Collaboration par excellence

Example: Hasselt City Hall, Belgium — The building of the new municipal administration center in Hasselt, Belgium, demonstrates how seamless collaboration in building projects can minimize risks and save costs from the design phase all the way to commissioning.
A joint project of several brands of the Nemetschek Group.
Nemetschek brands involved: Allplan, GRAPHISOFT, Solibri

Pioneering planning and project execution with Open BIM

“The end-to-end use of BIM solutions constitutes genuine added value for all stakeholders in the building process
because it enables seamless and efficient collboration”
Steven Hendrickx, Head Architect in Hasselt

Large-scale, highly complex building projects in particular require ongoing, reliable and efficient coodination between all stakeholders – both internal and external – across disciplines and between companies. Therefore, in association with other market players, the Nemetschek Group is promoting the Open BIM data standard. This is a universal, collaborative approach to designing, constructing and operating buildings based on open standards and workflows It makes it possible for project stakeholders to collaborate, even if the type of software varies from user to user. The Industry Foundation Classes (IFC) interface has established itself as an open standard and is therefore of central significance.

Sharing and evaluating data throughout the entire product life cycle saves time and money and improves quality. The administration of data is key to this digital transformation, for it is only possible to take full advantage of the potential if each stakeholder can access the data that he or she needs at any given time. This begins with a realistic BIM building model, which is an essential prerequisite for a genuine 5D workflo. This model is no longer limited to just 3D construction data; it also includes data concerning the dimensions of time and costs.

Seamless collaboration exemplified by the Hasselt City Hall

Under the management of the architect team comprising Jaspers-Eyers, MASS Architects and Michel Janssen, a new municipal administration center is being built in Hasselt. The complex, consisting of a renovated building section and a new building, provides approx. 17,000 m2 for the city administration and social services as well as offices. The architects and their most important partners are using Open BIM software solutions for the entire construction process. Three Nemetschek solutions are being implemented for this project: Archicad from Graphisoft for the design and planning of the architects, Allplan Engineering for civil engineering, and the Solibri Model Checker for the BIM quality control carried out by the construction company.

From the beginning, all information concerning the building project is contained in the digital building model – from the draft to implementation – including all design details, desired materials, fire protection requirements, acoustic properties, insulation and building structures, and administration. This constitutes considerable added value for all stakeholders compared to the old standard model, which was purely 3D. Thus, this improvement ensures more than just seamless collaboration between all those involved. The complex project can be turned over to the municipality – the proud building owner – with the required quality, on time and within the specified budget.

Hasselt City Hall is groundbreaking – in terms of design, planning and project implementation.

Independent and yet consistent

Steven Hendrickx, the head architect in Hasselt, recognized four decisive factors with Open BIM over the course of the successful project:

  • Individual partners design their model with their preferred BIM software, and with their own templates. Outstanding collaboration is ensured, though, thanks to a common, uniform standard which is specified in advance.
  • The division of labor is defined at the beginning of the project. Data on statics, for instance, have an essential impact on the architecture and structural design. Data on heating, ventilation and air-conditioning, on the other hand, are also important but don’t generally flow directly into the architecture. These data, for example, can be sufficiently analyzed with the BIM solution for quality assurance from Solibri.
  • Design changes in one area don’t necessarily affect the plans of all the others involved in the project. The architecture and the building stage are inherently the most closely linked.
  • The expertise of the staff, i.e., extensive holistic knowledge of the various building disciplines, is also critical for the success of the project.

Two examples of the advantage of precise planning

In Hasselt, the construction company was commissioned with excavation, among other tasks. An assessment of the amount of sand that needed to be removed was done based on a cal culation using conventional 2D planning methods, which yielded a result of 800 cubic meters. The engineers used the Solibri Model Checker based on Open BIM and the data provided by the architects and arrived at a figue that was just half this amount, i.e., 400 cubic meters of sand. This shows how exact the work with Open BIM solutions can be.

The steel struts to be installed are another example: With the interface function IFC Exports from Allplan, it was possible to use the BIM model to automatically calculate which steel struts needed fieproofing. All it took was a mouse click to obtain precise results, right down to the running meter. In projects that don’t use Open BIM solutions, these calculations are made by manually entering the data from 2D drawings in Excel or some other software and then recalculating and evaluating the data for use in quotations and planning, a process that is susceptible to error and one that leaves a lot of room for interpretation. These errors often go undetected until the actual cost planning is already completed. In the case of the Hasselt City Hall,  it was possible to avoid such errors from the outset.

