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 SE strengthens competence in building operations

Corporate News News Company News

 

  • Nemetschek brand MCS Solutions acquires 100% of Axxerion, a pure SaaS provider for digital building management
  • Axxerion products, technologies, geographical presence, and types of customers are a strong complement to MCS
  • Together, MCS and Axxerion will offer a complete solution for property management, IWMS, and smart buildings in a SaaS model

Munich, January 11, 2019 – Software provider Nemetschek SE (ISIN 0006452907) reached an agreement today with the shareholders of Axxerion Group B.V. that Nemetschek’s Belgian brand MCS Solutions will acquire 100% of the Dutch subscription provider. Axxerion offers workflow-based cloud solutions for facility and property & real estate management. With its highly flexible solutions, Axxerion has built a strong position in the dynamically growing building operations market, which is currently worth more than EUR 20 billion. With a workforce of nearly 100 people, Axxerion delivers truly multi-tenant software with an extensive range of functionalities to nearly 2,000 international customers across many industry sectors. Key customers include VodafoneZiggo, Facilicom, Q-Park, Nutricia, MVGM (the largest property manager in Benelux), two of the Big 4 auditing firms, and one of the largest financial institutions in the Netherlands. The company has three different locations in the Netherlands and markets its portfolio through indirect sales channels in Belgium, Germany, and the US.

Pure SaaS player in the building operations market
Axxerion’s complete and easy-to-use management information system for facility and property automation based on best practices is offered purely as a SaaS business model. The software streamlines business processes, including workflow management, contract management, requests, and maintenance management.

Its workflow-based character makes it a great fit for SMEs and larger organizations that mainly require fast activation of best-practice processes. The software is used by a range of organizations including insurers, hospitals, (care) institutions, and governments. 

Perfect addition to the building management product portfolio
With the acquisition, the Nemetschek Group further strengthens its competencies in strategic, high-growth building management verticals:

  • Commercial real estate management where Nemetschek already has a leading position in the German market via its brand CREM Solutions. Now, with the acquisition of Axxerion, the Group is increasing its property management competencies and footprint globally.
  • The market for Integrated Workplace Management System (IWMS) where Axxerion’s workflow-based cloud software complements MCS’s IoT-enabled IWMS offering. This will make it possible to address new customer segments, accelerate growth, and enlarge the company’s SaaS footprint.
  • Smart buildings, a growth market driven by innovation, where the Group is globally active through the COBUNDU brand. Smart buildings leverage real-time data and analytics to make workflows more dynamic and enable smarter, activity-based service delivery.

By investing in building management software, building owners can achieve significant cost benefits, simplify operations and maintenance, increase building productivity and efficiency, better satisfy the needs of occupants and differentiate their space in the competitive real estate market.

Hans Verschuren, Co-founder and Chief Sales Officer at Axxerion, comments: “We immediately saw how complementary the two companies are, and being part of a larger group will provide new opportunities and boost our growth. I am very excited to be part of this.”

Koen Matthijs, CEO of MCS, agrees: “Joining forces with Axxerion will put Nemetschek on the map of strong, complete, and global players in the property and IWMS software market. Axxerion and MCS both have an entrepreneurial culture with a strong commitment to excellence, which are key ingredients to further growing the business in an accelerated mode.”

Patrik Heider, Spokesman and Chief Financial and Operations Officer at Nemetschek Group: ‘’We are very pleased with this strategic step. Going forward, Axxerion will be part of our MCS brand and strengthen the SaaS offering in our building management segment. In addition, this will expand our position in the fast-growing building management software market.”

Axxerion is growing fast and is a highly profitable company that anticipates revenues of just over EUR 12 million for the year 2018. The purchase price for 100% of the shares amounts to around EUR 75 million (cash and debt free). The transaction is expected to be completed in January 2019.
 

For further information, please contact:

MCS Solutions
Koen Matthijs – CEO
+32 478 99 22 26
Koen.Matthijs@MCSsolutions.com

Axxerion
Hans Verschuren, Chief Sales Officer
+31 6229 04901
hans.verschuren@axxerion.com

Nemetschek Group
Stefanie Zimmermann, VP Investor Relations
+49 89 540459 250
szimmermann@nemetschek.com

 

About the Nemetschek Group
The Nemetschek Group is driving the digitalization of the building industry. Our software enables architects, engineers, construction companies and facility managers to plan ahead, seamlessly share information and work together more closely. Building and infrastructure projects can thus be conducted more efficiently and sustainably. The unique holding structure provides our 16 strong brands with the flexibility to innovate in an entrepreneurial way while closely engaging with their 4.0 million customers worldwide. Founded by Prof. Georg Nemetschek in 1963, the company today employs more than 2,500 experts. Publicly listed since 1999 and quoted on the TecDAX, the company generated revenues of EUR 395.6 million and an EBITDA of EUR 108.0 million in 2017.

About MCS Solutions
MCS Solutions is a technology and consulting firm, supporting its clients across the globe to improve the performance of their building portfolios. Our core purpose is to make buildings work harder for their occupants through unlocking the power of building data. We assist our clients as they optimize their facility operations and achieve bottom-line savings, and we help them create workplaces that offer the agility, flexibility, and connectivity needed to support new ways of working. MCS was founded in 1989, and currently employs 200 people across 7 locations.

About Axxerion
Axxerion is one of the major players in the field of cloud-based software for facility and property management, with hundreds of clients and hundreds of thousands of registered end users. Axxerion products are used to optimize the operational aspects of facility management processes, asset and maintenance management, property management, and contract management. The software is built as a scalable multi-tenant SaaS platform, and comes with the necessary security and accreditations. Its wide range of functionalities find application in a variety of sectors. Axxerion has an attractive and flexible pricing model (pay-per-use) that allows customers to add or expand modules easily, making the software suitable for both small and large organizations. Axxerion recently acquired Plandatis, a leading player in real estate software focused on technical information & maintenance management, risk & compliance solutions, and energy-labeling certifications. The Plandatis product range considerably expands Axxerion’s property software and facility management information system range.

 

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