Bentley Systems has announced that it is increasing its successful collaboration with BMW Group on integrated software solutions within the 'Digital Manufacturing' (DMF) realm. Using ProjectWise and ActiveAsset Planner technology, Bentley has committed to its development of an integrated factory planning system, including factory planning, area and facility management, to serve as an 'automotive industry platform' for facility management solutions in the automotive industry.

Bentley and BMW Group are collaborating on the requirements and direction of the automotive industry platform. The Platform will be offered as a standard solution for the automotive industry worldwide. To further boost their project, BMW Group is also increasing the number of Bentley software licenses as part of a $2 000 000 purchase agreement for products and services over a three year period.

Joachim Wiesmueller, General Manager of process IT manufacturing tools at BMW Group commented, "Bentley's technology will serve as the ideal tools for improving the functionality of factory planning and facility management, and digital manufacturing in general at BMW Group."

Alan Lamont, Executive Vice President of Bentley Europe, added, "We are very enthusiastic about the opportunity to collaborate with BMW Group on such a project; the Automotive Industry Platform will serve as a valuable standard for BMW Group and the automotive industry as a whole."

ProjectWise

The leading engineering information management solution, ProjectWise, is a versatile client/server environment for global collaboration on engineering projects. It delivers project information safely and accurately to any designated user and can be applied for all projects in architecture, engineering, construction, manufacturing, utilities and transportation. Unlike other project web solutions that focus only on access to information, the engineering information management foundation of ProjectWise provides integral user access management at a file level.

The workflow is integrated with version/revision control; integration with key applications, including MicroStation/J, AutoCAD from Autodesk [NASDAQ: ADSK], and common office applications like Microsoft Word; and integrated information publishing, ensuring informational integrity at every step of the engineering and construction pro-cess.

Bentley Systems is a worldwide leader in aecXML-ready, project-oriented engineering software. The Bentley ContinuumSM is the company's project engineering strategy comprising products, services and strategic affiliations. The company serves more than 300 000 professionals in building/plant engineering, geoengineering, and manufacturing engineering. With annual revenues of over $175 million, Bentley is the number two software provider in the worldwide architecture, engineering and construction (A/E/C) market, according to Daratech, and is the world's largest software company primarily dedicated to A/E/C.

Bentley's MicroStation and ModelServer engineering products are essential to successful projects at over 70% of the larger US engineering firms, and the owners of their engineered assets. Bentley is the leader in project engineering, providing engineering information management, management of change and engineering transaction management through its ProjectBank technology and ProjectWise products. Bentley's software is sold and implemented through Bentley Integrators and MVARs, on a one-to-one basis for user organisations that create and operate the world's infrastructure, including landmark buildings, roadways, manufacturing facilities, and utility and telecommunications networks. The Bentley SELECTSM subscription program now reaches more than 200 000 users.

Bentley SA

(011) 482 3262

tex.vandeventer@bentley.nl

www.bentley.com