Question 1

What is Bildstak?

Accepted Answer

Bildstak is a construction data platform for AEC. It federates the systems on a project — BIM models, schedules, cost/ERP, RFIs, documents and standards — into one live model you can query in plain English, with every answer cited back to its source.

Question 2

What is a construction data platform?

Accepted Answer

A construction data platform unifies the disconnected systems on a project — BIM, schedule, cost, RFIs and documents — into a single queryable model. Bildstak is purpose-built for AEC, federating those sources so you can ask cross-system questions in plain English and get cited answers.

Question 3

What does it mean to federate construction data?

Accepted Answer

To federate construction data means to query your project's separate systems — BIM, schedule, cost, RFIs, documents — as if they were one, without moving or copying anything. Bildstak federates those sources live, joining records by stable identifiers so every answer spans the full picture.

Question 4

What problem does Bildstak solve?

Accepted Answer

Bildstak solves the information bottleneck that costs construction projects 8–15% of project value (McKinsey, KPMG, Dodge). Project data lives in a dozen disconnected systems; Bildstak federates them so any team member can query the full picture in plain English, with every answer cited.

Question 5

Who is Bildstak for?

Accepted Answer

Bildstak is for project controls teams, commercial managers, BIM managers, quantity surveyors, contract administrators, VDC leads, owners and portfolio directors working on major construction programmes. It is designed for the people who need to answer cross-system questions but cannot wait for a data team.

Question 6

How is Bildstak different from a BIM viewer?

Accepted Answer

A BIM viewer displays geometry and model properties. Bildstak is a data intelligence layer: it reads the BIM model and joins it to schedule, cost, RFIs, BCF and documents — so clicking an element shows every linked record, and you can query across all sources in plain English.

Question 7

How is Bildstak different from Procore or Aconex?

Accepted Answer

Procore and Aconex are document and workflow management platforms — they create and store RFIs, submittals and documents. Bildstak connects to them and joins their data with BIM, schedule and cost, so you can query across all sources at once and build cross-system evidence for claims and programme analysis.

Question 8

Is Bildstak a replacement for Power BI or Excel reporting?

Accepted Answer

Bildstak is not a replacement for Power BI or Excel — it is a different kind of tool. Rather than asking you to build dashboards on extracted data, Bildstak queries live federated sources in plain English and assembles evidence across systems, with every answer cited back to the source.

Question 9

What does Bildstak do that a data team would?

Accepted Answer

Bildstak replaces the data-reconciliation work a project data team does: connecting systems, joining records, writing queries, building reports and flagging risks. It delivers those outputs in seconds rather than days, without requiring a team of engineers to set up or maintain.

Question 10

What is "the Analyst" in Bildstak?

Accepted Answer

The Analyst is Bildstak's autonomous risk investigation module. It cross-references every connected source — BIM, schedule, cost, RFIs, documents — ranks risks across the portfolio with evidence, and surfaces findings proactively, without needing to be asked a specific question.

Question 11

What is the Element Inspector?

Accepted Answer

The Element Inspector is Bildstak's click-to-query interface for the 3D model. Click any BIM element and Bildstak shows every record linked to it — BCF issues, RFIs, COBie properties, cost lines and schedule activities — joined automatically by the element's IFC GlobalID.

Question 12

What does "ask your whole project a question" mean?

Accepted Answer

Bildstak lets you type a plain-English question — like 'which activities on the critical path have open RFIs?' — and get a cited answer drawn from BIM, schedule, cost, documents and every other connected source at once. No SQL, no exports, no data team required.

Question 13

How does Bildstak connect to my project data?

Accepted Answer

Bildstak connects through native connectors and REST APIs: it reads IFC files directly, pulls schedule data via P6 exports or APIs, connects to Procore and Aconex via their APIs, reads SAP and Maconomy cost journals, ingests spreadsheets and PDFs, and accepts custom REST APIs for any other system.

Question 14

What data sources can Bildstak connect to?

Accepted Answer

Bildstak connects to BIM (IFC, Speckle, Autodesk APS/Construction Cloud), schedule (Primavera P6), cost/ERP (SAP, Maconomy), document control (Procore, Aconex), coordination (BCF), standards (IDS, COBie), spreadsheets (Excel, Google Sheets), document libraries and any custom REST API.

Question 15

How does Bildstak join data across different systems?

Accepted Answer

Bildstak joins data using stable project identifiers: the IFC GlobalID for BIM elements (which links BCF, RFIs, cost and schedule to the same model element), and P6 activity IDs, WBS codes and cost codes for non-BIM projects. Every source speaks the same key.

Question 16

What is the IFC GlobalID and why is it the join key?

Accepted Answer

An IFC GlobalID is a stable, globally-unique identifier every element in an IFC/BIM model carries. Bildstak uses it as the join key: because the same element keeps its ID across tools, clashes, RFIs, cost lines and schedule activities that reference it can all be linked.

