Synchro Rounds out 4D BIM with Launch of Professional Pi Release

14 December 2009, Coventry, England -- Synchro has begun to ship and offer online trial downloads of Synchro Client and Server v3.1415.0.0 as the latest version of its award-winning software in support of 4D BIM for Delivery for computer model simulation, planning and scheduling used by leading companies for complex and repeatable construction projects worldwide.

Branded as Synchro Professional Pi after its version number, Synchro Pi rounds out a series of product enhancements to the third-generation product line. Since Version 3 first shipped in October 2007, Synchro has launched 10 major releases in response its growing global user community.

Synchro's Global User Group -- headed by Jim Schrader, BIM Manager at Power Construction, LLC in Chicago -- has driven timely and decisive feedback into Synchro's product development agenda. (See Case Study.)

"We value the insightful guidance behind every new release from our Global User Group," said Tom Dengenis, CEO. "This gifted team worldwide has strengthened Synchro's product line and is expected to continue to provide feedback well into the future."

Synchro's BIM for Delivery Platform provides advanced data management to support our users' abilities to explore, analyse, collaborate, present and manage large-scale construction projects to which 4D BIM adds significant value.

Synchro Pi offers important new features that take Synchro users to the next level of 4D construction simulation, systems interoperability and BIM for delivery capabilities.

Synchro Pi features these new benefits:

• Availability for download for x86-64 architecture.
• IFC and subdivision Boolean operations improvements now support free hand object sub-division.
• Pi enhances Synchro Libraries and Project Merging through Import of *.sp files
• Printing improvements in EVA graph include total costs and statistics information with a Resource Utilisation graph, use entity state behaviour "Best dates", "Planned dates", and more for 3D views in print and AVI dialogs
• Synchro supports Primavera6 v7.0 but not yet Vista x64
• 3D Resource to Task Auto Matching
• OODB Beta 2 will become available in January after incorporating improvements from the feedback from Beta 1

Free demos can be arranged by Carole Monette through the online Contact Form.

Ten-day, free trials are available for Professional Pi via download from the Synchro web site.

Here is an outline of other improvements:

Filters:

• 3D Objects are included automatically in the active Filter on import and synchronisation
• New 3D Filter option: "Show Selected"
• New default 3D Filters: "Same as Task Filter" and "3D by Selection"
• Task filter by activity code
• Task filter by activity ID
• Resource and 3D filter enhancement (to show assigned/unassigned)
• Improved 3D Filter behaviour for subdivided parts

Gantt:

• Support for elapsed 7d/24h Calendar
• Option to set color to show project date extents on Gantt timeline
• Improved option "Reframe Gantt to show imported data" on import from scheduling systems
• Improved keyboard input for Gantt chart functions
• "Planned Finish" column
• New option to select behaviour on editing Start/Finish times (move task or change duration)
• New option "Create task below selected task" (create siblings)
• "Create task under selected task" improvements
• New option to bind "Start ASAP" constraint to arbitrary date
• Ability to assign resources to started and finished tasks
• Task ID generator
• Search tasks by task ID
• Option "Unassign All Resources" in Gantt/Task View
• New option to disable "blue" line (today's date) on Gantt
• Improved toolbar to set default link type

Use Profiles:

• New use profile "Maintain"
• Use profile colour and transparency enhancement
• New toolbar to display and change the active Use profile

3D:

• New keyboard shortcut (SHIFT + A) for "Assign to selected tasks" command
• Improved automatic creation of resources by 3D entity level
• Improved cutting plane technique over solids
• Create resources on 3D synchronisation
• "Create resources" wizard improvements
• Remove resource on removing 3D
• Duplicate settings from 3D View to 3D View
• Better camera settings
• Corrected 3D Object movement by tasks
• 3D export enhancement: export by Focus Time and Filter
• 3D exact reposition
• Advanced 3D import options: enable/disable 3D annotations, enable/disable empty objects (w/o geometric representation), limit 3D object tree levels

AVI:

• Improvements in camera control and timeline position movement in animation editor
• Improved aspect ratio option, when creating AVIs
• AVI dialog enhancement
• New option to show Focus time in weeks only
• New option to generate AVI with high quality texture images
• Quality of generated AVI has been improved for certain customer models

Costs:

• New cost type: "Cost by Unit"
• "Cost Total" column has been included to "Task Usage" report view
• "Project Costs" dialog improvements

Navigator:

• Search by name and copy/paste in navigator tabs

Browser:

• Browser view improvements
• A separate menu item has been added to show/hide browser window like other views in Synchro

GUI:

• New option to show dates in national format
• URLs for companies and resources
• Company types and Unit types are shown in sorted order
• Mouse-wheel works in date/time controls
• Auto-save

Primavera Import:

• New option to merge activity codes/code values on import from different Primavera projects

3D Formats supported in Synchro Professional Pi:

• DWF/DWFX (up to 2010)
• DWG and DXF (R14, 2000, 2000i, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009)
• SKP (6, 7; ONLY in 32-bit version of Synchro)
• DGN (V7, V8, V8 XM, V8I)
• Catia V4 (4.1.9 - 4.2.4)
• Catia V5 (R2 - R19)
• IGES (up to 5.3)
• STEP (AP203, AP214 - Geometry only)
• Parasolid (10-21)
• Pro/E (16 - Wildfire 4)
• SolidWorks (98 - 2009)

For more information on Synchro Pi, please email David Lentz, Global Marketing Director and Senior VP.