Converting to Open BIM pays off

As is the case with any change, it takes a certain amount of time for companies and employees to accept BIM as the norm. The best way, according to Steven Hendrickx, is to start out by planning smaller projects using BIM. The experience thereby gained will make it possible to complete successively larger BIM projects. The advantages of collaborating through Open BIM are obvious: The entire workflow is much simpler for all project stakeholders, and building projects are completed within time and cost budgets.

CONCLUSION

Consistent standards and open interfaces in par-ticular are essential for successful building projects. Stakeholders need solutions that can “work together” for all and any individual tasks being performed. Seamless collaboration between humans and machines: This is ensured with Open BIM, and backed by the brands of the Nemetschek Group.

Reference projects on this topic:

Nemetschek Group: Growth dynamics remain strong in second quarter with revenue up 21% with simultaneously high operating margin of 29%

Corporate News News Company News

  • Software group for the AEC industry remains on record course
  • +21.1% increase in revenue to EUR 137.8 million in Q2 2019
  • +36.6% growth in recurring revenue, accelerated by subscriptions
  • +28.6% rise in EBITDA to EUR 40.0 million leads to high EBITDA margin of 29.0%
  • +20.8% rise in earnings per share to EUR 0.19
  • Targets confirmed for the year 2019 as a whole

Munich, July 26, 2019 – Following the extraordinary strong first quarter of 2019, the Nemetschek Group (ISIN DE 0006452907) recorded very dynamic development in the second quarter as well, and increased its revenue by more than 20%. The operating margin rose from 28.2% in the first quarter to a high 29.0% in the second quarter. At the same time, the top player for software solutions in the global AEC market continued to invest strategically in next-generation solutions and further internationalization in order to secure the high-level growth dynamics for the future.  

 

“The first half year met our expectations utterly and completely,” sums up Patrik Heider, Spokesman of the Executive Board and CFOO of the Nemetschek Group. “We are recording ongoing fast growth and high demand on the part of our customers. We therefore remain the fastest-growing listed software company in Germany with global reach. In addition, in the first half year, we have been able to considerably and strategically develop our Manage segment further and expand it. We are, therefore, in an excellent position to achieve our targets for the year 2019 as a whole.”

Major indicators of the Group’s success in Q2 and the first half year of 2019

  • In the second quarter, Group revenue rose to EUR 137.8 million. The dynamic organic growth of 14.9% and strong figures for the recently acquired Spacewell brand resulted in a growth of total 21.1% compared to the same quarter of the previous year. In the first half of the year, revenues even increased by 23.9% compared to the same period in the previous year, organically by 17.9%.
  • With a plus of 36.6%, rising to EUR 73.2 million, recurring revenue from software service contracts and subscriptions remained a major growth driver in the second quarter. The half year showed similar growth dynamics with an increase of 35.3%. Revenue from subscriptions, in particular, which rose by 147.6% in Q2 and by 136.7% in the first half year, contributed to this strong development. The over proportional growth in subscriptions, whose revenue is recognized proportionately over a longer term, reflects the strong customer demand. License growth amounted to 8.6% in the first half year, with simultaneous, extremely strong growth in recurring revenue.  
  • Continued high levels of customer demand on the international markets were a further growth driver. Revenues generated abroad in Q2 rose by 28.0%, and in the first half year by 30.2%.
  • Consolidated operating earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) increased in Q2 by 28.6% to EUR 40.0 million. This is equivalent to an EBITDA margin of a high 29.0% (previous year: 27.3%). In the first half year, the margin improved to 28.6% (previous year’s period: 27.3%).
  • The increase was positively influenced by the initial application of the new IFRS 16 standard concerning the accounting of leases. Adjusted for this effect, the EBITDA margin in Q2 was 26.3%, and in the first half year 25.9%, thus remaining entirely within the scope of the company’s expectations.
  • The quarterly profit rose by 20.8% to EUR 21.9 million in Q2. As a result, the earnings per share amounted to EUR 0.19. From a half-year perspective, it was possible to increase the profit for the period by 20.3%, rising to EUR 41.4 million, which corresponds to earnings per share in the amount of EUR 0.36.  
     

Segment highlights in Q2 and in the first half of the year 2019

In segment reporting, the Solibri brand, which was allocated to the Build segment until the end of 2018, was reclassified to the Design segment in 2019. The values from the previous year were adjusted accordingly and are thus comparable.

