“There is a compelling value for users to have PDF-based data”

As one of the leading players in the architecture/ engineering/construction space, Bentley Systems Inc. provides software for the lifecycle process of the world’s infrastructure. Bhupinder Singh, the company’s vice-president for platform products, shares his views with Gaurav Patra

• Bentley and Adobe have recently announced that they will collaborate on optimising the Adobe PDF. What is the significance of this move?

We will collaborate on optimising the Adobe PDF to better address the complexities of architecture/engineering /construction (AEC) information and document workflows. Initially, this standards-based initiative was targeted at AEC, but now it is not limited only to AEC. The fact is that Adobe PDF is widely accepted as the de facto standard for electronic document exchange across verticals and also in the AEC space. As the respective leaders in software for the infrastructure segment and for helping people and businesses communicate better, Bentley and Adobe will leverage the strengths of PDF and Adobe Acrobat to deliver enhanced document solutions for the AEC project lifecycle. We also have plans to bring other leading software vendors together to move the PDF specification forward in engineering. As part of the relationship, we are licensing the Adobe PDF library to integrate PDF creation directly into Bentley technology. Consequently, users will be able to utilise PDF for AEC document sharing and archiving from within the MicroStation desktop and ProjectWise server products. There is a compelling value for our users to have PDF-based data.

The shift from 2D to 3D design software is happening all over the world, including India. Some of your competitors are also focusing on this trend, so how is your approach different from theirs?

Yes, this shift is happening globally. A few of our competitors are very focused on the mechanical-oriented space. They basically target the manufacturing segment, whereas our specialisation is the infrastructure segment. When you look at the AEC market you will perhaps find some of these companies. We get involved in things typically fixed on the ground—roads, buildings, bridges, highways. Our solutions are for companies having multi-disciplinary coordination problems. So, almost as a requirement, what we had internally targeted for ourselves was to build a common platform, with every one of the verticals able to use the same platform. Because of this, one gets a lot of integration capabilities.

In the case of our competitors, their mechanical groups are complete standalone systems with different file formats and no integration. This is because their users are like that. Of course they are good competitors, but the needs of their users are different from the needs of our users. We are found in the larger firms. In the US, 18 of the top 20 international contractors use our solution.

What sort of support service do you extend to your customers?

We have a fundamentally different business model; it is based on the subscription model. This is a great strength not only for us but also for our users. We want to maintain a long-term relationship with our customers so we have different levels of financial instruments for them as well as very flexible licensing models. Under the enterprise-licensing scheme, we charge our customers depending on the usage of our software. We have a programme called Bentley Select. This is more than a service contract that supports Bentley products; it is a comprehensive technology and service subscription programme that includes flexible subscription options, exclusive licensing privileges, continuous product upgrades, comprehensive technical support, a wealth of online resources, training, special discounts and more.

What initiatives are you planning for India?

There are very few countries where we have three sales offices and India is one of them. This shows the criticality of the Indian market. We see demand for products having lower price points so we are focusing on such products. We also have a significant initiative around our quality assurance programme, and are focusing on verticals like telecommunications, infrastructure and engineering.