Dive Brief:
- Autodesk Inc. has signed a definitive agreement to acquire construction bid-management platform BuildingConnected for $275 million net of cash, according to an Autodesk press release. The transaction is scheduled to close during Autodesk’s fourth quarter of fiscal 2019, ending Jan. 31, and is subject to customary closing conditions.
- BuildingConnected, whose customers include Turner Construction, McCarthy, Mortenson, StructureTone, Skanska, Clark Construction, Ryan Cos. and AECOM, is a network in which real estate owners and general contractors can connect with and hire qualified contractors. BuildingConnected also brings with it TradeTapp, a subcontractor risk analysis platform, and Bid Board Pro, a platform that claims to help subcontractors manage and win more bids. Under Autodesk’s umbrella, BuildingConnected CEO and co-founder Dustin DeVan is looking to “expand the platform’s capabilities and scale globally.”
- This move, which is Autodesk's third major acquisition this year, furthers Autodesk CEO Andrew Anagnost’s mission to “connect construction processes across design, build and operations.”
Dive Insight:
Although Autodesk is involved in related industries, such as architecture and engineering, as well as manufacturing, media and entertainment, when Andrew Anagnost took over as CEO of Autodesk last year, he saw construction as the company’s next big growth opportunity.
Autodesk has made strides in that goal this year, with three major acquisitions. Earlier this year, Autodesk absorbed Assemble Systems for an undisclosed amount, a company that provides software-as-a-service licenses for construction firms to “condition, query and connect BIM data to key workflows across bid management, estimating, scheduling, site management and finance.”
Last month, Autodesk acquired PlanGrid in an $875 million cash deal that PlanGrid CEO Tracy Young said will “completely change the construction technology landscape.” Although Autodesk’s BIM 360 product addresses quality and safety issues on the jobsite, the company wanted to accelerate its field efforts even further, which is where PlanGrid came in.
Young and Jim Lynch, vice president and general manager of Autodesk’s Construction Solutions, shared with Construction Dive four key synergies between the two companies: technology integration; product offerings and the resulting distribution of information; company cultures; and selling approaches.
Autodesk also announced this morning that its acquisition of PlanGrid is complete.
Lynch said of BuildingConnected that, “This acquisition provides an opportunity for Autodesk and BuildingConnected to connect every business in the construction industry,” which will, he said in a release, ultimately boost productivity and lower risk and cost. Anagnost added that the new entity comprised of PlanGrid, Assemble Systems and now Building Connected, when paired with Autodesk’s Revit and BIM 360, will give Autodesk a “comprehensive construction offering and go-to-market capabilities.”
Autodesk said in a presentation that while its tools (AutoCAD, Revit and BIM 360) are classified as "planning the work," the new acquisitions — BuildingConnected, Assemble Systems and PlanGrid — together will "coordinate the work."
