From Humble Beginnings to Global Influence

In 1984, the technology landscape bore little resemblance to that of today. The Internet had not yet been introduced to the public. Mobile devices were limited to two-way radios, pagers, and other devices with minimal capabilities. Computers were still evolving from room-sized machines accessed by only privileged experts to desktop models accessible to the masses.

A relatively obscure field called CAD, which initially stood for computer-aided drafting, was also emerging as a technology that offered new capabilities for drawing objects electronically with computers instead of manually with pen and paper. As CAD gained accessibility, it would morph into what some would call computer aided-design, or sometimes computer aided design/drafting (CADD).

Meanwhile, five tech-savvy brothers from Delaware tinkered with various technological tools, eager to make their marks on the world as young adults. Little did they know that their individual and collective efforts would dramatically change the world of CAD, as well as how massive engineering projects are designed and built.

The Bentley brothers, circa 1992. From left to right: Scott, Ray, Keith, Barry, and Greg.
Image source: Bentley Systems.

Fixing Stuff

Following the lead of their father, Tom Bentley, a mechanical engineer at DuPont, the Bentley brothers helped their father with numerous home and automotive repair projects, then graduated to their own projects, building go-karts and fixing up old cars. “We were always involved in fixing stuff,” recalled Keith Bentley.

After earning a master’s in electrical engineering from the University of Florida in 1982, Keith followed in his father’s footsteps and started his career at DuPont. While there, he developed software that allowed CAD drawings to be accessed on relatively affordable graphic terminals instead of requiring complex workstations that sold for upwards of $70,000 per seat.

Less than two years into his career, Keith followed an entrepreneurial itch to join brother Barry at a California startup that developed software for chemistry laboratory data analysis. Keith also explored a parallel path to sell the ViewDGN software tool he developed while at DuPont. After obtaining the rights from DuPont to sell ViewDGN, he began refining the software, renamed PseudoStation. He then formed a new company, Bentley Systems, in 1984, to focus on developing and marketing PseudoStation, naming older brother Greg as a board member.

Shortly thereafter, Barry joined Keith at Pennsylvania-based Bentley Systems, followed by brothers Scott and Ray in the late 1980s. Greg officially joined in 1990 to lead business development. PseudoStation became MicroStation, the company’s flagship product. Bentley renegotiated its relationship with its exclusive distributor, Intergraph, and built its own distribution channel, growing to 200 employees, with revenue topping $25 million by the end of 1994.

The mid-1980s and early 1990s were a definitive period for CAD, and Bentley Systems was well positioned to establish itself as an industry leader. Equipped with degrees in mechanical, electrical, and chemical engineering and business, along with a strong affinity for software development, the Bentley brothers formed the core of the company and added other technical experts to enable growth. “We got into computers back when it was a mystery,” said Scott. “It was a black box to almost everybody. And we found the people who could crack that black box.”

Technology Drives Development

As PC use grew dramatically, CAD adoption also expanded rapidly. The availability of desktop CAD to engineers and technicians appealed to organizations of all sizes. The rise of networked PCs and servers opened doors for collaboration and multi-discipline design work, and the company expanded globally. Revenue climbed to more than $182-million in 1999.

Even with the dramatic growth, the company leaders were active in hands-on development work, focusing on user needs. “My brothers had their hands on our software every day of 40 years,” said Greg Bentley. While the Bentley brothers wore multiple hats, Keith would serve as Chief Technology Officer for most of his career, with Greg serving as Chief Executive Officer.

The company also made key acquisitions to enable additional growth. In 1996, Bentley acquired Finland-based Opti Inter-Consult, maker of a document management solution called TeamMate. A variant of the product was introduced in 1998 as ProjectWise, which is now used by 46 of U.S. State Departments of Transportation for document management and project delivery.

Booming Infrastructure Market

Bentley also saw growing opportunities in the architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) market, along with closely related civil, transportation, and infrastructure work. Geopak, a Florida-based firm that originally developed civil engineering software for Intergraph IGDS systems, shifted its focus toward MicroStation to keep pace with the growth of PC CAD systems. A growing relationship with Bentley Systems resulted in Geopak’s becoming a strategic affiliate in 1995, and being fully acquired by Bentley in 2001.

Bentley also made a major strategic move in 2000, purchasing Intergraph’s InRoads civil engineering software, along with related plot-services and raster-conversion software. InRoads and Geopak have since been integrated into Bentley’s OpenRoads suite. The MicroStation-InRoads combination is used in most state DOTs, as well as consulting firms doing DOT work.

Other key acquisitions further advanced Bentley’s role in infrastructure. The acquisition of Haestad Methods in 2004 provided new capabilities in modeling water and drainage systems. The 2005 acquisitions of STAAD and RAM International firmly embedded structural engineering in the Bentley suite. Later additions included Plaxis, for geotechnical analysis, and Synchro Software, which enabled 4D construction modeling. These and other acquisitions played key roles in achieving Greg’s objective “to be the infrastructure engineering software company.”

