SAN FRANCISCO - GeoPraxis, an architectural, engineering, and construction software company, has announced the beta release of Green Building Studioâ„¢, a Web service for energy analysis in designing green buildings.

According to the company, Green Building Studio (GBS) streamlines the design of green buildings, linking architectural 3-D CAD building designs with energy analysis. GBS enables users to understand the operational and energy implications of early design decisions using Green Building XML (gbXML) based connectors for AutoDesk's Architectural Desktop and Graphisoft's ArchiCAD. Architects and building designers can participate in the GBS beta program for free. The service is expected to be generally available in early 2004.

"GBS will significantly accelerate the incorporation of energy efficient and sustainable technologies into new and retrofit buildings. The GBS web-service is based on R&D funded by the California Energy Commission and leading utilities," said John Kennedy, president and chief technology officer of GeoPraxis. "The GBS beta program lets the design community access the GBS Web service for the first time. User feedback will help fine-tune the linkages between Architectural Desktop and ArchiCAD. The beta program will provide feedback on technologies that for the first time link early design decisions with precisely targeted, relevant equipment and vendor information. This represents a huge breakthrough for the building design industry, leapfrogging other information services."