Bentley and Topcon team up to create Digital Construction Works

Independent new company provides consultation services to help bring construction into the 21st century.

Reality capture has become an important capability in design and engineering and nowhere is this more true than in the building and construction fields where surveys have provided the starting point for every project. Now reality capture can fill in the blanks all the way through a project’s lifecycle. Bentley has been working with longtime strategic partners Topcon Positioning Systems to enable digital practices for site preparation, project planning, reducing waste, and monitor progress. The BIM revolution has married data to modeling so that project development is transparent but the advantages might end at the construction site if there isn’t true visibility into the actual work going on.

Bentley and Topcon executives have recognized that there is opportunity in helping companies not only adopt digital practices, but do it fast, and as an integrated process throughout the project. To over simplify: Bentley tends to be top down starting in the architectural offices and Topcon literally starts from the ground up. At the YII conference in Singapore, representatives from the two companies said they are finding that communications barriers, a lack of shared experience, are slowing the adoption of advanced digital practices, which is why they felt forming a separate company was the only solution. The new company, Digital Construction Works (DCW), includes executives and employees from Bentley and Topcon but the companies pledge their status as a separate joint venture will enable them to be agonistic in the way they offer consultation, services, and tools to their customers.

The official announcement is quoted in part below:

Digital Construction Works (DCW), a new digital automation, integration, and digital twinning services and fit-for-purpose solutions company formed by Bentley Systems and Topcon Positioning Group, will help revolutionize the construction industry by simplifying digital transformation. DCW solutions span every phase of the project—from planning to construction and operations through to asset management—creating a digital thread that connects technologies and workflows.
DCW end-to-end services automate and optimize construction operations through the digital transformation of the asset lowering full-lifecycle asset costs. Through digital twins, you can visualize the asset, check status, perform analysis, and generate insights to predict and optimize asset performance. Fast and continuous site surveying using modern technology shortens the digital twinning cycles between the physical and digital twin, achieved in combination with automated analytics. This process is applicable for linear infrastructure, but also vertical construction or the extensive off-site modular construction.
“We see the benefits of working with organizations such as DCW, whose position in the market as the only end-to-end construction solutions service provider brings us confidence in how our core business targets will be kept a priority throughout the entire project,” said Harry Parnell, head of digital project delivery for Balfour Beatty. “Their ability to be agnostic to technology is also important. We know that a combination of technology and process improvement will provide us with the best digital solution and make sure that technology follows the operational process change efforts, but never leads it. The use of technology in silos throughout our organization will never bring real operational, or industry change, but the use of technology with digital twin workflows and key operations processes in a focused and strategic effort will enable Balfour Beatty to reduce the gap between the office and the site continually.”
Owners don’t need to do it on their own. DCW can do it for them. DCW will help them to automate and connect disparate tools, including fit-for-purpose software and cloud services from Bentley and Topcon or, if needed, by other third parties. DCW can provide next best practices and enable project teams to gain visibility and insights through data and analytics to improve construction planning, execution, reduce project costs, increase safety and reduce liability, and improve capital project delivery.
Through its Partnering and Community, DCW has a global network of service providers who engage in projects with our customers to deliver digital transformation outcomes. The network includes technology partners such as Bentley Systems and Topcon Positioning Group and other third-party technology providers. Educational resource providers, including schools, unions, and trades, will be partnered-with to help fill the construction skills gap.
DCW brings together both a combination of Bentley and Topcon colleagues, including Domain Experts from the construction industry.
DCW operates independently with a board of directors comprising members from both organizations. Bentley and Topcon will continue to co-develop AEC products for use across many industries. DCW serves as the Strategic Partner for both Topcon and Bentley for servicing the digital transformation in the construction industry.