The seventh annual Autodesk University Middle East took place on December 16 and 17 2019, at the Zayed University Convention Center in Dubai. 550 participants actively engaged in learning, connecting, and exploring with Autodesk. This was the first year Forge was showcased on the main stage at AU Middle East, and a number of classes also featured Forge topics.
Day One - Following a welcome from Mohammad Saleh, Autodesk's Regional Sales Manager for the Middle East, the event kicked off with thought-provoking keynotes by Walter Dopplmair, VP of EMEA Territory Sales, and Uwe Wasserman, Director of AEC Business Development and Named Account Marketing, about the future of making and Autodesk's vision for AEC. Parsons speakers David Manfredi, VP of Design Services, and Theofano Antonakov, an architect with a degree in Emergent Technologies, then showed the audience real-life examples of how they are using generative design for master planning on mega projects in the region.
Day Two - Ramtin Attar, Autodesk's Head of Technology Pathfinding and Strategic Institutional Relations, started the second day's keynote by highlighting the importance of innovation in the city age. My talk following the Day Two keynote focused on the opportunity of better for the AEC and Manufacturing industries through the power of Forge. I presented examples from the construction and building space, and I showcased demos of solutions from Norconsult, NBS, and JE Dunn.
Event Highlights
- 550 attendees
- 40+ industry leading speakers
- 57 sessions
- Expo gallery featuring 6 AEC exhibits and 2 D&M exhibits
- Eiffel Tower VR experience
- MaRS Toronto
- Scaled Robotics
- Bryden Wood
- GHD - Jebel Hafeet
- GM Seat Bracket
Given Autodesk's enormous presence in the AEC and Construction industries of the Middle East, Forge's presence made a lot of sense both in front of the general audience and in the classes. The tallest building in the world, the Burj Khalifa, stands at 2716 feet (160 stories) and was designed in Revit. What better place for Autodesk to showcase its innovations in construction?