ASCENT Blog

Using the Space Naming Utility in Autodesk Revit MEP

by Martha Hollowell

It makes a lot of sense for the names and numbers of spaces in the Autodesk® Revit® MEP software to match the room names and numbers in the architect’s model. However, if there are hundreds of rooms it can take way too long to type in each one. That is why the subscription service bundle for the Autodesk Revit software includes the Space Naming Utility.  This is worth its weight in productivity gold when used with Place Spaces Automatically. To help you use it well, here is a cool hack that helps you identify spaces without room names as you match the spaces to rooms.

• Don’t forget, before adding spaces you need to set the linked architectural model to Room Bounding in Type Properties.

 

How to use the Space Naming Utility with Place Spaces Automatically

1. Click  (Space).
2. Click inside the first space in the floor plan.
3. Click (Modify) and, in Properties, change the Number to X-1 (or whatever you want to use).
4. Click (Space) again and, in the Modify | Place Space tab>Spaces panel, click  (Place Spaces Automatically).
5. The spaces are created.

 
6.  Click .

7.  In the Add-Ins tab> External panel, expand (External Tools) and select Space Naming Utility. (You need to load it through the Subscription program before doing this.)

8. In the Autodesk Revit MEP Space Naming Utility dialog box,  set the options as needed and click .

9. Roll your cursor over one of the spaces. You can see that it now matches the name of the corresponding room.

Why did I recommend that you name the first space before applying the spaces automatically? Take a look at part of a space schedule created from this example.

Because spaces are placed in every possible location, including many that are not “rooms” (such as plenums and shafts), it helps to separate them as you add the spaces. To do so, number the spaces with a sequence that you know is not used by the architects (such as X-1). Therefore, there is no question about where there are spaces rather than rooms. Using 
(Highlight in Model) these spaces can quickly be reviewed and renamed.

Repeat this process for each of the levels in the project.

Make your job easier by using all of the available tools, including Place Spaces Automatically, the Space Naming Utility, and schedules.

Autodesk University - Where learning happens even outside of the classroom.

By Michelle Rasmussen

Autodesk University is the world's largest annual gathering of design professionals, industry experts, and Autodesk executives. The four-day event combines a comprehensive learning environment with a trade show and a mix of business and social activities- all designed to help attendees succeed by learning new skills and building valuable business relationships. A lot of
learning takes place in the 847 classes taught by over 800 speakers but even more learning happens on the showroom floor and in between classes.

ASCENT has a big presence at Autodesk University where we have sponsored the Autodesk Training Center Summit where instructors and training center managers come together to learn how training and learning is changing just as fast as the technology they teach.  For the remainder of the conference, everyone is welcome to drop by the ASCENT booth (#703) in the ATC Pavilion or the certification lab to check out our books, talk to instuctors and give us your feedback.  If there is something specific you would like to hear about, leave me a note here and I will reply.

That time of year again! AU 2012

By Jennifer MacMillan

Here it is the Friday before AU 2012. Just seems like yesterday that I got back from last year’s conference. As in the past six years, ASCENT has had a presence at AU and this year is no different. I wanted to summarize a little about what we will be “Showcasing” (no pun intended!) this year.

NEW Autodesk Official Training Guides    

• Autodesk^® Showcase^® 2013 Fundamentals
• AutoCAD^® Civil 3D^® 2013 Grading
• Autodesk^® Revit^® 2013 for Project Managers

Other exciting AU 2012 news:

• As I mentioned on my last webcast I have been working on a new Autodesk^® Inventor^® 2013 iLogic training guide. We will have a draft preview of this training guide available on the iPads in our booth in the exhibit hall. Please come by and ask us about it.
• ASCENT is providing iPads and hard copy training guides in the Certification Prep lab for individuals looking to take AutoCAD, AutoCAD Civil 3D, Autodesk Inventor, or Autodesk Revit certification exams at AU. The iPads will be loaded with copies of our training guides in ebook format. How cool is that!
• Michelle Rasmussen, and myself were selected this year to teach classes at AU. Unfortunately we are in a competing time slot (Thursday, 8am) but we would love to see you, if you have an opening. Michelle will be teaching about dynamic blocks, how they can be a powerful and useful tool for creating reusable and changeable content for your drawings (AC2470). Paul Burden will be joining me to host a round table discussion on strategies for teaching Autodesk Suites (CM3227-R).

