Learn about the Subscription Advantage Pack Classes at AU 2009 and Get a Chance to Win a Free Conference Pass to Next Year’s AU*
These classes can be attended by Subscription and non-Subscription customers.
More Power to You: Autodesk Subscription Advantage Packs for Civil and Geospatial Professionals
To learn more about the Subscription Advantage Packs, please visit www.autodesk.com/advantagepacks
*Maximum value of $2000 US
What exactly is a BIM model? The biggest benefit that architects is the information out to contractors. It helps them catch conflicts quicker, prepare smarter takeoff and estimates tied to the model. I can find a conflict in Civil 3d between pipes, but I can't do anything with that information...
As I have seen BIM & Civil 3d defined, BIM is a verb-the act of inserting information to represent a model. (Point to surface as an example).
Does just assembling information constitute a BIM model (noun)? In my opinion, not completely. (as a built information model?) Is a 3ds MAX file a BIM model?
Pipes, Manholes, Inlets, Frames, Grates, landscape block walls, street lights are all finite elements that can be found in a engineering firms library of catalogs. The Standards for stormwater detention basin slopes are relational performance criteria that is needed to be followed and is linked to the establish storage volume. Those volumes are based on overall site covers, soils types, travel lenghts, slopes, and rainfall amounts (2, 10, 100 year).
A true BIM model should be built with, and have available extractable information.
Let’s take a step back and look at the example of a building model built in Revit Architecture. That model has quite a bit of information, but it isn’t the total picture. You’d still need to build models in Revit Structure and Revit MEP. You’d bring all of it together in Navisworks, and do the high end rendering in 3DS Max Design. Don’t forget Robot Structural Analysis, AutoCAD Structural Detailing…. and so forth.There is Ectotect and Green Building Studio for more detailed analysis. But there is no one physical model sitting in a box somewhere with every element worked out. The model is an idea- a flow. It’s a series of components that can be brought together in different combinations to produce what needs to be produced, to understand what needs to understood and to tell the story.
There are tools at each step of the process to get what you need from the model. Some processes still have a manual element, some are more automatic. Some things are seamless, others require setup or data entry.
The point is that we have more to work with if we have some intelligence built into whatever we are doing. You can find pipe conflicts in Civil 3D and use that information to fix the issue. You can bring your Civil 3D model together with your MEP, Structural and Architectural models (such as in this video from the Hazen and Sawyer Tallahassee Wastewater Treatment Plant) and find clashes across disciplines.
Maybe the long term dream is to have that fully constructed model living in a giant server somewhere and we all just pull out the bits that we need for our tasks. That’s BIM Valhalla, and I’m looking forward to seeing if we get there. But until then, we can strive to build more intelligence into our models and finding ways to get what we need from them.
Join the conversation at AU in our panel class: BIM without Buildings: The Civil Side
Sit at your desk and check out the keynotes, tons of classes for all discplines (including classes from Peter Funk, Rad Lazic, Matt Anderson, and Scott McEachron). AU Virtual Premier Pass is free for subscription customers, and each person who registers for the main AU event in Las Vegas gets 4 free premier passes to share with friends. Learn more about all of the options at the Autodesk University Virtual page. And be sure to check out the impressive list of classes at the AU Virtual class catalog.
Here’s a video of Lynn Allen talking about AU Virtual.
So this year, Autodesk is extending the benefits of AU by sharing classes and content from the event with Authorized Training Centers (ATC®). The result is a new worldwide initiative called Autodesk University Extension.
From December 4 – 11, 2009, there will be over 100 free training events, held in 35 countries hosted by over 90 Authorized Training Center sites, so chances are there may be an event near you! This is a great new opportunity to upgrade your skills and connect with peers and experts—without the cost of traveling to Las Vegas. Our program is free and we invite you to join us.
Autodesk University Extension Event
The Autodesk University Extension event combines expert-led class content from AU in Las Vegas with face-to-face interaction with local instructors and other users. At the event, you will receive:
Plus, you may purchase additional training and certification (where available) at significant discounts.
While you are grabbing that paper, check out some of the others on the white paper page.
Rule-Based Road Design using AutoCAD Civil and AutoCAD Civil 3D
Road Rehabilitation and Reconstruction with AutoCAD Civil and Civil 3D
Road Design Basics with AutoCAD and AutoCAD Civil 3D
Can you think of a more effective way to get stateholder buy-in, understand your design, and educate the public? This video has had a whopping 92,000+ views in six days. How are your clients reaching people?
