Recently, Steinberg Hart’s BIM/VDC Director Gautam Shenoy discussed the evolution of the firm’s network and their adoption of the BIM 360 platform with Engineering News-Record. As changes and advancements in technology have forced employees and companies to adapt to new working environments and learn to use new tools across multiple business sectors, new challenges and barriers to fluid work and collaboration have come to light. Joining the Steinberg Hart team as BIM/VDC Director in 2016, Gautam Shenoy took it upon himself to ensure that the architectural firm was well positioned to handle this constantly changing technological environment.
When Shenoy first joined Steinberg Hart, the firm’s project teams and data were distributed across multiple office locations. Shenoy began a comprehensive overhaul of the firm’s digital infrastructure by expanding the use of Revit Server, scaling up the servers’ capabilities and increasing the amount of projects that could be hosted.
In 2019, Steinberg Hart and Gautam were focused on a new technological shift that would require a restructuring of their digital work environment and strategies – the widespread adoption and transition to cloud-based storage and work. For Shenoy and the rest of the Steinberg Hart team, BIM 360 “must be able to provide a path of least resistance to meet our milestones and deadlines.” Shenoy describes team members as feeling “rejuvenated” by their increased skill and knowledge thanks to continued work with the platform. Now, team members spend “more time on solving project related issues and less time figuring out how to use the platform.”
Amid the COVID-19 global pandemic, Shenoy sees digital inter-connectivity as of utmost importance. He explains that now, more than ever, there is an emphasis on cloud-based work solutions; video conferencing is also beginning to challenge email as the standard for communication. “Physical distance has made us more present and engaged in the moment, which has sparked the need to explore technology to bring us together, even closer.”