  • The Build segment, backed by the strongly expanding US brand Bluebeam, remains a growth driver of the Nemetschek Group with an increase in revenue of 25.0% in Q2, and of 29.4% in the half year. The corresponding over proportional rise in EBITDA (Q2: +47.0%, H1: +41.8%) led to peak margins in this segment of 34.4% in Q2 and 33.2% in the first half year.
  • The Design segment recorded growth of 9.1% in Q2, and 12.0% in the half year, and developed as expected. In Q2, the EBITDA margin rose to 26.9% (previous year’s quarter: 24.9%), and in the first half year to 27.7% (previous year’s period: 24.5%).
  • The Manage segment, which comprises activities in connection with building management, was considerably strengthened as a result of the acquisition of the Spacewell brand. Revenues rose from EUR 2.1 million in the previous year to EUR 9.3 million in Q2 of this year. In the first half year, it was possible to increase revenue to EUR 17.5 million (previous year’s period: EUR 4.1 million). Spacewell, as a new umbrella brand for this segment, invested heavily in new solutions and further internationalization, which resulted in the EBITDA margin’s amounting to 15.3% in Q2 as planned. The half-year margin of 6.9% additionally included acquisition costs of EUR 1.5 million for the acquisition of the Axxerion brand from the first quarter. Adjusted for these acquisition costs, the EBITDA margin reached 15.4% in the half year.
  • The Media & Entertainment segment accelerated its growth compared to the previous year. Revenues in Q2 climbed by 23.2% to EUR 8.5 million. The acquisition of Redshift had a positive effect at brand level in the second quarter. Purely organic growth reached a high 10% in the second quarter. It was possible to achieve strong growth amounting to 23.5% in the half year. The EBITDA margin in the half year amounted to 37.2% (previous year’s period: 44.1%) as a result of the acquisition and integration costs for Redshift.
     

Continued strong growth and high profitability confirmed for the year 2019 as a whole

Following the strong first half of the year, the executive board confirms the previously set corporate targets for the year 2019 as a whole. It anticipates Group revenue in the range of EUR 540 million to EUR 550 million, which corresponds to growth of 17% to 19% compared to the previous year. 

The EBITDA margin is expected to be between 27% and 29%. The expectation considers the effects of the first-time adoption of the new leasing standard IFRS 16* with repeatedly future-oriented investment and the as yet below average EBITDA margin in the Manage segment.

Moreover, the net income for the year after taxes and the earnings per share for 2019, as announced on July 2, 2019, are positively affected, in addition to growth in ordinary operations, as a result of the sale of the non-strategic shares in the associated company DocuWare. From today’s perspective, the sale will lead to an one-off rise in the EPS of about 40% compared to the previous year’s figure and will take place in Q3.

*For the first time, as of January 1, 2019, the new financial reporting standard IFRS 16 is to be applied, according to which leases of any kind (operating or finance leasing) are to be accounted for and recognized. As a result of this reform, the Nemetschek Group anticipates a positive effect on the EBITDA of approximately EUR 14 million to EUR 15 million. The Nemetschek Group will provide detailed information on the effects on EBITDA arising from IFRS 16 in the quarters.

 

Overview of quarterly key figures (Q2)

In EUR million

Q2 2019

Q2 2018

Δ in %
 

Δ in %
(FX-adj)

Revenue

137.8

113.8

  +21.1%

+18.0%

- thereof software licenses

57.3

56.2

+2.0%

-1.1%

- thereof recurring revenues

73.2

53.6

+36.6%

+33.5%

- Subscription (part of recurring revenues)

11.7

4.7

+147.6%

+142.2%

EBITDA

40.0

31.1

+28.6%

+26.5%

Margin

29.0%

27.3%

 

 

EBITDA (adjusted for IFRS 16)

36.2

31.1

+16.6%

 

Margin (adjusted for IFRS 16)

26.3%

27.3%

 

 

EBITA (normalized EBIT)

33.8

29.0

+16.6%

 

Margin

24.5%

25.5%

 

 

Net income (Group shares)

21.9

18.1

+20.8%

 

Earnings per share in EUR

0.19

0.16*

+20.8%

 

Net income (Group shares) before amortization
from purchase price allocation (PPA)

24.9

20.8

+19.6%

 

Earnings per share before PPA in EUR

0.22

0.18*

+19.6%

 

 

Overview of half-year key figures

In EUR million

6M 2019

6M 2018

Δ in %
 

Δ in %
(FX-adj)

Revenue

267.7

216.0

+23.9%

+20.5%

- thereof software licenses

112.3

103.4

+8.6%

+5.0%

- thereof recurring revenues

140.9

104.1

+35.3%

+31.8%

- Subscription (part of recurring revenues)

