Category: Architecture

Brand transition complete – Codesign available now!

Today the transition from Spaces to Codesign was completed with the launch of the new Codesign App – available for immediate download now.

Checkout the full press release on the Codesign blog.

Unveiling the Future: Introducing the New Codesign App for Architects

Revolutionizing Design with Our Latest Innovation

In our quest to continuously push the boundaries of architectural design and technology, I am excited to unveil our latest innovation: the Codesign App, the first specialist concept design application crafted specifically for architects. This tool is not just a product of our imagination but a response to the real needs and challenges faced by architects today.

Born from a Vision

The genesis of the Codesign App was driven by a simple observation: architects need more intuitive, efficient tools that seamlessly integrate into the early stages of design. The conceptual phase is critical—it’s where ideas blossom and take shape. Yet, it’s often bogged down by cumbersome processes and tools that aren’t tailored for creative exploration.

With that challenge in mind, we set out to create something different, something that feels less like a tool and more like a partner in design.

A Tool Like No Other

The Codesign App stands apart for several reasons. It’s designed specifically for architects, with an interface that is both intuitive and powerful, stripping away unnecessary complexities and focusing on enhancing creativity.

A Step Towards a Brighter Future

Today’s launch of the Codesign App marks a significant milestone in our journey at Codesign. It represents our commitment to innovation and our dedication to supporting the architectural community in creating more magnificent, sustainable, and efficient designs.

Get Involved

Your role is crucial in this journey. I invite each of you to experience the Codesign App firsthand. Explore its features, test its capabilities, and let us know how it enhances your design process. Your feedback will be instrumental in refining and evolving the app further.

Thank You for Being Part of Our Journey

Launching this app wouldn’t have been possible without your invaluable support and belief in our vision. As we move forward, I am eager to see how the Codesign App will empower architects around the globe, helping bring your incredible visions to life with ease and precision.

Thank you for joining us on this exciting journey. Together, let’s shape the future of architectural design.

Jump over to https://www.getcodesign.co to get started today

A’22 – Chicago

Following our release of Spaces version 2, we hit the road for NXT BLD in London and the AIA A’22 show in Chicago.

I was fortunate to have time to explore Chicago – a city I’d never visited before – and see the evolution of the Skyscraper in a single city.

Following the Great Chicago Fire of 1871, over 14,000 buildings were destroyed. A group of architects came together and started using new building techniques and what we know as sky scapers began to appear.

Over the following decades, Chicago continued to innovate and as you can see in the photos below a rich history of architecture has been created. No other city in the world can boast such a broad range of styles in a relatively small area.

BEST of SHOW – Innovation Category

Following the A’22 exhibition, the Spaces team were thrilled to receive a BEST of SHOW award in the Innovation category from architosh. We’ve only been in the market for a short time so this recognition was especially pleasing.

Spaces caught the attention of attendees at the AIA (American Institute of Architects) National Conference and Expo in Chicago last week. So it comes as no surprise that it received a 2022 Architosh BEST of SHOW award.

architosh

Spaces version 2 – released

Since I was last here, my team and I have been heads down working on what turned out to be our second most significant release ever!

While it’s only a little over seven months since we officially launched Spaces (v1), we have been single-mindedly working towards our recent v2 release.

When we launched, I told people that we felt we had at least 12months more development to build out our core vision for spaces.

We’ve achieved this milestone five months early with a tiny dev team (and me), and I am immensely proud.

This by no means is an indication that we are finished; we probably are only just at the end of the beginning.

Having our core vision now in place, we are extremely well prepared to focus on business growth and expansion and continue improving and adding to the Spaces feature set.

We launched a lot with our v2 release and we want everyone to be able to experience everything Spaces has to offer.

That’s why with the release we announced the availability of an extended 3-month trial!

Capital Raising

We recently completed a funding round for Spaces by Cerulean Labs.

As a pre-revenue start-up, capital raising represents a vital form of validation while recognising the increased risk the investors at this point are taking.

The process took around six months, with the first three months putting feelers out into the marketplace and making initial introductions.  

To keep the business operating, we opened the round to existing shareholders and a handful of new investors while landing the bigger fish.

While we raised the majority of funds from four New Zealand Angel Groups, the process was reasonably straightforward with Ian Frame for Launch Taranaki and then Graeme Thomson from Manawatu Investment Group taking the lead to manage the internal processes with the Angel Groups.

“A kiwi based in Europe right now is a really distinct advantage in launching a new product on the global market,”

Ian Frame, Chair Launch Taranaki

In the end, we managed to get everything over the line with only a handful of Zoom meetings – I’m based in Budapest and the Angels are all New Zealand based. However, outside of the meetings, the efforts were a lot more time-consuming, with extensive materials and several top quality QA sessions.

