Navigating Your Data Storage

Cloud Data Platform is a large data storage and sharing solution for Architecture, Engineering and Construction companies who seek a balance of features vs. costs.

The Problem

In recent years, more professionals have transitioned to hybrid or remote work environments. While these settings offer notable advantages, they are not without challenges, particularly when shifting from traditional IT systems predominantly around client or server environments. This model is no longer optimal for work requirements, especially when collaborating with people outside your organisation.

Cloud technology has mitigated many challenges, enabling AEC (Architecture, Engineering, and Construction) companies to adapt to new working environments seamlessly. However, conventional cloud offerings often need to be more suited for specific purposes or exorbitantly priced, as Autodesk’s Collaborate Pro exemplifies.

When evaluating options for data storage and accessibility, it becomes crucial to strike a balance between features and costs. In response to this need, we have developed an ideal solution that adeptly meets these demands.

Common issues

Systems Access & Collaboration

Remote access is slow.
Project management is next-to impossible.
Complaints about collaboration and internal processes relating to documents.
Wasted time and associated over-staffing needs.
Ensuring there are no issues with version control or accessing documents.

External Collaboration

Employees will use whatever they feel is the easiest solution.
Version conflicts and data duplication.
Sharing files via email.
More than one site – how is data accessed from other sites?

Information Security

Staff leaving with your data.
Version conflicts and data duplication.
Ransomware threat / systems breach.
Business continuity &/or full systems recovery times.

Watch our webinar for our in depth guide to Data Platform

We moved our entire server environment to the cloud from one day to the next and it all worked seamlessly. The staff had no questions – it just worked! It actually became easier as we no longer needed to use a VPN connection or external file sharing sites. Now we just right click to share a file externally – and there’s a record specifying if it has been downloaded or not.

We really love this solution. It allows people from disparate locations to collaborate on Revit models. Our full project lifecycle data can be shared with anyone, anywhere. We also now have a system where we can track and file all email communication, complete with managing conversations on previous drawing iterations.

Our Solution: Data Platform

Several approaches can be employed to tackle this challenge. However, after thoroughly examining all available options, we have devised a solution that amalgamates the advantages of each, rendering them cost-effective –Data Platform.

The options on the left are overly simplistic and pose risks, while those on the right, although more sophisticated, tend to be challenging to oversee or excessively expensive. Essentially, you are presented with a spectrum of choices, ranging from lower to higher costs, moving from left to right.

File Sync

e.g. OneDrive / Dropbox / Box / Google Docs etc.

Store data and sync files to all machines

Cloud Storage

e.g. Azure Files / Amazon EFS

Map a drive directly into the remote storage resource

Servers (hardware)

On-premises physical servers

Map a drive to a local file server

Data Platform

Sophisticated cloud collaboration & governance storage platform

Mix and match options depending on needs; map a drive, cache (not sync) data locally, or directly access data.

Servers (cloud)

Virtual servers in e.g. Azure or AWS

Map a drive & VPN to a remote file server

Virtual Desktops

e.g. Azure Virtual Desktops (AVD) / Inevidesk

Fully remote environment; virtual Windows machines and data strorage

3rd Party Services

e.g. Autodesk Collaborate Pro and other solutions such as Newforma or UnionSquare

Varied approaches. Designed for and satisfy very specific requirements. Complex (expensive) solutions.

A brief summary of the benefits of Data Platform:

Very feature-rich file storage platform; sharing & collaboration, lifecycle management, data controls, privacy & compliance, access governance, and threat management.
Automatic data archiving.

Huge file paths and storage.
Multiple ways of accessing data and applications that cannot work with file sync can be used.

Sophisticated local caching mechanism for very fast data access – not sync.
Ransomware virus malware protection is built in.
File versioning & roll back.

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