Autodesk Webcast Series: The Evolution of AutoCAD Civil 3D + Part 4

Are you still using Land Desktop every day or are you working in a previous release of AutoCAD Civil 3D thinking "there is no need to move to the current release"? Maybe you are contemplating making the move to AutoCAD Civil 3D? In this webcast series, we will travel through time and show you the ease of bringing that Land Desktop data forward and how to use it once in AutoCAD Civil 3D. We'll have a conversation about styles - what and how many you actually need to get that company template rolling. We will progress through the release from 2010 to 2016 and show you all the great reasons to move forward to AutoCAD Civil 3D and not look back.

Date: Wednesday January 13, 2015
Time: From 10:00 AM to 11:00 AM (Pacific Standard Time)

Register Now!

For more information on training and consulting for the various products Ideate services, visit our website at www.ideateinc.com

e-Learning - Upcoming Revit, Navisworks and Ideate Software Classes

Join the Ideate Tech Experts for eLearning – live online classes that provide your entire organization with easy access to premium education.

12.29::Revit 201:
Documenting Your Revit Project in Revit MEP

12.30::Navisworks 101:
Introduction to Navisworks Manage

1.5::Ideate 101:
Network License Manager 

1.8::Revit 201:
Worksharing Best Practices

1.13::Ideate Software:

Auditing Your Revit Project with Ideate Explorer

1.20::Ideate Software:
Introduction to Ideate Sticky 

Each class is designed to give you specific, improved results in a particular topic. You can interact with the instructor right from your own office, while eliminating travel time. Because the class schedule rotates, you can easily select your topics of interest and choose the day which best meets your schedule.

Click here for class descriptions, times and registration link. Questions? Contact education@ideateinc.com

Get It. Know It. Use It.

Classroom Training - Open Revit, AutoCAD, Civil 3D and Navisworks Classes

Know It. Ideate Training.

Position yourself to land dream projects. Tap the full potential of your software solutions. Increase your facility, fluidity and capability to maximize the value of your precision software tools.

1.7-1.8::San Francisco
Navisworks Fundamentals

1.8::Portland
Revit Architecture Families

1.26-1.28::San Jose
Civil 3D Fundamentals

1.26-1.28::Seattle
AutoCAD Fundamentals

2.2-2.4::San Francisco
Revit Architecture Fundamentals

Know your software. Sign up now! 

Contact the Ideate Training Department at 888.662.7238 x1012 or education@ideateinc.com

e-Learning - Upcoming Revit, Navisworks, Civil 3D and Ideate Software Classes

Join the Ideate Tech Experts for eLearning – live online classes that provide your entire organization with easy access to premium education.

12.22::Ideate Software:
Ideate BIMLink for Revit MEP Projects

12.23::Infrastructure 201:
Civil 3D - Settings and Styles

12.29::Revit 201:
Documenting Your Revit Project in Revit MEP

12.30::Navisworks 101:
Introduction to Navisworks Manage

1.5::Ideate 101:
Network License Manager 

1.8::Revit 201:
Worksharing Best Practices

1.13::Ideate Software:

Auditing Your Revit Project with Ideate Explorer

Each class is designed to give you specific, improved results in a particular topic. You can interact with the instructor right from your own office, while eliminating travel time. Because the class schedule rotates, you can easily select your topics of interest and choose the day which best meets your schedule.

Click here for class descriptions, times and registration link. Questions? Contact education@ideateinc.com

Get It. Know It. Use It.

Classroom Training - Open Revit, Navisworks and Civil 3D Classes

Know It. Ideate Training.

Position yourself to land dream projects. Tap the full potential of your software solutions. Increase your facility, fluidity and capability to maximize the value of your precision software tools.

1.7-1.8::San Francisco
Navisworks Fundamentals

1.8::Portland
Revit Architecture Families

1.12-1.14::Seattle
Revit Architecture Fundamentals

1.19-1.21::Portland
Revit Architecture Fundamentals

1.26-1.28::Sacramento
Revit Architecture Fundamentals

1.26-1.28::San Jose
Civil 3D Fundamentals

Know your software. Sign up now! 