Question 17

Does Bildstak require a BIM model?

Accepted Answer

No. Bildstak does not require a BIM model. For heavy civil, infrastructure and other non-BIM projects it federates on Primavera P6 activity IDs, WBS codes, cost codes and document references — delivering the same cross-source intelligence without geometry.

Question 18

How does Bildstak answer questions in plain English?

Accepted Answer

Bildstak translates your plain-English question into queries across every connected project source, joins the results using project identifiers, and returns a coherent cited answer — no SQL, no exports needed. An AI analyst coordinates the query and structures the response.

Question 19

Does Bildstak copy my data or query it in place?

Accepted Answer

Bildstak uses a federation model: it queries your data in the systems where it lives rather than copying it into a central store. For deployments that require it, Bildstak can also run fully air-gapped or in your own VPC, keeping data entirely within your control.

Question 20

How does Bildstak unify twelve systems into one model?

Accepted Answer

Bildstak unifies a project's systems through a federation layer that connects each source via its native API or file format, indexes every record by a shared project identifier — IFC GlobalID for BIM, activity IDs and cost codes otherwise — and exposes the unified model through a single query interface.

Question 21

Can Bildstak read my contract PDFs and documents?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Bildstak indexes document libraries including contract PDFs, correspondence and specifications, making them queryable alongside BIM, schedule and cost data. You can ask questions that span a contract clause and a programme event, and get a cited answer from both.

Question 22

Does Bildstak cite its sources, and how accurate is it?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Every answer Bildstak gives cites the source records it drew from — system, record ID, and where relevant, the timestamp or version. Citation is not optional; it is built into the query model so every figure can be traced back to its origin.

Question 23

How long does Bildstak take to set up on a project?

Accepted Answer

Setup time depends on the number of systems being connected, but Bildstak is designed to be configured by a project controls engineer or BIM manager — not a data team. A single project with two or three sources can be live within a day; larger multi-source programmes take longer.

Question 24

Can Bildstak run offline or air-gapped?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Bildstak supports fully air-gapped deployment — the entire platform, including the AI analyst, runs within your environment with no outbound internet connectivity required. This makes it suitable for classified programmes, high-security infrastructure and sovereign data requirements.

Question 25

How do I assemble an EOT claim with Bildstak?

Accepted Answer

Bildstak's Claims Builder assembles an EOT claim by tracing the delay chain — cause event → RFI notice trail → programme slippage → contract entitlement clause → cost quantum — across every connected source, then exports a cited PDF package ready for submission.

Question 26

How does Bildstak help with construction claims?

Accepted Answer

Bildstak helps with construction claims by federating the schedule, cost, RFI, and contract document records into one cited model — so the cause-to-cost chain is built from live data, not manual spreadsheet assembly, reducing preparation time and strengthening the evidentiary trail.

Question 27

How do I track RFIs across Procore and Aconex?

Accepted Answer

Bildstak federates your Procore and Aconex RFI registers into one unified view with ball-in-court status, overdue flags, and response-time analytics — so you can see every open RFI across both platforms in a single query without manual exports.

Question 28

How do I find specification conflicts across contracts?

Accepted Answer

Bildstak's specification tracker reads your specification documents and contract packages, then flags component-by-component conflicts — where two contracts or spec sections require incompatible standards, materials or tolerances — so clashes are caught before they become RFIs or defects.

Question 29

How do I generate a submittal schedule?

Accepted Answer

Bildstak generates a submittal schedule by reading your programme (Primavera P6 or equivalent) and contract lead-time requirements, then back-calculating the submit-by date for each material or equipment item so procurement can begin on time without manual spreadsheet work.

Question 30

How does Bildstak do earned value management?

Accepted Answer

Bildstak delivers earned value management by loading your Primavera P6 schedule with cost data from your ERP (SAP, Maconomy or equivalent), then calculating CPI, SPI, EAC and variance at completion in real time — with every metric cited back to the source records.

Question 31

How do I see cost variance across my portfolio?

Accepted Answer

Bildstak's portfolio module federates cost and schedule data from every connected project, then ranks them by cost variance, spend-to-date, EAC and claim exposure — so portfolio directors see which projects need intervention without waiting for monthly reports.

Question 32

How do I benchmark unit rates from past projects?

Accepted Answer

Bildstak benchmarks unit rates by indexing the cost and quantity data from your own completed projects, then returning confidence-ranged rates — such as cost per m³ of concrete or per tonne of structural steel — when you query them during estimation for a new project.

Question 33

How do I check BIM clash status with Bildstak?

Accepted Answer

Bildstak checks BIM clash status by reading your BCF coordination issues alongside the IFC model, joining each clash to the element it references — so you can query open, resolved and overdue clashes by discipline, package or element type in plain English.

