2024 Issues |
September - October - Featuring
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Editor's Comment:
'We conclude that the fire at Grenfell Tower was the culmination of decades of failure by central government and other bodies in positions of responsibility in the construction industry to look carefully into the danger of incorporating combustible...
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PDF Version |
Streamlined water quality schemes
Bentley Systems' Paul Rotter explains how Mott MacDonald standardises phosphorous removal schemes, using ProjectWise Component Centre...
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July - August - Featuring
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Editor's Comment:
Labour hasn't wasted any time since winning the election, and in her first speech the new Chancellor Rachel Reeves has confirmed their manifesto commitments to build more houses - aiming at 1.5 million over the next five years...
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Joined-up data
Sasha Crotty, leader of Autodesk's AEC Design Data team, explains how the acquisition of Datum360 democratises data access for its AECO customers
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May - June - Featuring
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Editor's Comment:
Round about the time Georg Nemetschek was thinking about using computers to advance his architectural dreams, I was writing my first software program in 2k of memory using machine code
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PDF Version |
The Change
grabowski.spork architektur have developed an efficient BIM process with Vectorworks Architect to build a sustainable high-rise office in Eschborn, Germany and deliver The Change in personal lifestyles
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March - April - Featuring
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Editor's Comment:
You may have missed the report that 350,000 (sic) houses have been canned in the State of Voctoria, Australia, because of the discovery of several 'earless dragons' - previously thought to be extinct
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PDF Version |
Making Designs Constructable
Andrew Bellerby explains how DBM Vircon develops constructable manufacturing models from engineer's designs
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January - February - Featuring
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Editor's Comment:
I can remember working for a Japanese printer manufacturer who wanted to expand into the small ‘floppy’ disk market – when 3 inch disks were vieing with 3.5 inch disks for supremacy
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PDF Version |
Data visualisation tool collaboration
Anew data visualisation tool designed to support civil infrastructure teams expediate access to data during the planning phase - enabling more informed decision making...
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2023 Issues |
November - December - Featuring
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Editor's Comment:
A great occasion to meet up with old friends, make new contacts and, of course, be in with a chance to win one of the Construction Computing awards. Entertainment was provided by a baffling close-range magician, Nick Eindhoven.
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PDF Version |
Upping your game
Claire Rutkowski, Bentley's Senior Vice President and CIO Champion, considers the human aspects of accelerating change management in the construction industry - particularly important in the drive towards increasing involvement with AI
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September - October - Featuring
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Editor's Comment:
China is teaching its children about the pitfalls of democracy and its role in scuppering the development of large infrastructure projects, and it is using HS2 as a prime example. An easy target perhaps, but there are others.
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PDF Version |
Water management
Sandra DiMatteo, marketing director for water infrastructure at Bentley Systems, outlines five ways that water utilities can mitigate the consequences...
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July - August - Featuring
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Editor's Comment:
With Bentley's Industrial Metaverse in the last newsletter, and Vectorworks' Life, the Omniverse and Everything in this one, the construction industry appears to be finally shaking off its image as a 'slow adopter of technology'
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PDF Version |
A bridge between virtual and physical inspections
Dam and Bridge Monitoring from Bentley Systems increases safety for inspectors and gives them the ability to minimise field trips, speed up processes, and share data...
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May - June - Featuring
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Editor's Comment:
I'm amazed, whenever I travel on the tube in London, to see so many adults engaged in mobile games. As someone whose only flirtation with computer games was Space Invaders on an Apple II...
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PDF Version |
The industrial metaverse
Bentley's Innovation Lab (iLab) takes digital twins into the metaverse using 3D and 4D immersive technology developed for the gaming industry...
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March - April - Featuring
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Editor's Comment:
The ultra low emission zone (ULEZ) is a disruptive process that is changing people's lives - hence the opposition throughout Europe...
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PDF Version |
From 2D photos to 3D models
David Chadwick looks at the new features in Vectorworks Cloud Services and the Nomad mobile app...