Contact the Ideate Training Department at 888.662.7238 x1012 or education@ideateinc.com

e-Learning - Upcoming Revit, Navisworks, Civil 3D and Ideate Software Classes

Join the Ideate Tech Experts for eLearning – live online classes that provide your entire organization with easy access to premium education.

12.16::Revit 201:
Working with Materials in Revit

12.22::Ideate Software:
Ideate BIMLink for Revit MEP Projects

12.23::Infrastructure 201:
Civil 3D - Settings and Styles

12.29::Revit 201:
Documenting Your Revit Project in Revit MEP

12.30::Navisworks 101:
Introduction to Navisworks Manage

1.5::Ideate 101:
Network License Manager 

1.8::Revit 201:
Worksharing Best Practice

1.13::Ideate Software:

Auditing Your Revit Project with Ideate Explorer

Each class is designed to give you specific, improved results in a particular topic. You can interact with the instructor right from your own office, while eliminating travel time. Because the class schedule rotates, you can easily select your topics of interest and choose the day which best meets your schedule.

Click here for class descriptions, times and registration link. Questions? Contact education@ideateinc.com

Get It. Know It. Use It.

Classroom Training - Open Revit, Navisworks and Civil 3D Classes

Know It. Ideate Training.

Position yourself to land dream projects. Tap the full potential of your software solutions. Increase your facility, fluidity and capability to maximize the value of your precision software tools.

1.7-1.8::San Francisco
Navisworks Fundamentals

1.8::Portland
Revit Architecture Families

1.12-1.14::Seattle
Revit Architecture Fundamentals

1.19-1.21::Portland
Revit Architecture Fundamentals

1.26-1.28::Sacramento
Revit Architecture Fundamentals

1.26-1.28::San Jose
Civil 3D Fundamentals

1.27-1.28::San Francisco
Revit MEP - Electrical Fundamentals

Know your software. Sign up now! 

Contact the Ideate Training Department at 888.662.7238 x1012 or education@ideateinc.com

Going from 2D to 3D Using Infraworks 360 and Autodesk AutoCAD Civil 3D with Raster Design

Have you ever thought about the difference a 3D model would make when compared to a 2D sketch or plan?  Using Autodesk AutoCAD Civil 3D and Infraworks 360 can take you from 2D to 3D in a matter of minutes, and it’s probably much easier than you think.

Recently, while researching a project for one of our customers, I came across a 2D proposed site plan on the internet and wanted to show that in 3D context using Infraworks 360.

Basically, I wanted to turn this:
  

into this:      

 

Although it seemed like an easy option, considering images can be used as an Infraworks data source, it did not go as smoothly as planned.  Because Infraworks 360 is a geographic coordinate driven database, data sources need some type of location data in order to understand where they belong in a model.  With most standard images, these coordinate files are not provided.

My first step was determining an accurate position for the standard non-coordinate based image.  The second step was then creating the coordinate file for the image that provided Infraworks 360 with the data it needed to use the image in my model.  I also wanted to use tools that were readily available in my current Autodesk products rather than going to an outside source to generate any additional data.

After a little bit of thinking, I realized that the combination of Autodesk AutoCAD Civil 3D, along with Raster Design and the new Geolocation feature would provide me with everything I needed to geolocate the image and generate a supplemental world (.TFW) file for the TIFF (.TIF) image that I wanted to use.  Once I had the world (.TFW) file, the image had all of the data it needed to be a valid Infraworks 360 data source.  This also works for JPEG (.JPG) files by generating the accompanying world (.JPW) file.

The project started out with a small planned development in the corner of two intersecting streets.  Locating and generating a preliminary model took about five minutes using Infraworks 360’s Model Builder feature.

 

 Preliminary Infraworks 360 Model Builder Data

 

I also had a preliminary site plan of the proposed development in .PDF format found on the internet (http://www.mspsinc.com/park-plaza-shops).