I very much enjoy talking to our customers, please feel free to come and say Hi. On Monday we will be available at the ATC Summit. For the remainder of the conference, everyone is welcome to drop by the ASCENT booth (#703) in the ATC Pavilion.

See you in Vegas!

New AutoCAD Civil 3D Grading Book From ASCENT Coming Soon!

By Michelle Rasmussen

Training adults can be tricky sometimes because they usually have specific problems they are trying to solve by attending training.  As an instructor, solving these problems presents a challenge when each student in the classroom has a different problem to solve and may require different tools to solve them. For years, we have been teaching students in AutoCAD Civil 3D classes how to grade projects using only grading objects.  Unfortunately, grading objects do not solve every grading problem.

That is why we are proud to present a new AutoCAD Civil 3D course specifically for grading.  Civil 3D Grading covers a wide variety of grading solutions including: Parcel Grading, Building Pad Design, Parking Lot Design, Pond Design, Lagoon Design, and Visualization. It continues to work through the same project as ASCENT’s AutoCAD Civil 3D Fundamental’s course released earlier this year and gets  into some complex grading solutions.

It starts by introducing parcel, feature line, and survey figure geometry editing and elevation editing tools to grade a subdivision.  Then it introduces you to grading objects and various ways to use them in order to work more efficiently.  You will take advantage of temporary surfaces, complex  grading groups, and other tools to go from the existing ground surface, shown in the first image below, to the finished ground surface, shown in the second image below.

 

Existing Ground Surface

Finished Ground Surface

You will work through exercises that grade lots with walk about basements, a parking lot with retaining walls next to the building to accommodate entrance to the building at the second level. The parking lot then transitions to a gradual slope on the opposite side and grades out to the existing ground.  Finally, you provide two options to the client for a pond on the west side of the project.  The first option uses a complex grading group and is shown in the first image below.  The second option uses corridors and other tools to provide the most complex grading solution, shown in the second image below. 

Complex Grading Groups for Pond Grading

 

Corridors and other tools for Lagoon Grading

Look for a preview of this book at Autodesk University. 

5 Reasons to consider Software Simulations for PLM Training

By Barb Nash

When implementing or upgrading PLM software, some companies are using software simulations in their PLM training for effective end-user training to help ensure that the new business processes are successfully adopted. Software product simulations can allow a user to learn a company’s
processes and best practices in an interactive and focused environment, without needing to install software or maintain a training database. Below are 5 reasons to consider incorporating software simulations into your PLM training and  eLearning plans:

 1 – Provides Interaction

• Similar to working with the actual software a student can work through hands-on exercises and if incorrect selections are made, feedback is provided.
• Steps can be shown throughout as a reminder of where a student is within the process or exercise.
• Tips and best practice notes can be shown to reinforce important concepts.
• Questions can be incorporated throughout to confirm comprehension.

Click here to see a sample of a software simulated practice from ASCENT’s Vault 2013: Data Management for Inventor Users course.

2 – No Training Database to maintain

• Software Simulations do not require a specific database, which is typically required for PLM software training.
• Reduces cost of maintaining either local or shared training databases.
• Prevents unwanted modifications to the training database.

 3 – Allows for Repetition   

• Can repeat steps using navigation controls compared to it being difficult in live PLM training when working with versions and revisions unless you reset the database.
• Repetition can help learners familiarize themselves with processes, such as Engineering Change Management procedures.
• Can repeat procedures until they make sense to the student.
• Can go to a specific task when needed or at a future date for review purposes.

