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Also in this issue: Revit
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BIM360
AUGIWORLD
March 2022
CONTENTS FEATURES 6
Civil 3D
12
BIM360
Autodesk Civil 3D – Exploring the Geotechnical Module
Communication in BIM360
6
18
AutoCAD vs. Revit
22
Revit
From AutoCAD Expert to Revit Experience
10 Helpful Revit Tips
30
3ds Max 3ds Max Tips and Tricks
22
COLUMNS 4
Letter from the President
28
Tech Manager
35
Inside Track
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AUGIWORLD www.augiworld. com
Editors
Editor-in-Chief
From the President
W
elcome to the March edition of AUGIWorld! This month we are all about tips & tricks!
This is actually one of my favorite subjects. As a CAD trainer, I’ve always felt that giving out great tips & tricks in a training class is one of the best parts of teaching CAD/BIM software.
One of the tips I give people is how to solve problems or figure out how to do something in their software. I thought I’d share that tip with all of you, so here’s a list of all the places I go to get information:
Todd Rogers - todd.rogers@augi.com
Copy Editor
Isabella Andresen - isabella.andresen@augi.com
Layout Editor
Debby Gwaltney - debby.gwaltney@augi.com
Content Managers
3ds Max - Brian Chapman AutoCAD - Jim Fisher AutoCAD Architecture - Melinda Heavrin AutoCAD Civil 3D - Shawn Herring AutoCAD MEP - William Campbell BIM Construction - Kenny Eastman Tech Manager - Mark Kiker Inside Track - Brian Andresen Inventor Revit Architecture - Jay Zallan Revit MEP - Nathan Mulder Revit Structure - Jason Lush
Advertising/Reprint Sales
Kevin Merritt - salesmanager@augi.com AUGI Executive Team President KaDe King Vice-President Frank Mayfield
•
Join AUGI at www.augi.com to access AUGIWorld, AUGI Hot News and AUGI Forums
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Access the recorded Autodesk University sessions at Autodesk. com/au
Secretary Brian Andresen
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Use the Autodesk Forums at forums.autodesk.com or Autodesk. com/forums
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Download software through your Autodesk account at manage. autodesk.com or through ava.autodesk.com (to access older versions)
Brian Andresen Kimberly Fuhrman KaDe King Chris Lindner
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Use a search engine to find exactly what you are looking for. Example: “Download AutoCAD Hatch Patterns”
As you can see, I’m big on teaching people how to help themselves! Take care, KaDe
Treasurer Todd Rogers
AUGI Board of Directors
Frank Mayfield Todd Rogers Scott Wilcox
Publication Information
AUGIWORLD magazine is a benefit of specific AUGI membership plans. Direct magazine subscriptions are not available. Please visit www.augi.com/ account/register to join or upgrade your membership to receive AUGIWORLD magazine in print. To manage your AUGI membership and address, please visit www.augi.com/account. For all other magazine inquires please contact augiworld@augi.com
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AUGIWORLD is published by Autodesk User Group International, Inc. AUGI makes no warranty for the use of its products and assumes no responsibility for any errors which may appear in this publication nor does it make a commitment to update the information contained herein. AUGIWORLD is Copyright ©2021 AUGI. No information in this magazine may be reproduced without expressed written permission from AUGI. All registered trademarks and trademarks included in this magazine are held by their respective companies. Every attempt was made to include all trademarks and registered trademarks where indicated by their companies. AUGIWORLD (San Francisco, Calif.) ISSN 2163-7547
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A Global Community for AEC Professionals to Learn, Grow and Exchange Knowledge. Become a member: www.dbei.org/membership
Civil 3D
by: Sam Lucido
Autodesk Civil 3D – Exploring the Geotechnical Module
F
or this article I wanted to look at the Geotechnical Module in Civil 3D 2021 software. Some may have heard of it; some may not even know it exists! Then some of you wonder why I only mentioned Civil 3D 2021. Throughout this article I will introduce you to the Geotechnical Module add-in for Civil 3D and provide some insight to the future development of this dynamic geotechnical tool also referred to as the Holebase SI Extension and OpenGround Cloud. The geotechnical module can be installed via the Autodesk Desktop app or directly from your
account at Autodesk. Please see your system admin for approval and installation within your company. With the Geotechnical Module you can manage and update borehole information within a Civil 3D profile using the same functionality of Civil 3D styles and settings. This article will be more of a high-level overview of the module and how to get started. At the conclusion, I will provide you a way to update for use in Civil 3D 2022 as the module is not available for that release at this time.
Figure 1: Geotechnical Module on the Ribbon in Civil 3D
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Civil 3D
Figure 2: Location Details.csv
HISTORY OF THE GEOTECHNICAL MODULE The geotechnical module was created by a company named Keynetix, a UK-headquarted provider of cloud-based software. They provide geotechnical data management software which captures, visualizes, and models geotechnical data within Civil 3D and within the cloud based OpenGround Cloud. In May of 2019 Bentley Systems acquired Keynetix. To many of us Autodesk Civil 3D users we question how this will evolve as Bentley Systems, a leading provider for Civil inf rastructure products including MicroStation Connect and OpenRoads Designer. The future of this product holds the key to understanding the development of this very powerful geotechnical tool. The names of the software can become confusing as there is the Geotechnical Module, Holebase SI, and OpenGround Cloud. We are going to focus on the Geotechnical Module for Civil 3D even though the functionality of this product including many enhanced features are included within OpenGround Cloud, including the Civil 3D Extension.
coordinate system. Let’s setup two .csv files for import. Create a .csv file using Microsoft Excel and the information as shown below. It is important that you include the headings as shown below – the 6 with data in those are required to create the borehole. Name the file Location Details.csv as shown in Figure 2. Create a second .csv file using Microsoft Excel and name the file Field Descriptions.csv. This file will contain our borehole data. Note: We can directly export this data from gINT but for this example we created the fields within the geology code for representation purposes only. Notice how B-1 ranges from 0-42. This will determine our borehole depth in 3D and in our profiles. The module will also separate the strata between the different geologies. Save both files in a location where you can update and modify during the project lifecycle.
