Radimaging Ltd - Paul Beck's Technical Working Notes for Microsoft Technology: ProjectWise

Showing posts with label ProjectWise. Show all posts

Tuesday, 29 April 2025

PowerBI reporting against ProjectWise (Project Insights)

Overview: Integration with Bentley is fairly complex but the project ProjectWise Project Insights provides a Power BI Custom Connector. The connector is not certified by Microsoft but it can be used for gaining reporting insights.

Introduction to ProjectWise's Project Insights

These are the instructions I followed and it still works

Power BI report - Simple - Using ProjectWise Project Insights

ProjectWise Posts:

Introduction to ProjectWise and BIM

ProjectWise from Bentley - extend with Powershell

Postman Collection to connect to Bentley's REST API for ProjectWise (WSG)

PowerBI reporting against ProjectWise (Project Insights) - This post

Postman Collection to connect to Bentley's REST API for ProjectWise (WSG)

Overview: Here is a short recording showing how to connect postman to ProjectWise's API's (WSG).

Here is the postman collection: Tutorial on connecting to ProjectWise APIs using Postman

A short video (1.5min) if you want to play with the two endpoint I used:

ProjectWise Posts by me:

Introduction to ProjectWise and BIM

ProjectWise from Bentley - extend with Powershell

Postman Collection to connect to Bentley's REST API for ProjectWise (WSG) (this post)

Power BI reporting against ProjectWise (Project Insights)

Sunday, 2 March 2025

Introduction to ProjectWise and BIM

Overview: Bentley Systems is a leader in BIM and working with CAD documents. Bentley's BIM-compliant Document Management System (DMS) is ProjectWise. BIM aims to improve collaboration between parties and ensure consistent, relevant information is available.

Goals: Design, Coordinate and Collaborate.

ProjectWise Server

Setup DataSource (separate databases), e.g. UK Archive, UK Projects, EU Projects
Hierarchy for files (think Windows Explorer view of files)

ISO 19650

Manage information (data & Assets) within an Infrastructure project. Founded in the UK under BIM, it is now an international standard.
Strength is ensuring users are using the correct approved document (stop incorrect versions/info)
All versions, comments, and updatedby recorded.
Workflow has metadata to be filed for each phase/status change.
BIM Statuses:

WIP (draft) | Open - only a tiny part of the project team can see the document,
Shared | Review - This can be used by other teams so more people can see the files,
Published - all internal reviews completed. And ready for the customer,
Archived - Completed

Tip: Code folders and files within ProjectWise.

Workflows

Can create custom workflows such as a peer review or technical approval.
There is also the workflow that copies the document and moves it into the next BIM status Folder. So if I change the status in WIP, the document is copied along with its properties, and the major version is incremented.

ProjectWise 365 Services

ProjectWise Web Connections - Web
Share - Share with 3rd parties
Deliverable Management - create the output for the customer, including comments made on documents
Project Insights - analytics on each project that can show if it is late or the status is not correct.
Forms

ProjectWise Web

Standard UI that shows the folder and file hierarchy and can search for files
Attributes are just document metadata that is relevant to the file.
Files can be checked in and out so they are locked to you.
Link files in Deliverables or create Document Sets (basically group documents) into a file/container.
Files can be assigned to workflows such as a peer review...

ProjectWise Drive

Download and install on each laptop

Can use Windows Explorer to work with files as if on the local machine (as if on an SMB file share)

BIM Dimensions

3D - Geometry (Drawing) including metadata such as width and weight and hierarchy
4D - Scheduling
5D - Cost Estimation
6D - Lifecycle
7D - Asset Management

Note: 360 - Is AutoCAD's equivalent to ProjectWise.

Big providers of technology for the BOM framework are Bentley and AutoDesk.

BIM Execution Plan (BEP)

Plan prepared to manage BOM activities

ProjectWise Posts by me:

Introduction to ProjectWise and BIM (This Post)

ProjectWise from Bentley - extend with Powershell

Postman Collection to connect to Bentley's REST API for ProjectWise (WSG)

Power BI reporting against ProjectWise (Project Insights)

Monday, 3 February 2025

ProjectWise from Bentley - extend with Powershell

ProjectWise from Bentley - Document Management Software

ProjectWise is a Document Management Solution (DMS) from Bentley. Its key use case is supporting BIM.

Architecture: It appears to have a pretty old architecture with the ability to "webify" the DMS.

Integration: There are APIs and Power Connectors, but they are extremely limited and not developer-friendly. You can also extend the capability using PowerShell. Be warned: Bentley does not support this, but the ProjectWise community does help to solve the issue.

There are add-ins for office software (word, excel, pptx) and some CAD products to make the BIM process easier.

This post outlines how I have extended ProjectWise to build out a pre-populated folder structure using PowerShell. I then wrap the PS code in an HTTP Azure HTTP-triggered function to call.

Connecting to ProjectWise using PowerShell Example 1:

PS> Import-Module pwps_dab
PS> New-PWLogin -BentleyIMS

Federated login for PS

Note: You need to already have Bentley's federation auth set up on the local machine running the "CONNECTION Client."

Machine running PS must use the CONNECTION Client from Bentley and the user will be prompted to login.

Connecting to ProjectWise using PowerShell Example 2:
Login using Federated identity without a popup to select the datasource

PS> Import-Module pwps_dab
PS> New-PWLogin -Datasource 'org-pw.bentley.com:Org Delivery' -BentleyIMS

Connecting to ProjectWise using PowerShell Example 3:
Login with a local account - No Federated account needed.

PS> $Password = ConvertTo-SecureString "passwrdxxx" -AsPlainText -Force
PS> $Cred = New-Object System.Management.Automation.PSCredential ("my_user_logical", $Password)
PS> New-PWLogin -Datasource 'org-pw.bentley.com:Org Delivery' -UserName $Cred.UserName -Password $Cred.Password

Below are two error codes that tell you if your datasource or login credentials are incorrect.

Example 3. Error code: 32768 - Datasource not found.

Example 3, this item has the wrong credentials Error code: 58064.

Next: I want to run my ProjectWise (PWPS_DAB module) within a serverless function triggered by HTTP endpoints. I've chosen Azure Functions using PowerShell.

Problem: PWPS_DAB requires headers, and no serverless function will support PowerShell modules that require interaction/headered calls.
ERROR: The property 'ThreadOptions' cannot be found on this object. Verify that the property exists and can be set.

... ... ERROR: Failed to load pwps_dab module. Error: Could not load file or assembly 'System.Windows.Forms, Version=4.0.0.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=b77a5c561934e089'. The system cannot find the file specified.

Initial Hypothesis: There is no way around using PWPS_DAB as it does not support running in a headless mode. Ouch, and i'm paying for this heavily :)

Possible Resolution: Run a VM or Docker container and expose the function via an HTTP endpoint. It will be a mission, so i guess it docker.

To Review:

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/understanding-bim-workflow-importance-microstation-yassir-el-yaqouby-ltinf/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/uday-singh-5b18a2155/recent-activity/all/

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/bim-summary-day-1-introduction-what-building-modelling-uday-singh-d48xc/?trackingId=jVx9vtIRPnylCdD6UVE0ag%3D%3D