4M Combines Technologies to Deliver BIM Applications
Designers and engineers in Greece and south eastern Europe who design buildings, draw plans for concrete and steel structures, or plan electrical, plumbing, or HVAC systems, have probably heard of 4M. A leader in the architectural CAD industry, 4M has rapidly penetrated the Building Information Modeling (BIM) market by taking advantage of the IntelliCAD customizable CAD platform.
Here's how it works for 4M: the IntelliCAD Technology Consortium (ITC) delivers the IntelliCAD CAD platform with complete APIs, and source code. 4M then adds custom BIM technology and delivers the resulting 4M BIM Verticals product line to its partners and customers. So while 4M creates their product line by combining custom technology with IntelliCAD, architects see a unified product set. The 4M BIM Verticals are widely used by Greek architectural engineering firms for high-profile projects such as the design and construction of the 2004 Olympic projects in Athens, Greece.
4M STRAD, the structural design vertical of the 4M BIM suite includes the latest European codes for reinforced concrete structures and seismic consideration which are used in GT.STRUDL from Georgia Institute of Technology, another 4M development partner.
"Our customers regularly comment on the new capabilities and stability of our products."
Babis Charalambopoulos, Partner and Co-Founder 4M
Switching to IntelliCAD was worth the investment
In 2002, 4M made the decision to change over their product line from another well-known CAD application to IntelliCAD with the simple idea that CAD software should be reasonably priced, reliable, and full-featured. Making the change to the IntelliCAD platform was a major commitment for 4M, but their investment paid off with a positive return on investment in just over two years.
4M also maintains close partnerships with other ITC members to deliver the 4M BIM Verticals in other markets including France, Italy, the Netherlands, Sweden, Portugal, Turkey and others.
"Profits grew because we achieved better economies of scale in our development. We have benefited significantly from the ITC's dynamic and supportive organization, the know-how of the development team, and a shared experience with other ITC members."
Spiros Papathanasiou, Partner and Co-Founder 4M