SETTING UP A PROJECT IN THE GEOTECHNICAL MODULE We are going to start with a simple example of how to connect your data to a project. The files you need are a set of CSV files one named Location Details. csv and the other named Field Descriptions.csv. For this example, I used a default project and created sample borings using this format in a particular augiworld.com
Figure 3: Field Geological Descriptions.csv
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Civil 3D CREATE A PROJECT AND CONNECT TO THE DATA On the data management panel of the Geotechnical Model tab on the Ribbon select Connect.
Figure 5: Import the data from a .csv
On the import data dialog box follow these five steps.
Figure 4: Connect to a Database
From this point you will have to connect to a local database (Step 1) and Login (Step 2). You do have the ability to manage connections creating one on your local network where others can access the data (Step 3).
1.
Select the file format
2.
Add the data (browse to your .csv files).
3.
Add Location Details.csv
4. Add Field Geological Descriptions.csv 5.
Select Next.
Figure 6: Import the data
Figure 5: Login to the Database to Create a project.
Another dialog box will appear where you will enter the project details including Project ID, Name, Status, and Category. This is where you can add details to your project including site location and Contractor’s name.
Note: You can add the csv files one at a time and you can update as you are working on your project by selecting the update button. This is great when you have additional borehole data added during your project. If you are successful, you will have a dialog box appear that notes that the data is valid. Once verified select Next.
IMPORTING THE DATA Now that you have connected to a database and created a project you must import the data. On the Data Management panel of the ribbon move to the import button and select. Figure 7: Validate your Data
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Civil 3D MANAGING THE DATA IN CIVIL 3D Once you select Next several times you will be taken back out to Civil 3D where your borings will be displayed as COGO points using Civil 3D styles provided by the software. Figure 8 shows the default boring location style. At first this does not look like anything new but let’s rotate to 3D to see how the data has been imported.
Move to the viewcube and select SE Isometric or some other 3D view (Step 1). Then change your visual style to shaded or something to view in 3D (Step 2). Rotate around in 3D and view the borings and the data. Notice how the colors separate the strata. Note: you can change the patterns within the module via the hatch button.
CREATING SURFACES Based on the data you have imported you now can create surfaces in Civil 3D based off the top and the base of your geotechnical data. Under the Asset Management tab of the ribbon select Strata as shown in Figure 10. Figure 8: COGO Point Style Added
Figure 9: Borehole Data in 3D augiworld.com
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Civil 3D already within your drawing file. Select Create as shown in Figure 13.
Figure 10: Create Strata Surfaces
When selecting Strata, the module will bring up a dialog box showing you all the geology within your drawing. By checking the surfaces for Top and Bottom (See figure 11) you can automatically create surfaces for that type of geology. How cool is the fact that you can create a top and bottom surface and come up with a volume of material for your project?
Figure 13: Create the profile.
Once you select create the process is very similar to creating a profile view in in Civil 3D. Follow these 5 steps to create your profile as shown in Figure 14. 1.
Name your profile.
2.
Select the Civil 3D Style.
3.
Select the Band Set or No Bands.
4. Select the Alignment. If no alignment is within the drawing you can create the alignment by selecting the create alignment button as shown. Figure 11: Displaying Surfaces
You have now created surfaces based off the geotechnical data updated from your imported files. If the data changes, the strata changes.
Figure 14: Create the profile view.
Figure 12: Surfaces Created
CREATING PROFILES The best way to do this in my opinion is create your alignment in Civil 3D then create the profile using the tools provided within the Profile panel of the Ribbon. You can create your alignment within the Geotechnical module or have an existing one 10
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Your output will contain your borehole data along with strata information, including hatches and geology code. You can also apply a buffer to capture additional borings as necessary. With a little manipulation of styles and settings your profile should look like the profile shown in Figure 15.
ADDING THE MODULE TO CIVIL 3D 2022 The geotechnical module for Civil 3D 2022 has not been released at the time of writing this article. With the Autodesk app or your Autodesk Account you can download the geotechnical module for Civil augi.com
Civil 3D these geotechnical tools that can be outside of the box of your normal workflow. When you see the potential, you will be hooked and want to explore more. We have only scratched the surface of the capabilities of OpenGround Cloud. For additional information on the module and OpenGround Cloud see Bentley’s website where they have examples, fact sheets, and explanations of the software.
Figure 15: The completed profile View.
