CYPE SOFT has more than 35 years of experience in software development for Architecture, Engineering and Construction (AEC). They detected in 2015 that construction sector is one of the less digitalized in EU because there is a huge diversity of privative AEC solutions in the market, with high price licenses that are not affordable for all users. The global players market trend is to create closed BIM ecosystems based on proprietary formats that do not facilitate interaction among different software solutions.
CYPE started a new business plan based on BIMSERVER.CENTER to change the architecture of all its traditional applications to IFC open standard and develop specific plugins to convert REVIT (and other proprietary standards) to IFC. The main challenge was to be 100% compatible with other software solutions.
CYPE aims to consolidate an open collaborative environment where all agents involved in the construction sector can interoperate and share information using an open standard, the IFC format. BIMSERVER.CENTER will change the AEC software paradigm becoming the ‘construction social network’, a space where professionals can work in a common project using any AEC tool. This project will have a huge societal impact because:
- Collaborative and synchronized workflow enables to use different software solutions in a same project.
- Big Data approach create jobs promoting collaborations based on the needs of specific project owners.
BIMSERVER.CENTER minimum viable product was developed in 2017 and this prompt the following phase 1 objectives:
Assessment of technical viability:
- Meetings/surveys to determine which stakeholders can help us to scale-up the platform.
- Co-design with stakeholders the main business processes and e-commerce tools that must be standardized and automatized for specific roles (professionals, developers, public administration and educational)
- Study of scalability of the platform and additional modules to be implemented.
Assessment of economic viability:
- Development of the detailed international Business Plan: defining target markets, channels, potential incomes and estimating the necessary expenses to industrialize it in all the exploitable fields.
- Definition of alliance strategies and technical agreements for worldwide commercialization.
- Customer meetings and attendance to events for contrasting our price policy and expected sales forecast.
Main conclusions of the Phase 1 have been:
CYPE has designed the most convenient and effective business plan with the support of the assigned coach.
Market traction data has validated our approach is correct but CYPE has detected new opportunities for improvement. It is necessary to launch a digital marketing plan to continuously monitor the market trends and to adjust the technical requirements and commercial features of the project, including the assessment of the cost‐effectiveness and exploitation potential of the solution.
At technical level the main challenge to be a market leader is basically related to the need of continuously develop new solutions in several technical areas. The signature of technical alliances with flagship stakeholders is crucial.
Phase 1 ends successfully, now BIMSERVER.CENTER has more than 30,000 users working in more than 60,000 active projects. Now is the moment to scale-up the system and reach the hundred thousand potential users looking for free and universal solutions for collaborating in the complete lifecycle of construction process.
