The next revolution is now

It is generally accepted that the industrial revolution began in Britain in the late 1700s with the introduction of mechanised factories for the production of textiles. While its effects were widespread, they were not necessarily fully felt for almost a century when rapid economic growth began around the 1870s, following innovations in steel making processes and mass production, among others.

Fast forward another century and thus began a shift away from purely mechanical processes towards increasingly digital processes—particularly in the AECM (architecture, engineering, construction, manufacturing) industries with the advent of CAD, CAM and BIM platforms.

“Digital technologies, among them BIM and Digital Twins, are transforming the AECM industries—and the way in which new structures are planned and designed—at a rate previously unheard of,” says Marcel van Oosterom, Digital Transformation and Implementation Lead at CADPRO Systems New Zealand Ltd.

“Since we began in 1992, offering CAD and CAM solutions on the Autodesk platform to AECM companies, the uptake of digital systems has increased exponentially, beginning with the move towards the BIM environment around 2002.”

“Initially, not a lot of clients grasped the concept of BIM, but Australia and New Zealand companies are traditionally early adopters of technology. The uptake locally amongst the larger, more established companies was rapid and is now seen as a ‘business as usual’ approach to how most projects are delivered.

“We've observed projects such as Christchurch’s Justice Precinct, Auckland’s Commercial Bay, and City Rail Link being just a few examples of the calibre of development using digital technologies.”

Gary Page, Senior BIM Technology Specialist at CADPRO, agrees: “There is definitely a lot of awareness of Autodesk design software and cloud platforms in New Zealand. The Autodesk brand is far-reaching within the industry and crosses all boundaries from concept, design, construction and operations.

“The market has come to a sense of maturity with the introduction of Autodesk's collaborative cloud solutions. One of these cloud solutions, BIM Collaborate Pro, is designed to connect internal and external teams, helping to accelerate design times ,reduce costs and improve project communication.

“BIM Collaborate Pro’s impact has been a ‘game changer’ and we’ve seen an even bigger adoption since Covid-19, to the point where it has become the ‘go to’ platform for design collaboration. The technology is scaleable, optimised, efficient and fast, which means it's capable of handling more complex, larger models, allowing multiple designers to collaborate in a common data environment across different geos and different teams.”

Gary says that with BIM Collaborate Pro, the traditional BIM design process is fast-tracked in many areas, and with better insights into coordination issues and project transparency, the impact on timelines can be better understood.

“BIM has many different meanings for different people but the core truth is that we’re digitising the process not changing it. In terms of progress, the digitisation of the industry has ramped up post-Covid, to the point that we are a good five to six years ahead of where we would have been had the move progressed naturally.”

“CADPRO specialises in providing BIM advisory and implementation services, data management solutions, training, software customisation and application development to the AECM industries,” says Marcel.

“As a technology provider and trusted advisor on digital thought leadership, our primary goal lies in helping customers drive businesses better. We do this by educating people on all the benefits the Autodesk platform can bring them. In the process, demonstrating the return on investment by assisting them with adoption of this technology.

“Whether your business is in architecture, engineering, construction or manufacturing, Autodesk has a digital software solution to enable your business—backed by our own local technical specialists and development team. Everyone on the team has a great passion for the technology and is driven to ensure the right solution for our clients’ success. Many of our clients have been with us for more than 15 years and it has been our pleasure to work with them, earn their trust and help them grow in that time.”

Gary adds: “We will continue to champion the implementation of digital technologies within the AECM sphere to help the industry progress, including working towards the paradigm shift from BIM to Digital Twins. 

“We have great data management tools with Digital Twin software rapidly gaining adoption. The future is exciting with Autodesk driving Digital Twin technology, and we continue to see more digital savvy clients exploring other environments for fabrication, AI and robotics.”

Learn more about digital technologies and how they can help accelerate the growth of your AECM business.