It was while Parth Tikiwala was working as a Senior Policy Analyst at the White House in Washington, DC, that he saw firsthand how technology providers could help plug the engineering skills gap.
And now, as Director of Government and Academic Affairs at global construction software giant Bluebeam, he’s using those learnings to lead the company’s renowned academic program, including Bluebeam University, a unique initiative offering a range of courses for construction engineers.
“It’s such a great resource,” he told create. “In fact, I’m signed up for it myself. The training and certifications it offers act as a conduit to address the talent shortage in Australia and around the world.”
Tikiwala’s time in the White House began when he was offered a one-year fellowship as part of a presidential initiative to formulate the US’s first federal data strategy. His work gave government agencies the strategic tools they needed to better manage the lifecycle of data they were already collecting to create a long-term framework that leverages data as a strategic asset.
“It was my first experience of the confluence of data, advanced technology and policy in both the private and public sectors,” he said. “I also saw how critical academic study is to upskilling industry and government.”
Construction insights
When Tikiwala was offered a permanent role in the US Office of Management and Budget at the White House it gave him even more insights, especially in the construction sector.
“My boss’s boss was the president’s budget director, so I got to see how budgets are calculated and how funding is organised all the way from engaging a contractor at the beginning to building bridges, highways and buildings,” he said.
“I saw words drafted and policy discussions that would turn into magnificent constructions, and it’s here I realised how technology firms such as Bluebeam can shape our world.”
He could also see the critical importance of comprehensive training programs, some of which weren’t fit for purpose.
“As an industry, we must position ourselves to be more curious and lean into what we don’t know,” he said. “And that starts with providing enough opportunities to gain knowledge.
“Through the Bluebeam Academic Program, we empower students by bridging the gap between the classroom and the field, and teach them how visibility over design plans is a crucial connector for engineering projects.”
Collaborative software
Bluebeam offers two programs aimed at education and training. One is for students and those enrolled in credit-bearing courses, while the other is a robust training resource for all Bluebeam subscribers.
Through the Bluebeam Academic Program, students with academic licenses can access the firm’s collaborative, end-to-end project solution platform Revu, which allows stakeholders in different locations to simultaneously review and amend PDFs.
Its searchable markups are visible through the whole process of design, build and handover. Resources include building site plan analysis, a library of concrete mixes, architectural diagrams and drainage maps for new developments. It’s used in 1500 schools in 82 countries.
Bluebeam University, which is included in all Revu subscriptions, offers self-paced web courses and learning paths that cover everything from the basics to advanced workflows.
The 18 courses cover a wide range of topics including:
- Form editing and creation
- Building project dashboards
- Document editing and manipulation
- Mark-up tools
- Processing document content
- Real-time collaboration
“By putting students front and centre, we’re unleashing their flair for innovation, but also creating a standardisation of understanding that’s applicable right across the sector,” Tikiwala said.
“It’s not just about integrating our products into curriculums, it’s about being with them for the entire lifecycle and using their feedback to continuously improve learning journeys.”
Many students were introduced to Bluebeam’s Academic Program at this year’s Elevation careers expos, organised by Engineers Australia across seven cities. And it wasn’t just at the company’s stand — each of the 10 biggest engineering companies that offer graduate programs uses its software.
Bluebeam collaborates with several Australian universities, running workshops and bootcamps as well as providing scholarships and sponsoring student competitions.
“For me, our academic program is about three things: access, equipping and inspiring.” Tikiwala said. “That’s how we make sure we’re building high-performance training ecosystems that will move the industry forward.”
Find out how Bluebeam’s Academic Program empowers engineers to push the limits of what’s possible.