 

Park Plaza Shops (Main Street Property Services, Inc).

 

Converting the .PDF to an image file was not difficult to do.  Attempting to use the image as a data source is where I ran into the first issue.  Without a world file, attempting to use the image as a Raster data source in Infraworks 360 produced a quick (and very limited) error that simply said “Failed to Import Data.”  Not a lot of information is given there, but the reason is that the “Raster” data sources are organized into rows and columns that contain values (data) representing information associated with those cells.  Without the data, the plain image file did not meet the requirements of being a “Raster” image source.

In order to fix this, I needed to create the data that went along with the image, and for that I used Autodesk AutoCAD Civil 3D with Raster Design.
Because I had limited information on the project itself outside of the address, I started out with a blank Civil 3D drawing and an assigned coordinate system.  From there I used the Geolocation feature to download an aerial image of the project site in my drawing.  This gave me a geolocated visual reference of where the sketched image needed to be.

 

Autodesk AutoCAD Civil 3D Geolocation Aerial Image.

 

Once I had the aerial image in Civil 3D, it was relatively easy to insert the image, scale and rotate it into place using the ALIGN command.  One thing to note here is that it is an approximate location based on visual references.  Since my intent was to use this as part of a preliminary model in Infraworks 360, this level of accuracy was acceptable for that purpose.

 

Autodesk AutoCAD Civil 3D Drawing with Overlaid Tiff Image.

 

Now that everything was in place, all that was left was to export the Raster data from Civil 3D.  Using the ISAVEAS and IWORLDLOUT commands allowed me to save a new image and export the associated world file for that image containing the coordinate data provided by Civil 3D (this came from the coordinate system that was assigned to the drawing file).  These two files now provide the necessary data for the image to be used as a Raster data source in Infraworks 360.

Image (.TIF) and World (.TFW) Files Exported from Autodesk AutoCAD Civil 3D

Back in Infraworks 360, I went through the same process of importing Raster data, and this time everything went as expected.  After configuring the data source to assign the proper coordinate system, the image appeared as Ground Imagery in the model.

 Infraworks 360 Model with Custom Ground Imagery.

 

...And with another few minutes in Infraworks 360, I added some 3D features for more visual impact...

  

Infraworks 360 3D Site Plan

 

Using Infraworks 360 and Autodesk AutoCAD Civil 3D, I went from a 2D Site Plan to a 3D conceptual model in just a matter of minutes.  Next time you’re looking for something to take your proposals to the next dimension (2D to 3D!), consider Infraworks 360.

For more information on training and consulting for the various products Ideate services, visit our website at www.ideateinc.com

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Matt Miyamoto

Ideate ENI Manager & Senior Application Specialist

Matt is an ENI Manager and Senior Application Specialist in Ideate, Inc.’s Seattle office. He has a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering and is a licensed Civil Engineer. Prior to joining Ideate, Matt worked as a civil engineer, using Civil 3D on a variety of projects including site development, roadway improvements and infrastructure design. With over 10 years of experience in the civil engineering industry, Matt now provides training, consulting, technical support, and implementation strategies for organizations transitioning to Civil 3D. Matt is an Autodesk Certified Instructor (ACI), as well as an Autodesk Certified BIM Specialist: Roads and Highway Solutions. Additionally, Matt is and Autodesk Certified Professional for AutoCAD, and AutoCAD Civil 3D. He can be found on twitter as @MattM_PE

Get it. Know it. Use it.

 

e-Learning - Upcoming AutoCAD Civil 3D, Revit, Navisworks and Ideate Software Classes

Join the Ideate Tech Experts for eLearning – live online classes that provide your entire organization with easy access to premium education.