I found the video while checking out the Rebuilding America’s Infrastructure website to read an article by our own Karen Weiss, PE: Trusting 3D Roadway modeling to Tackle a Tricky Intersection. The article profiles the El Dorado County, California DOT and their use of Civil 3D. An excerpt:
Due to the dynamic nature of the model, modifications to the alignment or profile instantly updated the corridor and its associated daylight lines. As a result, the impacts of the changes were readily apparent, allowing the team to utilize as much of the available right-of-way as possible, avoid environmental issues, and clear existing utilities — optimizing the design all within a virtual environment.
That really is the true meaning of BIM- work through your alternatives and understand your design many times before finding the one that makes the most sense.
You may remember Karen from her work on the WisDOT webcast series. You can catch up on the WisDOT series by viewing these archived webcasts:
AutoCAD Civil 3D Customer Showcase- Wisconsin Department of Transportation
WisDOT and Corridor Building with AutoCAD Civil 3D
WisDOT Survey Workflow with AutoCAD Civil 3D
WisDOT Design Workflow, Data and Project Management
CV218-5 More Power to You: “Autodesk Subscription Advantage Packs” for Civil and Geospatial Professionals
Lynda has over 10 years of experience developing advanced GIS applications for local governments and utilities. She’s also great company- at least on conference calls, facebook and telepresence meetings! AU will be our first time working together in person, and I can’t wait!
In addition to working with me on a lot of subscription advantage pack materials, she’s also spent a lot of time working with LandXplorer. LandXplorer brings geospatial data, digital city information, design models and more together into an environment that is so valuable for city planning, transportation planning and other applications where you need to see everything together.
Check out Lynda’s demonstrations of LandXplorer on the LandXplorer Studio Professional playlist on youtube.
Right after our joint class, Lynda will be teaching:
Autodesk® LandXplorer™ Software Family: A Closer Look
First- to set the background- we’re using BIM to refer to intelligent modeling of a project design. Insert your favorite vocabulary word in its place if you like.
1. We are already closer than we think.
There is a quote I heard floating around once that says “The problem with civil engineering software is that people actually use it.” A few months ago when I was looking to have a house designed, I called about 20 architects. Some of them were very local, some from the nearby big cities (Philadelphia, DC), and some nationally known. Not one of them used Revit. Some of them used AutoCAD Architecture, a few had SketchUp worked into their flow, but most were using plain old 2D drafting techniques. Call up any random civil engineering office, and they have something above 2D drafting in house. Even if its something simple, or just the software they use to process points from their data collector, they have SOMETHING that assigns northings, eastings, elevations, generates contours, samples a profile, etc.
So when an architect or developer comes to a civil engineer and says “Hey are you onboard with this amazing new thing called BIM?” The civil engineer might scratch their head and say- I’m not doing anything new. I must not be onboard. But the truth is that if you have any intelligence built in to your drawings, you’re well on your way.
2. We don’t deal with a lot of finite elements
I had another call with an friend of mine who is the BIM manager at a large construction management company this morning. He’s an architect by trade. He wanted to talk to me to find some ideas for some proposals he is working on in the transportation and heavy civil space. During our talk, he validated something that had been in my head for awhile.
Generally speaking, buildings are constructed of finite elements. Windows, doors, pieces of wood, drywall, mechanical parts, electrical parts, piping…. etc. When the idea of BIM first came out in the architectural space, a big part of the problem that it solved was keeping tack of all those pieces and how they fit together. Buildings have a definite beginning and end. They occupy a defined amount of space.
Civil projects aren’t so clear. We’re moving earth. We have pieces and materials and pipes and such, but we can’t predefine things like hydrology and grading. Our projects are more like sculpture- a big mound of amorphous material to shape into something that has no real clear beginning or end. With that in mind, it’s easy to see how we’ve been left out of the picture- what we do isn’t an easy thing to see and quantify.
These are just some ideas. I’d love to hear your thoughts. Comment here, come out to the class, and join the conversation. We are still looking for a few more panel members, so if your firm has embraced the idea of building more than 2D drawings, send me a note.
If you are a subscription customer, login to the Autodesk Subscription Center. Some local versions may not be available yet. I have received confirmation from my friends in Australia/New Zealand that they were able to download the package, so give it a try wherever you are. While you are there- sign up for Autodesk University Virtual, which is free for subscription customers.
On the next page you’ll see the actual download link and a link to a video demonstration. The demonstration works through a good chunk of the new tools- but really there are SO MANY we couldn’t cover them all!
The Autodesk® Subscription Advantage Pack for AutoCAD® Civil 3D® 2010 provides new functionality for importing and visualizing point clouds and designing roundabouts, and powerful enhancements that can help streamline existing workflows in AutoCAD® Civil 3D® 2010 software. This pack also includes Autodesk® ImageModeler™ 2009 software.
This Subscription Advantage Pack is available exclusively for Autodesk® Subscription customers through download in the Autodesk Subscription Center.