3D 2020-2021. Install the module first with one of the previous versions of the software. Then follow these simple steps you can get it working with Civil 3D 2022. If both Civil 3D 2021 and 2022 are installed, simply install Autodesk Geotechnical Module 2020-2021 Then modify C:\Program Files\ Autodesk\ApplicationPlugins\ AutodeskGeotechnicalModule2020.bundle\ PackageContents.xml The PackageContents.xml file and be found within this knowledge base article thread. https://forums.autodesk.com/t5/civil-3d-forum/civil3d-geotechnical-module/td-p/10327936
CONCLUSION The geotechnical module can display basic geotechnical information to be dynamically linked within your Civil 3D Design. What if you want more? I went on to purchase and implement OpenGround cloud which is when we became successful on a several projects using this tool. With hard work and dedication, you too can become an expert using augiworld.com
https://www.bentley.com/en/products/brands/ openground
Sam Lucido is a Design Systems Administrator for CHA Consulting, Inc. He has over 25 years of experience involving design, user support, and customization. Sam is professionally certified in AutoCAD, Civil 3D, and an Autodesk Expert Elite Member. Sam has been a top-rated Autodesk University Speaker for the past 7 years and created many articles on AutoCAD and Civil 3D through the Autodesk Knowledge Network. He uses his vast knowledge about AutoCAD to help provide support to engineering and design teams at CHA. You can find him at CADProTips.com and he can also be reached at sam.lucido@cadprotips.com March 2022 | AUGIWORLD Magazine
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BIM 360
by: Andrell Laniewicz
Communication in BIM 360
A
utodesk BIM 360® software is a cloudbased solution that is designed to manage a project from start to finish: the complete life cycle from design through operations. How does it do this? BIM 360 uses a common Application Programming Interface (API) – called Forge. Forge creates the unified platform that is BIM 360 Next Generation and connects to other solutions within the Autodesk Construction Cloud® (ACC). Each solution within BIM 360 is in a Module. Drawings, Models, RFIs, Meeting Minutes, and more all live on the BIM 360 Platform. More importantly, they all communicate with each other. It is designed to reduce time, rework, and human error all while giving a project a singular software solution from start to finish instead of managing multiple software solutions. Basically, a single source of truth – as long as the solution is utilized through proper workflows. 12
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The nice thing about BIM 360 is that it creates accountability. Administrators can track what was accessed and when. Each file tracks its history, meaning managers can pull reports of progress on any module. All communication is recorded within BIM 360 – no more lost emails, spam filters, or forgetting to flag emails with follow up alerts. While communication is recorded, that doesn’t mean everyone can see everything. Permissions, defined workflows, and roles refine access and allow the information to only be shared with those who would need to see it. It keeps information overload out of the equation. Collaboration and Communication does not mean sharing every piece with every person. This article will look at communicating in BIM 360 through Issues, Meeting Minutes, and Checklists. It will highlight where RFIs and Assets come in throughout the process and then wrap up with a brief overview about tracking the health of the project through these communications. augi.com
BIM 360 ISSUES – OVERVIEW AND CUSTOMIZING THEM FOR COMMUNICATION Issues are the ultimate in communication across BIM 360. They are accessible with the base module, can be customized, can be reported out, and they link to other BIM 360 tools. Issues can be assigned to users, roles, or companies on the project. They can be given due dates, tied to locations, and categorized. Why are they so important? Let’s take a moment to talk about the basics of Issues. Issues can be created at a document level – which will be tied to a location of a drawing or an element in a model and is visually shown as a colored circle called a “pin”. Or they can be created at the project level – which has no linked pin but can still have a linked reference to a document. To create an Issue, (1) open either the fly-out menu in the viewer or go to the Issues Tab. (2) Click “Create Issue”. (3) Place a pin if you are in the BIM Viewer. (4) Fill out the required information, which is denoted by the red asterisks. (5) Complete this process by clicking “Create” at the bottom. That’s it! To view an Issue, you can click on a pin, choose one from the list of Issues in the Issues tab of Document Management or Field Management, or select one from the fly-out menu in the Forge Viewer (the tool used to open and interact with 2D and 3D documents across BIM 360).
augiworld.com
Now we’re going to review what the required fields are and why they are so important. Title is what you are going to call the Issue. When first making Issues, this may not seem too important, but as you get into hundreds (and sometimes thousands), having a clearer picture of what the Issue is will reduce opening Issues that are not what you are looking for. Status dictates the color of the pins where applicable and gives a quick visual classification within the Issue list. When first creating Issues, they can be only either Open or Draft. These status options help filter Issues in the Issue list as well as in Reports and Insight Cards. Type categorizes the Issue. Not only does this let you filter Issues even further, but depending on the Type chosen, other status options can become available. Types help paint a more complete picture of a project. As a VDC engineer, I may not need to look at Quality or Commissioning Issue Types. However, I would want to keep an eye on Coordination and Design Issue Types. Now that we’ve reviewed creating Issues, let’s dig into why and how they work for communication across the project! When someone is assigned an Issue, they get an email. The email links them directly to that Issue. No tracking down a website, no opening software, and no having to search for an Issue by name or number. A user can also filter all Issues assigned to them, their role, or their company. When viewing an Issue, there are three (3) sections: Details, Attachments, and Activity.
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BIM 360 Details are filled out when an Issue is created – it can be updated at any time, however the Type can only stay within the same type category once chosen. Additionally, Details can add references that are links to RFIs and Assets.
That means any RFI and Issue can be linked to each other and if you open one, the link to the other will be there. It also means Assets can be tied to Issues. That is very helpful and keeps all communications linked! Attachments holds documents that can be uploaded from your computer or other areas of Document Management. These files can be directly opened from the Issue to review. No need to remember a file name and search for it outside of the Issue! Further, tablet users can attach photos directly from their devices. This ensures users have access to all the relevant files required to review an Issue even if they do not have folder access – a vital part of giving access only to what is needed.
other users, roles, and companies. When a tag is used, an email is issued! Now users can have conversations about the problem within the Issue and the history will be there! No digging through emails that have multiple chains and sorting emails into folders! Not to mention losing emails on multi-year projects when your company server automatically deletes old emails. You can see everything in one place.
While this is an excellent communication tool out of the box, I want to discuss customization. Why? Because users will have items to communicate that are not tied to the Issue Types that come pre-set. I’ve found that many who use Issues on projects like to create custom Types and Attributes. This is accomplished in the Project Admin Module within the Services Tab. Creating a Type that is just for communication is helpful to filter the Issues lists for other users.
