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:

Outstanding fiscal 2018, new Executive Board structure with segment focus, renewed strong growth with high profitability planned for 2019

Corporate News

 

  • Outlook for 2019: Revenue growth of 17%–19% expected, EBITDA margin accompanied by high investment expected to remain within the range of 25%–27%
  • New Executive Board structure with a stronger focus on customer and market segments
  • Figures for 2018: New records in revenue, operating result, and customer numbers

Munich, March 29, 2019 – Following an outstanding 2018 with new records in revenue, operating result, and customer numbers, the Nemetschek Group (ISIN DE0006452907) has released its growth targets for 2019: based on the current portfolio, Group revenue is expected to be in the range of EUR 540–550 million. This represents growth of 17%–19% year on year.  

Accompanied by renewed high, future-oriented investment, the EBITDA margin is expected to remain within the range of 25%–27%, as targeted and already achieved (without effects from the transition to the new IFRS 16 leasing standard).
 

Closer collaboration between holding company and customer-oriented segments 
Group management has also been geared to continuing strong growth. This is reflected in the new Executive Board structure with a stronger focus on customer and market segments. This better reflects the strategic goal of bundlinig the expertise of the 16 brands still more effectively in the customer-oriented segments of the AEC (architecture, engineering, construction) industry in order to penetrate the segments more strategically. The new structure also ensures closer collaboration between the holding company and the divisions, which guide the Group’s strategy.

The new Executive Board team comprises the following three people:

  • Viktor Várkonyi, Executive Board member since December 2013, becomes Chief Division Officer, Planning & Design Division. He has stepped down from his previous role as CEO of the Graphisoft brand.
  • Jon Elliott, CEO of the Bluebeam brand, has been appointed to the Executive Board as Chief Division Officer, Build & Construct Division; he remains CEO of Bluebeam.
  • Patrik Heider, Executive Board member since March 2014, remains Spokesman and CFOO for the key corporate functions. 

In addition, Koen Matthijs becomes Chief Division Officer, Operate & Manage Division. 

This new leadership structure will enable the Group to act more decisively in its divisions, in order to achieve more targeted focus on the more than five million users of Nemetschek solutions worldwide. 

As one of the top players in the worldwide AEC market, the Nemetschek Group tirelessly pursues the goal of further expanding its expertise as a driver of a fully digital workflow over the entire lifecycle of construction projects – organically and through value-enhancing acquisitions. Nemetschek focuses on the markets that offer the highest market potential. These include North America, Europe, and selected markets in the Asia-Pacific region. 

“2018 is the latest in a series of nine successive record years for revenue, earnings, and user numbers,” says Patrik Heider, Spokesman of the Executive Board and CFOO of the Nemetschek Group. “What’s essential to our success is that as we grow, we further strengthen our focus on our customers and their specific needs. This is the thinking behind the new leadership structure, which will allow us to be more decisive in the market and for our customers. We are using our strong growth to make specific investments in our future, be it through developing the next generation of solutions, further internationalization, or strategic acquisitions,” Heider continues. 
 

Major indicators of the Group’s success in 2018

  • Group revenue rose to a record EUR 461.3 million, an increase of 16.6% year on year (currency adjusted: 19.2%). In addition to strong organic growth of 14.1% (currency adjusted: 16.6%), this performance is due to the recently acquired Spacewell brand. All divisions in the AEC environment were able to contribute to the very favorable revenue development.
     
  • Growth drivers were recurring revenues from software service contracts and subscriptions, which rose by 22.8% to EUR 225.8 million. This disproportionate increase reflects the strategic shift in the business model to offering subscriptions in addition to licenses. Revenue from subscriptions increased considerably by 63.5% to EUR 22.1 million. 
     
  • Ongoing internationalization remains a major growth driver. Revenues generated abroad grew in 2018 by 19.8% to EUR 331.2 million. Nemetschek is especially successful in North America, the trend-setting future market for new technologies. With a share of over 30% of total revenue, North America is the single most important and fastest-growing market in the Group’s portfolio.  
     