21.4

9.0

+136.7%

+130.8%

EBITDA

76.6

59.0

+30.0%

+25.7%

Margin

28.6%

27.3%

 

 

EBITDA (adjusted for IFRS 16)

69.3

59.0

+17.5%

 

Margin (adjusted for IFRS 16)

25.9%

27.3%

 

 

EBITA (normalized EBIT)

64.7

55.0

+17.7%

 

Margin

24.2%

25.4%

 

 

Net income (Group shares)

41.4

34.5

+20.3%

 

Earnings per share in EUR

0.36

0.30*

+20.3%

 

Net income (Group shares) before amortization
from purchase price allocation (PPA)

47.8

39.9

 +19.8%

 

Earnings per share before PPA in EUR

0.41

0.35*

  +19.8%

 

 

Overview of quarterly key figure per segment (Q2)

In EUR million

Q2 2019

Q2 2018

Δ in %
 

Δ in %
(FX-adj)

Design

 

 

 

 

Revenue

75.6

69.3

+9.1%

+7.4%

EBITDA

20.4

17.2

+18.3%

+18.6%

EBITDA margin

26.9%

24.9%

 

 

EBITDA margin (adjusted for IFRS 16)

24.4%

24.9%

 

 

Build

 

 

 

 

Revenue

44.4

35.5

+25.0%

+19.4%

EBITDA

15.3

10.4

+47.0%

+39.7%

EBITDA margin

34.4%

29.2%

 

 

EBITDA margin (adjusted for IFRS 16)

31.3%

29.2%

 

 

Manage

 

 

 

 

Revenue

9.3

2.1

+342.9%

+342.6%

EBITDA

1.4

0.4

+228.2%

+235.4%

EBITDA margin

15.3%

20.6%

 

 

EBITDA margin (adjusted for IFRS 16)

11.4%

20.6%

 

 

Media & Entertainment

 

 

 

 

Revenue

8.5

6.9

+23.2%

+19.4%

EBITDA

2.9

3.0

-3.8%

-4.7%

EBITDA margin

34.3%

43.9%

 

 

EBITDA margin (adjusted for IFRS 16)

33.0%

43.9%

 

 

 

Overview of half-year key figures per segment

In EUR million

6M 2019

6M 2018

Δ in %
 

Δ in %
(FX-adj)

Design

 

 

 

 

Revenue

150.0

133.9

+12.0%

+10.0%

EBITDA

41.6

32.8

+26.7%

+24.4%

EBITDA margin

27.7%

24.5%

 

 

EBITDA margin (adjusted for IFRS 16)

25.2%

24.5%

 

 

Build

 

 

 

 

Revenue

84.6

65.4

+29.4%

+22.9%

EBITDA

28.0

19.8

+41.8%

+32.9%

EBITDA margin

33.2%

30.3%

 

 

EBITDA margin (adjusted for IFRS 16)

29.9%

30.3%

 

 

Manage

 

 

 

 

Revenue

17.5

4.1

+323.2%

+322.8%

EBITDA

1.2

0.8

+51.7%

+54.6%

EBITDA margin

6.9%

19.1%

 

 

EBITDA margin (adjusted for IFRS 16)

2.8%

19.1%

 

 

Media & Entertainment

 

 

 

 

Revenue

15.7

12.7

+23.5%

+19.7%

EBITDA

5.8

5.6

+4.2%

+1.8%

EBITDA margin

37.2%

44.1%

 

 

EBITDA margin (adjusted for IFRS 16)

35.9%

44.1%

 

 

 

The complete 6-month report for 2019 is available for download in the Investor Relations section of the company website.

For further information on the company, please contact
Nemetschek Group
Stefanie Zimmermann
Investor Relations
+49 89 540459 250
szimmermann@nemetschek.com

About the Nemetschek Group
The Nemetschek Group is a pioneer for digital transformation in the AEC industry. As the sole corporate group worldwide, Nemetschek covers the entire life cycle of building and infrastructure projects with its software solutions and guides its customers into the future of digitalization. With its intelligent and innovative software solutions, the Nemetschek Group increases quality in the building process and improves the digital workflow of all those involved in the building process. This revolves around the use of open standards (Open BIM). The innovative solutions of the 16 brands in the four customer-oriented divisions are used by more than five million users worldwide. Founded by Prof. Georg Nemetschek in 1963, the Nemetschek Group today employs more than 2,700 experts. Publicly listed since 1999 and quoted on the MDAX and TecDAX, the company achieved revenue in the amount of EUR 461.3 million and an EBITDA of EUR 121.3 million in 2018.

Unsere Marken