Autodesk Acquires AI Company, Pype, and Makes Investments into Two Others

via Autodesk

In 2018, Autodesk made a huge splash in the construction industry by acquiring PlanGrid, BuildingConnected, and Assemble.  In 2019, the company combined all of those acquisitions and their native BIM 360 application in Autodesk Construction Cloud (ACC).  Now, Autodesk is on the move again with a new acquisition and investments into a couple of other construction tech companies.

Announced yesterday, Autodesk has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Pype, a construction technology that uses artificial intelligence to simplify submittal logs, the closeout process, and project turnover. Last week, the company also announced strategic investments into Bridgit Solutions and Factory OS.

Pype

Founded in 2015 by Sunil Dorairajan and Karuna Ammireddy, Pype uses AI and machine learning to reduce human error on a project from project kickoff through closeout. Autodesk plans to intregrate Pype’s 4 main products to their Autodesk Construction Cloud after the acquisition to help build their portfolio to encapsulate a project’s entire lifecycle. Those 4 products are:

AutoSpecs – automatically searches through a spec book to create a submittal log

Closeout – allows quicker collection of documents to facilitate on-time closeout

eBinder – combines turnover documents into a PDF report with clickable links in the table of contents, has search functionality, and creates customizable slip sheets

SmartPans – extracts data directly from drawings, like submittals, product schedules, and contract compliance requirements

“Too many critical construction workflows are still performed manually by project teams, leading to inefficiencies and exposing companies to increased risk such as schedule delays and cost overruns,” said Jim Lynch, vice president and general manager of Autodesk Construction Solutions at Autodesk, in a press release. “Pype’s software makes data both actionable and collaborative, allowing teams to build and automate workflows that increase on-time and on-budget project delivery. Following the acquisition, Pype will join our portfolio of best-in-class solutions that are widely used by the construction industry to manage the building lifecycle from design through to operations.”

The terms of Autodesk’s acquisition of Pype have not been released.

Bridgit Solutions

On July 14, Autodesk announced a $7 million strategic investment into the Canadian based workforce planning software, Bridgit Solutions. In turn, Bridgit Solutions plans to use that money to build more advanced features, add new integrations, and increase their pace of technological innovations.

In 2019, the company added Bridgit Bench to its product offerings, which allows users to visually see how their workforce is being allocated, quickly assign them to different roles, and build a history of their work experience. They also offer Bridgit Field, for punch list and inspection management.

“Over the last three months, Bridgit has experienced a 72 percent increase in usage across our customer base, both in the US and Canada,” said Mallorie Brodie, CEO and co-founder at Bridgit, in a press release. “With construction recently restricted and projects delayed, contractors have needed to shift their processes and are demanding the workforce data and insights that Bridgit provides. The new funding will allow us to empower contractors to use their resources effectively, build more efficiently, and with Autodesk, have a more complete picture of people and projects across their organization.”

Factory_OS

Factory_OS facilitates the off-site construction of affordable housing in manufacturing influenced assembly line process.  The company touts that their process yield 20% lower costs, builds houses 40% faster, and produces 70% less waste. Autodesk has previously invested into Factory_OS and their hope is that their continued support of Factory_OS will help the prefabrication, workforce development, and automation process in construction.

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source https://www.constructionjunkie.com/blog/2020/7/23/autodesk-acquires-ai-company-pype-and-makes-investments-into-two-others