• Label Genie for Civil 3D: New Features

    Posted on by Rikki Kenzhebayeva

    Label Genie, with it’s recent debut, changed how we do Civil 3D sheet annotation. Allowing automated insertion of labels across multiple drawings and layouts at once, Label Genie turns hours of work into minutes. The latest release will feature labeling in Profile and Section Views, and add many new label types, such as dimensions, blocks, pipe and pressure networks. Additional anchor objects will be included and new data sources will be available, such as block attributes, property sets, objects data, and more.

    In this mini video series: Part 3, our Technical Consultant Infr/GIS – Colin Gaudet will showcase how you can automate labeling in Profile and Section Views, benefit from even more label types and anchor objects than before, and more.

    For full information on CTC tools for Civil 3D click here

    Auto Grader for Civil 3D: New Features

    Posted on by Rikki Kenzhebayeva

    Auto Grader is a game-changer in Civil 3D site grading. Through dynamically linked feature line sets, users can create grading families for parking lots, ponds, subdivisions, and more. The latest release features a “template-based” grading method, allowing automatic insertion of a user-defined set of feature lines, such as a building pad, along defined baselines, such as a roadway. Other enhancements include more detailed surface targeting, automatic surface boundaries, better family preview controls, and other user-friendly features.

    In this mini video series: Part 2, our Technical Consultant Infr/GIS – Colin Gaudet will showcase detailed surface targeting, automatic surface boundaries, better family preview controls, and other user-friendly features in the video below.

    For full information on CTC tools for Civil 3D click here

    Bluebeam Revu Update 20.2

    Posted on by Rikki Kenzhebayeva

    The latest update for Bluebeam Revu has recently been released; you can find the release notes at this link.

    Independent Length Measurement units.  In previous versions, a user would calibrate a page, say in feet and inches, and all length measurements would be locked to that unit.  Length measurements can now be set to any preferred unit.  Create a measurement and change the unit in the properties.
    TIP:  if the default measurement is not in the desired unit, change the unit then set that as the new default by right-clicking.

    A refined Calibration tool.  The name has been changed from Calibrate to Set Scale.  After the tool has been launched, the dialog is a little different.  In previous versions, the Pick Points calibration window would appear first.  Now, the Apply Scales page appears first.  The user chooses either preset or custom scales, or they choose to calibrate using selected points.  Also, in this same form, the user can choose to apply the scale to a selected range of pages and add the custom scale to a preset for later use.
    TIP:  to remove a preset, click the garbage can icon in the Measurement tab.

    Earthwork Processor for Civil 3D: Subgrade Volume Calculations

    Posted on by Rikki Kenzhebayeva

    Earthwork volume calculations can be a complex task in Civil 3D, especially with variable depth subgrades found in many site projects. With the CTC Earthwork Processor in the CIM Project Suite, this work is done for you. Subgrade and stripping surfaces are created based on intuitive inputs, then results can be automatically labeled, tabled, hatched or exported to a spreadsheet.

    In this mini video series: Part 1, our Technical Consultant Infr/GIS – Colin Gaudet will give you a quick overview of Earthwork Processor from CTC CIM Project Suite and cover some of the main features and capabilities.

    For full information on CTC tools for Civil 3D click here

    SolidCAD launches another successful acquisition with Quebec Autodesk Reseller, LANDRYTEK Inc.

    Posted on by Daniella Delgado

    Toronto, ON, April 1, 2021 – Today, Canada’s largest Autodesk Platinum Partner and professional services company, SolidCAD, announces yet another strategic and successful acquisition of Autodesk Reseller, LANDRYTEK Inc. located in Farnham, Quebec, Canada. LANDRYTEK is both a specialized and authorized reseller partner of Autodesk that supports manufacturing companies by providing quality technical support and consulting services for Autodesk’s CAM products.

    LANDRYTEK has over 20 years of experience in the manufacturing field as a machinist, quality inspector, CNC programmer and certified training and specialist for a variety of CAD/CAM software solutions. This acquisition celebrates another exciting achievement that will expand SolidCAD’s technical specialist team, expertise and services for Autodesk’s advanced manufacturing solutions such as Fusion 360, FeatureCAM, PowerMill, PowerShape and PowerInspect.

    “We are excited to make this announcement today,” Marcus Tateishi, President of SolidCAD states. “Canada’s most innovative manufacturers are being tasked with more complex product design, narrowing delivery timelines and accounting for pressures stemming from material availability and rising costs,” he continues. “LANDRYTEK brings our customers in Eastern Canada greater access to resources with experience to consult, implement and optimize the investments they make in CAM technology.  Simply put, SolidCAD is now in the best position to assist customers to meet these increasing demands on budget, quality and sustainability across the industry and the country.”