1. Point Clouds—Import and visualize large sets of point cloud data, such as 3D laser scanning/LiDAR data sets with millions of points, in AutoCAD Civil 3D 2010 with the Point Clouds feature. The point cloud feature enables you to:
· Import LiDAR data in LAS format and all point file formats supported by AutoCAD Civil 3D 2010
· Visualize large point clouds in 3D
· Stylize point data based on LAS classifications, RGB, elevation, and intensity
· Filter point data by style
· Snap to points within the point cloud using standard AutoCAD® software tools
Some common uses of LiDAR data in AutoCAD Civil 3D 2010 may include using the point cloud data for site surveys, developing an understanding of the site context, and digitizing as-built features (for example, building footprints and curbs) for design projects.
2. Roundabout Layout—More quickly lay out roundabouts, including signage and striping, based on common design standards using the Roundabout Layout feature. Once the horizontal geometry of a roundabout has been defined, you can dynamically move and edit the roundabout throughout the optimization process.
3. General Enhancements—Streamline existing workflows in AutoCAD Civil 3D 2010 with a variety of powerful enhancements for transportation design, survey, visual analysis, and general production. Capabilities include:
Transportation Design Tools
· Best-fit alignment creation tool
· Split (create subset) alignment
· Join profile tangents (extend tangents to point of vertical intersection [PVI] by grade intersection)
· Set PVI by elevation and grade
· Create spiral by sweep angle
· Import superelevation from Microsoft® Office Excel® files (XLS)
Survey Tools
· Crossing breakline utility
· Survey import (TSS format support)
· Survey import (SRV format support)
· Survey change report
· Survey point and chain edit utility
Visual Analysis Tools
· “Drive Along” visualization
· Line-of-site analysis
· Vertical distance analysis
General Production Tools
· Save as DGN format
· Create surface from GIS data
· Zoom to point
· Calculate minimum vertical distance between surfaces
· Calculate minimum vertical distance between entities
· Divide/crop surface (create subset for use in other drawings)
4. Autodesk ImageModeler 2009—ImageModeler 2009 image-based modeling and photogrammetry software helps you generate 3D models from 2D digital images, giving architects, designers, and entertainment creators a new approach to 3D modeling.
Applicable Products
Autodesk, AutoCAD, Civil 3D, and ImageModeler are registered trademarks or trademarks of Autodesk, Inc., and/or its subsidiaries and/or affiliates in the USA and/or other countries. All other brand names, product names, or trademarks belong to their respective holders. Autodesk reserves the right to alter product offerings and specifications at any time without notice, and is not responsible for typographical or graphical errors that may appear in this document. © 2009 Autodesk, Inc. All rights reserved.
What is the most important part of any construction project?
The answer?
Your part, of course.
Pick a project, any project. Gather up the list of engineers, architects, planners, designers, construction managers, builders, inspectors and facilities managers who are involved with making it happen. Interview each professional.
The Architect says: There wouldn’t be a project without my design.
The Structural Engineer says: The architect’s building wouldn’t stand without my design.
The Plumbing Engineer says: The toilets wouldn’t flush without my pipes.
The Civil Engineer says: The toilets wouldn’t have anywhere to flush without my sewers.
The Urban Planner says: There wouldn’t be anywhere for those sewers to drain without a good city plan.
The Construction Team says: The toilets and pipes and sewers don’t just build themselves.
The Facilities Manager says: None of that matters unless we keep those toilets flushing.
And so forth.
You can play this game with any type of project. Try it sometime- it will make you popular at parties for sure. There is no such thing as a one-discipline project. There is no such thing as a civil only project.
What about a highway? There is always something- a bridge, a structural sign, utilities, toll booths, land acquisition, or a wetlands creation.
What about a flood mitigation? Well, why are you doing it? Are there affected roads? Buildings? Bridges? What initiated the work and what will be done with it once it is completed? Who will take your study or your improvement and use it as a foundation for their work?
I’ve heard civil types say that architects think the world revolves around them. (When so obviously it revolves around us.)
I think that architects traditionally have just done a better job of letting the rest of the universe know they feel that way. Their background gives them a bit of an edge as well- visual communication is a huge part of the architectural process. And let’s face it. They dress better than we do, too.
The truth is that some things do revolve around us, and those things have their own moons. Throw in a few comets, some asteroids, the Mars Rover, the international space station and the Starship Enterprise. Then realize that there are billions of other suns out there with their own set of satellites. We’re all interacting, none of us stand alone. Heck, scientists even think that sunsets like those seen on Tatooine aren’t that uncommon. If two suns can share the same sky, I am sure we can figure out a good way to get data from Civil 3D into Revit.