PRODUCT FOCUS
Navisworks Manage 2013 The results Navisworks gives you the first time you do a clash detection on a newly compiled model might be a bit daunting. You may get numbers in the hundreds, maybe even thousands, depending on the size and scope of the models you have brought together. Don’t let the numbers scare you. This is why you get the big bucks, but more importantly, this is your opportunity to differentiate yourself from others who claim to be BIM project coordinators. Now is the time to work your magic. It is up to you to take the seemingly endless sea of clashes laid out before you and make it understandable. Not just understandable to you, but to everyone in your coordination meetings and everyone who will ever view the file. Figure 1: Origin and orientation may not be understood by all.
Different 3D design packages treat origin and orientation in vastly different ways. So be very clear on these points at the kick- off meeting and all pre-coordination meetings. If you think you’ve mentioned it too often, it’s time to bring it up again. Think of it the way we used to vote in Chicago under the original Mayor Daley— do it early and often!
There are several tools at your disposal to help make this happen. The first one you should employ is the Rules tab in the clash detective. This is especially helpful when managing clashes involving drywall, floors, footings, architecture, and others. We all know that pipes and ducts have to go through walls. Navisworks,
In Figure 1 we see a project where these two “minor” details were apparently not very clear to all parties. As you can see, clash detection can become downright impossible when individual models are not lined up properly in all three planes. When you’re coordinating multiple trades in tight spaces, even fractions of an inch matter.
Initial Clash Detection Before you actually run your first clash detection, open the clash detective, go to the “Batch” tab and set up the items you want to compare in your Navisworks model. These would be the same things you would be looking for on the job site, if there was no BIM coordination being used. Typical examples are mechanical versus electric; fire versus plumbing; steel versus mechanical; electric versus framing; and so on. Be sure you include every combination of the trades you are coordinating. There is nothing worse than getting to a point in your coordination effort where it looks like everyone is clash free and then realizing you forgot to include “something versus something.” It is truly a “Wanna Get Away” moment. Not that I have ever experienced such a thing. Uh ... moving right along. Figure 2: Use Rules to trim your clash list. 10
www.augi.com
June 2012