This article captures some of the news and updates from Autodesk that it shared at its recent flagship user event, Autodesk University, including the new A360 Collaboration for Revit to better support cloud-based collaboration among multiple team members working on the same model, and its new Ember 3D printer, developed as a prototype implementation for its open-source 3D printing platform, Spark. It also looks at the highlights of some of the most interesting presentations in the AEC-specific “innovation forums” at the event , including the evolution of technology implementation at HOK; the extensive use of AEC technology on Disney’s Enchanted Storybook Castle in Shanghai by Walt Disney Imagineering; an innovative robotic-enabled solution to maximize energy captured in solar installations by QBotix; and the use of digitized Lego blocks by the MIT Media Lab in city visualization, analysis, and simulation.

URL: http://www.aecbytes.com/newsletter/2014/issue_72.html

This article provides an overview of the highlights of Bentley’s annual Year in Infrastructure conference that was held in London last month, including key technology updates from Bentley on its new CONNECT generation of software, additional presentations on different aspects of infrastructure technology by organizations and firms all over the world, and a guest keynote on the new High Speed Rail project proposed for London on which the use of BIM is being seen as the “lifeblood” of the project. The conference also included presentations of all the projects selected as finalists for the Bentley “Be Inspired” awards in different categories, which will be described in a dedicated article in the upcoming Q4 issue of AECbytes magazine.

URL: http://www.aecbytes.com/newsletter/2014/issue_71.html

3D laser scanning technology is increasingly becoming a standard tool relied upon by a number of diverse trades and professions from construction to archaeology. This article by Kevin Nelson, who works extensively with this technology, uses real-world examples to show how capturing “snap-shots” of conditions before (pre-construction), during (construction), and after (post-construction) project phases can provide extremely useful scan data. He also envisions a future when laser scanning technology will become ubiquitous and will be paired with virtual reality to provide a totally immersive VR experience, blurring the lines between past and present.

URL: http://www.aecbytes.com/buildingthefuture/2014/PointClouds.html

One of the technology catch-phrases that we are increasingly starting to hear more about is the “Internet of Things”—commonly understood as the notion that at some point in the near future, all devices will be Internet-enabled and able to communicate with each other. While this can certainly be used to make buildings with smarter controls and sensors so that they are more responsive to their occupants once they are designed, built, and inhabited, can the “Internet of Things” also be applied in the building design and construction phases? Can it help to make the tasks of AEC professionals simpler, smarter, and more efficient? It is precisely such questions that this article sets out to explore.

URL: http://www.aecbytes.com/buildingthefuture/2014/InternetofThings.html

This article captures the semi-annual update of the main developments from AEC technology vendors including new releases such as Vectorworks Architect 2015, Newforma Project Center Eleventh Edition, form•Z 8, and Vico Office R5, which is now a Trimble product. It also looks at the dramatic news of Trimble acquiring Gehry Technologies; the entry of Dassault Systèmes into the AEC industry with its “Façade Design for Fabrication” tool; VisualARQ, a Rhino plug-in that gives it BIM capabilities, enabling this very popular application for conceptualizing buildings with complex, organic forms to fit more smoothly in an AC workflow; progeCAD Architecture, an IntelliCAD-based application that allows a BIM model to be created in a familiar AutoCAD-like environment; the release of the free version of BIMReview, which allows models to be opened, reviewed, and visualized for design coordination; and finally, the introduction of real-time daylighting visualization and analysis in Sefaira’s Revit plug-in tool.

URL: http://www.aecbytes.com/newsletter/2014/issue_70.html

It has been close to three years that Autodesk launched its cloud initiative called Autodesk 360 to serve as the umbrella for all its cloud-based services, (not just for AEC but for the MCAD and the M&E industries as well). The platform also has a project management and collaboration tool at its front end, which until now, was available as a technology preview, free for anyone to try out. Last week, Autodesk launched the commercial release of its cloud offering, now called A360. This article explores the interface and functionality of the rebranded product—the platform as well as the tool—and looks at how it compares to other cloud-based project management and collaboration solutions in AEC.

URL: http://www.aecbytes.com/feature/2014/Autodesk_A360.html

This article discusses some of the questions related to architecture and performance that emerged at the recent PER/FORM Live Design Competition held at Pratt Institute’s Manhattan campus in May, where competitors were tasked with designing a multi-family residential building that was judged on both energy and daylight performance as well as beauty, conceptual strength, and contextual appropriateness. It provides an overview of the winning designs as well as highlights the three very different approaches to achieving both excellent performance and high design that were in evidence in the competition entries: performance as subservient to design, design as subservient to performance, and performance as a partner in design.

URL: http://www.aecbytes.com/buildingthefuture/2014/ArchPerform.html

Now that BIM has conquered the building industry and is here to stay, this article explores the application of the same “information modeling” concept to infrastructure, where all the individual components making up a city’s infrastructure are represented by intelligent data-rich 3D models that carry information about themselves and their relationship to other components. It also looks at Autodesk’s infrastructure modeling products, in particular at AutoCAD Civil 3D and the newer InfraWorks, a conceptual urban modeling tool that has the potential to create intelligent city models that can support analysis and evaluation of different urban design criteria.

URL: http://www.aecbytes.com/feature/2014/BIMforInfrastructure.html

This article looks at the new field management apps in Newforma’s Mobile Apps suite for accessing and enhancing project information through smartphones and tablets, as well as the enhancements to Newforma Project Cloud, the web-based construction management and collaboration software for connecting project team members across all disciplines. These developments are the latest in a roadmap of extended improvements to the overall Newforma solution for project information management, intended to ensure that team members are always working with current project information, whether they’re in the field, in the office, or in the job trailer.

URL: http://www.aecbytes.com/feature/2014/Newforma_Apps_Cloud.html

This article provides an overview of what’s new with the just-released 2015 Autodesk portfolio of products for building design and construction. The improvements include expanding the capabilities of FormIt and Dynamo, which Autodesk now refers to as “conceptual BIM” and “computational BIM” respectively; extending the scope and scale of Revit, including the ability to connect the design with fabrication and construction; enhancing the point cloud capabilities across all of Autodesk’s modeling products; providing better support for preconstruction; tighter integration with Autodesk cloud services; and improved analysis and simulation using the building model.

URL: http://www.aecbytes.com/newsletter/2014/issue_69.html