BIM on the Rocks

Register for Water and Power Breakfast at AU

If you love wastewater as much as I do, you probably can’t think of anything better to talk about over breakfast.

If your firm serves the water distribution, wastewater, power, or other utility markets- register to join me and some of our product leadership to learn about where things are going. Everyone is welcome- private consulting firms, municipalities, utility companies, and more. If you design the smallest local plants or manage hydroelectric for an entire state or anything in between- I want to meet you and hear what you are working on!

RVSP to teresa dot elliott at autodesk.com today!

 

Water and Power Breakfast at Autodesk University
Join us for a discussion about how to grow your water and power business with Autodesk solutions. 

Location: Mandalay Bay Resort, Las Vegas - Room Number: Silk B

Meeting Time: 7:30 am - 9:00 am

Meeting Date: Thursday, December 3, 2009

Please provide company name and names of all attendees from your organization.  You will need to RSVP in order to receive updates.

E&C Water & Power Agenda

7:30 a.m.    Welcome- Autodesk Utility Industry Team

7:40 a.m.    Roundtable introductions- Engineering & Construction Guests

8:00 a.m.    Autodesk Solutions Overview- Autodesk Utility Industry Team

Water & Wastewater strategy - current solutions to support this segment & look to the future       

Electric & Gas Strategy -  current solutions to support this segment & look to the future       

8:30 a.m.    Networking with the Autodesk team      

Win a Free Pass to AU2010 by attending the Subscription Advantage Pack Classes

As if you needed another reason to hang out with Lynda Sharkey and I during our Autodesk University class: CV218-5 More Power to You: “Autodesk Subscription Advantage Packs” for Civil and Geospatial Professionals…

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 Architects, MEP and Structural Professionals, and Contractors

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

There isn’t just one model

I had a comment from Matt Anderson on my post Two Reasons Why Civil Engineers May Dismiss BIM:

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

Can’t Make it to AU? Try Virtual or Local Events!

Two new things this year to satisfy your hunger for knowledge.

Autodesk University Virtual

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.

Autodesk University Extension

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:

• Free training, including classes recorded at AU in Las Vegas
• 90 days of free access to 350 classes recorded at AU, archived on AU Online, and available to you on-demand

Plus, you may purchase additional training and certification (where available) at significant discounts.

To find out what’s available, select a participating country and an Authorized Training Center (ATC) to view event details.

Enhancing the the Civil 3D Performance Experience

There is a new technical note posted on the Civil 3D white paper page called “Harnessing the Power of Civil 3D” This paper goes through information about memory, operating systems, systems requirements and tips for Civil 3D.

 

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

Highway Earthquake Simulation and Rebuilding America’s Infrastructure

In another great act of civil engineering storytelling, the Washington State DOT has posted a video that shows what would happen to State Route 99 and the adjacent seawall in seismic event.

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

Other archived and upcoming transportation and road design related webcasts and resources can be found here.

More About My Co-Presenter for CV218-5 “More Power to You”

Lynda Sharkey and I will be covering the Subscription Advantage Packs for Civil 3D and Map 3D in our Autodesk University class:

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

Two Reasons Why Civil Engineers May Dismiss BIM

I had a short call with Donnie yesterday about our Autodesk University panel class called BIM without Buildings: The Civil Side. It was one of those calls where you wish you had six hours to lock yourselves in a room with floor to ceiling whiteboards. There were two threads in the conversation that I wanted to capture here really quickly.

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.

How to Get the Subscription Advantage Pack for Civil 3D

I posted the official press release in my last post, but I wanted to give you some more information.

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!

Autodesk® Subscription Advantage Pack for AutoCAD® Civil 3D® 2010

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.

Features and Benefits

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

• AutoCAD® Civil 3D® 2010

• Autodesk® Education Master Suite 2010

• Autodesk® Education Suite for Civil & Structural Engineering 2010

• Autodesk® Design Academy 2010

   

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.