The last part of the process was essentially mechanical with all the documentation and was more an administration task.

Having completed the process, with the money now in the bank, we have the runway to support our upcoming commercial launch.

Capital raising is a process that start-ups need to focus on regularly and well in advance of when funds are required. That said, I’m looking forward to a slight pause from capital raising where I can focus on our business goals.

DUO – Singapore

As followers of this blog, you’ll know I am passionate about architecture and enjoy taking photos of great architecture when I travel.

A few years ago on a quick trip through Singapore I discovered and photographed the following building:

I was reminded of these impressive buildings when The B1M published an article regarding the buildings:

THESE twin towers have been awarded the “Urban Habitat – Single Site Scale Award of Excellence” by the Council on Tall Buildings Urban Habitat (CTBUH)

The B1M

The article highlights how these buildings have rejuvenated a part of Singapore and how architecture can achieve much more then just creating buildings to occupy, but also outdoor spaces that contribute to a wider population.

Read the full article here.

Spaces – Conceptual Design for Architects

In August 2020 following six months of research, development and prototyping I founded Cerulean Labs with the aim of reinventing conceptual design for architects. This is a lofty goal and one that will take a number of years to see come to fruition.

However, today marks a major milestone in our early journey with the release of our first public beta.

As a team we are proud of what we have created to date but equally appreciate we are only just starting to scratch the surface what we plan to develop.

Spaces combines ideas from a huge range of people and investigations that have helped shape this first beta. Now we are excited to get a broader group of users signed up and using the software so they too can help shape this tool.

Spaces fills a void in the marketplace and we are focused on making it simple and easy to use.

As previously posts have highlighted creating a new venture is a rollercoaster of emotions and a constant juggling act. We could have taken a slightly ‘easier’ road and spent a few more months developing our first version before engaging with users but creating a tool that no-one uses is not our plan and we are excited to get our app into your hands and gather feedback, both positive and negative, and work hard to deliver regular updates and enhancements over the coming months.

If you’re an architect with an iPad and Pencil Sign up now for our Early access programme

NXT BLD 2020

Earlier in the year I attended BIM live show. When talking to a friend about what I was up to he recommended I attend NXT BLD.

This year – like many conferences and events – NZT BLD turned into an experiment with it being held as a Virtual Conference.

There were a series of 6 Sessions spread over 6 days. I found the daily sessions a great way to attend those that attended me and found it easy to fit into my day.

Obviously it missed the interaction with participants but from a content point of view the delivery was very well done. I enjoyed all the sessions I attended and found them very thought provoking.

All sessions are available on demand for those that register and are definitely worth a watch.

At this stage NXT BLD 2021 is scheduled – in person – for London June 2021.

Based on this years event I hope I can attend 2021 in person and maybe even have an opportunity to show what we are working on.

Making a start…

Quite often things take longer then expected! But today marks the official start of something new.

Ive been trying to get something off the ground for over 12 months and after a few misguided attempts today marked the incorporation of a new business.

We’ve got a lot ahead of us before we’ll be in a position to talk about it but it is a great feeling to have my own business again.

Today marks the point where various prototypes from the last 6 months get put to the side and we start development of what will hopefully be v1 of our product.

Getting started is always a hump to get over, but while we have lots of challenges ahead of us as we begin to build a new business from the ground up, we now have a single minded goal and focus to aim at.

The B1M – 1,000,000

Great recognition for the work the team over at The B1M are doing with an amazing milestone reached recently:

The B1M becomes the first construction YouTube channel to reach one million subscribers

Wow! Thats a great achievement – congratulations Fred and team.

In Fred’s words, he

“loves construction and wants the whole world to love it too”

Fred Mills

Well 1,000,000 is a good first step!

Architizer

While I’m figuring out what to do with myself I am looking for inspiration in a number of places.

I have some ideas forming and its probably not surprising they are architecture / building industry focused.

I have tried to think outside of the industry to see if what other opportunities there might be but I keep coming back to architecture like some sort of homing beacon.

The Architizer Website is a great resource and I also follow them on instagram as well.

I’ve found there 17 Awesome Apps for Architects and Designers page a place I return after first seeing it a couple of years ago. It is great to see the apps that people are creating but I also use it to see if there are any potential gaps that I might be able to fill.

I can see a couple and am starting to explore and prototype some things to see where this may lead.

The posts on the Architizer instagram channel also provide some very useful inspiration and generate a lot of thoughts around some of my ideas.