12.9::Ideate Software:
Revit Model Management with Ideate BIMLink

12.10::Ideate Software:
Auditing Your Revit Project with Ideate Explorer

12.15::Ideate Software:
Introduction to Ideate Sticky

12.16::Revit 201:
Working with Materials in Revit

12.22::Ideate Software:
Ideate BIMLink for Revit MEP Projects

12.23::Infrastructure 201:
Civil 3D - Settings and Styles

12.29::Revit 201:
Documenting Your Revit Project in Revit MEP

12.30::Navisworks 101:
Introduction to Navisworks Manage

Each class is designed to give you specific, improved results in a particular topic. You can interact with the instructor right from your own office, while eliminating travel time. Because the class schedule rotates, you can easily select your topics of interest and choose the day which best meets your schedule.

Click here for class descriptions, times and registration link. Questions? Contact education@ideateinc.com

Get It. Know It. Use It.

Classroom Training - Open AutoCAD, Revit and Navisworks Classes

Know It. Ideate Training.

Position yourself to land dream projects. Tap the full potential of your software solutions. Increase your facility, fluidity and capability to maximize the value of your precision software tools.

1.7-1.8::San Francisco
Navisworks Fundamentals

1.8::Portland
Revit Architecture Families

1.12-1.14::San Francisco
Revit Architecture Fundamentals

1.12-1.14::Sacramento
AutoCAD Fundamentals

1.12-1.14::Seattle
Revit Architecture Fundamentals

1.26-1.28::San Jose
Civil 3D Fundamentals

Know your software. Sign up now! 

Contact the Ideate Training Department at 888.662.7238 x1012 or education@ideateinc.com

Autodesk AutoCAD 2016 System Variable Monitor

 

As an Application Specialist at Ideate I provide technical support to our customers besides teaching and mentoring.   An occasional issue that AutoCAD users experience is a random change to a system variable. Interestingly, while mulling over what feature to blog about, I got a text message about the very same issue. A former coworker stated that his Open Drawing dialog box no longer pops up in Land Desktop 2006. All he gets is a command line prompt to enter the filename and path.  He couldn't remember the system variable. Do you know what system variable controls the appearance of the open drawing dialog?  If No, that's OK. I wouldn't remember if it did not "pop up" in tech support. It is FILEDIA. The value should be 1. It gets reset to 0 many times after a crash.

Well, with AutoCAD 2016 based products, you have a new helper that monitors whether those pesky system variables change on you.  It's appropriately called the System Variable Monitor.  How do you get to it?  Let's take a look.

Type SYSVARMONITOR in the command line (no ribbon icon) to bring up the System Variable Monitor Dialog. 

System Variable Monitor Dialog

You may notice that the setting for Enable balloon notification is unchecked.  This is the default. AutoCAD will notify you of a monitored variable change via the command line and through the appearance of an icon at the far right of your drawing status bar.

System Variable Monitor Icon Notification

This may be fine if a change occurs while you are in a drawing, but if the change occurs while AutoCAD is closing, you'll only see the icon.  Want a more obvious notification?  Then we need to enable balloon notification. 

Now we'll get "Warning Will Robinson…Warning!" when a change occurs…almost.

System Variable Changed Balloon Notification

 

Several common system variables are already in the monitored list, including our friend FILEDIA.  You can add other system variables by selecting the Edit List button.  Then select the desired variable from the left pane. Select the highlighted chevron to add it to the monitored list and hit then OK.

Edit System Variable List Dialog

With the new System Variable Monitor in AutoCAD 2016, you can be confident that you won't be pulling your hair out and wasting time when FILEDIA or another variable changes on you.  That's good news. Now, if I can only convince my former coworker to upgrade from 2006 to 2016. 

 

Autodesk AutoCAD 2016 System Variable Monitor

 

Thank you for reading. For more information on AutoCAD and other Autodesk products, and information on training and consulting for the various products Ideate services, visit our website at www.ideateinc.com.
 

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Daniel Armstrong

 

ENI Application Specialist

Daniel is an Application Specialist for Infrastructure Solutions at the Ideate Sacramento office. He is a California licensed Civil Engineer and LSIT with over 9 years land development design experience and 6 years Civil–GIS software consulting. Additionally, he provided 6 years of engineering support at a municipal public works department. At Ideate, Daniel assists Civil Engineering and Surveying firms in maximizing their utilization of AutoCAD Civil 3D through consulting, training, mentoring, and technical support. He conducts standard classroom and custom training on AutoCAD, Map 3D, and Civil 3D.
 