 4 – Provides a Focused Learning Environment

• Since the student is provided with a simulated environment, they cannot select incorrect options that could change the object in the database, making it difficult to undo.
• Helps keep students focused on the task at hand instead of being tempted to select options not related to the concept being taught that could possibly affect the outcome of the task.
• Helps minimize support calls or questions to instructors when something isn’t working due to a student's specific environment.

 5 – No installation required of PLM or CAD integration software

• The PLM software along with any integrated CAD software doesn’t have to be installed.
• A student can take the training anytime,anywhere.
• A student can also use any device as the software simulation can be published to the web, desktops, YouTube, mobile devices and Learning Management Systems (LMS).

ASCENT's self-paced Vault 2013: Data Management for Inventor Users course in the ProductivityNOW portal contains software simulations for its exercises and is available to anyone with access to that course. Students do the guided exercises directly in their browser on the ProductivityNOW site as if they are using the Vault software.

I will be attending Autodesk University this year. If you are too, please join me for a mind-boggling game of Out of the Vault and test your knowledge of Vault concepts at the ATC Pavilion on Tuesday, November 27^th at 9:05 p.m. At other times I’ll be in the ASCENT booth at the AU Bookstore in Exhibit Hall, Booth #703. Hope to meet you there!

Viewing 3D Models in AutoCAD Architecture 2013

By Lisa Kemp

When I work in the AutoCAD^® Architecture software I often need to switch from 2D to 3D views. Students can find this useful for understanding how their 2D floor plan is going to look in 3D and how that affects how they place elements, such as windows and doors. For example, I can draw walls and add windows and doors in a 2D plan view and then switch to a 3D view to see how they look and modify them as needed. The ViewCube and the preset views that are supplied with the software can be used to do this. I can then use Visual Styles to change the shading in the drawing to display the objects more clearly when they are in 3D. To be more efficient when switching from 2D to 3D, I create custom views. This enables me to have a number of 3D views of the same 2D element and to switch between them quickly.

To quickly display the drawing in 3D, I usually select one of the preset views, such as SW Isometric, NE Isometric, Front, or Right. I can also use the ViewCube to quickly switch between preset views, or click and drag on it to rotate the model. Alternatively, I can hold down <Shift> and use the scroll wheel on the mouse to orbit the model until it displays the view that shows the elements that I want to see.

 

When I first switch to a 3D view it can be difficult to interpret the model because the default display is a wireframe view. So I select one of the standard visual styles such as Hidden or Conceptual to see the model more clearly. I can still modify the model, no matter which visual style has been selected.

 

To change the visual style I usually go to the View tab>Visual Styles tab, expand the Visual Styles control, and select a style. I like this list because it includes a preview of how the model is going to be displayed. Alternatively, I could go to the Home tab>View panel, expand the Visual Styles button, and select one of the styles.

Once I have orbited and zoomed the model to get the required display, I can save it as a custom view. This can be done by right-clicking on the ViewCube and selecting Set Current View as Home. This is a quick method but only creates a temporary view, which is overwritten the next time the option is used.

When I want to create a number of custom views, I go to the View tab>Appearance panel, expand the Preset View Control and select View Manager… When the View Manager dialog box opens, I click the New button to open the New View/Shot Properties dialog box. Then I enter a custom name for the view, set the Boundary to use the current display in the drawing window or click the Define View Window button to select a different view of the model. I accept the defaults for the other settings in the dialog box and then click the OK button to create the custom view. This method enables me to create and save multiple custom views, which I find to be the more useful way to work as they are always available to me.

Using the preset and custom views can make switching from 2D to 3D views very easy. Being able to create custom views saves a lot of time when I need to frequently switch from 2D to 3D and don’t want to use the preset views and have to zoom and orbit to where I had been every time. It is also useful when learning how to use the AutoCAD Architecture software in that it makes it easier to understand elements, such as walls, doors, and windows, are going to look in both 2D and 3D.

