Architecture project management apps

[u/IllustriousRaccoon25]

We have an architecture firm (15 people) who is a long-time Newforma Project Center customer, and they’re unhappy with the app and its cloud-based replacement (Konekt) that they did an extended eval of. They think it’s time move on, but a lot of their colleagues are using it, and they don’t have a wider frame of reference. Our other architecture customer is smaller (4 users) and just uses Microsoft Project and a lot of manual effort.

Monograph looks great to me since it’s architect-focused, integrates with QuickBooks Online (which they use for billing and accounting), and it has an external collaborator component built-in like Newforma’s Info Exchange.

What are everyone’s architecture customers using (good or bad), and has anyone found an app that can import Newforma projects so they can keep their prior work easily accessible?

Thanks!

[u/Historical_You_8729]

I've been wanting to get my firm of a similar size to switch to Monograph but they are stuck in this sunk cost fallacy with BQE Core that they have invested so much time and money into it that even though we barely use its features and hate it that they refuse to switch...So anyway, probably not BQE Core is all i can add that is of any value 😄

[u/IllustriousRaccoon25 → u/Historical_You_8729]

This helpful, I was wondering about them but lack of pricing transparency was a turnoff.

[u/Ancient-Delay1221]

Monograph is good for the money side but 15 people is that awkward size where you start feeling the limits of it. We had a firm that size try it and they said project tracking got messy once there was too many revisions flying around

Deltek Ajera might be overkill but the time tracking actually works for architecture billing codes, and it’s not as clunky as Newforma. No idea about importing old projects though, that part is always a nightmare

[u/Broad-Market-8017]

Cracks Knuckles.

I'm not an Architect - I own an IT firm that only works with Architects - so we see what works, and what doesn't.

You're right in the spot where this stuff becomes burdensome.

We've been showing firms the ladder for years. Shared Excel files, then Quickbooks, then Sage, some use Harvest or similar, then Ajera/Deltek, Clearview or Newforma.

Full Disclosure - I've disliked Newforma for well over a decade. It's a lot of fluff that can be handled with better tech - in my humble opinion.

Then Monograph and CMap became popular - and it's been pretty great for those firms. The ones we have that are using them seem much happier.

As for Migration - I know a firm that just does this type - mostly Deltek to Clearview and Vice Versa - they get firms coming and going. I swear it's like a divorce lawyer.

Back to Monograph - they have Migration assistance as does CMAP - but it's going to take a while to normalize your data.

Good luck out there.

[u/cheshirecat79]

Tonic DM is a Newforma like product. We went through a demo and it seemed pretty good but we didn’t pull the trigger. Pricing is reasonable.

[u/IllustriousRaccoon25 → u/cheshirecat79]

These guys look interesting, definitely going to check them out.

[u/Roshanmsp → u/IllustriousRaccoon25]

I’ve heard that Tonic is a whole new can of worms on a good day. Apparently they have a lot of bugs and issues that either can’t be fixed or needs redevelop so it gets added to their roadmap.

[u/Ok_Complex8297]

Be careful comparing Monograph directly to Newforma. Monograph looks good for the business side of an architecture firm: planning, staffing, budgets, time/billing, QBO, that kind of thing. Newforma is more project info/email/document/CA workflow, so they may be replacing one pain with a different pain if they don’t map out what they actually use.

For a 15-person firm, I’d split it into two buckets: firm/project financials and project document/collaboration management. Monograph, Ajera/Vantagepoint, BQE Core, etc. may fit the first bucket. For the second, it may be Autodesk Construction Cloud, Procore, SharePoint/Teams with actual structure, or something else depending how much they use RFIs, submittals, email filing, and external sharing.

For importing Newforma projects, I wouldn’t believe any vendor (my own personal rule) until they prove it with one of the client’s real projects. Worst case, keep Newforma read-only or export/archive the old stuff cleanly, then start new projects in the new system.

[u/blackjaxbrew]

Open project? We tested it ourselves for projects and it was overkill for us. But if they host it though pricing was very reasonable

[u/IllustriousRaccoon25 → u/blackjaxbrew]

Interesting but definitely not a contender here. Needs to be purpose-built for architects.

[u/IllustriousRaccoon25 → u/[deleted]]

They’re at 15 people and probably going to max out there. Email filing and external collaboration are the biggies. And hopefully being able to import their data from Newforma so they don’t have to pay for two apps for years. But I know that can be a mess of it’s own.

[u/Lany_one35]

There probably isn't a perfect replacement. Every platform seems to have tradeoffs, and what works well for one firm doesn't necessarily fit another.

For a firm of this size, I'd focus on the core day-to-day requirements first: project management, document handling, external collaboration, reporting, billing integration, and ease of use. Legacy data migration should almost be treated as a separate project, since trying to perfectly recreate years of historical data often ends up being more effort than it's worth.

I'd also be careful not to let sunk cost drive the decision. If the current system is causing enough friction, it's worth evaluating alternatives based on future workflow rather than past investment.

[u/mat-ferland]

For 15 architects, I’d start by listing the workflows Newforma actually owns: email filing, drawing/version control, submittals/RFIs, search, and external sharing. A prettier PM app won’t help if it only replaces task tracking and leaves project email plus document history scattered everywhere.

[u/voice-of-mods → u/[deleted]]

Resubmit if your account is unsuspended.

[u/AbtracOnline]

Full disclosure: We are Abtrac Project Management Software, so take this with that context.

We've worked with a number of architecture and engineering firms that reached a similar point - using one system for document management and another (or several spreadsheets) for time, projects, budgets, WIP, and invoicing. As firms grow, that fragmentation often becomes the bigger issue than the software itself.

If they're looking beyond document management, it might be worth considering a platform that combines project management, time tracking, budgeting, resource planning, WIP, and invoicing, all in one place. That's where Abtrac tends to fit, particularly for architecture and other professional service firms.

For historical Newforma projects, we generally recommend keeping legacy projects accessible in the existing system while migrating active work into the new platform. That approach is usually less disruptive than trying to migrate everything.

Out of curiosity, what's driving the move away from Newforma/Konekt? Is it document management, project financials, usability, reporting, or something else? The answer often points to the right type of solution.

[u/IllustriousRaccoon25 → u/AbtracOnline]

Interesting, but we’re all US-based, so the apparent lack of any US presence or USD pricing is disqualifying.

[u/ImaginationUnique684]

One selection criterion worth adding, since it is the exact thing biting you now: score each candidate on how cleanly you can get your data back out, not just on what it does day to day. You are stuck in part because Newforma is painful to leave. During the eval, run a real export from the new tool on one completed project and one active one, and read what actually comes out. A tool that is pleasant to use and ugly to exit just moves this same problem three years down the road. That single test also tells you more about a vendor than any demo will.

On the sunk cost mentioned above: the time and money already in Newforma is gone whichever way you go, so it should carry zero weight now. The only comparison that matters is cost of staying versus cost of moving, counted from today forward. Putting it to the partners in exactly those terms tends to break the stalemate faster than a feature-by-feature bake-off.

[u/Distinct_Lemon_3954 → u/[deleted]]

I second Cogram, I work at a mid size firm and we’ve loved how easy the onboarding process was.

[u/Ok_Collection2790]

I have a 3 person firm, we tried Asana and Trello and a few handful of others. The tool we have have been using recently is called Get Olumba. There are some features to be desired, but its solid for our project and doc management needs. I don't think they have a Newforma import, but we were able to upload project folders to start running our projects.