Last year, Autodesk went on an acquisition rampage, gobbling up field productivity software company, PlanGrid, for $875 million; preconstruction software company, BuildingConnected, for $275 million; and BIM software company, Assemble, for an undisclosed amount. Up until yesterday, all of those companies remained relatively separate from each other.
At Autodesk University 2019 (AU 2019), Jim Lynch, vice president and general manager of Autodesk Construction Solutions, announced a new cohesive platform that will bring all of their acquired software -- as well as some key internal software -- together under one platform: Autodesk Construction Cloud.
PlanGrid, BuildingConnected, Assemble, and BIM360 will now live under the roof of the Autodesk Construction Cloud (ACC). Combined with Autodesk’s clear stranglehold on design software, the ACC will connect construction teams through all phases of the project life cycle, from design, to planning, to building, and operation.
“With Autodesk Construction Cloud, we’re introducing a new era of connected construction and offering unrivaled integration between headquarters, office and field teams. We’ve never been more dedicated nor clearer in our mission to empower designers, contractors and owners to meet the world’s rapidly expanding construction needs, while helping to make building more predictable, safe and sustainable,” explained Jim Lynch, in a press release.
In addition to the ACC, Autodesk also announced 50 new product enhancements at AU 2019. I plan to do a more in-depth look at all of those enhancements, but the highlights include electronic quantity takeoffs inside BuildingConnected, the ability for field teams to now take video within the PlanGrid app, and Design Risk Management, which identifies possible sources for RFIs and change orders originating in the design stage.
Although Autodesk has been working diligently for the past year in creating integrations and product enhancements for all of their construction software offerings after the acquisitions, the announcement of the ACC feels like just the beginning of their concerted effort to make a huge impact on the construction industry.
More to come on this and other news from Autodesk University 2019, but in the meantime, you can check out the Autodesk’s announcement video of the ACC below:
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