In conjunction with the BIMobject LIVe Worldwide Business Conference held in Malmö, Sweden on November 2 – November 3, 2016, global design and BIM software developer Vectorworks, Inc. and BIMobject AB announce the availability of the free BIMobject App within Vectorworks 2017 software. In the software program, designers have direct access to a growing library of manufacturer-specific content, which includes detailed geometric and product information, all coordinated and provided via global BIM content provider BIMobject. Current Vectorworks software users can access the tool by downloading the Service Pack 1 update for Vectorworks 2017.
 
“The BIMobject App in Vectorworks 2017 is a major milestone in our continued mission to provide designers with access to building material and product specifications for building information models,” said Robert Anderson, vice president of integrated practice at Vectorworks. “We’re extremely proud to be releasing such a content-rich App, and we greatly appreciate the support of BIMobject in helping make this a reality.”

Anderson will be showcasing the App at the two-day BIMobject LIVe conference, which focuses on building information modeling, future technology and the power of digital products’ internet distribution. He will be delivering the presentation, “Vectorworks and BIMobject” at the conference to illustrate the power of Vectorworks software, as well as to provide a demo of the new BIMobject App.
 
The Vectorworks BIMobject App is unique in that it manages and downloads not only Vectorworks native content, but also transparently converts DWG, SKP and 3DS content in the BIMobject Cloud into information-rich Vectorworks content. This is done entirely in the background and delivers the exact user experience no matter the source data format.
 
Using this technology, the App debuts accessing more than 4,600 objects from over 260 brands, which is an unprecedented amount of content for a newly-introduced App. In turn, the manufacturers who support BIMobject with these formats gain immediate access to the Vectorworks user base of up to 650,000 users.
 
The App stores all of the non-graphical object data in Industry Foundation Classes (IFC) format, meaning it is platform neutral with a non-proprietary open file format. This means that if a Vectorworks user creates a project using content from the BIMobject App, then exports using IFC, all manufacturer product information is preserved through the export.
 
“The fact that the BIMobject App for Vectorworks is pre-installed is really good, giving direct access of up to 650,000 potential designers for all our manufacturers and brands that are published in the BIMobject Cloud. It will be a great synergy with the Vectorworks application and make the BIMobject Cloud the preferred choice for downloading BIM objects and product information from the web,” said Johan Dyrssen, teamleader for Web Development at BIMobject.”
 
Learn more about Vectorworks 2017 and its offerings by visiting vectorworks.net/2017.