  • Consolidated operating earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) increased by 12.3% to EUR 121.3 million. This is equivalent to an EBITDA margin of 26.3%, which is within the forecast target range of 25%–27%, even though the result includes additional strategic investments of around EUR 10 million for innovations and next-generation solutions as well as for further internationalization. In addition, the growth-related increase in the number of employees during the year led to a noticeable increase in personnel costs in the fourth quarter. The below-average EBITDA margin of the Spacewell brand in the Manage segment, acquired in September, also had an impact on operating earnings in 2018. 
     
  • Net income rose by 2.4% to EUR 76.5 million (previous year: EUR 74.7 million). Earnings per share came to EUR 1.99 (previous year: EUR 1.94). Adjusted for previous-year special effects from the reversal of an earn-out liability and in the tax result, net income was calculated in the previous year at EUR 62.4 million, representing an increase of 22.5% in 2018. The adjusted EPS for 2017 came to EUR 1.62 as a result.

 

Segment performance in 2018

  • The Build segment achieved the strongest revenue growth of 29.2% (currency adjusted: 34.0%) to EUR 148.0 million. At 43.6%, EBITDA growth was disproportionate to revenue, causing the EBITDA margin to improve to 25.8%. 
     
  • The Design segment recorded gratifying revenue growth of 9.8% (currency adjusted: 11.4%). Due to investments in growth in this segment, the EBITDA margin fell from 28.2% to 25.4%. 
     
  • In the third quarter, the Manage segment was significantly reinforced through the acquisition of Spacewell, headquartered in Antwerp. In the period September to December, Spacewell contributed revenue of EUR 5.0 million. Revenue for the segment rose in 2018 by 71.3% (currency adjusted: 72.1%), while organic growth reached 8.8%. Due to acquisition costs and the EBITDA margin at Spacewell being still lower than for the Group portfolio as a whole, the EBITDA margin was 17.9%.  
     
  • Revenue in the Media & Entertainment segment increased by 9.1% (currency adjusted: 11.4%) to EUR 25.9 million. The EBITDA margin rose from 38.8% to 42.6% over the course of the year.  

 

Financial forecast for 2019 

From today’s perspective and based on the current portfolio, the Executive Board anticipates Group revenues for 2019 within a range of EUR 540–550 million, which translates into year-on-year growth of 17%–19%. This year, Nemetschek will also invest some EUR 10–12 million in strategic projects already underway on a Group and brand level to enable continued double-digit growth for the Group in the future. The increase in the number of employees in line with strategy will also lead to an increase in Group personnel costs in 2019.

In spite of these effects and the still below-average EBITDA margin for the newly acquired brands, Nemetschek is expecting Group EBITDA margin for 2019 to be between 25% and 27% (without effects from IFRS 16)*.

*The new IFRS 16 accounting standard, according to which leases of any type (operate leasing and finance leasing) must always be recognized in the balance sheet, must be adopted for the first time as of January 1, 2019. The Nemetschek Group anticipates this change to have a positive effect of around EUR 13 million on EBITDA. The Nemetschek Group will present the effects of IFRS 16 on EBITDA in detail in the quarterly reports. 

 

KPIs in quarterly summary

In EUR million

Q4 2018

Q4 2017

Δ in %
 

Δ in %
(FX-adj)

Revenue

130.4

105.7

  +23.3%

+22.4%

– of which software licenses

61.1

52.2

+17.1%

+15.9%

– of which recurring revenues

63.4

49.1

+29.1%

+28.3%

– subscriptions (part of recurring revenues)

7.6

3.6

+108.7%

+108.5%

EBITDA

33.0

31.5

+4.9%

+2.6%

Margin

25.3%

29.8%

 

 

EBITA (normalized EBIT)

30.5

29.4

+3.9%

 

Margin

23.4%

27.8%

 

 

Net income (Group shares)

23.8

31.8

-25.1%

 

Earnings per share in EUR

0.62

0.83

-25.1%

 

Adjusted net income

23.8

24.2*

-1.5%

 

Adjusted earnings per share in EUR

0.62

0.63*

-1.5%

 

Annual net income before depreciation of purchase price allocation (PPA) 

26.9

35.2

   -23.6%

 

Earnings per share before PPA in EUR

0.70

0.92

  -23.6%

 