Question 34

How do I validate a model against IDS?

Accepted Answer

Bildstak validates a BIM model against an IDS (Information Delivery Specification) by checking each element's properties against the specification's requirements and returning a compliance report — flagging which elements pass, fail or have missing data — cited element by element.

Question 35

How do I score COBie handover readiness?

Accepted Answer

Bildstak scores COBie handover readiness by checking each asset in the model against the required COBie data fields — type, component, space, system, spare parts — and returning a completion percentage by asset category, cited element by element, so gaps are visible before the handover gate.

Question 36

How do I rank my projects by risk?

Accepted Answer

Bildstak's Analyst autonomously investigates every connected data source across the portfolio — schedule slippage, cost variance, open RFIs, claim exposure, coordination issues — and ranks projects by risk with evidence, so directors can prioritise attention without waiting for project teams to self-report.

Question 37

How do I benchmark subcontractors and suppliers?

Accepted Answer

Bildstak benchmarks subcontractors and suppliers by federating their cost, schedule and quality performance data across completed projects — ranking them by unit-rate competitiveness, RFI contribution, variation frequency and programme adherence — so procurement decisions are grounded in evidence.

Question 38

How do I build a project dashboard without a data team?

Accepted Answer

Bildstak lets anyone build a project dashboard by asking questions in plain English — the AI analyst generates charts, tables and maps cited from live data — no SQL, no BI tool configuration, and no data engineering needed to get from question to visual answer.

Question 39

How do I schedule an automatic project report?

Accepted Answer

Bildstak lets you schedule automatic project reports by saving a chat-built dashboard and setting a delivery cadence — weekly, monthly, or on a custom schedule — so stakeholders receive a cited PDF summary in their inbox without anyone having to compile it manually.

Question 40

How do I trace a delay from cause to cost?

Accepted Answer

Bildstak traces a delay from cause to cost by federating the RFI notice, the programme impact from P6, the contract entitlement clause, and the prolongation cost from the ERP into one cited chain — so the link between event and quantum is documented rather than asserted.

Question 41

How does Bildstak help BIM managers?

Accepted Answer

Bildstak gives BIM managers a live, queryable model that joins every IFC element to its BCF issues, RFIs, COBie properties and IDS compliance state — all in one place. Click any element in the 3D viewer to see every linked record, flag standard violations and track handover readiness without leaving the platform.

Question 42

How does Bildstak help project controls and cost managers?

Accepted Answer

Bildstak gives project controls teams a live cost-loaded schedule with earned value management, cost variance across packages, and RFI overdue tracking — all joined from Primavera P6, the cost ERP and the document system in one federated model you can query in plain English.

Question 43

How does Bildstak help owners and developers?

Accepted Answer

Bildstak gives owners and developers a single live view across every project in their portfolio — cost variance, schedule performance, open RFIs and risk rank — without depending on contractor-produced reports. Ask a question in plain English and get a cited answer from the federated data.

Question 44

How does Bildstak help project directors?

Accepted Answer

Bildstak gives project directors a real-time cross-source view of programme health — cost, schedule, RFIs, claims and risk — joined from every live system, queryable in plain English, so board-level decisions rest on current data rather than last week's status report.

Question 45

How does Bildstak help quantity surveyors?

Accepted Answer

Bildstak helps quantity surveyors benchmark unit rates from past projects, build cost-at-completion forecasts joined from the ERP and the programme, and assemble variation and EOT claim packages with full cited evidence — without manually reconciling spreadsheets across systems.

Question 46

How does Bildstak help contract administrators?

Accepted Answer

Bildstak helps contract administrators track RFI status and overdue notices, flag specification conflicts across contracts, monitor ball-in-court obligations, and maintain a full cited audit trail — all drawn live from Procore, Aconex and the contract document library.

Question 47

How does Bildstak help commercial managers preparing claims?

Accepted Answer

Bildstak's Claims Builder helps commercial managers assemble EOT and variation claims by tracing cause to quantum across the RFI trail, programme and contract documents — producing a fully cited, structured claim package rather than a manual spreadsheet of evidence.

Question 48

How does Bildstak help VDC and digital construction teams?

Accepted Answer

Bildstak gives VDC and digital construction teams a live federated model where IFC, Speckle and Autodesk APS data are joined to BCF issues, RFIs, COBie and IDS — queryable in plain English, with the Element Inspector linking every 3D element to its full project record.

Question 49

How does Bildstak work for heavy civil and infrastructure?

Accepted Answer

Bildstak works for heavy civil and infrastructure without BIM. It federates Primavera P6, cost and ERP systems, Procore or Aconex, and contract documents into one model — delivering earned value management, RFI registers, Claims Builder, specification tracking and portfolio benchmarking on any civil programme.

Question 50

How does Bildstak work for vertical building and commercial towers?

