OpenBridge Designer, OpenSite Designer, and OpenRoads Designer form a trio of Bentley Systems’ leading purpose-built software. These individual applications are part of Civil WorkSuite, a collective solution that address bridge, site, and roadway civil projects–supporting workflows in a unique way and making them essential for deliverables.
Bentley Systems–the infrastructure engineering software company that empowers people to design, build, and operate better and more resilient infrastructure–offers a way to bundle what you need, when you need it, to deliver complete projects. This bundle is called Civil WorkSuite, a collection of nine Bentley solutions that cover the needs of any type of civil project.
One user of Civil Worksuite is Holloway, Updike and Bellen, Inc. Consulting Engineers (HUB Engineers), a multidiscipline firm offering the full spectrum of engineering services that include surveying, transportation design, storm water solutions, and construction services in Oklahoma. With their decades of expertise, Dwain Garner and his team have designed and overseen the successful completion of numerous projects of different magnitudes.
HUB Engineers views problems as opportunities to discover solutions. The company recognized the need for a comprehensive collection of software that addresses the site projects that they have undertaken in recent years, road projects that they are currently dealing with, and bridge projects that they plan to begin in the future.
Civil WorkSuite lined up perfectly with HUB Engineers’ interdisciplinary approach to highway and street design, surveying services that include subdivision design and platting, and residential, commercial, and industrial developments.
Past – OpenSite Designer
Leading up to their latest project, OpenSite Designer–software designed to address all aspects of site design, engineering, and land development–allowed the company to create four small and unique 12-lot subdivisions using four different layouts. These subdivisions were individually divided plots of land divided into pieces to make them easier to sell and develop.
What typically would have been a time-consuming process of creating and optimizing design scenarios, optimizing earthwork and site layout, and identifying project feasibility was made easy with the grading solver capability. The grading solver launched a process where their conceptual layouts were converted into 3D models and graded perfectly while being optimized for cost. HUB Engineers could then check for errors, such as slope constraints, slope interactions between objects, and the limits of disturbance. The grading further added value by quickly generating cost estimates, thematically mapping cuts and fills, viewing triangulated surfaces, and viewing the proposed site with contours. The grading solver enabled the firm to discover grading options and see what was not feasible, as well as pull up different examples with pros and cons of what the neighborhood would look like, tied into what their engineers believe is a benefit of using digital capabilities today.
To us, less repeat work is the biggest advantage”
Present – OpenRoads Designer
OpenRoads Designer has a significant impact on Hub Engineers’ work in the city of Tulsa. Garner and a team of engineers recently completed a USD 3 million non-arterial street rehab and overlay project with the software, consisting of two miles of arterial street jointly funded by the Oklahoma Department of Transportation (ODOT) and the city of Tulsa. Using software that handles alignments, quantities, and typical cross sections was particularly important for the project. A main requirement by ODOT was utilizing a workspace that looks like their production sets. The transportation team found that they had the capability to exceed expectations by utilizing the workspace developed by Bentley.
Prior to using Civil WorkSuite, HUB Engineers used InRoads, a Bentley legacy product. Garner decided to transition to OpenRoads Designer to improve project workflow. The associate engineer wanted to follow suit with ODOT to be able to communicate back and forth, as well as share files in the appropriate format without conversion.
Future – OpenBridge Designer
For 2024 and beyond, Civil WorkSuite is helping HUB Engineers expand into other types of projects with OpenBridge Designer.
OpenBridge Designer’s bridge modeling, design, and analysis software combines numerous flexible engineering features with an intuitive, user-friendly interface. Box culverts and bridge designs are part of the services offered at the company, and their intention is to incorporate their experience with the latest design techniques. Familiarity with local design and construction practices, as well as typical site conditions for the region, ties into OpenBridge and its use of U.S. AASHTO codes for design and load rating. Civil WorkSuite, coupled with the necessary personnel HUB dedicates to their work, ensures the scope of any project will be accomplished with excellence.
HUB Engineers can move forward knowing that Civil WorkSuite can meet all their needs. With their prior experience using Bentley software with a similar interface, as well as free training that comes with the Civil WorkSuite license, they will not face a learning curve. ODOT used OpenRoads Designer and OpenSite Designer to put together a pre-prepared workspace with seamless features which makes it easy for HUB to use it for sheet production.
Civil WorkSuite has been a game changer for HUB Engineers–and it can be for you too.