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January - February - Featuring
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Editor's Comment:
This issue has more than the typical number of case studies - not all of them UK based, but all of them relevant and interesting. January is a quiet month...
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PDF Version |
Back to the future
Sustainability and digital transformation will be key focuses in 2023, according to Håvard Haukeland
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2022 Issues |
November - December - Featuring
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Editor's Comment:
There is a vicious vortex of wind that swirls around the area between the two Hammersmith stations in London. The day can seem quite pleasant until you...
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PDF Version |
Fusion powered collaboration
Fusion and Esri's ArcGIS connect people and processes on the multidisciplinary HS2 project |
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September - October - Featuring
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Editor's Comment:
If you think our recent weather was hot then consider the ITER project that has
been running in France for the last five years, and which still has some time to
run...
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PDF Version |
Archicad 26
Graphisoft releases the latest version of its architectural design application, Archicad 26, which focuses on giving architects and designers more... |
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July - August - Featuring
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Editor's Comment: We attach the term AI to just about everything that involves a bit of high-powered computing these days, which probably...
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PDF Version |
The integration imperative
Graphisoft's vision according to Huw Roberts is "A world of buildings that make people's lives better, created together by digitalised multidisciplinary teams"... |
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May - June - Featuring
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Editor's Comment: We attach the term AI to just about everything that involves a bit of high-powered computing these days, which probably...
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PDF Version |
H2PORTO
Oporto Water Utility develops a technology platform for integrated management of its urban water cycle |
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March - April - Featuring |
Editor's Comment: In a few short weeks the whole world has been tipped on its axis. Forget COVID and the environmental summit in Glasgow...
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PDF Version |
The Omniverse and after
Graphisoft CEO Huw Roberts explains how visualisations helps create great architecture |
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January - February - Featuring |
Editor's Comment: I 'm afraid I have to apologise for pandering to stereotypes by giving a friend a birthday card recently which featured a Private Eye cartoon...
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PDF Version |
A woven façade
David Chadwick looks at how Vectorworks Architect enabled GDP Architects to add another iconic building to the Kuala Lumpur skyline |
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2021 Issues |
November - December - Featuring |
Editor's Comment: The UK Government's decision to cancel half of HS2 North of Birmingham has underscored the theme of two articles in this issue which deal with the importance of spending a bit of time negotiating contracts...
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PDF Version |
British Antarctic survey selects new CDE
British Antarctic Survey (BAS) has selected gliderbim® as its new Common Data Environment (CDE) to support the delivery of phase 2 of the Antarctic... |
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September - October - Featuring |
Editor's Comment: What an absolute Pleasure it has been to write up the Graphisoft case study on the duke ellington school of the Arts Project in Washington
DC... |
PDF Version |
Who owns the data?
