Bentley Unveils MicroStation V8 2004 Edition; Latest MicroStation Release Driven by 10 Core Technologies, Includes Support For Adobe PDF, DWG Interoperability, Digital Security.

Business Editors/High-Tech Writers

EXTON, Pa.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 29, 2004

Bentley Systems, Incorporated today announced it has unveiled MicroStation V8 2004 Edition, the latest release of the company's flagship product. Shipments began immediately after a Webcast launching Bentley's seminar series "Standardizing With V8" for MicroStation users, administrators, and managers.

Driven by 10 core technologies, the new release boasts support for Adobe PDF, enhanced DWG interoperability, and digital security. Overall, MicroStation V8 offers AEC organizations new ways to standardize a wide range of processes, such as change management, drafting and drawing, electronic delivery, proposal preparation, and more.

"Senior managers in our accounts tell me that they are on a quest for standardization. It's a strategic priority for them to squeeze out uncertainty and insert predictability into their business processes," said Bhupinder Singh, Bentley vice president of platform products. "Our V8 generation of products, underscored by our commitment to open standards such as PDF, provides core technologies to help them do exactly that. We want to be their partner in increasing the value and efficiencies of their businesses."

Standardizing with MicroStation V8 creates efficiencies by making processes more uniform and repeatable -- allowing higher productivity, faster delivery, and fewer errors. Also, standard ways of doing things let organizations establish common metrics, to better measure and further improve performance. Finally, standardization leads to increased agility, reuse of AEC content, and opportunities for new business.

New and enhanced core technologies for MicroStation V8 include:

-- The enhanced Print core technology now includes support for

Adobe PDF, the dominant standard for electronic deliverables

in AEC. Users can publish composite, secure, compact PDF

deliverables sourced from DGN or DWG drawings (with raster and

vector data), specifications, schedules, bills of material,

and other project information. The PDF document preserves the

level and reference structures of MicroStation files and can

include hyperlinks, digital signatures, and bookmarks.

MicroStation support for PDF makes it easy for organizations

to establish a PDF-based electronic delivery and sharing

process.

-- Digital Security, entirely new in MicroStation V8, allows for

electronic signatures on drawings, as well as multi-level

access privileges for projects. Managers are assured of

reliable approval processes and secure workflows.

-- Change Tracking, new in MicroStation V8, adds revision

control. Users can isolate and view any change or set of

changes to a design. Users can record, review, and restore a

complete history of modifications, including all data and

references, dates, and authors. They can undo any change, even

after closing a file. Managers now have a standard way to

audit design history.

-- The DWG core technology, also new in V8, means that

MicroStation users can work natively with DWG files, DGN

files, or any mix of the two. Only in MicroStation can users

fully participate in and deliver projects in either popular

format -- a clear competitive advantage for them and their

organizations.

-- Standards Management, new in MicroStation V8 2004 Edition,

offers tools to create and enforce standards and best

practices across a project or enterprise. For example, the

configurable, XML-based Standards Checker enforces detailed

requirements for deliverables by identifying inconsistencies

such as non-compliant drafting styles or elements on incorrect

levels.

-- The Customization core technology lets programmers and

administrators extend and configure MicroStation. In an

enhancement for V8, they can now use Microsoft Visual Basic

for Applications for customization.

Also, a new layer of domain-specific functionality has been

added with V8. MicroStation can now be configured to include

building, civil, geospatial, and plant extensions. These

extensions -- TriForma, CivilPAK, GeoGraphics, and

Schematics -- were previously available only as add-on

applications for MicroStation.

-- The 3D core technology provides a comprehensive set of

surface, solid, and mesh modeling and manipulation tools, as

well as a broad range of rendering choices. New to

MicroStation V8 are feature modeling, parametric cells, and

particle trace rendering. These additions allow organizations

to standardize on a single product for a full spectrum of 3D

support integrated with 2D design.

-- The References core technology lets users reference work being

done in other files. In V8, references can be now nested

rather than being limited to a single level, providing

interoperability with the XREF type in DWG files. Also,

references now allow for multiple sheet definitions --

recognized by other Bentley products -- in a single file.

These enhancements present new opportunities for additional

design and drafting standards.

-- The Dimensioning core technology lets users create labels that

calculate and display linear, angular, or radial measurements.

Additions to V8 include automatic conversion between metric

and English standard units, as well as checks for disconnected

dimensions.

-- The Drawing Aids core technology provides placement and

manipulation tools for design and drafting productivity. In

V8, AccuSnap and the patented AccuDraw offer enhanced

interactive feedback, and snap order can be defined for

specific workflows.

"Standardizing With V8" Seminar Series

The "Standardizing With V8" seminar series began with today's Webcast session, "Unveiling the Next Release of MicroStation -- MicroStation V8 2004 Edition." Tom Anderson, Bentley vice president of product management, introduced and demonstrated the newest version of MicroStation and presented the core technologies, innovations, and benefits of the V8 generation.

The series continues at BE Conference 2004, Bentley's annual international user conference taking place May 23-27 in Orlando, Florida. Upcoming seminars at the conference include:

Session 2: The Opportunities of Standardization - Keith Bentley explains and explores the immense gains possible when organizations standardize processes. He will expand the discussion to standardization opportunities at a project scale -- such as project structure, workflow, and security -- that are enabled by Bentley ProjectWise.

Session 3: MicroStation V8 Core Technologies 1-5 - New core technologies and innovative features enable standardization and productivity gains. Tom Anderson outlines and demonstrates each.

Session 4: MicroStation V8 Core Technologies 6-10 - More new core technologies and innovations, outlined and demonstrated by Tom Anderson.

Session 5: Standardization Workshop - Keith Bentley and other senior Bentley executives offer one-on-one feedback, counsel, and recommendations for standardization plans.

At the start of Session 3, each attendee will be provided with a checklist including:

-- Standardization opportunities

-- MicroStation V8 features enabling standardization

-- Individual considerations for implementation

At Session 5, the standardization workshop, attendees can review their checklists with Bentley executives and consultants.

About the BE Conference

The BE Conference is Bentley's premier professional training event. This year, it includes more than 400 training courses and technology updates, keynote presentations by Bentley executives, project presentations by innovative Bentley users, and a wide range of networking opportunities. The BE Conference achieves a 98 percent satisfaction rating year after year. Bentley renamed its annual event "BE Conference" to reflect the Bentley Empowered nature of users and the projects they create to improve the world's infrastructure and increase quality of life.

Besides the "Standardizing With V8" seminar series, the BE Conference offers more than 195 training courses on the V8 generation of products.

The BE Conference also features the BE Awards of Excellence ceremony, honoring the extraordinary work of Bentley users around the world. Increasingly, these projects are achieved with V8 generation products. For a full list of the 164 nominees and for more information on the conference, visit www.be.org.

About Bentley

Bentley Systems, Incorporated, provides software for the lifecycle of the world's infrastructure. The company's comprehensive portfolio for the building, plant, civil, and geospatial vertical markets spans architecture, engineering, construction (AEC) and operations. With 2003 revenues reaching $260 million, Bentley is the leading provider of AEC software to the Engineering News-Record Design 500 and major owner-operators. For more information, visit www.bentley.com.

Bentley, the "B" logo, MicroStation, ProjectWise, TriForma, CivilPAK, GeoGraphics, Schematics, AccuSnap, and AccuDraw are either registered or unregistered trademarks or service marks of Bentley Systems, Incorporated or Bentley Software, Inc. Other brands and product names are trademarks of their respective owners.