Are you Certified in Civil 3D?

Now that Autodesk University (AU) 2012 registrations are open people are starting to think about certification preparation.  The biggest reason clients want to prepare for certification right before AU is that Autodesk provides free certification exams at AU.  How, then, do you get clients prepared for certification exams?

The best thing you can do to prepare students in your classes for certification is to become certified yourself.  In doing so you will become familiar with what is on the exams so that you know what objectives in your class to focus more attention on.  As you are preparing for the certification exams there are a number of tools available from Autodesk to help you prepare. 

If you teach from ASCENT books, we have also mapped exam objectives to our books to help you know which sections need extra attention in the classroom as shown here. 

 You can find a complete list of objectives in the Appendix as shown in the figure below. 

A list of ASCENT exam preparation road maps can be found at: http://ascented.com/courseware-solutions/autodesk/autodesk-certification/overview.aspx

Last but not least, watch the free AU virtual classes that have to do with certification preparation.  Featured are some great instructors that have helped a number of people become certified just from taking their class at previous AU events.  http://au.autodesk.com/?nd=certification#online_preparation_classes

As always, I would love to hear if either the ASCENT material or the free AU Virtual videos helped you pass your certification exam.

Teaching the new Stair Assemblies in Autodesk Revit Architecture 2013

By Martha Hollowell

By now you have probably discovered the new stair assembly method of creating stairs that came out in 2013. But, don’t despair; the old way is still there, you just don’t want to emphasize it anymore. Instead of giving you yet another step by step on how to create assembled stairs I thought I would gather a few tips and tricks together that can help you teach this new tool.

First of all it helps to outline the components of the stair as shown below. Then, when the students click the Stair command and move to the busy ribbon with all its options they will at least have a clue about what they are looking at.

 

Work within at least 2 views so that you can see the stairs as you are creating them. As you complete each run it displays in the 3D as shown below.

Judge your audience. If you don’t have any residential designers in the class they probably won’t be drawing winder stairs (as shown below). If you don’t need them… don’t teach them. The same is true with spiral stairs. There are plenty of things you can teach about the basic stair runs.

 

 

Do teach all of the shape handle controls, such as those shown below, which are great for manipulating runs and landings. Additionally, show how you can use Modify tools such as Align, Mirror, Move, Rotate, and Copy on runs while you are still in the Create Stair Assembly mode.

 

 

Finally, (though there are plenty of other tips out there) show how to convert custom components into a sketch. This is most helpful for landings and odd shaped stair runs. When working with runs make sure the students remember to extend all of the riser lines (as shown below), when that is needed.

 

Have fun teaching and working with stair assemblies.

By Martha Hollowell

 

Citius - Altius - Fortius

By Elvis R. Sverko

With the start of the Games of the XXX Olympiad today, let’s take a look at a way to make your CAD usage Faster - Higher - Stronger.

With many designers using various 3D solid modeling software packages to create their designs, it would be nice to be able to bring any of them into one package to create 2D drawings. With the latest release of AutoCAD, you can directly import various 3D types of files, such as Autodesk Inventor, SolidWorks, CATIA, Pro/Engineer, NX, Parasolid, Rhino, IGES, and STEP. Simply use the Import button on the Insert tab of the Ribbon. You can then freely modify the data using standard editing tools. It’s a great way to bring models of all different types to play together.

 

To create your 2D drawings Faster, if your design team uses Inventor to design in 3D, you can create the 2D drawings automatically in AutoCAD using the Base View From Inventor command found on the Layout tab of the Ribbon. With this command, you place a base view of any orientation of the 3D model.

Taking this command Higher, you also can select a specific Representation of the Inventor model, and then create projected views (right, top, isometric, etc.) of the same model. All instantly. All automatically. You can even create other drawing views from these initial views, including section views and detail views.