    “LANDRYTEK and our entire team are pleased to join the SolidCAD family,’’ Jean-François Landry and Marie-Josée St-Aubin LANDRYTEK’s co-owners state. ‘’Combining the strengths of SolidCAD and LANDRYTEK will have a positive impact on both our current and future customers. By joining SolidCAD’s large team, our employees and clients will benefit from the additional resources and even stronger CAD / CAM expertise that will be used to continue serving the manufacturing industry.’’

    With SolidCAD and LANDRYTEK’s combined team of professionals, they are ready to support and service manufacturers across Canada by providing high-quality resources and consulting services, leading CAD/CAM training and custom programming solutions. With a bigger and enhanced team, SolidCAD is dedicated to upholding LANDRYTEK’s mission statement, and help companies streamline their entire digital manufacturing process from start to finish. This new partnership marks SolidCAD’s first acquisition this year, and second acquisition of another Autodesk reseller in the advanced manufacturing industry.

    To learn more about SolidCAD’s Advanced Manufacturing services, visit us here:   https://www.solidcad.ca/partner-products/autodesk-cam/ For more information, please contact SolidCAD’s Managing Director for the Advanced Manufacturing Division, Marty Cornacchi at marty.cornacchi@solidcad.ca.

    About LANDRYTEK Inc.

    At LANDRYTEK INC. we cumulate more than 20 years of experience in the manufacturing field as a machinist, quality inspector, CNC programmer, methods agent using a variety of CAD/CAM systems, Application specialist and certified trainer in Quebec.

    LANDRYTEK is your CAD/CAM partner and we put our skills, experience and professionalism at the service of our customers in order to optimize the performance and maximize their resources. www.landrytek.com/

    Installing AutoCAD 2022 and Other Autodesk 2022 Applications

    Posted on by Rikki Kenzhebayeva

    AutoCAD 2022 is here and it has a new installer.  Very few clicks are required, which is good and easy, but what if you need to customize your installation?  Read on…

    Installers can be customized by logging into Autodesk Account.  Installers or deployments can easily be created for multiple products.

    1.Log into Autodesk Account.

    2.Click Custom Install.

    3.Choose your product(s).

    4.For all selected products, select your options:

    a. choose the version and set the serial number.

    b. Set customization options.  These include installation path, custom file paths, security settings, LISP options, Express Tools, custom profile selection, and other settings.

    5. Choose which extensions to install.

    6. Create the installer.  This downloads a small EXE file which is used to create the installer.  When run, the installation files are downloaded onto the computer to C:\Autodesk.  A Windows BAT file is created with all customized options embedded.  When run, no input is requested, the app is simply installed.

    7. This installer and BAT files can be stored on a server and run by the administrator to install the product, with its customized content, onto users’ computers.

    AutoCAD 2022 is Here

    Posted on by Rikki Kenzhebayeva

    It’s springtime and the birds are singing.  Also, Autodesk has released the latest version of their flagship CAD package, AutoCAD 2022.  Click to peruse the Autodesk Documentation. Read on to see some notes we at SolidCAD have prepared for you.

    **Please stayed tuned for the next article.  There will be important information about installing this new software**

    1. The first thing on many users’ minds is whether the file format has changed.  It has not!  We are still on the 2018 format.
    2. TRACE.  A new command enabling a safe collaborative environment to draw revisions without affecting the source drawing. Open a shared drawing in the web or mobile apps and create traces.  These traces can be managed by a CAD user in their desktop app.
    3. COUNT.  Quantifies selected blocks in a drawing and creates a dynamic table or Field.
    4. SHARE:  Shares the current drawing, with all reference files intact, to the web for others to view or edit.
    5. Push to Docs: Creates a PDF of selected layouts and saves to Autodesk Docs.
    6. Floating windows: maximize drawings on separate monitors.
    7. Redefined Start tab.
    8. New installer and options.  Very simple install.  Watch this blog page for a follow-up article.
    9. Batch publish in background uses multiple cores.
    10. Microsoft’s DirectX 12 is now supported for 2D and 3D visual styles.
    11. 3D graphics technical preview.  New 3D engine provides a better experience. It is off by default.  3DTECHPREVIEW .  Try it and provide feedback.

    Revit MEP and CTC– Schedule XL

    Posted on by Rikki Kenzhebayeva

    Having troubles keeping your MEP notes from Excel in Revit up to date? Schedule XL is the right tool for you.

