With BIM centered around Civil 3D, DOTs like this one can focus on an entire project lifecycle.

In a project example, Weiss looked at a section of state highway that needed to be evaluated. First they assimilate data using Map3D, using different types of data. The data shows traffic accidents in a particular place, which offers a good case for making roadway changes in that location. FDO providers in the 2011 release make it possible to access more types of information.

Laser scanning was also used to bring into Civil 3D in a LAS file. In the detailed design phase, transportation industry respondents said 3D modeling will have the greatest impact on the future, as it offers model based design with intelligent information.

What is needed for roadway design:

• Rule based, intelligent objects that work together.
• Super elevation allows the driver to travel at speeds, and standards are set by states according to weather. The software walks the user through calculation.
• Different options for how it is computed.

New features include -

• Location of full super elevation
• New graphical editing -
• Corridor editing -
• Modify frequencies, also can match parameters
• Ability to work with DGN files, ability to work more seamlessly with information in DGN files.

Civil Visualization Extension for visualization is used to sell projects. “Intersections and interchanges and drainage are all difficult to design without visualization,” said Weiss.

Dynamite VSP exporter is used for Civil 3D. Also Navisworks 2011 provides project review, real time environment for how the project will look. 3ds Max can be added to the Civil 3D model.

Summary

With 20% unemployment among architects this year, it is not surprising to see some of the changes in Autodesk's line of products. Although Autodesk had good Q1 results, they have suffered a drop in subscriptions and are making an effort to boost those numbers, particularly with offering free products with subscription.

The company's vision of some years ago seems to be coming to fruition, at least in the minds of decision makers - a focus on workflow rather than on individual products. Products such as Navisworks, 3ds Max, FDO, Revit, Map 3D and Civil 3D are looping their way into various industry sectors that they may not have previously touched. It's still unclear how much growth one can attribute to individual products other than basic AutoCAD, as the company doesn't have figures on just how many seats of other products there might be in their customer companies. Yet new case studies confirm the use of multiple products in productive workflows, showing promise …and significant savings.

Top News of the Week

Autodesk, Inc. announced that several Autodesk Developer Network (ADN) members have released companion solutions for Revit Architecture 2011 and AutoCAD Civil 3D 2011. ADN developers reconfigure Autodesk software for niche industries, providing customized products that streamline design efficiency, innovation and sustainability.

ShareNow is a group of add-ins for Autodesk products. These add-ins publish a design from AutoCAD, Inventor, Inventor LT, Revit, or Design Review to the Project Freewheel server. With one click of the ShareNow icon, your design application publishes a DWF file of your current design, uploads it to Project Freewheel, and invokes your browser with a view of your design. You can then leverage all of the benefits that Project Freewheel has to offer - without installing additional software. Collaborate with your team members on Microsoft Windows, Apple Macintosh OSX, or Linux.

In a project that exemplifies the genius of great design and the power of great design software, the $68 million Theory and Computing Sciences Building at Argonne National Laboratory was designed by just two architects using ArchiCAD Building Information Modeling (BIM) software.

Alliances, Agreements, Acquisitions

Meridian Systems, the Plan-Build-Operate technology solutions leader for project-based organizations, announced a new Independent Software Vendor (ISV) relationship with BuildSite, a single source of product, technical, procurement, and green building product information for the construction industry. BuildSite also provides software that allows the creation of fully electronic project submittals to be tied directly to construction specifications.

GRAITEC, a major worldwide developer for analysis and detailing software Tehnicke Konstrukcije announced a new strategic distribution agreement with Tehnicke Konstrukcije d.o.o., a Croatian civil engineering design company headquartered in Zagreb. The partnership agreement signed between the two companies entitles Tehnicke Konstrukcije d.o.o. to promote, distribute and support the Advance Suite product line in Croatia.

BASF SE has renewed its Global Alliance Agreement (GAA) with Intergraph for SmartPlant Enterprise engineering software over the next three years.

Announcements

The American Institute of Architects (AIA) announced that it has added six new documents, including three sub-contractor forms, to AIA Documents-on-Demand™, bringing the total documents available through this service to 22. AIA Documents-on-Demand is a Web-based service for both PC and MAC users that grants easy online access to download, electronically fill out and print 22 of the most popular AIA Contract Documents anytime, anywhere with access to the Internet and a printer.

A majority of firms are considering a possible merger or acquisition in the next five years, according to ZweigWhite's 2010 Merger & Acquisition Survey of Architecture, Engineering, Planning & Environmental Consulting Firms. While the percentage of firms reporting that they are currently considering an acquisition, sale, or merger declined from 2009, the report also finds that three-quarters of firms responding to the survey say that that their strategic plans involve a merger and/or acquisition within the next five years.

Awards

Deltek, Inc. announced that it has received the 2009 MarketTools CustomerSat Achievement in Customer Excellence (ACE) Award. The accolade demonstrates Deltek's long-standing commitment to delivering unmatched customer service to its diverse, global customer base. Deltek had previously been a recipient of the MarketTools CustomerSat ACE Award in 2007 and 2008. People Autodesk, Inc. announced that Mary T. McDowell, Nokia's executive vice president and chief development officer leading Corporate Development, has been appointed to Autodesk's board of directors.

Intergraph has named Jeff Robertson as vice president and general manager of its U.S. public safety business unit.

Robertson will be responsible for Intergraph's public safety solution sales and services delivery in the United States. Intergraph's public safety solutions are trusted by police, fire and EMS agencies worldwide for coordinated response to emergency and non-emergency incidents.

New Products

To help organizations chart the most efficient course to maximize the enterprise value of investments such as capital projects, software and systems development, new acquisitions and products, Oracle announced the availability of Oracle's Primavera Portfolio Management 8.

The new release enables organizations to intelligently govern the selection of the optimal project or other investment portfolios, and successfully execute on all the selected projects and investments.

Enabling organizations to drive business process innovation, Oracle announced Oracle's AutoVue 20.0.

AutoVue Enterprise Visualization is the industry leading solution for viewing, reviewing and collaborating on asset and engineering documents and information across the global enterprise.

The latest major release introduces a new architecture that scales with an organization's evolving enterprise requirements and more efficiently serves the document visualization and collaboration needs of enterprise and desktop users.

A new joint venture between energy software specialists Integrated Environmental Solutions and global construction consultants Davis Langdon goes live to coincide with the new CRC regulations coming into force. The two firms have collaborated in the development of a new online platform - Carbon Assessor - designed to empower owners and managers of large building portfolios with a simple way of gathering and analyzing energy data, and complying with the new CRC (Carbon Reduction Commitment) regulations. Supporting consulting services on associated aspects of corporate carbon management and strategy are also available to organizations.