GIS

Bentley systems acquires plaxis, and complementary SoilVision

Bentley Systems, Inc has acquired Plaxis, the leading provider of geotechnical software, based in Delft, Netherlands, and the agreement to acquire soil engineering software provider SoilVision, based in Saskatchewan, Canada.

The acquisitions, with Bentley’s marketleading borehole reporting and data management software gINT, serve to make Bentley a complete source for geotechnical professionals “going digital.” Finally, BIM advancements can be extended to the essential subsurface engineering of every infrastructure project. www.bentley.com

Esri releases ArcGIS pro workstation

Esri is releasing the Intelligence Configuration for ArcGIS Pro (ICAP), a workstation for intelligence analysts. ICAP leverages ArcGIS Pro SDK to provide a custom managed configuration and add-ins, offering streamlined user experiences and specialized tools to aid analysts in examining relationships and patterns and determining probabilities relating to the target’s most likely course of action.

The scale, complexity, nature, and pace of modern conflicts require a new approach to delivering intelligence capabilities.

Government plans to build national data and analytics platform

After the Central Bank announced that it was planning to start its own digital currency, now the Government of India is planning to build an advanced technology platform in collaboration with private players.

The platform will be used to host and interpret huge amounts of citizen data collected from central ministries and state governments. This interpretation can then be used to factor in the spend patterns of the government. It can also be used to evaluate various government policies. The plan on the national data and analytics platform is being developed by NITI Aayog. The platform will use artificial intelligence to harness the data collected.

Considering that government is looking at a private public partnership, it could see companies such as IBM, Wipro, TCS, HP that offer analytics to be a part of the project. Interestingly, since there are a lot of startups working in the field and as the government is encouraging startups, there could be keen interest from startups as well. The estimated cost of developing the platform would be Rs 50 crore to Rs 100 crore. www.cio.in

NavVis launches Autodesk Revit add-in

NavVis has announced a new addin for Autodesk Revit. The addin lets its users connect their BIM models to 360 degree immersive imagery and point clouds captured by the NavVis mobile mapping system. This add-in simplifies the process of creating and updating outdated BIM models to reflect the current state of the building. With the Revit add-in, the NavVis IndoorViewer can now easily be integrated with its BIM models. Integrating Revit and IndoorViewer allows for a side-by-side comparison of the BIM model and the scanned state of the building, remotely from a desktop. www.navvis.com

OS and Geovation reveal next wave of GeoTech and PropTech businesses

Seven exciting start-ups will join the Geovation Programme and receive the strategic backing of Ordnance Survey (OS) and HM Land Registry (HMLR). The Programme, which acts as an accelerator course to new GeoTech and PropTech businesses, will see each of the start-ups receive up to £20,000 in grant funding and a range of resources and services to help them develop their business.