Michael Barber, Director of Amodal, investigates the problems of data ownership in our digital world |
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July - August - Featuring |
Editor's Comment: I went on a mini-cruise a couple of weeks ago, taking in a steam train trip from Paignton to Kingswear on the River Dart and then a jaunt on a 100 year-old steam driven paddle boat... |
PDF Version |
Silver service
Graphisoft introduces the 25th version of Archicad, setting new levels of growth despite the ravages of the pandemic |
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May - June - Featuring |
Editor's Comment: Here in the UK we are slowly emerging from the ravages of a global pandemic which has dramatically altered the way we live and work.... |
PDF Version |
CFD for urban design
Naghman Khan PhD, Product Marketing Engineer at SimScale GmbH explains how CFD is used to simulate the effects of volatile wind conditions in the proliferating canyons of urban cities |
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March - April - Featuring |
Editor's Comment: Here in the UK we are slowly emerging from the ravages of a global pandemic which has dramatically altered the way we live and work.... |
PDF Version |
PARAM-O
Archicad 24 users lacking software or coding skills can now download a free-form modelling tool, PARAM-O, that enables them to create custom parametric 3D objects and components |
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January - February - Featuring |
Editor's Comment: Whilst we remain in the grip of the Coronavirus Pandemic, the new year is already witnessing a remarkable effort from scientists within the Pharmaceutical... |
PDF Version |
A BIM inspired eco home
JRA's Earth Sheltered Eco Home was the runner up in the Construction Computing Awards BIM Project Of The Year category, proving BIM is not just a resource for large-scale public projects |
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2020 Issues |
November - December - Featuring |
Editor's Comment: The Ultimate aim of many software Developments over the last decade or so has been to shave off a couple of percentage points from the bottom line. |
PDF Version |
Digitally Twinned design
Graphisoft's Archicad enabled brp architects to create a virtual building to refine their forward-thinking design for a contemporary home in the middle of Market Harborough |
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September - October - Featuring |
Editor's Comment: It looks like relaxing the social distancing rules in the UK is having the outcome we all feared. |
PDF Version |
Getting more from geotechnical data
OpenGround Cloud is a new cloud service that enables geotechnical professionals to access reliable geotechnical data for better engineering decision... |
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July - August - Featuring |
Editor's Comment: A few days ago I came across an interesting animated graph on the Internet, which demonstrated the relationship between the adoption of Covid-19 measures in America against the spread of the virus... |
PDF Version |
Building Together
Graphisoft's online user conference, Building Together, delivered a powerful package of software upgrades and then trumped them all with a new paradigm... |
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May - June - Featuring |
Editor's Comment: It's a relief that we don't have to (t)witter on about Brexit anymore... |
PDF Version |
Issues and risks
Version 4.6 of 3D Repo introduces a new measurement tool, a Revit plug-in for handling design and construction issues, and an integrated version of SafetiBase |
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March - April - Featuring |
Editor's Comment: It's a relief that we don't have to (t)witter on about Brexit anymore... |
PDF Version |
Quiet, please!
Noise pollution is second only to air pollution as a threat to public health according to the World Health Organisation. Quiet Mark has set up the Acoustics Academy to help us understand why... |
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January - February - Featuring |
Editor's Comment: It's a relief that we don't have to (t)witter on about Brexit anymore... |
PDF Version |
It's all coming together
It's a relief that we don't have to (t)witter on about Brexit anymore... |
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2019 Issues |
November - December- Featuring |
Editor's Comment: What's the key ingredient in making a smart city? Getting the public involved in the process, of course... |
PDF Version |
Lighting up the stage
New York based Gray Matter Visual used Vectorworks Vision 2019 for the spectacular light show at Telemundo 2019, the annual celebratory... |
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September -October- Featuring |
Editor's Comment: Having recently completed my bit of judging for the Vectorworks Student Design competition, which showcases the architectural talents of young people studying to become fully qualified architects... |
PDF Version |
2020 vision
Vectorworks 2020 leads with enhancements to its data management capabilities and model visualisation, writes David Chadwick... |
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July -August- Featuring |
Editor's Comment: Designing buildings or running projects can be a bit of an insular activity when your entire focus is on the job in hand... |
PDF Version |
The Wall of Answered Prayer
Designed by Snug Architects and described as 'A national landmark of hope', The Wall of Answered Prayer aims to inspire the nation and rival the Angel of the North... |
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May-June- Featuring |
Editor's Comment: The correlation of concepts in IT is a fascinating subject in its own right, and the very latest, exemplified by the two key players in the industry... |
PDF Version |
A National Digital Twin
A dynamic digital twin was created at Cambridge University's Institute for Manufacturing to test the challenges and issues associated with developing a digital model of infrastructure assets... |
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Mar-Apr- Featuring |
Editor's Comment: It wasn't so long ago that the construction industry was being portrayed as being some way behind the times when it came to using technology'... |
PDF Version |
