If one thing is certain in these uncertain times, it’s that 2020 will forever be remembered as a year of change. Some of these pressures, such as condensed project timelines and tight budgets, were already at a boiling point for decades. Others, such as remote work and pandemic-related changes, took many of us by surprise.
Yet, construction firms have braved this new world triumphantly. We’ve seen tremendous resiliency and agility as industry professionals continued to face these challenges head-on, adapted quickly, and became comfortable with being uncomfortable. However, our work is just starting.
Today, construction’s digital transformation is unfolding before our eyes. Technologies and tools that we previously categorized as “nice-to-haves” are now absolutely essential, and data is being captured at an unprecedented rate. In a recent survey of 400 construction executives by McKinsey, two-thirds of respondents agree that the current COVID-19 crisis will accelerate industry transformation. Furthermore, more than 50% report they have already increased investments in order to adjust to the new future.
Digital innovation is only accelerating in construction -- but investment in technology alone is not enough to future-proof our industry. Our industry requires solutions that connect their information, teams, and technology -- breaking down data silos and disconnected processes that hinder true transformation. As we navigate the ever-present push to do more with less, we must leverage solutions that will support new ways of working, enhance connected digital workflows, and incorporate advanced analytics. To support us on this journey of transformation, we must lean into tools that connect construction -- from design to plan, build, handover, and operations.
To understand where our industry is going, let’s look at where we’ve been. In 2003, we had a vision of changing the relationship between design and construction. Through Autodesk’s acquisition of Revit, we saw the true potential in bringing these two disciplines together. This vision from almost 20 years ago had come to life, transforming how this industry works together. Today, we’re putting collaboration across construction at the forefront of everything we do.
Over the years, we’ve seen technology play a more significant role in the industry. As our industry’s technology adoption has matured, we’ve moved away from paper. We’ve started to automate critical workflows, optimize data, and achieve full-scale digitization - a trend that has accelerated over the last few months.
Since launching Autodesk Construction Solutions in 2018, we’ve supported you in this journey. Our R&D bench has grown by more than 400 new team members, and we’ve delivered nearly 500 new features to our portfolio. We’re enhancing the capabilities, so you can win more work, reduce safety incidents on the jobsite, and improve the handover experience. Last year, we unveiled the Autodesk Construction Cloud, and shared our end goal of building a unified platform where our products come together under a single user experience. And this year, we’ve continued to invest in exciting construction technologies like Pype, Aurigo, and Bridgit, each enhancing your productivity and saving you thousands of hours across your projects.
Throughout it all, our mission remains the same: to help construction teams meet the world’s rapidly expanding building and infrastructure needs while making construction more predictable, safe, and sustainable. And we’ve remained steadfast in our promise to deliver the industry’s most compelling solutions, connecting design to planning, to the jobsite, and through to handover and operations. This is our commitment to connected construction.
Over the last year, we’ve enhanced our champion features and created meaningful integrations to make our unified platform a reality. Now it’s time to take the next step. It’s time to introduce what’s next in connected construction powered by the Autodesk Construction Cloud.
We’re thrilled to announce our next generation of construction management products on a unified platform. Autodesk Construction Cloud connects your data from design through preconstruction, out to the jobsite and in the office, and, ultimately, through handover and operations. We’re connecting your data, your workflows, and your teams all to support your day-to-day operations and enable the transformation of construction.
The unified Autodesk Construction Cloud delivers unparalleled depth at every stage of construction and deep integrations between business-critical workflows.
Introducing Autodesk® Build; our new project, cost, and field collaboration solution. By combining the project management and field collaboration features you know and love from both BIM 360 and PlanGrid, it delivers a new suite of capabilities to address your key workflow challenges.
Autodesk® Takeoff is a groundbreaking product for preconstruction professionals that empowers estimators to work from a single source of truth. The product enables teams to automate both 2D and 3D quantification from one comprehensive platform.
Autodesk® BIM Collaborate brings design collaboration into Autodesk Construction Cloud and enables project teams to execute on design intent. By managing the entire design collaboration and coordination workflow from a single solution, teams are able to coordinate and collaborate on multiple complex models to reduce rework, improve productivity, and accelerate project delivery.
At Autodesk, we don’t just want to help you succeed in the new normal. We want to empower you to embrace the new possible. That’s why we’re equipping you with transformative construction technology. As we look to the future of Autodesk Construction Cloud, data plays a critical role. Data is central to your business strategy. It dictates your ability to collaborate with stakeholders across the project lifecycle and ultimately, holds the insights you need to drive better business outcomes. Yet, according to FMI, 95% of data captured in the construction and engineering industry goes unused.
Data is central to our strategy too. We want to help you tap into your data in new and exciting ways. Our Common Data Environment (CDE) enables this and integrates with your current workflows. Autodesk Docs is at the core of our CDE, and as we continue to build out its capabilities, we are guided by three key pillars:
First, we’re enhancing workflows to expand functionality within our CDE so that decision-makers can access critical data when and where they need it.
Next, we’re tightening our design integrations so you can seamlessly input information from design tools like AutoCAD, Revit, and Civil3D.
Finally, we have the opportunity to improve how the construction industry communicates, regardless of where the data comes from. Our federated data strategy will consolidate your information from different accounts, users, and applications into a single source of truth.
These three pillars will help set our Common Data Environment to become one of the most comprehensive CDEs in the market. Furthermore, Autodesk Construction Cloud is underpinned by our Forge platform, creating a seamless flow of information between workflows and allows you to build new applications.
We are also adding new capabilities that let you get more from the data you own. The architecture behind Autodesk Construction Cloud makes it easy to access and extract the data you need. Whether you’re generating reports, extracting information through custom integrations, or working with one of our technology partners to extend workflows, you can count on the Autodesk Construction Cloud platform to provide the data and insights you need to make the right decision at the right time.
It’s also the reason why expanding our machine learning capabilities will continue to be a key focus within our products. In construction, machine learning is incredibly powerful for process automation as it reduces the manual work associated with data extraction. It’s one of the reasons why we acquired Pype and why we have added capabilities like Symbol Detection, helping you to better classify and structure your photo data. Solutions like these give you the power to convert your real-time data into actionable insights.
As design, manufacturing, and construction converge, the way we view the future of construction will continue to evolve. Truthfully, we’re writing its future right now, as we’re building a foundation that will support our customers in all stages of their business transformation.
At Autodesk, our mission is to empower innovators everywhere. That’s why we’re focused on creating the automation and insights that will help you unlock new ideas to apply to your projects and businesses for better outcomes both today and in the future. Together, we can reimagine what’s possible in construction -- and you can rest assured that Autodesk will be by your side every step of the way.
To learn more about Autodesk Construction Cloud’s new connected construction tools, take a look at our release.
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