Activity is the record and communication hub of the Issue. Everything from who created it and the details that were filled in upon creation to who added what attachments and when. Activity is where users can add comments. These comments can tag 14
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BIM 360 It also means the data pulled from a job site can be analyzed more effectively with Issues being correctly categorized. Further, Custom Attributes can help you track other important items.
Each Attribute can be set to be required based on different Issue Types. This means that if you want a Communication Issue to have a Priority field to complete, you can. Now not only can Issues be filtered by assigned to you/your company/your role, but you can then look at higher priority Issues first. It also means a project can be customized to have specific communication tracks which allows for many other options to make BIM 360 work for you. Finally, these Issues can be exported as PDFs to send to those not on the project. The files in the attachment area – not the reference area – will be separate files that can be downloaded and opened in their respective software. This is where permissions for folder access is not required when sharing with team members outside of the project or even keeping them for record.
MEETING MINUTES AND TASKS Meeting minutes are powerful in BIM 360. Every project and every meeting have Minutes or notes. These minutes must be tracked and sometimes get lost or sometimes comments do not make it into the version kept for record. Tracking down the latest notes and agendas for meetings can be time consuming. How many meetings end up with action items that were due but were not completed? That is not to say using the Meetings tool in BIM 360 will complete items for you, but it certainly makes it all easier to manage!
even allows a Zoom or other virtual conference links to be included directly! In addition, you can track attendees, add attachments, and export the minutes. Meetings are broken down into Topics and then Items are under those topics. Here is where we get to the power behind Minutes. Each Item is tracked individually! Its status can be Open or Closed and all Open items will transfer to the next follow-up meeting. What does this have to do with communication? Items! Items can be assigned to users to follow up with, including optional due dates. Further, Items can be linked to Issues and RFIs! Issues again – are you sensing a theme? If BIM 360 is implemented across an entire project no item big or small will go undocumented. You now have one location for Minutes complete with automatic Item tracking through follow-up meetings and with RFI/Issue linking.
CHECKLISTS AS DOCUMENTATION AND COMMUNICATION Checklists are found in the Field Management Module. Checklists are essentially forms to be filled out. To reduce rework and human error, these forms are built as Templates to be reused for any project or multiple times on one project. Each Checklist has sections, every section has questions, and all the questions have answer options. These are set up in the Template.
The Project Management Module is where Meetings can be found. All basic details such as title, description, date, and time can be entered. Location augiworld.com
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BIM 360 What does this have to do with communication? Each question can have an Issue created about it. And Issues are communication connections to other modules! Each Checklist can also be tied to an Asset. An Asset can also be tied to an Issue. Now the picture is starting to take shape!
PROJECT HEALTH AND ACCOUNTABILITY
All activity is tracked within the Activity area of a Checklist: what was answered, by who, when, and what the answer was. It will also keep track of changes to photos, attachments, and details. It is a level of transparency that helps to bring a collaborative and cooperative environment to the project field team. While this is great for painting the picture of communication on a project, I want to give you an example of thinking outside the box. You can use Checklists as BIM Execution Plans! An option within Template creation even lets you require signatures from all involved parties. It becomes a document of record – one where you can track comments and additional activity for the BEP. Need to make a change, update, or create an addendum to the BEP? No problem! And everyone can see the change as well as agree to it. It is another way to keep documentation in one place for a project with easy reference for the whole team. 16
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All of the tools used to communicate throughout the project – Issues, RFIs, Checklists, etc. – can be reported on. At a glance, you can see how many RFIs are overdue or coming due soon, which puts you in a position to be proactive with resources or reactive if the pile gets too big. You can view Issues by Type to see where there are the most problem areas and address them first thing. Light the right fires in the right places.
In the Project Admin Module, there will be an Activity sub-tab under Document Management within the Services Tab. It will tell you who has uploaded, viewed, added a comment, created, closed, or deleted documents and Issues. This can be exported to a CSV file and filtered to track what you need. The conversation focuses more on how to augi.com
BIM 360 solve problems and less on trying to track down the right information. It builds trust and reliability when you have access to hard data – or tells you where extra attention may be needed.
CONCLUSION Communication is important. Using the tools and data analytics they provide will make your project team more effective at communication. It will reduce items slipping through the cracks. It will also allow your company to react faster and more accurately on current projects while being proactive on future projects. Setting up and testing these workflows is vital. Getting Issues completely set up before bringing it to the wider audience will help ensure adoption – with the correct steps in place! Customization of these workflows provides the flexibility to adapt to your project’s needs.
CURRENT CHALLENGES Comments are not currently included in PDF exports of Issues, only Details (which includes the solution or response) and Attachments. This is both useful and not. It is great to give to Owners/Clients – a nice, finished document of what the Issue was, some details, and the resolution plus any attached files that were included in the process. It is less useful if you are looking to keep the Issue for record for the future. However, as long as you maintain a BIM 360 hub with at least a single license, you can Archive the project and still have access to the Issues at any future point. Issues do not directly convert to RFIs, you would need to make an RFI and link them. RFIs can link to Potential Change Orders (PCOs), which is very helpful, but also means you may end up going down a link rabbit hole. At least it is going to the correct information and the most current iteration of the information, not an old or missing file! Tasks are not their own list or tool – yet! In Classic, they are, so I have no doubt Autodesk will be working to resolve this for Next Gen. Additionally, in the New Unified Platform, Items is its own tab under Minutes, so this feature is still being developed. Until this is resolved, items assigned in Meetings will need to be managed through Meetings. Since the Minutes will be distributed, this is not highly impactful, but it does make parts of the process less streamlined than we would like. augiworld.com
Better collaboration and communication are what BIM promised to bring to the AECO industry decades ago. BIM 360 is helping to deliver on that promise.