AI in Infrastructure
Artificial Intelligence, integrated with Bentley's Reality Modelling, is set to revolutionise the solving of design and process issues within the infrastructure industry... |
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Jan-Feb- Featuring |
Editor's Comment: With all of the excitement about Brexit and whether we will be in, or out, or doomed if we end up with a 'No Deal'... |
PDF Version |
A Small BIM Project
The small scale project at Swithland Lane, Rothley, designed by Jonathan Reeves of jrarchitects using Vectorworks was one of the runners-up... |
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2018 Issues |
November-December- Featuring |
Editor's Comment: I have always been fascinated by the semantics of change, a striking example of which has been our pre-occupation with BIM over the last dozen years... |
PDF Version |
Allplan Engineering 2019
The latest version of Allplan for architects and engineers provides improved working processes for all sectors of the engineering design community... |
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September-October- Featuring |
Editor's Comment: The Internet of Things, Smart Cities, the Information Age, The Fourth Industrial Revolution - call it what you will - but as Kenny Ingram of IFS points out in this issue... |
PDF Version |
Digital twins
Bentley and Siemens combine data information models in the 'digital twinning' of two technologies - manufacturing and construction... |
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July-August- Featuring |
Editor's Comment: Also Known as industry 4.0, The Fourth Industrial Revolution represents a major milestone in the evolution of civilisation from an agrarian past to a fully mechanised present... |
PDF Version |
Bridging the gap
Designing complex bridges is substantially simplified using the parametric capabilities of Allplan Bridge... |
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May-June- Featuring |
Editor's Comment: I think it would be interesting to conduct a study to find out why men of the cloth seem to have a such a fascination with trains - from the Rev Wilbert Awdry who wrote Thomas the Tank Engine... |
PDF Version |
OpenRail
Bentley's Rail and Transit Infrastructure Lifecycle Solution provides a comprehensive, concept to completion and operation solution for the rail industry... |
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Mar-Apr- Featuring |
Editor's Comment: With so much to write about concerning the management of information within the construction industry... |
PDF Version |
What's the Diff?
3D Repo is helping to transform the way we handle information with its web based, real-time change detection solution, 3D Diff... |
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Jan-Feb- Featuring |
Editor's Comment: There will hardly be a company in the construction industry left untouched by the demise of Carillion... |
PDF Version |
Allplan Bimplus
ALLPLAN's data focused BIM collaboration tool, Allplan Bimplus is the key to successful project delivery... |
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2017 Issues |
Nov-Dec - Featuring |
Editor's Comment: The last decade in the construction
industry has been dominated by BIM.
Halfway through its implementation and
careering towards the milestones... |
PDF Version |
LEGO meets BIM
Bond Bryan Architects, early adopters of the principles of BIM and its application... |
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Sept-Oct - Featuring |
Editor's Comment: Hurricane Irma devastated whole countries in the Caribbean before finally expending its force on Florida |
PDF Version |
Building confidence in cybersecurity
Steve Cooper at Aconex outlines the case for greater awareness of cybersecurity in construction |
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July-August - Featuring |
Editor's Comment: Information management looms large in this edition of the magazine and with good reason, as information is the most critical ingredient in BIM |
PDF Version |
Shaping the future
Instead of leveraging the tools of the past, information modelling should be planning for the future and taking advantage of the latest trends in 3D, virtual reality modelling and the cloud |
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May-June - Featuring |
Editor's Comment: The CAD User seminar on COBie, held in May at the London Transport Museum in association with Vectorworks... |
PDF Version |
Shaping the future
Instead of leveraging the tools of the past, information modelling should be planning for the future and taking advantage of the latest trends in 3D, virtual reality modelling and the cloud |
Click here for the full contents.. |
March-April - Featuring |
Editor's Comment: Whilst we continue to question the role that COBie will play in the construction industry as our lives continue to be dominated by an intensive, information rich environment... |
PDF Version |
Tekla 2017
Trimble has released the latest version of Tekla's structural engineering design and analysis suite of tools |
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Jan-Feb- Featuring |
Editor's Comment: As fascinating as it may seem to
have the Americans complaining
about the Russians interfering in
the US presidential elections... |
PDF Version |
COBie on trial
Are we delivering the right sort of COBie for the users of the data - the client? |
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2016 Issues |
Nov-Dec - Featuring |
Editor's Comment: Virtual Reality features in several articles this issue, reflecting the maturing of the industry... |
PDF Version |
Innovating in the Cloud
Bentley Systems and Topcon join forces to advance cloud services for 'constructioneering'... |
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Sept-Oct - Featuring |
Editor's Comment: Pandering to my basic 'nerdy' instincts,
I couldn't resist including a case study
in this issue on Bentley's AssetWise
maintenance prioritisation... |
PDF Version |
Opting into Building Ops
With Building Ops, Autodesk leverages the widespread use of smartphones to provide a total facilities maintenance management experience for owners... |
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July-August/August - Featuring |
Editor's Comment:The uncertainty over Brexit is
already having predictable effects.
