Category: Future

A role for resellers?

Some construction businesses already function effectively as value-added resellers of SaaS-based collaboration tools, filling a gap left open by traditional software VARs. I have discussed routes to market for SaaS construction collaboration vendors a few times – for example, last September, I contrasted Woobius’s aspirations to sell direct via the web with vendors who have …

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Permanent link to this article: http://extranetevolution.com/2011/03/a-role-for-resellers/

The Role of Cloud Computing in Commercial Property

Last Thursday I went to the London HQ of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors for the breakfast-time launch of a new RICS report on cloud computing (download; see also RICS news release) written by Andrew Waller and Bob Thompson of Remit Consulting. Having been working in and writing about Software-as-a-Service for more than a …

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Permanent link to this article: http://extranetevolution.com/2011/03/the-role-of-cloud-computing-in-commercial-property/

Immersive design collaboration, with IdentityMine

I have returned from time to time to the perceived shortcomings of online design collaboration insofar as some architects and other designers prefer the intuitive, paper-based processes of marking-up, commenting and sketching on design drawings by hand. Such ‘collaboration’ they say is less easy when they are faced by conventional computer interfaces as opposed to, …

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Permanent link to this article: http://extranetevolution.com/2011/02/immersive-design-collaboration-with-identitymine/

Five things that no ‘collaboration’ vendor gets completely right

Following a conversation that started via Twitter, I asked an experienced document controller to write a guest blog post about her top five wish-list for construction collaboration technologies. It seems none of the existing vendors get it right on every point…. I am a document controller with around nine years’ experience and have used most …

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Permanent link to this article: http://extranetevolution.com/2011/02/five-things-that-no-collaboration-vendor-gets-completely-right/

Asktobi.com

Asktobi

Launched in 2010, Asktobi aims to be an e-tendering-led ‘one-stop shop’ Gateshead, UK-based Asktobi is an “online business networking, e-commerce and information centre for the construction industry”. Its core offering is an online e-tendering system, providing tendering/subcontract enquiry and document management platforms, alongside third-party take-off and estimating tools (Take-off Live, and Fast-Estimate from Estek). The …

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Permanent link to this article: http://extranetevolution.com/2011/01/asktobicom/

BIW acquired by Conject

BIW, the UK market leader in SaaS construction collaboration, has been acquired by German FM software specialist Conject in a VC-backed deal, creating two complementary sister companies under a joint board. In a landmark deal between two of Europe’s leading vendors of built environment-related Software-as-a-Service (SaaS), UK-based construction collaboration technology provider BIW Technologies* has been …

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Permanent link to this article: http://extranetevolution.com/2010/12/biw-acquired-by-conject/

See Howzee

Howzee offers a hyper-local service to manage the tenant/property management communication challenge at an individual block level. Alongside my main focus on ICT tools to help teams deliver construction projects, I have also taken an interest in how ICT tools can be used to help manage completed buildings or other assets. This includes online facilities …

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Permanent link to this article: http://extranetevolution.com/2010/12/see-howzee/

Design by Many

One of those interesting coincidences…. Yesterday, the Institution of Civil Engineers, with the Advanced Institute of Management, hosted an event, “Engineering Management in a Digital Economy” in London which, despite the wintry weather and the associated transport difficulties, still drew around 40 people from both industry and academia. They assembled to discuss issues such as …

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Permanent link to this article: http://extranetevolution.com/2010/12/design-by-many/

Notes on attending a Microsoft-hosted construction ICT event

COMIT logo

“Ooh, a free conference on construction ICT! And it’s at Microsoft’s London office!” – probably the reaction of more than a few people when emails dropped into their inboxes earlier this year. I attended last year’s event, having heard of the event through friends at COMIT (Construction Opportunities for Mobile IT), so I was clearly …

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Permanent link to this article: http://extranetevolution.com/2010/11/notes-on-attending-a-microsoft-hosted-construction-ict-event/

HP and Autodesk collaboration – ignores Autodesk’s collaboration products

After last month’s Hewlett Packard event in Copenhagen which saw the launch of its ePrint & Share ‘cloud’ service (post), I have been watching out for further announcements. The latest concerns a new video about an Autodesk plug-in for HP ePrint & Share (the plug-in was demonstrated at HP’s event). http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ya3ZzgSEQJY It’s a polished presentation, …

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Permanent link to this article: http://extranetevolution.com/2010/11/hp-and-autodesk-collaboration-ignores-autodesks-collaboration-products/

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