“We have the solution. We just can’t talk to each other.”
It’s like travelling to different countries. Every country has different power outlets. You either bring multiple adapters or multiple chargers.
The same thing happens in the construction/manufacturing world. Different vendors, different teams, different software. Without a common format, files won’t plug in with each other.”
I just read Lesley G.‘s piece on why AI hasn’t transformed manufacturing design.
Same exact problem.
Manufacturing engineers can’t deploy AI because proprietary “geometry kernels,” the mathematical foundation of 3D design, don’t talk to each other. Each vendor speaks a different language.
Construction has IFC (Industry Foundation Classes) as the universal adapter. Manufacturing doesn’t even have that.
Interoperability doesn’t benefit you. It benefits the ecosystem.
The project engineer who needs quick quantity takeoffs. The contractor is working on multiple software projects. The asset owner has been managing the building for 30 years.
When you optimise for your workflow, you break everyone else’s.
Lesley says:
“Whoever controls that language will shape how the next generation of factories and nations are built.”
China gets it. They’re investing in open-source alternatives while the US protects proprietary
systems.
The engineers who understand interoperability and can make systems talk to each other are the ones who unlock entire ecosystems.
Not the ones who master a single tool. The ones who connect tools.