The sharp fall in the value of
Sterling increases the cost of imported
items, but makes UK manufactured
items more attractive.... |
PDF Version |
Beating the Brexit blues
The uncertainty over Brexit is already having predictable effects... |
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May-June - Featuring |
Editor's Comment: After all of the discussions about the demise of Excel as companies leverage the graphical and information rich tools we currently have available... |
PDF Version |
Exit Excel?
Bentley's ProjectWise EADOC delivers construction management in the cloud and improves collaboration with real-time visibility into your capital... |
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March-April - Featuring |
Editor's Comment: I was going to do something entirely predictable and boring for this month's Comment, as it will be landing on your doorsteps right upon the BIM deadline... |
PDF Version |
A Signal Improvement
Hatch Mott MacDonald Enhances Collaboration and Reduces Risk during Rail Signal Design using Bentley Promise's 3D Modelling Capabilities... |
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Jan-Feb- Featuring |
Editor's Comment: There is an emphasis in this issue on improving project efficiency, which is covered in a number of different ways across several articles... |
PDF Version |
ConstructSim
Bentley's Advanced Work Packaging, a feature of ConstructSim, is the key to successful execution on complex projects... |
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2015 Issues |
Nov-Dec - Featuring |
Editor's Comment: There was a time when the construction industry, and architects in particular, where castigated as not adopting new technology... |
PDF Version |
The BIM factor
BIM was used extensively during the design of the new Waste Water Treatment Plant in Liverpool by Galliford Try Costain and Atkins... |
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Sept-Oct - Featuring |
Editor's Comment: I hereby lay claim to having been the first person to use the term Information Overload!... |
PDF Version |
Scan to Go!
Colortrac's new portable scanner, the SmartLF Scan!, is being hailed as a revolutionary step in large format scanning... |
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July-August - Featuring |
Editor's Comment: We're a bit top heavy on structural engineering in this issue, but each of our four articles on the subject... |
PDF Version |
Arcon Evo
Next-gen architectural visualisation software from Elecosoft... |
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May-June - Featuring |
Editor's Comment: We're a bit top heavy on structural engineering in this issue, but each of our four articles on the subject... |
PDF Version |
Fail to plan, plan to fail
Ben Wallbank, BIM Strategy Manager at 4Projects by Viewpoint, highlights the importance of adequate planning for April 2016... |
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March-April - Featuring |
Editor's Comment: What a great time to be an architect... |
PDF Version |
Optimum 3D Printing
You can make a rational choice and get up to £1,000 off a new Stratasys 3D desktop printer with ArtSystems’ new trade-in programme... |
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Jan-Feb- Featuring |
Editor's Comment: If you are a frequent traveller on the Underground and have to go through Bond Street you will have noted... |
PDF Version |
The benefits of building twice
For a project as complex as HS2, with its political, environmental and public issues being of paramount importance, there is no alternative... |
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