Autodesk has acquired Assemble Systems, a startup that has brought BIM to the construction industry.
"Assemble’s been around for a few years, they've been a good partner of ours," said Jim Lynch, the VP of Autodesk’s construction project group. A year ago, Autodesk contributed a large portion of Assemble’s Series A funding, making it a strategic investor in the startup. This time around, the terms of the deal are not being disclosed, but it is public that the deal is occurring through a mixture of cash and stock.
Their partnership with Assemble isn't Autodesk's first foray into construction. The company recently launched project management platform BIM 360, a cloud platform that supports construction project management and a connection between design and construction professionals. According to Autodesk, Assemble’s capabilities are “complementary” to BIM 360’s.
"I think the biggest benefit is the fact that they do a really impressive job of connecting project data from design into pre-construction, which really sets the stage for the construction process,” said Lynch. “We think it strengthens our pre-construction offering by conditioning or preconditioning that model information and setting the stage for things like 2D and 3D takeoff, estimating, and scheduling." Data conditioning is the use of data management techniques that allow computer systems to store and route data. In the case of Assemble, it allows a richer understanding of the project to be built.
After the acquisition, Autodesk plans to integrate Assemble with their products: "Ultimately, over time, we expect that Assemble becomes a key component of our BIM 360 offering,” Lynch told engineering.com. “Certainly, initially in preconstruction planning, but also carrying through to construction, making sure that rich BIM data gets from design all the way to the construction site.”
But the Autodesk team also says that they don’t want to stop Assemble from collaborating with third parties, and they have no plans for the software to stop existing as a product in its own right. “Assemble has fantastic momentum right now, so we don't want to do anything to slow that momentum,” Lynch continued.
According to the Autodesk team, the acquisition is meant to solidify the company’s place in the future of construction BIM, a growing field. “I welcome the Assemble Systems team to the Autodesk family, as part of our efforts to digitize and improve the construction industry,” Andrew Anagnost, president and CEO of Autodesk, said in the company’s press release on the subject. “We’re active participants, in many cases, we’re leaders in advancing the use of technology in the industry,” Lynch said. “This acquisition is a further demonstration that says we are serious about digitizing construction, driving a better process, driving ultimately more safety and hopefully better margin for our construction customers.”