Leading Universities and Colleges Adopt PlanGrid to Efficiently Build and Maintain their Campuses

SAN FRANCISCO, March 19, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- PlanGrid, an Autodesk company and a leader in construction productivity software, today announced it gained 15 higher education institutions as customers within the last year. PlanGrid's solution is now used by 40 colleges and universities, schools that serve nearly one million students. PlanGrid facilitates real-time communication between stakeholders spread across university grounds, enabling both construction and facilities management teams to optimize productivity and enhance campus service levels. By capturing a comprehensive record of building activity with PlanGrid, universities are also able to leverage full lifecycle project data to preserve their campuses for generations to come.

Twenty of PlanGrid's higher education customers are included in the top 150 of US News & World Report's Best Colleges ranking, and the company's software is used to advance the campuses of leading higher education institutions, including:

• Carnegie Mellon University: a private, global research university that stands among the world's most renowned educational institutions.
• Wake Forest University: a private university whose Office of Residence Life and Housing works to foster secure, comfortable, inclusive, and engaging learning communities which prepare students to lead lives of meaning and purpose.
• University of California, Davis: one of the world's leading cross-disciplinary research, teaching and public service universities.
• University of Michigan-Dearborn: a globally-minded university committed to excellence in teaching, learning, research and scholarship, as well as access, affordability and metropolitan impact.
• Franklin & Marshall College: one of the oldest institutions of higher learning in the United States, dedicated to advancing academic excellence and strengthening an extraordinary student experience.
• University of Texas at Arlington: a Carnegie Research-1, "Very High Research Activity," university and Hispanic-Serving Institution with nearly 60,000 students.

PlanGrid helps higher education institutions enhance campus stewardship
Approximately 67 percent of students consider the quality of school facilities as a critical factor in their enrollment decisions, according to the Association of University Directors of Estates. To impact recruitment and build a campus that grows steadily and last for generations, higher education institutions routinely see sizeable capital investments for new buildings and renovations. 

However, universities and colleges face unique construction challenges that can hinder the short- and long-term success of their projects. Distributing project information and changes using paper across sprawling campuses takes significant time and can lead to miscommunication and rework, further extending timelines. Schools also need to service buildings throughout the lifecycle to maintain functionality and appeal, even as campuses continue to grow. Additionally, schools are responsible for rapidly addressing all student safety issues related to construction.

PlanGrid helps higher education institutions optimize construction productivity, and efficiently manage facilities and maintenance after turnover. Teams can instantly access and collaborate on the latest project information using any device, improving visibility, minimizing time spent chasing paper across campus and building right the first time. PlanGrid retains a digital record of all construction work as it is done, so schools receive comprehensive and accurate and easy-to-access data on their buildings' underlying construction. PlanGrid also enables teams to manage service and safety protocols, and immediately address risks. For example, if there is an electrical issue that could disrupt or endanger students, a facilities team member can snap a photo within PlanGrid, highlight the issue, tag the appropriate colleague and assign a due date to ensure service and safety are not compromised.

"Higher education institutions need construction completed on tight timelines around the academic calendar," said Nick Morrison, director of quality at Tellepsen Builders. "PlanGrid lets our higher ed project teams receive updates and communicate in real-time, even when they're miles away from one another across campuses. We can promptly address issues to stick to our customers' schedules, and deliver activity data that helps facilities crews easily keep up with service and maintenance after construction. We're able to help our higher ed clients save time and money with the efficiency PlanGrid drives, so they're able to invest more into the student experience on campus."

"School campuses are living and breathing places, and buildings new and old need to be preserved for future generations," said Toby Corey, president of global field operations at PlanGrid. "Campuses have a big impact on school recruiting, and they must remain highly functional and attractive for students and prospects throughout construction phases. Our growth in the higher education segment is demonstrative of the investment universities and colleges are making to enhance student experiences."

About PlanGrid
PlanGrid, an Autodesk company, builds simple, beautiful software construction teams love to use. The company's mobile-first technology gives general contractors, subs, owners and architects access to information in real-time, enables greater collaboration and provides actionable insights. With PlanGrid, any construction team member can manage and update blueprints, specs, photos, RFIs, field reports, punchlists and other information from any device. PlanGrid is used on more than 1.5 million projects across commercial, heavy civil and other industries in 90+ countries. Headquartered in San Francisco and founded in 2011, PlanGrid was acquired by Autodesk in 2018. Visit us at www.plangrid.com.

SOURCE PlanGrid

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