Even Stronger, these drawing views in AutoCAD can be automatically updated if the original Inventor model is modified. Simply use the Update commands on the Layout tab of the Ribbon, and all drawing views (base, projected, section, detail) update to show the modifications, and any annotation updates along with it. Now that’s a win-win for everyone.

Educators and instructors should also be aware of these capabilities with AutoCAD, because your students might come from various places using various 3D design software packages, and these AutoCAD tools, like the Olympics, brings all people together.

With some competitions, everyone is a winner, including all the spectators who are in attendance at some events. Because of AutoCAD, spectators are able to truly enjoy the events at the National Stadium Brasilia, which was designed by Castro Mello Architects using AutoCAD. (I know it’s not the Olympics, but the World Cup is just as much a friendly competition among all countries around the world).

 

So remember to use AutoCAD to make your designs Faster – Higher – Stronger.

“The most important thing in the Olympic Games is not to win but to take part, just as the most important thing in life is not the triumph but the struggle. The essential thing is not to have conquered but to have fought well.” - Pierre de Coubertin (founder of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in 1894)

 

What’s new in Autodesk Revit 2013? Onebox...

By Martha Hollowell

Every year Autodesk rolls out a huge number of updated programs. It is getting harder to keep up with what it coming out. But there are always “flagship” products, such as AutoCAD, Autodesk Inventor, and my favorite, Autodesk Revit.

I used the name Autodesk Revit without any of the discipline specific endings on purpose. If you are using the Autodesk® Building Design Suite, you will find the new Autodesk Revit “Onebox” option. This is Architecture, Structure, and MEP rolled into one program. Any company, especially those with all three disciplines working together, can benefit from this. Training centers can also benefit from this by having to load only one version of Revit even if they are teaching different disciplines.

The naming structure for the tabs and buttons has been streamlined to suit this option. For example, the Home tab (shown in Autodesk Revit Architecture 2012 in Figure 1) has been exchanged for discipline-specific tabs of Architecture, Structure, and Systems (shown in Autodesk Revit 2013 in Figure 2).

 

Figure 1

Figure 2

You can set up the interface of the Autodesk Building Design Suite version of Autodesk Revit for your specific discipline. Since all of the tools for these disciplines are installed in one copy of the software, by default, all of the tools, templates, and sample files are available as shown in Figure 3. Most users only need their specific set of tools and the interface can be tailored to meet those needs.

 

Figure 3

The ASCENT training guides are designed to be discipline-specific and therefore the graphics match the discipline of the course. For example, for Autodesk Revit Architecture classes the tabs and default templates are setup for architectural projects while the Structure and MEP courses show their tabs and templates.

If you are teaching a discipline-specific class and want to match the “OneBox” interface to the discipline we include a document at the beginning of each book called “Setting Up the Interface”. This outlines the changes you need to make to the interface so it matches up with the graphics in the book.

How to Set Up the Autodesk Revit Interface to suit your needs.

1. In the upper left corner of the screen, expand   (Application Menu) and click   .
2. In the Options dialog box on the left pane select User Interface.
3. In the Configure area, under Tools and analyses (as shown in Figure 4), clear all of options that you do not want.

 

Figure 4

• When you clear a selection you are not deleting these tools, just removing them from the current user interface.

4. You can also specify the templates that display when starting a new project. In the left pane select File Locations.

5. In the right pane (as shown in Figure 5), select and order the templates you want to show. Typically, these are set up by the company.

 

Figure 5

6. Click   . The interface and template locations update for this installation of the software.

• You might also want to move the tabs to a different order. To do so, select the tab, hold down <Ctrl> and drag the tab to the new locations.

Check back later and we will post information on the new assembly stair feature in Autodesk Revit Architecture, enhanced rebar in Autodesk Revit Structure, and some advanced pipe routing preferences in Autodesk Revit MEP. Have fun using the new tools.

Martha Hollowell