Andrell Laniewicz has working in the VDC world since 2011. During this time, she has been involved in everything from Model Coordination, 4D, 5D, and Quantification to Proposals, Site Logistics, and more. She has worked for General Contractors and MEP Design to Fabrication firms. She has taught BIM for Construction Management at Universities, presented at Autodesk University and BiLT, and consistently delivers social media content. At U.S. CAD, Andrell works with clients to evaluate their existing workflows, implement solutions and technology, and providing training to get clients to their ultimate end goal. She focuses on Revit, Navisworks, BIM 360, FormIt, and MSuite within Architecture, Construction, and Fabrication. She has her Certificate of Management in Building Information Modeling from AGC of DC. March 2022 | AUGIWORLD Magazine
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AutoCAD vs. Revit
by: Paul Li
From AutoCAD Expert to Revit Experience AUTOCAD EXPERT
I
’ve enjoyed being very proficient with AutoCAD which I had learned since the late 1980s. Having used it for over three decades, I have become both an expert user and an adept customizer. I thought I would be able to continue to enjoy the AutoCAD ride and coast to the R word: “R”etirement.
THE OTHER R WORD But in the last office where I had worked for over twenty years, I soon heard rumblings from upper management of a major change that would soon rock my AutoCAD world. Though most of the office clients have only demanded CAD, many of the competing offices began offering Revit as an extra bonus. Their slogan was loud and clear: “We do CAD but we Revit better.” This is when upper management made the decision that this office will match if not provide a better “R”evit service than the competition. There it was, the other R word that I did not want to hear.
HISTORY REPEATS This reminded me back in the days when CAD was first introduced into the design profession. The ongoing slogan back then was: “We do cutting edge CAD for you.” Now I also remember back then that for staff who didn’t do CAD, they were not only left behind but were also eventually let go. The writing was on the wall for this go around as well. Upper management was faced once again with these options on how to transition from AutoCAD to Revit: 18
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1.
Replace everyone who lacked Revit skills with new staff who already knows Revit
2.
Invest in the current staff and spend the time and money training everyone on Revit
AN INVESTMENT I’m glad upper management chose the investment option. Staff were initially offered the option to get reimbursed for a 6-week (twice a week) class sessions outside the office. Furthermore, word was sent out to Revit experts requesting for quotes on costs to train/consult the current staff in the office bringing everyone up to speed on Revit. Surprisingly the best package that came back was from the office Autodesk reseller at the time: Microdesk. They were willing to come into the office for two three full day sessions providing everyone with computers to train the entire staff on Revit. Of course, I took advantage of this training by sitting in on both sessions which was a total of six full days loading my brain with Revit.
ONGOING TRAINING Though the training sessions were informative, none of the staff including yours truly, came out 100% Revit fluent. We would still require weekly trainings thereafter as we started implementing Revit on small projects. That process was truly painful to say the least. We also hired Microdesk to spend the time converting all our title blocks including standard details from AutoCAD to Revit so we can use Revit to put a complete set of construction documents together. Furthermore, I augi.com
AutoCAD vs. Revit ended up spending time on my own going through video tutorials both on-line and off-line to learn more about how to use Revit effectively to put a building package together.
AUTOCAD VS REVIT IN 2D For me going Revit was a slow transitioning process. I would begin by drawing details in Revit’s Drafting View.
At first, I really didn’t see that much benefit from using Revit over AutoCAD. When just comparing the two programs which provide the same end result of a set of construction documents this alone really didn’t seem to make that much of a difference. Of course, AutoCAD truly is a superior two dimensional (2D) drafting package. One can of course use Revit to just do 2D. Using Revit’s Drafting View, in addition to drawing details, you can also draw an entire floor plan, elevation and section there as well. But using Revit like this would cause you to miss out on the vast amount of information that you can glean from really using Revit.
shapes surrounding it called out as Chairs. At face value there really isn’t much difference here whether this was drawn in AutoCAD vs Revit. But taking another look under the hood you’ll discover there’s really a lot more going on with these Table and Chair components placed inside Revit.
DIVING DEEPER
When you select the Table component and click on Edit Type, you will see a host of items or parameters not seen by just looking at the 2D geometry in the plan view. The Table component actually has a number of the following parameters: (1) the Family name, (2) the Type showing various sizes, (3) the Keynote number linked to a CSI formatted construction notation list and (4) the Type Mark which tags this item as a Table. A similar host of parameters can also be seen by reviewing the Type Properties of the Chair component.
A PLAN VIEW EXAMPLE
LET’S TAKE INVENTORY Take for example this plan view showing rectangles called out as Tables and the smaller geometric augiworld.com
Many of us are aware of the benefits of investing the time to draw a three dimensional (3D) model in March 2022 | AUGIWORLD Magazine
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AutoCAD vs. Revit Revit. But Revit offers another powerful feature: the ability to collect the parameters as inventory from these Table/Chair components.
the Revit model, I was always able to see the latest and greatest information. For example, when there was a change in space planning, (i.e.: placing a set of conference table and chairs back or removing a set of bookshelves replacing them with system furnishings), I always had current sets of inventory lists that showed upper management exactly what was going to happen based on the changes.
REVIT EXPERIENCE Unfortunately, my Revit skills never matched with the expertise I had achieved in AutoCAD. But I’m still glad I had gone through the transition from being an expert at AutoCAD to also being a bit proficient with my experience at Revit.
