Who is the Best BIMmer?

For those not familiar with the expression, BIM stands for Building Information Modeling. BIM is common tech speak for using information-based building semantics in CAD design workflows. The exact definition is actually still evolving. BIM products include the likes of Autodesk Revit, Graphisoft and Bentley. Two things generally characterize BIM software: increased program complexity and higher software costs. Some liken BIM in the architectural industry to PLM for product manufacturing.

We would argue one important difference: PLM was a customer driven concept to meet large scale manufacturing needs. However, "few have pursued full 3D (building design) modeling with great vigor, and even fewer have embraced BIM and information extraction, even though the AEC software industry has spent much time and capital creating and promoting BIM software," states Goldberg, H. Edward in CADalyst magazine. So a large portion of the need for BIM software may be originating from the software companies themselves.

One thing almost everyone agrees on is that there is a right way to BIM and a wrong way to BIM. But that's about where agreement ends. How to BIM depends largely on which marketing team one chooses to listen to. Autodesk, Bentley, Nemetschek and others are all staking claims "to BIM the Best" in what appears to be the CAD industry's latest gold rush to establish a title standard.

The question arises if this will actually be a standard that most businesses need. Full scale BIM deployments can be very expensive. They may requiring extensive retraining and, in some scenarios, a complete refit for design and business workflows. Interestingly, none of Autodesk's ROI charts seem to take this last aspect into account. And even if large companies succeed in (at least partially) implementing BIM, will the solution scale downward for small business and supplier integrations?

Previously on our CAD Blog we introduced our low-cost BIM alternative CP-System, which can be dubbed our "Anti-BIM" proposal. CP-System offers AutoCAD, AutoCAD LT (using LTX), progeCAD, BricsCAD, ZwCAD, CADopia and other IntelliCAD brands quick but accurate HVAC, electrical, plumbing, architectural, mechanical, structural, hydraulic design with extensive parametric symbol libraries. More information about CP-System and a free 30-day trial is available HERE.

Autodesk Escalates War on "Open DWG" File Technology

progeCAD and similar products continue to win user confidence as low cost substitutes for overpriced CAD. And American corporation "Autodesk" is getting mad. Passive resistance to DWG clone technologies has developed into all out war, both in the court room and in the board room.

The Open Design Alliance (ODA) is a nonprofit consortium of CAD companies cooperating in a rare way to clone one of the few major reasons people still pay Autodesk prices - the binary DWG AutoCAD file format. The ODA posts regular updates of their robust DWG and DGN libraries on a website for member use in their own software - software like progeCAD.

When Autodesk itself was invited to join the ODA, the company declined. Gradually Autodesk began a long series of legal attacks on the ODA. On November 13 2006 they officially filed suit for their "Trusted DWG technology" which superficially warns users about opening DWG files that didn't come from their own AUD$6000 CAD system. They are also litigating for ownership of the letters DWG as a trademark belonging to Autodesk. The problem is that the USA trademark office doesn't recognise file extensions as "trademarkable". DWG is really just another file extension like ".doc" or ".txt".

Meanwhile, Autodesk finally realeased their own "RealDWG" toolkit to compete with the ODA, the caveat being that any applicant must meet with Autodesk's approval as a developer that will not compete with any of the Autodesk high-priced product line. It was quite an effective move to begin cherry-picking "realDWG" converts from important ODA contributors, undermining it. ODA gets its funding from its members.

Autodesk has quickly made their next move in this apperantly two-prong gambit to weaken the ODA. Following at the heals of the completed million-dollar Autodesk assimilation of Moldflow, Autodesk has announced a new "cooperation" with their next unlikely target, Bentley Systems(Microstation). At one time, Bentley was a serious AEC market competitor. Then, in February 2008, a key Bentley developer changed sides to Autodesk. Strangley, Bentley Systems has now been approved for use of the Autodesk "RealDWG" toolkit. A press release was posted celebrating this "Advance in AEC Software Interoperability". Now think, would you let your worst enemy watch your house while you were away? The truth is that Autodesk is as unconcerned in promoting real file interoperability as they have ever been. The endgame in this gambit really stood later in Bentley's own reaction, stating that their ODA was "now irrelevant". There is further speculation that Bentley Systems is next in line for Autodesk assimilation.

progeCAD is a product that reads, writes, edits and converts Autodesk DWG format files in a CAD interface very similar to AutoCAD 2002. Some consider it a clone. Recently this product has become very stable and robust so that even large companies are saving thousands by replacing expensive AutoCAD installations with progeCAD.

It is obvious that Autodesk is now at a de facto state of all out war against such products. Should they win, businesses will have no choice but to pay big AutoCAD prices. My gut tells me that Autodesk is scheming something parallel to their 2010 release to finish the ODA for good. Is the world's best hope is that the EU will take the same anti-trust motions against Autodesk as they have against Microsoft? Maybe the ODA needs to move to Europe?