AEC software: architecture, engineering and construction in one place
AEC software — for architecture, engineering and construction — is normally bought as a stack: a design tool for the architect, a modelling tool for the engineer, an estimating tool for the quantity surveyor, a planning tool for the contractor, and a site app for the inspector, each from a different vendor and each holding its own copy of the project. CivilOS is one browser platform for all five, built in India for Indian practice and usable anywhere, with a Free plan and nothing to install.
The point is not the number of modules. It is that they share a project: the plan the architect drafts is the geometry the engineer models and the surveyor measures, the measured rows are the BOQ the estimator prices, the priced items are what the planner schedules, and the schedule is what the site team inspects against. One project, one set of numbers, one place to find them.
What you can do
| Feature | What it does | Export / status |
|---|---|---|
| Architecture | Concept floor plans for any building type, space planning from a one-line brief, elevations, sheets with a title block, DXF | PDF · DXF |
| Engineering — drafting & BIM | IndoCAD 2D drafting with DWG/DXF; Indo-Revit BIM with levels, hosted openings, schedules, sheets, IFC4; BIM Studio 3D with sun study and checks | DXF · IFC · GLB |
| Engineering — quantities & cost | Take-off from drawings, IS 2502 BBS, IS-code BOQ on CPWD DSR 2023 or a State SOR, rate analysis, revisions, estimate pack, RA bill | Excel · PDF |
| Construction — planning | CPM with WBS, FS/SS/FF/SF links, baseline, critical path, 31 sector templates, task desk for field engineers | Excel · PDF |
| Construction — quality & site | 211 QA/QC checklists across 25 sectors, NCR register, signed reports; Live Site Audit offline with photos and GPS | |
| Site & survey | Plot on a live satellite map, area and bearings, FAR planning, terrain and cut/fill in BIM Studio | KML · DXF |
| Collaboration | Team Workspace: roles, cloud projects, WhatsApp task codes, read-only client links | Link |
From concept to handover, without the handovers
An AEC project changes hands a dozen times, and every hand-over is a re-entry: the plan is redrawn for the model, the model is measured by hand for the bill, the bill is retyped into the programme. CivilOS is arranged so that the hand-over is a click. Open the plan in BIM Studio or Interior Studio; push the measured rows into the BOQ; read the BOQ into the estimate pack and the RA bill; schedule the same items in the Project Scheduler; inspect them with the QA/QC checklists on site.
Nothing forces the whole chain. A firm that only models, only estimates or only inspects uses that module and ignores the rest — but when two disciplines are in the same office, the second one starts from the first one's work instead of from a blank sheet.
Open formats, not a walled garden
The AEC industry runs on files that move between tools, so CivilOS reads and writes the formats the industry already uses: DWG and DXF in, DXF out; IFC4 in and out for BIM; GLB, OBJ and STL for 3D; GeoJSON, KML and DXF for GIS; styled Excel with live formulas for every quantity and bill; PDF sheets with a title block. A project started here can leave, and a project started elsewhere can arrive.
How to start
- Create a free account and, if you work with others, a team in the Team Workspace.
- Start where the project is. Draft the plan, import a DWG, or import an IFC model.
- Carry the work forward — plan to 3D, drawing to quantities, quantities to bill, bill to programme.
- Take it to site with the QA/QC checklists and the offline Live Site Audit.
- Share a read-only link with the client and export in the format the next tool needs.
What CivilOS does not do
- No structural or MEP design engine. CivilOS details, quantifies and coordinates what your designers have decided.
- No clash detection or 4D/5D simulation. The model, the bill and the programme are separate views of one project, not a federated simulation.
- No worksharing on one live model of the Revit type; projects are shared as files and cloud saves.
- No .rvt. Revit exchange is through IFC4.
- A draft for checking. A licensed professional must review and sign every safety-critical output.
Where a browser tool fits
The large AEC suites are bought by organisations that need a federated model across disciplines, clash detection, 4D scheduling on the model, enterprise rate libraries and a vendor's support contract. That is real work at a scale a browser platform does not serve, and CivilOS does not pretend to.
The small and medium practice, the contractor, the PMC team, the individual engineer and the student are the other ninety percent of the industry, and they mostly work with none of it. For them a platform that opens in a browser, covers the whole chain honestly and costs nothing to start is worth more than the missing enterprise features.
Open the AEC platform free → design, engineer, estimate, plan and inspect in one placeFrequently asked questions
What does AEC software mean?
AEC is architecture, engineering and construction — the three professions that take a building from an idea to a handed-over structure. AEC software is the set of tools they share: design and drafting, modelling, quantities and cost, planning, and site quality. CivilOS puts those tools in one browser platform so the drawing, the quantity, the bill, the programme and the inspection all refer to the same project.
Is it free AEC software?
Yes, to start. Create a free account (no card) and the Free plan opens every module, including the design, BIM, cost, planning and site modules, with a monthly allowance; prints carry the CivilOS letterhead. Pro, Max and Enterprise Seats plans add more hours and generations and put your own letterhead on every print. The Training Corner, Knowledge Library and Feedback are free without limit.
How do architects, engineers and contractors share one project?
Through the Team Workspace: an account, a team with Leader, Engineer and Viewer roles, projects saved to the cloud, tasks sent to engineers by WhatsApp with a unique code, and read-only links for clients. A drawing, its quantities and its programme are the same project to everyone on the team.
Does it exchange with Revit, AutoCAD and other AEC tools?
Through open formats: DWG and DXF are read and DXF written for CAD; IFC4 is written and read for BIM; GLB, OBJ and STL for 3D; GeoJSON, KML and DXF for GIS; Excel with live formulas for quantities and bills. It does not read or write Revit's own .rvt format.
Which standards does it follow?
IS codes and NBC 2016 for quantities and planning, CPWD DSR 2023 and State PWD schedules for rates, IS 2502 / SP 34 for bar bending, and government formats for the estimate pack and the RA bill — with metric and imperial units and eighteen display currencies for work outside India.
Do I need to install anything or create an account?
No installation: CivilOS opens in an ordinary browser on a laptop, tablet or phone and can be installed as an app from the sidebar. A free account is needed to open the engineering modules; it takes a minute and asks for no card.
Draft for checking. Every safety-critical output of CivilOS is a preparation document. Drawings, quantities, rates, programmes and inspections must be verified, and the result signed off, by a licensed professional before they are issued, tendered, built or paid against.