The market for architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) technical applications is set for steady growth in the second quarter of 2015, according to a report from the global industry analyst and market-consulting firm Cambashi, of Cambridge, England.
Cambashi’s definition of technical applications includes computer-aided design, computer-aided engineering, computer-aided machining, building information modeling, geographic information system, product lifecycle management, and visualization software applications.
CAD, CAM, CAE, PLM are used in manufacturing; BIM is used in architecture and construction; while GIS and even applications like visual effects are increasingly used to visualize designs, according to the firm’s director, Tony Christian.
With the trend toward smart devices, the
scope now needs to include the tools used for embedded software development, Christian argues. The AEC report doesn’t yet embedded software development.
In the AEC industries, the growing use of BIM to handle not only facility design but also facility operation is generating more application and integration technology installations, Christian says.
The results of the Cambashi’s market data report, recently updated to reflect predictions for the 2015 second quarter, shows technical applications for AEC industry as the strongest-growing sector of all the sectors the report looked at. Worldwide spending is set to reach $5.4 billion annually with a 6.1% four-year compound annual growth rate (CAGR), according to the report.
Spending for technical applications within the including AEC sector is projected to be around $5.4 billion annually, according to Cambashi, which put overall worldwide spending for technical applications (included software for embedded development) within all industries, including AEC, was around $25 billion in 2014, according to Christian.
The firm also predicts four-year CAGR to be comparable across other industries apart from AEC that use the technical applications, such as machinery, at a projected 6.8% CAGR; high technology, at 7.6% projected CAGR; transportation, at 7.2%; and aerospace and defense, at 8.8%, none of those sectors are likely to reach AEC’s dominant position, according to the report.
Since a fall in 2009 following the 2008 crash, the market for these type of technical applications has returned to growth, despite ongoing economic problems and has shown great resilience, Christian says. One reason for this is that benefits are broad, ranging from reducing costs and streamlining product development to the applications’ capability handle more complex products than before, as well as the inclusion of integrated product lifecycle management, he adds.
Taking a closer look, AEC is dominant in all global regions.
In 2015 the top three industries spending most worldwide on technical applications software are AEC, machinery and automotive. The dominant three industries were reflected in the regional figures for Asia Pacific, Europe, Middle East and Africa. By contrast in the Americas, where AEC remains top, were joined by telecoms and utility and machinery in the top three, according to Cambashi.
The emerging markets of the Asia Pacific are all spending more on technical applications software to support manufacturing than any other segment, according to the report, which shows spending on technical applications in Vietnam will grow fastest of the emerging markets in the Asia Pacific region in 2015, ahead of China, India and South Korea.
In fact, the emerging markets of the Asian Pacific Region: Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines and Thailand, are all spending more on technical applications software to support manufacturing than any other part of the Asian Pacific market.
But the emerging markets are spending more on geospatial applications than on manufacturing applications, which reflects the ongoing investment in infrastructure in the region, according to the report.
