Convergence, check out this blog.

    Better Project Delivery Workflows 

    In Better Project Delivery Workflows, Brey Tucker, Senior Industry Manager, Project Delivery, and Amie Vaccaro, Product Marketing Manager, outline how being able to support the new ways of working and getting on top of your data to inform better decisions will be key to remaining competitive in the industry. Exciting announcements are made on new developments and offerings in cloud collaboration solutions that will change how you manage and deliver your projects. This includes updates from the teams at Gannet and Fleming and Tetra Tech, a demo of workflows for Revit and how they've helped the company tvsdesign drive digital transformation, and further insight into the next generation of BIM 360 design that was announced in the AEC keynote.

    Better Project Delivery Workflows
    Better Project Delivery Workflows - BIM 360

    Be sure to watch the above Autodesk University 2020 programs to get a well-rounded idea of just how impactful Convergence can be to you, your team, and your industry. And check out the other blogs in this series to find inspiration from other industries:

    If you'd like to learn more about how different industries, processes, and disciplines are coming together, check out this overview on Convergence.

    Related Article