Accepted Answer

Bildstak federates IFC/Speckle models, Autodesk APS, BCF coordination issues, RFIs, COBie, IDS and cost data for vertical building projects — connecting the 3D model to every commercial and coordination record, with the Element Inspector and handover scoring built in.

Question 51

How does Bildstak work for energy and utilities projects?

Accepted Answer

Bildstak federates IFC asset registers, cost and ERP data, commissioning records and permit documents for energy and utility projects — giving project teams a live view of commissioning gaps, outage risk, earned value and handover readiness, with the Analyst surfacing cross-source risks autonomously.

Question 52

How does Bildstak work for industrial and process (EPC) projects?

Accepted Answer

Bildstak supports industrial and EPC projects with specification and submittal tracking, turnaround and shutdown risk management, long-lead procurement monitoring, NCR and QA/QC register, change and cost control, and the Analyst — all federated from P6, cost ERP, Procore/Aconex and document systems.

Question 53

How does Bildstak work for transportation and rail projects?

Accepted Answer

Bildstak supports transportation and rail programmes with multi-package earned value management, interface and clash coordination, RFI registers across packages, EOT claims and delay tracing, geospatial and PostGIS data, and the Analyst — all federated from P6, cost ERP and document systems.

Question 54

How does Bildstak work for data-center construction?

Accepted Answer

Bildstak protects data-center construction timelines by tracking long-lead MEP equipment, MEP coordination issues, commissioning readiness and change and cost — all federated so the team can see exactly what stands between current status and the speed-to-power date.

Question 55

Does Bildstak work for projects without BIM?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Bildstak works without BIM on any project that has a schedule, cost data and a document system. Heavy civil, infrastructure, industrial and process programmes connect Primavera P6, an ERP, Procore or Aconex and contract documents — no IFC model needed — and get full intelligence.

Question 56

How does Bildstak handle multi-package megaprojects?

Accepted Answer

Bildstak handles multi-package megaprojects by federating every package's schedule, cost, RFI and document data into one model — so programme leadership can query across packages simultaneously, track interface risks, rank packages by performance and assemble claims without consolidating separate reports.

Question 57

How does Bildstak protect a data center's speed-to-power date?

Accepted Answer

Bildstak protects a data center's speed-to-power date by federating long-lead equipment delivery schedules, MEP coordination issues, commissioning readiness records and cost data — and surfacing every threat to the energisation milestone with cited evidence, automatically ranked by impact.

Question 58

How does Bildstak manage turnaround and shutdown risk?

Accepted Answer

Bildstak manages turnaround and shutdown risk by federating the shutdown schedule, open work-order backlog, long-lead spares procurement and contractor workforce data — surfacing which items threaten the return-to-service date with cited cross-source evidence, ranked by impact through the Analyst.

Question 59

Does Bildstak integrate with Primavera P6?

Accepted Answer

Yes, Bildstak integrates with Primavera P6. It reads your schedules live, exposing activities, baselines, critical-path logic and earned-value data to the AI chat, reports and the cost-loaded schedule module — so you can query P6 data in plain English alongside cost and RFIs.

Question 60

Does Bildstak integrate with Procore?

Accepted Answer

Yes, Bildstak integrates with Procore. It reads your RFIs, submittals, instructions, daily logs and documents, making them queryable alongside your BIM model and schedule — so you can ask who is ball-in-court on open RFIs, or trace an instruction to its cost impact.

Question 61

Does Bildstak integrate with Autodesk Construction Cloud / APS?

Accepted Answer

Yes, Bildstak integrates with Autodesk Construction Cloud (ACC) and the Autodesk Platform Services (APS) APIs. It reads your BIM 360 and ACC models, issues, RFIs and documents, joining them to your schedule, cost and coordination data in one federated model.

Question 62

Does Bildstak integrate with Aconex?

Accepted Answer

Yes, Bildstak integrates with Aconex. It reads your RFIs, instructions, correspondence and documents from Aconex and federates them alongside your BIM model, schedule and cost data — so you can track RFI ball-in-court status and trace instructions to cost impact across tools.

Question 63

Does Bildstak integrate with SAP?

Accepted Answer

Yes, Bildstak integrates with SAP. It reads cost actuals, purchase orders, work orders and commitment data from SAP and federates them with your schedule and BIM model — so you can query cost performance, variance and spend by element or work package in plain English.

Question 64

Does Bildstak integrate with Maconomy?

Accepted Answer

Yes, Bildstak integrates with Maconomy. It reads project cost actuals, budgets, resources and financial data from Maconomy and federates them with your schedule and BIM sources — giving you earned value, cost variance and spend-by-element queries in plain English.

Bildstak answers

What is Bildstak

How it works

Use cases

For your role

By sector

Integrations

Comparisons

Pricing & security

Glossary