Autodesk has launched a new Europe-based data centre, offering users of its BIM 360 Design software a primary European storage base for product data.
The centre will also support Autodesk’s Collaboration for Plant 3D data management solution, a cloud-based resource for plant designers and engineers.
Used in more than 150 countries and supporting approximately 40,000 projects, BIM 360 Design helps architecture, engineering and construction (AEC) professionals collaborate in real-time from anywhere.
Nicolas Mangon, vice president of Autodesk’s AEC business strategy and marketing, said: “The exponential growth in BIM 360 Design cloud collaboration users over the past two years is an acknowledgment of the increasing complexity of projects and the teams working on them. In these unprecedented times, there’s a greater need for project continuity and flexibility of teams to stay on track from wherever and whenever they must work.”
Autodesk reported that the number of BIM 360 Design subscribers approximately doubled in Europe since the beginning of Q1 2020, and the rate of new project creation in BIM 360 Design jumped approximately 350% globally since working conditions shifted from office to home in mid-February. As a part of Autodesk’s global response to the Cocid-19 pandemic, BIM 360 Design for Revit is available for free until 31 May 2020 through Autodesk’s Extended Access Programme.
“We are always looking to drive efficiency in our design process, so we have put cloud-based collaboration at the core of our practice,” said Alex Mortiboys, head of BIM at Dutch architecture firm, Office of Metropolitan Architecture (OMA). “With the confidence in a European data centre, we can expand our ability to propose BIM 360 Design to our public and private clients in Europe and beyond. This will help us provide greater efficiency and transparency to our clients.”
In addition to the Europe data centre, BIM 360 Design now includes a connection with the AutoCAD Plant 3D toolset. Joining BIM 360 Design for Revit and Civil 3D in the cloud, Collaboration for Plant 3D enables plant designers and engineers to more effectively manage access permissions, helps project teams share files more securely and collaborate more effectively across time zones, disciplines, or multiple organisations.
“With AutoCAD Plant 3D integration, the BIM 360 platform now provides a single location for all work-in-progress data – simplifying access for Black & Veatch’s global project teams and helping to increase both internal and external collaboration and communication without the need for specialised IT systems,” said Dave Reed, technology manager at construction engineering company Black & Veatch.