Using Revit’s Schedules command you can retrieve the Table and Chair component parameters and have them positioned into columns in an Inventory Schedule. Revit also offers the option to quantify the total number of items with a Count column. I first learned of Revit’s powerful inventory feature when I had to plan for an office move. This presented the need to generate an inventory of all the non-fixed furniture and equipment components in the office. Second, a separate inventory list of the furniture and equipment to be left behind would also be needed. Lastly, a final inventory list would show which of the components are kept and re-used in the new office location. This would be extremely difficult to do in AutoCAD alone. But with Revit, I was able to use the Schedules command to generate various kinds of inventory schedules. For example, I was able to show a schedule of just the system furniture or desks the office currently used. I also used the same Schedules command to list all the bookshelves, wire racks and chairs that would be re-used in the new office. Since the schedules updated dynamically as changes occurred inside 20 AUGIWORLD Magazine | March 2022
Mr. Paul Li graduated in 1988 from the University of Southern California with a Bachelor of Architecture degree. He worked in the Architectural field for small to midsize global firms for over 33 years. Throughout his tenure in Architecture he has mastered the use and customization of AutoCAD. Using AutoLISP/ Visual Lisp combined with Dialog Control Language (DCL) programming he has developed a number of Apps that enhance the effectiveness of AutoCAD in his profession. All the Apps actually came out of meeting challenging needs that occurred while he worked in the various offices. He has made all the Apps available for free and can be downloaded from the Autodesk App Store. Though he recently retired from the Architectural profession, Paul continues to write articles depicting his past work experience. Some of these articles can be found in AUGIWorld Magazine where he shares his knowledge learned. Paul can be reached for comments or questions at PaulLi_apa@hotmail.com. augi.com
Revit 2022
by: Rina Sahay
10 Helpful Revit Tips One of the challenges of working with Revit is how apparently complex the software is. Notice that I describe the complexity of Revit as ‘apparent’ – read on for some tips, tricks, and workarounds to make you more productive, enhance your productivity – and your sanity as well!
Place walls to create the required plan outline – jogs, chamfers, and all. Use the Join command to remove those annoying overlapping lines. Step back and admire.
SOME LITTLE TRICKS…. 1.
Wall Tricks – Revit walls are so incredibly powerful. Did you know that you don’t need to jump through hoops to model something complex like this? This trick saved my sanity while modeling existing historic structures from a point cloud. This is a job for the Join command!
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Revit 2022
2.
Wall Sweeps – did you know that Wall Sweeps can be • • •
Moved Copied Stretched independent of the host walls?
To Stretch them – just grab the blue dot…. Don’t worry about doors and windows cutting through the Sweeps – correctly built families with Opening Cuts built in will cut through the Wall Sweeps as well. If they don’t, then that’s a whole new conversation….
Note – to split the Sweep, the host wall will need to be Split. No worries – as long as the host walls are perfectly coplanar, you won’t see a junction line…. 3.
The Opening Cut Surprise! Did you know that Door and Window families have an Opening Cut object that can be edited (use Edit Sketch for this!) to cut whatever shape opening that you want out of the wall (and out of Wall Sweeps too!)? Round windows, anyone?
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Once you’ve sketched the new opening, you will need to redo the frame and panel geometry. The easy way out would be to model extrusions (that’s what I always do!). But if you’re brave enough, you can model the frame as a Sweep. To constrain the Sweep, constrain its path in the Modify Sweep >> Sketch Path mode. If the Door / Window family does not cut through Wall Sweeps, open the family to investigate. A March 2022 | AUGIWORLD Magazine
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Revit 2022 possible reason could be that the Opening cut has been replaced by a Void.
Close the dialog box.
4. Do you need to place an image on a sheet maybe to create a notto-scale view representing existing site conditions? Placing the image directly on the sheet may not be an option! Create a drafting view. Place the image into the view, manipulate it to fit, place notes, leaders, and the appropriate View Title.
To export the SAVED SET to DWG – File >> Export >> CAD Formats >> DWG
NOW FOR SOME BIG GUNS! 6. Selection Sets – Are there groups of elements that you need to select repetitively? Use Selection Sets! 5.
Do you need to export multiple Revit views or sheets to AutoCAD and want to save some time? File >> Print >> Print >> Selected views/sheets Select the views or sheets that you need to put in the set, name and save the set – I called mine SAVED SET.
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Revit 2022 7.
Object Visibility – Please don’t hide objects in a view! Besides slowing down the model, it is an extremely painful exercise to locate randomly hidden elements.
Some required groundwork would be to mandate that all disciplines place the grids on a dedicated Work set. 9. Copy geometry / family instances from linked models This is another huge time saver. Tab-Click to select the element from the linked model CTRL→C CTRL→V in the host model
A preferred workflow is to add a filter to the view template that controls the view. In this example, I have filtered Rated Doors by their Fire Rated values.
This tip works on family instances as well as other model elements.
Filtering can be made more precise by adding parameter driven Rules using the AND or OR operator. New in Revit 2022! Filtering by Phase! Hooray!!! In addition to hiding elements, filters control the color, line weight, line style, of filtered elements.
8. Hide Grids / Levels in linked files This tip makes turning the Grids of linked models off quick and easy. Grids are placed on a dedicated Work set which can be turned off when the model is linked.
10. Fill pattern (near) disasters Does your roof look like this? Check to ensure that you have a Model pattern applied to it
Drafting Pattern augiworld.com
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Revit 2022
Model Pattern
And do your walls look like this in plan?
After
Soon you will be developing such tricks and workarounds yourself! I hope that you find them helpful!
Before
Edit the Orientation in Host Layers from Orient to View to Align With Element. I hope that you find these tips helpful – these are some of the tips that get help me get the job done every day. These would be a starting point for you to give you a level of familiarity with the software.
