‘India is a significant growth market for Bentley Systems’
Published on : Monday 30-11--0001
What is the significance of the Joint Process Industries Academy initiative with Siemens announced recently during ACHEMA?
The development of new innovative solutions is one aspect of what we are doing together. We also see that in order to effectively use these new solutions, different ways of working are needed to both be effective and innovate. It is modelled on the success of other academies, especially the one in the UK that has helped CrossRail educate its supply chain to deliver data so that as the physical railway is built and delivered, the digital asset is also being created for effective operations and maintenance. The Academy shares best practices and enables dialogues for best digital outcomes. It helps explore and define new workflows. The Academy is not about training in tools but it is about driving change in the process industry. Siemens and Bentley have partnered with the Process Industries Academy to help the industry accelerate digital advancement.
The Digital Twin – what has been the experience so far about the efficacy of this concept?
At Bentley we talk about specific or qualified twins such as the project Digital Twin during a capital project or the performance Digital Twin for operations or maintenance. Our Connected Data Environment ensures data flows seamlessly across these twins through the lifecycle so we have many examples of digital twins across many industries.
The ARC whitepaper about Bentley Systems’ vision for a cloud based plant engineering and operations solution explains the concept well. How do users subscribe to this service?
The whitepaper describes a vision that is not yet a solution that users can subscribe to. It is too early to answer this question.
At ACHEMA Bentley Systems launched two more products – the OpenPlant CONNECT Edition and Visual Operations. Both are said to focus on existing brownfield projects. What are these?
OpenPlant CONNECT Edition is the first application in Bentley’s multi-discipline plant design to utilise iModelHub, Bentley’s cloud service, which tracks all changes made to project designs and notifies users of changes. Participants can choose to synchronise to and from particular timeline milestones and can visualise, summarise, analyse, and interpret the impact of ongoing changes. Utilising the integration between OpenPlant and iModelHub, users can synchronise 3D models from OpenPlant with iModelHub, to view and query the model data in a web-based interface. Users can also perform 2D and 3D consistency checking through integration with OpenPlant PID. A full history of all the changes made to the 3D model and 2D designs are synchronised to iModelHub, including who made changes, what was changed, when changes were made, and the date the changes were completed.
In addition, OpenPlant CONNECT Edition with iModelHub improves plant design collaboration and saves project time with the following capabilities:
• Easy access to project data through ProjectWise and ProjectWise Connection Services for cloud-based workflows granting access to services for data editing, tag creation, reporting, and dashboarding of all user data that has been synchronized to iModelHub
• Improved isometric production with the additional ability to generate isometrics based on pipeline data that has been synchronised with iModelHub, and
• Enhanced interaction with third-party data via the ability to review PDMS, E3D, and Smart 3D data and models in the context of the connected data environment that provides all the change tracking implicit with the use of iModelHub.
Reality modelling-enabled visual operations (now referred to Digital Immersive Operations) is a compelling new solution for owner-operators of industrial facilities seeking to streamline their operations and decrease inspection costs. By combining asset information with a 3D reality mesh automatically created from photographs, asset managers and field technicians can more easily access information and obtain intelligence about their assets. This solution provides a comprehensive performance digital twin that effectively documents brownfield conditions and spatially links asset information providing the “where” to asset management.
What strengths do the recent acquisition of Synchro Software and its 4D construction modelling bring to the Bentley Systems portfolio?
Bentley Systems, Incorporated, a leading global provider of comprehensive software solutions for advancing infrastructure, recently acquired Synchro Software, headquartered in London, leader (and the market creator) in 4D construction modelling software, for scheduling and project management. Synchro, “construction’s time machine,” has been globally adopted, in particular, for building and civil infrastructure projects. The acquisition broadens Bentley’s ProjectWise construction offerings – which already include ConstructSim, the leader for 4D construction modelling in project delivery of industrial plants. With construction project management in 4D, benefits of BIM can extend throughout infrastructure project delivery and asset lifecycles, as traditionally disconnected workflows become digital workflows.
By incorporating Synchro 4D construction modelling through the ProjectWise CDE, infrastructure project delivery can now benefit from unprecedented digital workflow advancements. For the first time, change synchronisation can assure that BIM deliverables are updated for changes which occur during construction, aligning the as-designed, as-constructed, and as-operated digital engineering models to improve both project performance and asset performance. And, in particular for civil infrastructure projects, constructioneering digital workflows can automate direct relationships between the project’s digital engineering models, the continuously-surveyed digital context of site conditions before and during construction, and positioning devices controlling construction equipment and feeding back as-built conditions.
Growing digitalisation also means increased threats of cyber-attacks. How safe are the operations?
Bentley solutions leverage the highest levels of security provided by the Microsoft platforms on which they run, especially Azure. In-addition ProjectWise and AssetWise have additional levels of user authentication down to the file and individual component level such that unauthorized access to information is prevented.
How significant is the Indian market for Bentley Systems? How is the present business environment?
India is a significant growth market for Bentley Systems. The number of infrastructure projects that are being executed today is pretty significant and each of these projects is mandating the use of digital technology to enable the delivery. Owners today have become conscientious of ensuring that their contractors are creating and transferring data in a digital handover that will help during the operation and maintenance phase of the asset. This has been a major shift in mindset that is driving the Indian market. Bentley’s Connected Data Environment that supports digital workflows and aligns with BIM/AIM standards continues to remain a major enabler allowing Owners and Contractors to collaborate seamlessly on projects and attain significant benefits in terms of time and cost.