GISCafe Weekly Review : November 15, 2024

Chris Bradshaw

Vancouver, B.C.— In a decisive step towards making infrastructure more sustainable, Bentley Systems announced the launch of its new Carbon Analysis capabilities at the Year in Infrastructure Conference. The enhancements, available in the iTwin Experience platform, are aimed at simplifying carbon impact assessments, enabling engineers to systematically integrate carbon analysis into their design processes. The new features promise to streamline the traditionally complex task of carbon reporting by automatically aggregating data, integrating carbon metrics, and offering 3D visualizations of carbon impacts.

Chris Bradshaw, Bentley’s Chief Sustainability Officer, unveiled the Carbon Analysis capabilities at the conference, underscoring their role in addressing a critical aspect of global emissions—embodied carbon. “Given that up to 80% of today’s greenhouse gas emissions are linked to infrastructure, it’s essential that we find ways to significantly reduce the carbon impact of new construction projects and renovations,” said Bradshaw during an interview. “Our new capabilities help engineers visualize carbon data and make informed decisions early in the design process.”

Tackling Embodied Carbon

Embodied carbon refers to the greenhouse gases emitted during the construction of an asset, accounting for everything from material extraction to manufacturing. These emissions represent a significant portion of infrastructure’s environmental impact—often well before an asset is even put into operation. As Savina Carluccio, executive director of the International Coalition for Sustainable Infrastructure, highlighted, “By 2050, embodied carbon from new infrastructure could account for nearly half of the world’s carbon footprint.”

Bentley’s Carbon Analysis capabilities provide a “cradle-to-gate” assessment of embodied carbon, offering a more comprehensive understanding of an infrastructure project’s environmental cost. The system simplifies the integration of carbon data by linking Bentley’s iTwin platform with third-party carbon assessment tools, such as EC3 and One Click LCA. This approach allows users to dynamically visualize carbon impact changes across different design iterations, facilitating real-time decision-making.

Las Vegas — Against a backdrop of rapid technological advancement, Trimble’s CEO delivered a powerful keynote at this year’s Trimble Dimensions conference in Las Vegas, presenting a vision for the future of construction and design centered on connection and transformation. Rob Painter set the stage with a compelling metaphor, drawing a parallel between Trimble’s journey and the relentless progression of the Olympic Games, where world records are shattered, new techniques are introduced, and the very definition of excellence is redefined with each passing year.

Painter invited the audience to imagine 1988, the Summer Olympics in Seoul, where American sprinter Carl Lewis took gold in the 100 meters with a time of 9.92 seconds. Fast forward to the most recent games in Paris: the last-place finisher in this year’s 100-meter race crossed the line faster than Lewis’s record-breaking time. This moment, Painter argued, encapsulates the dizzying pace of advancement not only in sports but in the world of construction and design as well. “Even if you’re at the top of your game today, one year—or one moment—might not be enough to keep you there,” he said. In a world moving as fast as ours, companies must keep pace with change or risk falling behind.

This year, Trimble framed its strategy around what it called the “power of connection.” Using the Olympics as a metaphor for continually rising standards, Painter urged attendees to embrace an industry redefined by digital connections, integrated workflows, and artificial intelligence. “The power of connection is the core of this revolution,” he emphasized, outlining Trimble’s plans to link people, data, workflows, and ecosystems into a connected digital fabric that will underpin the construction industry’s future.