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Rina Sahay is an Autodesk Expert Elite Team member; a Revit Certified Professional; and a Revit and AutoCAD Subject Matter Expert. As the Architectural BIM Manager at Fishbeck, she creates and maintains BIM standards; provides project support and troubleshooting; training and onboarding. Rina is an educator at Kalamazoo Valley Community College; provides technical support for Revit, AutoCAD, and 3DS Max via the Autodesk forums and Directly.com; and serves on the Kent Career Technical Center Advisory Board. She was a Top-Rated Speaker at AU2021 and has presented multiple times at Autodesk University, in Autodesk Community Conversations, and for In Awe Towards Green; and is the author of the LinkedIn blog “Rina’s Random Revit-isms”. augi.com
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Tech Manager
by: Mark Kiker
Eight Messages Tech Managers SHOULD be Sending
L
ast time we talked about negative messages I, and you, send and found that we may not even know that we are sending them or that others are picking up on these messages. If you have not read it yet, skip back a month are read the last Tech Manager article. I covered messages like, “It won’t work,”, “How hard can it be?”, “We don’t have time,”, “We tried that before,”, “It has to happen now,”, “I am not a team player,”, “I don’t have time for you,” and finally pulling rank with “I am in charge.” Now we will look at messages that you DO want to be sending and how that can impact others in a positive way. Building up team morale, bolstering confidence, displaying flexibility and more can impact others and your team in great ways. Sometimes we are forgetful and miss opportunities to invigorate others. Here are some possible messages that can build others up. “You can do this.” Just like encouraging a toddler to take their first steps, or a kid to ride a bike, we need to encourage others every day. I wish I did this every day, but I do not. It is so easy to be critical and
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see the flaws in work or mistakes that people make. But we need to stop and give an encouraging push to others to step out and make it happen. Overwhelmingly, people will step up their game and make progress when they have confidence. They just need permission and encouragement. “This is a team effort.” It is easy for teams to scatter and see staff silo themselves into standalone efforts that do not remember the intertwined nature of teamwork. What I am doing impacts you and what you are doing impacts me. Bad handoffs and attitudes that do not care about other people’s success can damage project teams. Team members need to be reminded that we are all in this together. Celebrate individual accomplishments and remind others of how this helps the team. Inspire others to help the group rise together. “What do you think we should do?” I catch myself NOT doing this when I think I have an answer to whatever problem might exist. Others do not grow by executing only on your solutions. Let others have a chance to problem solve or provide input before you lurch to the bottom line. As they grow, you can augi.com
Tech Manager ask them what they think and then agree with their plans and press them forward. People may look to you for answers, but you should seek input and allow others to design solutions too. “Let’s give it a try.” When solutions are offered by others and confidence is not high, just let everyone know that you are willing to take some risk, see if it will work and maybe accept some failure while you strive to get things right. Make sure you include yourself by saying “Let’s”, which goes back to a prior topic – this is a team effort. Give people permission to fail. How do you do that without making failure a default? Don’t freak out when things go wrong. Be resilient and try again. Thank people for trying and move on. As you seek success, don’t make failing so scary that no one is willing to risk an attempt. “Standards can be changed.” Yes, they can. If something doesn’t make sense, or it is impeding workflow, then change it. Make sure staff knows that if the standard is there, it needs to be followed. But if it does not work, then it can be changed, but not abandoned. There needs to be guidelines and agreement on means and methods in design work. If changing the standard will take some time… and it should since you need everyone to agree, then grant projects what I call “Variances”. I typically will document the variance in a quick email to the PM and other key stakeholders and design staff. “We are not going to do that” This may sound negative, but sometimes you have to say “No”. Rejecting an option can help narrow the field of possible good ideas. Obviously, you reject illegal or unethical options. These can happen because some things might be suggested that bend the rules. You should also reject any ideas that pull the team apart rather than unify it. You should also reject ideas that do not promote the standards. You should reject things that do not maintain a level of care that is expected in your industry. You need to know that a rational review by your peers would support your choice of methodology. You never want to be challenged to answer the question, “Who thought that was okay?”
your team’s productivity. Read, read, read. “Here is what is expected” You should be having these conversations all the time. No need to leave people in the dark. Just tell them what is expected. When you are assigning work or need information, tell them what you want, what format is needed and when you need it. If it is a file, let them know the format, size, if compression is okay, delivery method or media, etc. If it is a project task, let them know who to get info from, what the deliverable is and recipient, plus who to tell when you are done. If it takes a while, let them know when to provide updates (daily, weekly, etc.). These talks do not have to take long. Just frame what you are expecting others to do or provide and when you need it by. Try to get feedback and an agreement to the request. If they cannot make it in time, just negotiate a good time. You may not know their workload. They may not know the critical nature of your need or timeline. Talk it up and get to an agreement. Bonus Tip: “I appreciate your help” Remember to thank people and tell them that you appreciate their help. Be specific with what you appreciate, like saying “Thank you for always being so prompt”, or “I appreciate how you give it that one last quality check, prior to sending things out”. By delivering positive messages and information, you can empower people to try new things, get stuff done and make measurable progress on tasks and projects. Mark Kiker has more than 30 years of hands-on experience with technology. He is fully versed in every area of management from deployment planning, installation, and configuration to training and strategic planning. As an internationally known speaker and writer, he is a returning speaker at
“Did you read the instructions?” What a novel idea. You should actually read the documents that come with your tools. Not so much hardcopy any longer, but they are online. You need to read them yourself and spur your team on to read them also. When you do read things, you uncover little know and not well documented “tricks” that can increase
Autodesk University since 1996. Mark is currently serving as Chief Technology Officer for SIATech, a nonprofit public charter high school focused on dropout recovery. He maintains two web sites, www. caddmanager.com and www.bimmanager.com.
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3ds Max
by: Brian Chapman
3ds Max Tips and Tricks T
his year we’ll explore ten tips for all users from beginner to advanced.
