Tech Innovator Award

CADwire.net is accepting Tech Innovator Award Nominations for this year's award program. The winner will be announced at the upcoming COFES (congress on future of engineering software) event on April 20 - 23, 2006.

The award program spotlights leading edge, but little-known, technologies that address key design needs and further the success of designers and engineers. More information about the program can be found at: www.cofes.com.

Graphisoft Targets Global 200

A report on AECnews.com states that Graphisoft maybe shifting gears a bit as it begins targeting the global construction industry's 200 largest companies directly, preferring to selling them design services as opposed to software licenses. The report says stock traders in Graphisoft (GPH, Frankfurt / GRAPHI, Budapest), a global leader in AEC CAD software, reacted positively to the move, boosting shares up 4.6% on Monday.

Graphisoft, as a BIM/CAD company, has begun strategic shifts as it battles for market share against larger rivals such as Autodesk (ADSK). In an Architosh interview with Don R. Henrich II, Vice President for Graphisoft US, last year, the company noted that they were already meeting with success in working directly with large builders such as Webcore, of California.

Graphisoft CEO, Dominic Gallello noted to the shareholders' meeting held this past week that the global top 200 construction firms generate annual billings (revenue) of $70 billion, while the world's design firms generate yearly revenue of just $1.7 billion. Graphisoft's Constructor 2005 -- a Wall Street Technology Innovation Awards 2005 winner -- is the product the company looks to be asserting into the marketplace where the top 200 firms compete.

Autodesk Buys Constructware

Autodesk (ADSK) yesterday announced their acquisition of Constructware for $46 million USD in an all cash deal. The web-based collaboration software and services company, based out of Alpharetta, Georgia, will now join Autodesk's similar Buzzsaw services. Constructware, one of the few dot-com survivors from the heydays of online AEC collaboration, today has over 29,000 users. This will aggregate to Buzzsaw's more than 137,000 users bringing Autodesk's total online collaboration users to 166,000. That is a substantial number for any kind of professional vertical industry, especially one serving the global construction market.

Architosh Analysis: Both of these news stories index a very strong undercurrent taking place in the AEC (architecture, engineering, construction) market. What is afloat here is the recognition by software companies that may have had their origins squarely rooted at the design professional's side (the left side) of the AEC acronym that the construction professional's side (the right side) may again be more adaptive and aggressive with acquiring, experimenting and adopting new software technology-based workflows than their designer-based peers.

You began to hear a bit of this -- if you read between the lines -- in our Graphisoft VP interview last year. The construction professional carries a bigger burden liability-wise, one might argue, than his design professional peer. Hence, in recognizing that more is at stake -- not just in actual revenues that each side of the AEC market takes in -- but at acknowledging the risks involved in the AEC enterprise is lopsided in favor of the design professional, yes, then you can see where the construction side is more motivated to solve these bigger problems first. That big problem is really about "information fidelity" or the degree of exactness that takes place when information is transferred from one AEC participant to another.

The problem for the design professional side (architects, interior designers, urban designers and planners and their related design consultants), is that -- again, the story of technology utilization in the AEC market gets unduly decided for them by other AEC professionals who by natural market realities are inclined to see the picture from their end only.