San Rafael, Calif. and Extone, Pa. – July
8, 2008 – At a joint press conference, Autodesk, Inc. (NASDAQ: ADSK) and
Bentley Systems, Incorporated, two of the leading providers of design and
infrastructure software, announced an agreement to expand interoperability
between their portfolios of architectural, engineering, and construction (AEC)
software. Autodesk and Bentley will exchange software libraries,
including Autodesk RealDWG, to improve the ability to read and write the
companies’ respective DWG and DGN formats in mixed environments with greater
fidelity. In addition, the two companies will facilitate work process
interoperability between their AEC applications through supporting the
reciprocal use of available Application Programming Interfaces (APIs).
With this agreement, the companies aim to improve AEC workflows by enabling
broader reuse of information generated during the design, construction, and
operation of buildings and infrastructure, and by enhancing the ability of
project teams to choose among multiple software sources.
Interoperability has emerged as a critical
issue for users of design and engineering software. A 2004 study by the
U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology found that users bear
direct costs of almost $16 billion annually from time wasted due to inadequate
AEC software interoperability. By virtue of this agreement, and the
interoperable offerings that it will enable, AEC firms will be free to employ
software tools of choice from either Autodesk or Bentley to accept or submit
either DWG or DGN files. By improving fidelity of work shared between the
two file formats, users will be able to focus on being creative and getting
work done, rather than being constrained by file-compatibility considerations.
Through supporting the reciprocal use of their available APIs, Autodesk
and Bentley will enable AEC project teams to combine products from both
providers within integrated workflows. For instance, a design team could
use a mixture of Autodesk and Bentley software, such as Autodesk’s Revit
platform and Bentley’s STAAD and RAM structural products, and simulate and
analyze their designs or manage project information using Autodesk NavisWorks
software or Bentley’s ProjectWise.
Norbert Young, FAIA, president of
McGraw-Hill Construction and former chairman of the International Alliance for
Interoperability in North America, said, “This groundbreaking agreement
directly addresses many of the critical issues detailed in the October 2007
McGraw-Hill Construction study on interoperability in the construction industry
(construction.ecnext.com/mcgraw_hill/includes/SMRI.pdf). I applaud both
companies for their foresight and leadership.”
Added Patrick MacLeamy, FAIA, CEO of global
architectural firm HOK and a founder and current chairman of the International
Alliance for Interoperability (IAI), “As a longtime advocate of
interoperability, I welcome this agreement as an important step toward enabling
AEC information to be more broadly shared, increasing the value of BIM to our
clients.”
“Autodesk recognizes that many customers
use our products in mixed environments, and this agreement will help to better
support these firms,” said Jay Bhatt, senior vice president, Autodesk AEC
Solutions. “As part of our commitment to provide technology that improves
productivity and efficiency across the AEC industry, we’re pleased to enter
into this agreement with Bentley Systems – Autodesk’s largest development
partner – and together help customers design, build, operate, and maintain the
world’s infrastructure.”
“Bentley and Autodesk share a goal of
enabling the creation and operations of better-performing infrastructure,” said
Greg Bentley, CEO of Bentley Systems. “Realizing that our mutual users
bear unnecessary costs resulting from lack of interoperability, we came
together to finally make information reuse the norm. By raising its sights
beyond file format issues, the resource-constrained AEC community can better
serve us all.”
For additional information about Bentley,
visitwww.bentley.com.
For additional information about Autodesk,
visitwww.autodesk.com.
Autodesk and Bentley to Advance AEC Software Interoperability
July 10, 2008
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