Bentley Systems has acquired E7, a Brisbane, Australia-based specialist in construction delivery software for heavy civil projects – formerly known as Envision (post).
Bentley says the acquisition (announced on 25 February 2021 – no terms disclosed) will add to its project delivery capabilities to helps civil contractors meet schedule and budget requirements of infrastructure investment programmes. Specifically, it will extend the capabilities of Bentley’s digital construction management software, Synchro (acquired in June 2018 – post), to create what Bentley describes as a ‘comprehensive 4D construction digital twin solution’.
E7 is designed to help firms better utilise resources on site through mobile and web interfaces that transform manual, site-based tasks into digital workflows. It includes capabilities specifically designed for heavy civil construction, including daily diaries, unplanned event tracking, timesheets, dockets, daily costs, and quantity progress measurement. which enable managers to produce daily progress measurement reports.
E7 adds field resource management
Dustin Parkman, vice president, project delivery, Bentley Systems says:
“Visibility into field resource utilisation is key to project profitability. The addition of E7 to Bentley’s Synchro digital construction delivery solution complements our industry-leading 4D construction modelling with field-based resource management tools that are essential for heavy civil contractors. This new combination makes possible a truly comprehensive digital construction delivery solution for heavy civil contractors everywhere.”
E7’s CEO Hugh Hofmeister and CTO Adrian Smith are joining Bentley as director of product management and director of product development, respectively. Hofmeister said:
“After more than 10 years of working, first as Envision and then as E7, to develop the leading field-based construction delivery solution for Australian and now global projects, Adrian and I and our colleagues are excited to be joining Bentley. There is already great alignment between E7 and Bentley’s SYNCHRO team. Our shared vision will accelerate the adoption of 4D construction digital twins that will significantly benefit our users in driving more profitable and predictable project outcomes.”
Extranet Evolution has tracked Envision/E7 since 2011 (read: Ennova and Envision). By 2016, the platform was supporting multiple parties across major projects, functioning as a data and reporting hub at the heart of a constellation of applications and web services (read: Envision expanding capabilities), and in 2019, the platform was being deployed on mega-projects outside Australia (Envision: building construction transparency).