Webcast: Collaborate with Design and Construction using Advance Steel - Dec 9

 

Register for this webcast to learn how: 

• Revit steel design accuracy and libraries have been enhanced to help generate more accurate and reliable data exchanges with fabricators and contractors. This also includes discussing recommended modeling best practices for engineers when sharing models downstream. 
• Revit and Advance Steel work together to improve collaboration between design and detailing. The bidirectional integration makes it faster and more transparent to synchronize changes between Advance Steel and Revit. 
• Navisworks Simulate can help you as a steel contractor better estimate, coordinate and plan your steel project while also improve communication with the general contractor. 

Date: Wednesday, December 9th 

Time: 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm

Information: sales@ideateinc.com or call 888.662.7238 

REGISTER TODAY!

About the Presenters:  

Julio Alfaro – has joined the Fabrication team as a Structural Steel Fabrication Specialist based in Los Angeles. With this role, Julio will be focused on driving adoption of Advance Steel into the Territory and Named Accounts for North America. 

Julio has over 12 years of experience in the structural steel detailing and fabrication industry. His previous roles and experience include designing and detailing observation decks, structural fabricated wall panels, electrical panels and most recently with sheet metal detailing in the sheet metal industry. He is a graduate of ITT Technical Institute with an emphasis in digital design and drafting and is well versed in Solidworks, Tekla, Inventor and of course Advance Steel. 

Julio currently lives in California with his 18 year old daughter Xena. Spare time is spent with family members, friends, food, music and dancing. 

Bill Johnson – Senior Application Specialist MEP/AEC Solutions 

Bill has over 25 years experience in applying MEP & AEC design solutions for large commercial companies, this has led to actively develop Autodesk® Revit® implementation strategies, techniques, and procedures for architectural and MEP companies. He has worked for TEECOM Design Group, GTE/GTEL, Greg LeDoux and Associates, and Scottish Power in England. Bill is an Autodesk MEP Implementation Certified Expert, and has been the Lead Designer for several multimillion dollar communication sites which have included structural, electrical, HVAC, conduit, cable plans and equipment layouts. He graduated from the Pasadena Institute of Technology and has a Sustainable Design Certification from the University of California at Berkeley.

Ideate, Inc. and Modulus Consulting Enter into Partnership to Offer Deeper Bench of BIM Services and Solutions

PRESS RELEASE

Contact: marketing@ideateinc.com

San Francisco, CA, 12/2/2015 – Ideate Inc., a multi-decade veteran Autodesk Developer Network member and Autodesk Platinum Value Added Reseller (VAR) today announced that it is entering into a partnership with San Francisco-based Modulus Consulting.

Modulus provides BIM guidance, support, and services to building project teams. A long-time industry ally of Ideate Software, Modulus specializes in BIM Consulting, BIM Coordination, Architectural & Structural Modeling, MEPS Systems Modeling, Laser Scanning (LiDAR), and in-sourced BIM support. 

Bob Palioca, President of Ideate Inc. and Ideate Software, said, “Our mission for 33 years as a trusted VAR has been about empowering our customers with tools and training so they can make the transition to BIM and succeed. Our new partnership with Modulus will now enable us to offer our clients superior project assistance, broadening our effectiveness. Modulus performs extremely valuable services and I’ve been referring customers to them for years.” 

He added, “While Ideate will remain Ideate, and Modulus will remain Modulus, we are confident that we will complement each other in bringing a deep bench of BIM services and solutions to the Architecture, Engineering, and Construction (AEC) community.” 

“Bob is a trusted and respected leader in our industry,” said Peter Michealsen, Managing Principal of Modulus Consulting. “Modulus is excited to bring on a partner with a long history of serving and supporting the technology side of the AEC community in ways that perfectly complement our own services and support. Ideate's expertise in BIM software development, implementation and training, together with Modulus' expertise in BIM production and project support, offer a more complete solution for our clients.” 

