In the last several years, the civil/survey industry has seen a lot of advancements with new and very powerful technologies like AutoCAD Civil 3D and Autodesk Infraworks. These new tools offer the potential to work faster, smarter and in ways simply not possible just a few years ago. For those that have made the jump to using these new tools, the question is; have your processes and workflows been revised to match the new technologies or, are you still functioning the same way you did before you adopted the latest BIM for infrastructure technology?
In this series, we’ll dive into common workflow challenges and discuss solutions.
In this post, let’s look at Civil 3D. Because the program is built on AutoCAD, it offers users a familiar set of tools and processes that for many, are time-tested and even second nature requiring no more conscious thought than blinking.
And while having these comfortable tools at our disposal is great for some things, I’ve also seen where it has become an anti-productive crutch too. Unfortunately, we’ve witnessed on many occasions users working with the latest version of Civil 3D but doing things the same way that they were 10 years ago, effectively skipping all of the powerful object-based functionality in favor for their more familiar AutoCAD means of achieving the end result. When I find myself in these situations, I’ll ask the user why they’re not using the object-based method to more efficiently perform the given task. The response is usually either 1.) They were unaware of the “other way” to do it. Or, 2.) Because they need it to look a certain way, rather than fight with Civil 3D, it’s easier to just do it manually.
In most cases, these issues are usually attributed to one of the following:
- The users were not properly educated on the software and don’t know how to use the new tools properly.
- The customer’s Civil 3D environment (styles, settings, standards) were not properly configured in the first place and users are put in a position where they need to spend time struggling with styles in Civil 3D on the fly in order to have their designs conform to their organization standards.
In short, most of the time when we encounter organizations who are struggling with BIM technology, it is because they didn’t take the necessary steps to properly implement the technology in the first place. Simply installing new “CAD” software on users systems and have them “figure it out” will do nothing more than place them in a position where they are forced to do what they have to do to get the job done. More often than not, this will not yield the benefits that BIM for infrastructure truly offers and leads to frustrated users and dissatisfied customers. Not taking advantage of all of the BIM for infrastructure tools at your disposal, is like using a nail file to cut down a tree while a chainsaw sits idle at your feet.