Tip 1: In edit poly mode, switch between the selection of faces, vertex, edges, etc., by holding down control and choosing the edit mode.
For example, if you select a face of an object, then hold control and choose the edit edge option, 3ds Max will select the edges of that face. If you hold control and select the edit vertex option, 3ds Max will select the vertex from that face. See Figure 1.
Figure 1
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3ds Max
Figure 2
Tip 2: Use Q to switch to object selection rather than W, E, R to avoid accidentally editing the object. Tip 3: One of the primary applications for 3D is mobile software development. In those cases, polygon budgets are worth considering. Generally, most software automatically triangulates models from 3DS Max during import which means we could estimate the final count close to double what 3DS Max displays if we use a quad-based workflow. However, some actions can potentially bloat that
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count more, such as UV borders and smoothing/ hardening faces. Using the Edit Mesh modifier, we can select the Show Normal option displayed in Figure 2, demonstrating how hardened faces split vertexes to display hardened faces appropriately. Knowing this helps with better predictions! Tip 4: Use the preset values provided with the physical materials to speed up production. See Figure 3.
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3ds Max
Figure 3
Tip 5: Use the display filter to isolate objects by type quickly. See Figure 4.
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3ds Max
Figure 4
Tip 6: When using an image that contains an alpha channel, use the alpha option to apply it to a material. That helps to ensure only one file needs to be updated.
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3ds Max
Tip 7: If you convert an object to an editable poly, it breaks instances. To avoid breaking the instance, choose the “Collapse To” option in the modifier stack editor. Tip 8: Use the batch rename tool to rename quickly and number objects in your scenes. Tip 9: To apply materials to instances of objects in a scene using the “Propagate Material to Instance” option.
Brian Chapman is a 3D Artist, Autodesk Authorized Developer, and Application Specialist in Las Vegas, Nevada. He can be reached at pictelforge@gmail.com
Tip 10: Don’t reinvent. Use the enormous libraries available through sites like GrabCAD to populate your scenes and generate content. 3D CAD objects are perfectly acceptable to use in 3ds Max.
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Inside Track
by: Brian Andresen
Welcome to AUGIWORLD Inside Track! Check out the latest opportunities to advance your skills, processes, and workflows in your firm with the most current AEC-related software and hardware updates available. AUTODESK MAYA BONUS TOOLS 2018-2022
COROPLUS® TOOL LIBRARY ADD-IN
https://apps.autodesk.com/MAYA/en/ Detail/Index?id=8115150172702393827 &appLang=en&os=Win64 Autodesk Maya: 2018, 2019, 2020, 2022
https://www.sandvik.coromant.com/ en-us/products/coroplus-toollibrary/ pages/default.aspx?nodeid=2638 Autodesk Fusion 360
Bonus Tools 2018/2022 is a free collection of useful Autodesk® Maya® scripts and plug-ins. After installing Bonus Tools, an additional pull-down menu will be added to the end of the main Maya menu. This menu provides easy access to a variety of tools and utilities for daily use. Maya Bonus Tools has been organized to mimic the layout of the standard Maya menu sets. Each sub-menu contains a number of related tools. Each of these can be torn off and floated just like standard Maya menus.
Sandvik Coromant and Autodesk® are cooperating to bring maximum efficiency and process security to the CAM community. Users of CoroPlus® Tool Library can get the tool and cutting data recommendations, build tool assemblies and bring their work into Autodesk® Fusion 360™ in an integrated and intuitive workflow.
New & Updated Tools • Modeling -> Speed Cut (windows only) • Modeling -> Extrude Instance Mesh • Rigging -> Weight Editor
MIRROR FOR AUTODESK® VAULT® 2022
https://apps.autodesk.com/VLTC/en/ Detail/Index?id=271758868609523561 2&appLang=en&os=Win64 Autodesk Vault Basic: 2022 Autodesk Vault Professional: 2022 Autodesk Vault Workgroup: 2022 Mirror For Autodesk® Vault® 2022 is a POC application for downloading a read-only copy of a user’s Vault contents to a predefined Windows folder location mirroring the virtual folder structure in Vault Explorer. It demonstrates the concept of a lightweight automated tool with two modes of operation. Full Mirror is a more comprehensive approach that scans all folders by downloading all files and folders from selected Vault’s folder. Partial Mirror ignores local drive content, just downloading all the files that have been added into Vault from the selected date.
SHEET METAL DXF EXPORTER
2018 - 2022
https://apps.autodesk.com/VLTC/en/ Detail/Index?id=271758868609523561 2&appLang=en&os=Win64 Autodesk Inventor: 2018 - 2022 Autodesk Inventor Professional:
Export sheet metal Flat Pattern parts of an assembly to DXF in one go. Besides just exporting the Flat Patterns, the application will also insert Part Number, Material, Thickness and Quantity properties for each Flat Pattern DXF file or include it in the file name. Edge marks/scribes and notch circle geometry can also be added as part of post-processing. It greatly improves efficiency and saves time and avoids having to do manual processing work down the line. It eliminates any errors creeping in while manually entering and specifying cutting processes. Options are provided to simplify the exported geometry to make the file readable in any CNC software removing duplicate or double lines wherever possible. All profiles are re-aligned to the positive quadrant and can be configured to only contain Cut lines. No clean-up is required after the export. Note: • DXF Exporter icon will be available on your Desktop. • Inventor® must be running for the app to work • The app is available as a Full Featured Product for a 15 day period, then Free Mode with limited function • This uses a custom installer (not the standard App.)
If you have some news to share with us for future issues, please let us know. Likewise, if you are a user of a featured product or news item and would like to write a review, we want to know. brian.andresen@augi.com augiworld.com
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