Autodesk, a leader in 3D design, engineering and entertainment software, has been awarded a Building Information Modeling (BIM) services contract by Qatar Rail, which monitors the entire rail network and systems within the country.

Autodesk will provide BIM implementation, consultancy and advisory services to Qatar Rail towards the construction of a modern integrated railway network in the country. This agreement was signed at a ceremony in Doha attended by Saad Ahmed Al Muhannadi, chief executive officer of Qatar Rail and Callan Carpenter, vice president of Global Services, Autodesk.

BIM is an intelligent model-centric process that enables more accurate, accessible and actionable insight for creating and managing infrastructure projects faster, more economically, and with less environmental impact.

Autodesk’s consulting team will support Qatar Rail on the implementation of BIM technologies and practices to help decrease the overall time and costs of railway projects by minimizing rework and miscommunication, providing more actionable insight into projects, and helping accelerate decision-making earlier into the project lifecycle.

Over the next three years, Qatar Rail will employ several services offered by Autodesk starting with the company’s expertise on BIM standards, quality control and integration across organizations. Autodesk will also implement a technology platform within Qatar Rail to train, support and collaborate with the company’s assigned staff for the railway project.

Additionally, Autodesk will outline specific BIM standards and processes for the railway project that will serve as the foundation for BIM requirements and as a starting point for BIM implementations for future contracts.

“A rigorous BIM process implementation has the potential to deliver tremendous benefits to the owner/operators of national infrastructure projects like Qatar Rail, from the design phase, through construction, commissioning and ongoing operations,” said Carpenter.

“Adopting modern BIM technology in public infrastructure projects will help reduce conflicts and changes in plans, improve project quality and ensure better predictability of project outcomes. As a pioneer of BIM solutions, Autodesk is ready to support Qatar Rail in project delivery and implementation,” said Louay Dahmash, head, Autodesk Middle East.

According to a recent report by Meed, the current value of civil construction projects in Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries is estimated at $1.3 trillion, with $935 billion in execution including long-term megaprojects, $81 billion out to tender, $211 billion in design phases and $136 billion under study. – TradeArabia News Service