Space Group’s Warboard offers BIM model issue management, potentially helping teams not using a more fully featured common data environment, CDE.
Newcastle, UK-based architectural services business, Space Group (which includes Space Architects, consultancy BIM Technologies, and BIM object provider BIMstore.co.uk, and promotes the BIMShowLive events) has been developing its own cloud-based BIM collaboration software, called Warboard.
This cloud-based software platform manages issues in federated models helping collaboration and communication across a project team on complex construction projects. It was first developed in 2013 for internal BIM issue management by the group’s in-house Space Applied Technologies team for its sister company BIM Technologies, and was showcased by the company at Autodesk University in 2015
Since then, it has been developed further. The latest version features a newly built interface, multiple project management capabilities and advanced expandable clash results for customised reporting. Warboard can be used in conjunction with design authoring and coordination platforms such as Autodesk’s Revit and Navisworks products via native plugins, and works with Navisworks’ standard XML clash report, as well as the BCF (BIM Collaboration Format) open format. The application can generate real-time reports which can be exported as PDFs at any stage of the project’s lifecycle; these depict the ‘issue’ image, as well as supporting information, statistics and historical data.
Rob Charlton, chief executive of Space Group, says:
“We initially developed Warboard to allow clients to monitor project progress through a simple dashboard. Over the years the platform has grown into something much more valuable, the functionality has been devolved by many users on many live projects and this latest release delivers enhanced functionality and is particularly focused on helping designers workflows.”
Pricing starts from £50 per month for up to 10 users managing unlimited clashes. Warboard potentially competes with the BIM issue reporting tools incorporated in SaaS common data environments, CDEs, such as Viewpoint For Projects, which also allow models to be federated and viewed, while issues can be marked up (using BCF) and allocated, with model version control to track what has been changed, deleted or added (May 2016 post).
The development of software by architectural firms, of course, is nothing new. One of the earliest building information modelling applications, RUCAPS, was developed at GMW Architects in the 1970s and 1980s, while more recently Frank Gehry’s architectural practice established a business called Gehry Technologies in 2002 and developed the CATIA-based Digital Project and GTeam applications. The GTeam solution was acquired by Trimble in 2014.