The expansion of infrastructure tools bore tangible fruit in some massive projects built around the globe using Bentley software. The Thames Tideway Tunnel, a £4.5-billion undertaking to resolve the problem of wastewater discharges into the river from London’s 150-year-old sewer system, is one of the largest projects of its kind. It included digging a series of cylindrical shafts in strategic locations throughout the city to intercept and re-route sewage overflow into a 25-km–long tunnel. Construction began in 2016 and is anticipated to be completed in 2025.

Construction workers inside a Thames Tideway tunnel, a 25-km tunnel that will intercept, store, and ultimately transfer sewage waste away from the River Thames. Image source: Tideway.

Another major U.K. project was Crossrail, a £15.8-billion endeavor to increase London’s passenger rail capacity. With 118 kilometers of track, including 21 kilometers of twin-bore tunnels linking eight new subsurface stations, Crossrail would connect Heathrow Airport with the commercial heart of London and other business hubs. Other notable projects employing Bentley software include the Atal Setu, India’s longest bridge, stretching 16.5 kilometers over the sea and 5.5 kilometers on land; EchoWater, one of the world’s largest agricultural water recycling plants in California; the National Swimming Center for the 2008 Beijing Olympics; and the Channel Tunnel Rail Link between France and the U.K.

The company’s global influence has fueled continued growth. In the early 2000s, Bentley established a development center in Lithuania and opened its first U.K. headquarters in London. Revenues in Asia accelerated, including doubling in Greater China. By 2012, company revenue had grown to $550-million, and Bentley users numbered more than 1 million people across 165 countries. In 2020, Bentley Systems made a successful public offering and began trading on the Nasdaq exchange under the ticker symbol BSY (pronounced “busy”). Revenue topped $1 billion in 2022.

Recent Developments

In recent years, the company has recognized the growing potential of technologies such as digital twins — virtual replicas of real-world infrastructure assets. Bentley’s iTwin Platform powers digital twin solutions that are used by engineering and construction firms and owner-operators to design, build, and operate infrastructure assets around the world.

In September 2024, Bentley acquired 3D geospatial company Cesium, which provides an open platform for creating 3D geospatial applications. The combination of Cesium and iTwin enables developers to seamlessly align 3D geospatial data with engineering, subsurface, IoT, reality, and enterprise data to create digital twins that scale from vast infrastructure networks to millimeter-accurate details of individual assets.

The Cesium acquisition represents a key step in providing open platforms and developer opportunities for the built and natural environment, according to Julien Moutte, Bentley’s CTO, who succeeded Keith Bentley after his 2023 retirement. “This deal is about more than just capabilities; it’s about Bentley’s long-standing commitment to an open ecosystem and our long-term vision for serving the needs of infrastructure professionals,” Moutte said in a recent blog.

Bentley’s iTwin platform has also been instrumental in enabling users to employ virtual reality and augmented reality. These immersive experiences allow team members to combine the power of iTwin and gaming technology to review infrastructure systems and projects in new ways that encourage collaboration and creativity.

Bentley’s Greg Demchak demonstrates how energy consumption can be viewed in a digital twin. Image source: Bentley Systems.

Looking Ahead

As it celebrates its 40th anniversary, Bentley appears well positioned for growth and new opportunities, with infrastructure at the forefront. Nicholas Cumins, who succeeded Greg Bentley as CEO in July 2024, takes the reins at a critical time for infrastructure work, with ongoing workforce shortages and ambitious worldwide goals for sustainability and resilience.

Cumins, who joined Bentley Systems as Chief Product Officer in 2020 and was named Chief Operating Officer in 2022, recently shared Bentley’s vision for infrastructure resilience, noting that engineering firms and asset owner-operators are looking to software to help them overcome the limitations of scarce talent. “Infrastructure is at a watershed moment,” said Cumins. “Despite the massive capital investment in infrastructure projects and jobs post pandemic, so much more remains to be done to make infrastructure more resilient. Our ability to bridge that gap will literally determine the quality of life for generations to come.”

Cumins cited AI-powered digital twin solutions as keys to unlocking the value of data across the infrastructure lifecycle. Recent applications employed to monitor the health of roads, bridges, dams, water networks, and telecommunications towers have demonstrated AI capabilities to infrastructure professionals. “This is the moment for our generation to apply its ingenuity and build upon the legacy of innovation to continue advancing the world’s infrastructure for better quality of life,” he said.

You can read more about Bentley's History here: History | Bentley Systems | Infrastructure Engineering Software Company, and you can watch the video "Advancing Infrastructure: The Bentley Systems Story."