GRAPHISOFT SA OFFERS WORLD ’ S FIRST MARKET DESIGNED ARCHICAD BIM LICENCE
Graphisoft SA is proud to announce it ’ s first market designed ARCHICAD offering supporting the business environment present in South Africa . This unique BIM licence offering is a worldwide first , affording architects , interior designers , landscape architects and town planners an easier way
to adopt BIM workflow without a big upfront investment profile .
With this new cost effective introduction , Graphisoft is yet again showing commitment to supporting the South African design industry with this unique market offering that provides support for business to scale and maneuver the market based workload .
“ This is an important step in building a strong footprint across South Africa to support the roll-out of solutions which can help local businesses compete on a global scale ,” comments Dean Naidoo , Graphisoft SA Business Manager .” Although ARCHICAD is a direct service between an end-user and Graphisoft SA , we see huge potential for businesses to add layers of value and services on top of BIM offering , which in many markets are a legal requirement .”
Building Information Modelling A current innovation that is transforming the engineering industry is building information modelling ( BIM ), originally a collaborative digital process used to design buildings using a coherent system of computer models rather than separate sets of drawings .
Today , BIM is fast becoming the international standard for the design , construction and operation of buildings , roads and rail , utilities , process plants , oil platforms , ships , factories and mines , amongst others .
“ Furthering the growth of BIM and making it easily accessible is at the core of what we do ,” Naidoo continues “ We listen to our clients and are proud to be able to offer this new flexible service as a first worldwide . We understand that clients are requiring more versatility and we have listened to this feedback . We care about the market and want to be a part of enabling local architects achieving more success and it is vital for us to show loyalty to them as they do to us ”.
One of Graphisoft ’ s biggest success stories has been the recent conversion on to the ARCHICAD BIM solution of the world ’ s most successful architectural company Bjarke Ingels Group ( BIG ) in Denmark . This shows that the solution is at the forefront of innovation which is needed for South African firms to make an overwhelming presentation when entering highly competitive international markets . www . archicad . squarespace . com
HIFSA PROJECT RECEIVES FIRST EDGE CERTIFICATION IN AFRICA
The Housing Impact Fund South Africa ’ s ( HIFSA ) Fourleaf Estate in Port Elizabeth is the first residential project in Africa to receive EDGE certification . EDGE ( Excellence in Design for Greater Efficiencies ) is simultaneously a software , a standard and a green building certification system .
The International Finance Corporation ( IFC ), a member of the World Bank Group , created EDGE and worked together with Green Building Council of South Africa ( GBCSA ) to tailor EDGE to the South African environment to account for local climatic conditions , the standard of local building materials and local development costs .
Fourleaf Estate is the first project to reach final certification in South Africa since EDGE was launched in the country in September 2014 .
HIFSA , managed by Old Mutual Alternative Investments ’ Development Impact Funds ( DIF ) team , aims to deliver a marketrelated , risk-adjusted return on investment to investors and to create new affordable housing stock to address the housing shortage . For investors , EDGE certification provides a tangible indicator of green environmental performance . DIF therefore believes it ’ s imperative to integrate green efficiencies in housing design , especially for the affordable market segment .
By obtaining EDGE certification , developers could benefit from being able to market their houses as ‘ green homes ’ for either the sales or rental market . In an increasingly competitive market , a home with reduced utility costs would be a significant incentive for new homeowners or tenants . As such , the DIF team registered their pilot project , Fourleaf Estate , for EDGE certification at the end of last year .
DIF considered the Fourleaf developer , Similan , an ideal candidate because of their innovative and attractive designs within the affordable price bracket , as well as their attention to designing cohesive communities within a housing development .
Fourleaf offers residents potential energy savings of up to 29 % through initiatives such as heat pumps for hot water and low-flow
taps that reduce the hot water consumption through aeration . Water savings of up to 25 % were achieved through the use of water efficient fittings such as low-flow shower heads and dual-flush toilets . Similan ’ s design in their choice of building materials , such as cored bricks , cellulose roof insulation and clay roofing tiles , resulted in a potential saving of up to 43 % in the embodied energy . www . oldmutual . co . za
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