Autodesk Building Lifecycle Management

Study finds Autodesk Building Lifecycle Management offers new revenue opportunities for entrepreneurial firms, driving future process innovation.

Autodesk, the world's leading design software and digital content company, has announced the results of an international qualitative research study on current global building industry trends and developments in information technology that confirm industry readiness for Autodesk's building lifecycle management vision.

Conducted by Counsel House Research, a division of Greenway Group, the in-depth interviews with firm decision-makers of 45 leading property, design and construction organisations in the United States, Europe and Asia show that Autodesk is in a choice position to lead the development of the next generation of building industry solutions.

Building lifecycle management, which combines the power of building information modelling with online collaboration services to solve business problems across the building lifecycle, was perceived as a significant driver of future process improvements that will transform how buildings are designed, built and managed.

In turn, entrepreneurial firms can establish new revenue streams by seeking reimbursement for digital models from owners and offering new services such as move management, energy analysis, digitally integrated cost estimating and renovation phase planning.

"There is a revolution on the horizon," said James Cramer, chairman and CEO of Greenway Group.

"The changing dynamics of the global building industry are motivating property owners and principals of architecture, engineering and construction firms to find new ways to achieve a competitive advantage.

Many firms are now looking to Autodesk to provide leadership in demonstrating how they can best implement new data-driven technology paradigms in their organisations." Motivating Factors for Process Innovation Rising competitive pressures, greater demand for intelligent and integrated buildings, faster speed-to-market and increased globalisation are fuelling adoption of new technology strategies that reduce inefficiencies, increase productivity and enhance team collaboration.

Process innovation, driven by advances in technology and better management, was found to be a distinguishing characteristic of the participating firms.

"As you design and construct a building today, it becomes a very complex assembly - there is not one trivial exercise in the whole process," said a spokesperson from the General Services Administration.

As building complexity has increased, however, project timelines have dramatically shortened.

More and more clients are expecting faster results as benchmark expectations.

In response to shorter project timelines, new project delivery systems such as design-build are becoming more prevalent.

Faster turnaround, stronger collaboration between designers and builders and single point of responsibility were all cited as advantages to design-build.

HBG Bouw en Vastgoed, a large construction firm in Germany, considered the early involvement of the construction team as a significant value of design-build.

Building information modelling and online project collaboration services were both mentioned as technology developments that facilitate completion of fast-track design-build projects.

Learning from the Manufacturing Industry The Counsel House Research study examined how the building industry could benefit from applying the power of information technology to building lifecycle management in a similar way to the efficiencies that the manufacturing sector has gained from implementing product lifecycle management.

Study participants "found significant advantage to the idea of being able to share and manage continuous information spanning from the inception of the project's design through construction to future additions, and ongoing building maintenance".

This approach would make concurrent information available on the use or performance of a building; its occupants and contents, including tenant and department assignments and furniture and equipment inventory; and relevant financial data.

It would also provide a digital record of building renovations to aid in future facility planning.

This represents "total building lifecycle and cost management and would be a very positive step," said the owner's representative of the Hong Kong Housing Authority.

The technical components for applying technology to solve problems across the building lifecycle already exist and are gaining traction.

The study found that building information modelling is "perceived as an important tool of change and competitive advantage for organisations transforming the AEC industry." Building information modelling provides benefits not only for post-construction facilities management, but also during the design process itself.

Respondents stated that "integrated fully coordinated building information models help design team members produce higher quality work more quickly with fewer errors, while helping their clients better visualize their buildings".

At the same time, Internet-based collaboration services have become "mainstream" and are considered, particularly by building owners, to be the source of significant "project management efficiencies" and "the biggest most impactful change in the industry".

While some participants maintained that current technology tools are not yet ready to fully support the building lifecycle management vision, the study concluded, however, that "entrenched thinking and behaviour patterns" within the traditionally conservative building industry are the greatest impediment to its adoption.

Many respondents believe that building owners will be "the primary drivers of change" since they can require the design and construction team to employ new building information modelling and building lifecycle management solutions.

According to an owner representative of a large, global hospitality and lodging organisation, "the culture in the AEC industry has for a long time been fragmented and inefficient.

The industry has lacked trust and been short on strategic collaborative thinking.

We believe that this culture must become a remnant of the past.

We see smart firms creating new value propositions that connect together and make sense of the pieces of the puzzle".

"Revolution and Achievement: New Practice and Business Models Emerge in the Study of Architecture, Design and Real Estate," a summary analysis of the Counsel House Research Study conducted on behalf of the Design Futures Council and Autodesk, is available upon request.

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