 

KPIs in 12-month summary

In EUR million

12M 2018

12M 2017

Δ in %
 

Δ in %
(FX-adj)

Revenue

461.3

395.6

  +16.6%

+19.2%

– of which software licenses

216.8

195.0

+11.2%

+13.9%

– of which recurring revenues

225.8

183.9

+22.8%

+25.3%

– subscriptions (part of recurring revenues)

22.1

13.5

+63.5%

+69.0%

EBITDA

121.3

108.0

+12.3%

+13.0%

Margin

26.3%

27.3%

 

 

EBITA (normalized EBIT)

112.5

99.9

+12.6%

 

Margin

24.4%

25.3%

 

 

Net income (Group shares)

76.5

74.7

+2.4%

 

Earnings per share in EUR

1.99

1.94

+2.4%

 

Adjusted net income

76.5

62.4*

+22.5%

 

Adjusted earnings per share in EUR

1.99

1.62*

+22.5%

 

Annual net income before depreciation of purchase price allocation (PPA) 

88.1

85.2

   +3.4%

 

Earnings per share before PPA in EUR

2.29

2.21

  +3.4%

 

* The previous year was adjusted to reflect positive special effects in the amount of EUR 12.2 million (EUR 7.6 million in the financial result, EUR 4.6 million in the tax result due to US tax reform and a reversal of deferred tax provisions)

 

Segment KPIs in quarterly summary

In EUR million

Q4 2018

Q4 2017

Δ in %
 

Δ in %
(FX-adj)

Design

 

 

 

 

Revenue

75.5

67.3

+12.2%

+11.6%

EBITDA

20.0

19.8

+1.0%

+0.4%

Margin

26.4%

29.4%

 

 

Build

 

 

 

 

Revenue

41.8

30.0

+39.4%

+37.4%

EBITDA

9.2

8.3

+11.3%

+7.6%

Margin

22.0%

27.6%

 

 

Manage

 

 

 

 

Revenue

6.1

2.2

+173.8%

+176.0%

EBITDA

0.8

0.7

+9.4%

+6.9%

Margin

12.8%

32.1%

 

 

Media & Entertainment

 

 

 

 

Revenue

7.0

6.3

+12.4%

+11.3%

EBITDA

3.1

2.8

+12.4%

+13.2%

Margin

44.3%

44.3%

 

 

 

Segment KPIs in 12-month summary

 

In EUR million

12M 2018

12M 2017

Δ in %
 

Δ in %
(FX-adj)

Design

 

 

 

 

Revenue

273.6

249.2

+9.8%

+11.4%

EBITDA

69.5

70.3

-1.1%

-0.5%

Margin

25.4%

28.2%

 

 

Build

 

 

 

 

Revenue

148.0

114.6

+29.2%

+34.0%

EBITDA

38.2

26.6

+43.6%

+49.9%

Margin

25.8%

23.2%

 

 

Manage

 

 

 

 

Revenue

13.8

8.1

+71.3%

+72.1%

EBITDA

2.5

1.9

+31.4%

+31.2%

Margin

17.9%

23.4%

 

 

Media & Entertainment

 

 

 

 

Revenue

25.9

23.8

+9.1%

+11.4%

EBITDA

11.0

9.2

+19.6%

+22.1%

Margin

42.6%

38.8%

 

 

 

The full 2018 Annual Report can be downloaded from the Investor Relations section of the company’s website. 

 


For further information about 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 in the digital transformation of the AEC industry. With its software solutions, Nemetschek is the only corporate group in the world that covers the entire lifecycle of construction and infrastructure projects and guides its customers into the future of digitalization. With its smart software solutions, the Nemetschek Group enhances the quality of the construction process and improves the digital workflow for everyone involved. At the heart of this is the use of open standards (Open BIM). More than five million users worldwide apply the innovative solutions of the 16 brands in the four customer-oriented divisions. Founded by Prof. Georg Nemetschek in 1963, the Nemetschek Group today employs more than 2,500 experts. Publicly traded since 1999 and listed on the MDAX and TecDAX, in 2018 the company achieved revenue of EUR 461.3 million and an EBITDA of EUR 121.3 million.

 

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