It’s no secret that teams today are increasingly across a growing mix of systems and complexity.
More data. More stakeholders. More tools. Managing all of these pieces, particularly amid faster timelines, can be tough if stakeholders are operating in silos.
When you can’t share data across platforms and teams, you end up with manual work and outdated info, which ultimately leads to increased risks of rework, delays, and poor decisions.
Enter Bridge, a solution in Autodesk Construction Cloud that enables secure, controlled data sharing across accounts and projects. Bridge helps general contractors, subcontractors, designers, and owners collaborate while maintaining data ownership and control.
In this article, we’ll go over five impactful ways to use Bridge to improve collaboration.
What is Bridge in Autodesk Construction Cloud?
Bridge is a cross-project collaboration workflow that lets teams share information securely across accounts and projects. It allows you to:
- Share files, sheets, and models across accounts and projects
- Set up automations to keep shared folders continuously updated
- Manage incoming and outgoing shared documents in one centralized workspace
- Maintain control over owned project environments while collaborating externally
Sharing data across companies can introduce risk if not managed well. Bridge addresses that by giving you the capabilities to seamlessly collaborate without losing control of your data.
Designed to reduce data fragmentation and improve coordination across the construction lifecycle, Bridge gives teams a reliable way to coordinate without duplicating work.
Top 5 ways to use Bridge
1. Share closed RFIs to improve future project planning
Teams can now share closed RFIs across projects and accounts, which makes it much easier to carry lessons learned from one job to the next.
Instead of copying RFI details by hand or recreating the duplicate records in a separate hub, Bridge lets you pass that information along with a few simple steps.
Subcontractors and design partners who work inside a GC or owner’s project often want to keep a complete RFI history in their own account. Sharing closed RFIs through Bridge gives them a clean way to do that.
With Bridge, users can preserve the full story behind each issue, while helping teams plan future work with better context.
2. Share RCW models to align design and construction teams
Reference Coordination Workflow (RCW) models in ACC ensure all models from different disciplines (e.g., architectural, structural, and mechanical) share the same real-world coordinate system.
With Bridge, teams can share RCW models across ACC counts to enable real-time collaboration and model alignments. This capability is handy during design coordination, constructability reviews, and preconstruction planning, as it enables teams to work from the most current, clash-resolved model.
All you need to do is link Revit cloud models via ACC Bridge, and you’ll enable centralized access and automated updates for all collaborators.
Having teams work with the same coordinated models in real-time paves the way for better communication and decision-making. It also means that folks have a single source of truth, so they won’t have to worry about errors, data inaccuracies, or outdated information.
Having the ability to share RCW models also reduces manual file transfers and version-control issues, further streamlining coordination and giving teams more control over how models move between accounts.
3. Share as-builts for accurate project handover
As-builts are critical, especially during handover, because they capture what was actually built, not just what was designed. Teams need them to confirm installation details, support facility management, and plan future work.
If you’re using Bridge, you can share as-built documents and project information with other ACC projects, accounts, and data storage regions. Whether you’re sharing data at closeout or need to transfer documentation to downstream stakeholders or regional teams, Bridge gives you a straightforward way to share everything.
Teams that use Bridge can increase the accuracy of project handover, reduce manual work when sharing documentation, and ensure everyone has access to accurate, up-to-date as-built records, regardless of location. Ultimately, this leads to streamlined operations and stronger collaboration between multinational or global teams.
4. Use Bridge for design collaboration: controlled model sharing across projects
No matter which phase of the project you’re in—design development, coordination, or model publishing—Bridge powers collaborative, standardized workflows. BIM managers, architects, and engineers working across separate project environments can collaborate without needing access to each other’s projects.
Since shared models are controlled and isolated from source environments, your IP stays protected. It also prevents teams from using WIP information.
Here are some of the key capabilities of Bridge that make design collaboration easier to manage
Standardized structure: The standardized folder structure is a core component of the Design Collaboration module in ACC. It ensures consistency, clarity, and automation when sharing design data across projects using Bridge.
Team-based organization: Each design team (e.g., architecture, structural, MEP) is assigned a dedicated folder within the project. These folders are structured identically across projects, making it easy to automate data sharing between them.
Shared folder: This is the central location where published packages are stored. When a team shares a package, Bridge automatically copies it to the Shared folder in the destination project, maintaining the same structure.
Consumed folder: Teams can further copy packages from the Shared folder into their own Consumed folder. This allows them to link models directly into their workspaces without altering the original shared data.
Timeline view: The standardized structure enables a visual timeline that tracks when packages are shared and consumed. Bridged packages are clearly marked, helping teams understand the flow of information across projects.
And because the folder structure is predefined, teams don’t need to manually configure folders or permissions in the destination project. Bridge handles the creation of equivalent team folders automatically during setup.
All of the above leads to better ways of working. Teams can function more quickly, maintain smooth communication, and ensure consistency across projects and teams. Particularly useful for firms with multi-project and multi-company workflows, Bridge keeps information flowing between all parties.
5. Bridge Automations: keep shared content continuously updated
Bridge doesn’t just let you share your latest documents and data; it also helps keep the information current through Automations.
You can automatically sync shared folders and sheets across ACC projects to ensure that receiving teams always have the most current files.
No need to worry about inconsistent data or outdated files. With Bridge Automations, you can give teams access to the latest information throughout the project lifecycle, and most especially during active coordination and document updates.
You also have full control over your automations. Bridge enables users to pause, resume, or delete automations as projects evolve. Teams can monitor and manage automations from a centralized interface, so you always know what’s being synced and when
One important thing to note is that automations apply to folders and sheets, not individual files. So if you want to automate file sharing, you must place files in a folder and sync the folder.
For example, a GC can set up folder automations to ensure that any revised drawing placed in the shared folder is instantly synced to the subcontractor’s project. That way, stakeholders eliminate the need for manual re-uploads or email notifications.
How to get started
Want to see Bridge in action? Explore the feature in Autodesk Construction Cloud and learn how to set up your first Bridged project.
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