Tridify’s solution combines any Building Information Model into one 3D web presentation.
Currently at the forefront of digitalization Singapore spells tremendous opportunities for business and partnerships for Nordic solutions. Helsinki Business Hub (HBH), the trade and investment promotion agency for the Finnish capital region, has identified Singapore’s ’Smart Nation’ initiative for growth through innovation and technology as a strong case to expand the collaborations between the two countries.
Therefore, during the 2019 Singapore Week of Innovation & Technology (SWITCH), some of Finland’s most innovative and enterprising companies participated. The latest smart solutions for construction and the development, design, FM and life cycle management of buildings were showcased by some of these.
Among them was Helsinki-headquartered Tridify – offering a fabulous Finnish innovation, based on Virtual Reality development that automates the delivery of 3D architectural models to XR-ready (umbrella term encompassing augmented, virtual, and mixed reality technologies) 3D files in the cloud.
This is made possible by using BIM, or Building Information Model (a promising construction information management tool), widely used in modern construction projects and already mandatory in Singapore, and so far 10 per cent of the markets in Malaysia and Thailand for instance.
Tridify’s service delivers ‘3D BIMs’ to the web in a fully automated process, where the user only needs to click on a web link to access it, with no need for an app. Furthermore, its differentiation is that all models from any BIM modelling software can be combined in Tridify.
A big benefit included is that collaborators and customers do not need to download applications or register to an account to view the published BIM model; they simply click on a link.
Juha Alanen, Executive Vice President, Sales, explains: “We are unique in that we can have several types of software multiplying together and have the viewer within one. You have different kind of software and user cases in termsof the workflow; one model is architectural while plumbing is another example. Tridify is the first of its kind for professional use but also for maintenance and throughout the whole lifecycle of a building.”
Tridify’s easy-to-view 3D environments can thus function as a collaboration tool inside a company and help throughout the design stage of the BIM workflow, for example to share design with others stakeholder, to get design approval, or for technical collaboration.
“It can be used for re-sale as well, to investigate the status of any particular BIM property, having the floor plan view or the building- and model information view, in addition to sharing the content.”
“Our targets are architect companies, construction developer companies and anyone having access to the BIM,” continues Juha, who spearheads their Asia-Pacific expansion. “We undertook our investigation with regards to the maturity of the BIM digitalisation and the AEC industry [architecture, engineering and construction] and Singapore is definitely the most advance country throughout the whole Asia-Pacific in digital architectural environment, with BIM already being mandatory. Therefore we chose it to be the location for our regional branch.”
Tridify arrived in Asia in early 2018, where Juha expects a tremendous growth market for their solution. “Malaysia is about to mandate the BIM in 2020 so their market will be also be booming in the coming years within this. Currently 10 per cent of the market there is using BIM, and the same goes for Thailand.”
“Due to the recent exposure of BIM and utilisation starting to happen here as we speak, we expect that the demand for this kind of service is going to be tremendous. So, starting with Singapore, I expect a big increase for our market and once the users get to experiment and have this as a process, the demand will be increasing multi-fold.”
Tridify attended five trade shows together in the region focused on the AEC, which Juha says gave them huge exposure.
Juha explains that Tridify, (with more than 30 years of VR experience within the team), initially started out as a VR application company. But creating the application required a lot of manpower, with a lot of modifying handwork and based on customer feedback, the Finnish start-up decided develop an automated Cloud based system in order to be able to scale.
“Right now, our focus is on helping customers share IFC combination models easily without the need for training, downloading apps etc. Our client WSP, one of the world’s largest professional services firms with around 50,000 employees, provides engineering, architect and design services to clients in various industries, including Transportation, Infrastructure, Buildings, Environment and Energy explains the benefits of Tridify.”
“As soon as we saw the Tridify service we knew it was what we’d been waiting for,” commented Roope Syvälahti, construction consultant and project manager. “Being able to rapidly publish BIM models to the web opens up new ways of working. This ease of use is impressive, with no barriers to adoption. Clients or colleagues can easily view models when they want, on any device and it also solves the problem of involving stakeholders who are not accustomed to specialist design software. Clicking on a URL or QR code allows them to interact with 3D models and intuitively wander round. Another bonus is the very low cost of the Tridify service so there’s no risk of investing heavily in an expensive new solution. It only costs us $90 per month which provides enough capacity for several projects.”
We are really looking forward to expand our market in Asia, looking forward to taking all the connections and contacts.”