“Modulus continues to be independent with respect to software; we will not be selling or developing software and we will always use and recommend the tools we think are best for each specific job,” he added. 

Staff members from the two companies will gather together at an Ideate Inc.-hosted Customer Appreciation and Holiday Party event at the Autodesk Gallery on December 17th.

About Ideate, Inc.
Ideate, Inc. is a leading Autodesk Authorized Developer with 25+ years’ experience in Revit software development and specific focus on Building Information Modeling (BIM). As an Autodesk solutions provider, Ideate has offered quality software, training, support and custom consulting services to the architectural, engineering and construction (AEC) industries since 1992. Headquartered in San Francisco, California and operating Autodesk Authorized Training Centers (ATCs) in California, Oregon and Washington, Ideate is recognized as an Autodesk Platinum Partner for Architecture, Engineering and Construction, Autodesk’s highest level of authorization.

About Ideate Software
Ideate Software allows Revit users to have unprecedented control over their data. Ideate BIMLink, Ideate Explorer for Revit, and Ideate Sticky were all developed to solve persistent problems in Architecture, Engineering, and Construction (AEC) workflows. Ideate Software solutions enable Revit users to save time, increase accuracy, improve project deliverables, and elevate design.

About Modulus Consulting
Modulus Consulting is a San Francisco-based consulting firm with branch offices in Oakland, CA, Portland, OR, and Washington D.C., specializing in the practice and implementation of Building Information Modeling, or BIM. Modulus has supported hundreds of projects from small tenant improvements to multi-billion dollar hospitals. Founded in 2010, the company provides guidance, support and services to building project teams across the country.

Autodesk, Autodesk Revit and ATC are registered trademarks or trademarks of Autodesk, Inc., and/or its subsidiaries and/or affiliates in the USA and/or other countries. 

Microsoft Excel is a registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and other countries. All other brand names, product names or trademarks belong to their respective holders. 

# # #

Civil 3d 2016 Link to a Data Shortcut Dialog Box

Here at Ideate, I’ve been looking over the new features in Civil 3D 2016. There is a new dialog box “Link to a Data Shortcut” which makes updating and using data shortcuts even easier.

You can find this new function on the manage tab in the data shortcuts panel, as seen below. 

Image: Select the Manage Data Shortcuts button to access the Link to a Data Shortcut dialog box

You can use this box to see repair data shortcuts and to replace data shortcuts.

It’s most useful improvement is to replace drawing objects with a different data shortcut. As an example, let’s say you have a corridor built on one alternative of a road alignment. The alignment comes from a data shortcut. The same road has a few other alignment alternatives in the file that has the original alignment. You’d like to switch the alignment in the corridor to a different alternative for analysis. In previous versions of the Civil 3D you would have to create a data reference for the alternative alignment and then recreate the corridor, which is a multi-step process. 

Now you can simply replace the alignment that the corridor was made with the other alignment through the Link to a Data Short Cut dialog box. The column on the left represents the objects that exist in the drawing. The column on the right are the objects in the data short cut project. You simply select the alignment on the left that you’d like to replace. You then select the alignment on the right that you’d like to replace it with and you select the link button in the middle. This replaces the old alignment with the new one and the corridor is automatically updated. Refer to the image below.



Image: Link to data shortcut dialog box being used to replace an alignment.

 For more information on training and consulting for the various products Ideate services, visit our website at www.ideateinc.com

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Kate Ming

AEC Application Specialist

Kate is a California licensed civil engineer with a BS in Civil and Environmental Engineering from UC Berkeley. Prior to Ideate, she worked at a multinational company for four years doing general civil design on large infrastructure projects. She is versed in roadway, rail, utility design and site development. She also has experience with utility demand analysis and Low Impact Development plans. As a Civil 3D Autodesk Certified Professional Kate provides training and support for Civil 3D, AutoCAD, and InfraWorks.