    Schedule XL allows you to create schedule views (drafting view or schedule view) within Revit from your Excel worksheets. Simply create an Excel file with your MEP notes in the format you’d like and push that information to your Revit project.

    Within Revit, select the CTC Schedule XL tool and add your Excel file that you’d like to be placed in the project.

    Once added, you can override/preserve any graphics or formatting of the Excel file

    As you make your modifications to the graphics, select “OK” and Schedule XL will create a new Revit view for you. Place the view onto the desired sheet.

    As your Excel notes update and change, you can use Schedule XL  to verify if your project has the latest updated notes. Schedule XL has a “Status” feature to indicate if your Excel note files are up to date. With the “Status” showing “Out of Date”, simply click “Update” to apply the new changes.

     

    Schedule XL is a great tool for including outside data from other sources (Excel) to be a part of the Revit environment. With a simple Excel to Revit workflow, you can get any information across to a project with minimal effort. Schedules can also be configured to automatically update when the Revit project is opened if the original spreadsheet has changed.

     

    5 Revu Workflows for Civil Designers, Contractors

    Posted on by Rikki Kenzhebayeva

    This article was originally published by Troy DeGroot and Bluebeam, Inc. on the Bluebeam Blog.

    Awhile back I was teaching a Bluebeam Revu basics class for a group of civil engineers and designers. An issue quickly came up that changed the way I teach, and it was so obvious.

    I was using the same data sets in all my basics classes to show markups and measurements, but it wasn’t relevant to the civil discipline in the architecture, engineering and construction (AEC) industry. So, I quickly collected some new data sets and drew back on my industry experience to develop training tailored to those users.

    As a complement to my last post, 11 Tools to Ease the Punch Walk Process, I want to discuss five tools or workflows you may not be aware of that specifically apply—but aren’t limited to—the world of civil design and construction.

    First, let’s look at some of the differences between civil drawings and other disciplines like architectural, structure, MEP, fire, etc.

    Starting with the obvious, civil drawings are drawn at a much smaller scale. Because of the size of many jobsites, developments and roadways, drawings are showing a much larger area on each sheet.

    Also, most civil drawings don’t include dimensions or measurements. This might give some the illusion they’re not drawn to scale, but that couldn’t be more wrong. Those curvy contour lines are located very specifically.

    Obviously, everyone regardless of occupation can use the Markup tools in Bluebeam Revu to make comments on drawings and documents. I’ll skip over those and get right to my favorite five innovative ways to use Bluebeam Revu as a civil designer or engineer.

    Overlay satellite imagery

    Whether you do a screenshot or some other method for acquiring satellite images, be sure to include the scale in the image. This will make it easier to calibrate the image. If the scale isn’t available, you’re still in luck. Maybe you know the curb-to-curb dimension or a building footprint; you can calibrate from that also. Once you have the image calibrated, you can start to overlay markups for easements, utilities, signage or even site staging material and equipment. If you’re doing resurfacing or flatwork, you could even do material estimates.

    Calibrating Plan & Profile drawings with different X-Y scales 

    If you’re working with plan and profile drawings for roadways or power distribution, often the horizontal scale is drastically different from the vertical scale, making it difficult to rely on any accuracy in measurements. In the Measurement Panel in Revu, you will find the ability to calibrate the X and Y scales separately. Now you can do measurements and allow Revu to do all the complicated math for you.

    Ideas for Cut & Fill calculations

    The contour lines on a civil plan represent the vertical grade change. Depending on the size of the plan or map, this could be one foot or 1,000. To estimate cut and fill quantities, you can create volume measurements using those contours and average depths. (Maybe this video will explain it better.)

    Combining several PDFs into one large area map

    I’ve been asked this several times from the mechanical, electrical and plumbing teams as well. How can we do line-based length measurements when the material starts on one sheet and continues onto another?

    If you start a new PDF with an oversized blank sheet, you can use the Snapshot tool to collect portions of separate sheets, pasting them onto the new document. When using Snapshot, the image comes in at the same scale it was taken from, so you can easily piece them all together like a puzzle. I suggest grouping them once you have the puzzle together so you don’t accidentally move something.

    Bidding and tracking field survey projects 

    Maybe you have a last-minute bid due for a scanning or survey project and don’t have access to the site. Using the sequence or count tools in Revu, you can quickly mark all the locations you’ll need to perform a scan.

    Each mark represents a setup, scan, takedown and processing, allowing you to estimate the time needed. Using different colors or layers, you could assign different time estimates if you have to remove ceiling tiles or drudge through the mud to capture the required data.

    Use the same bid drawing when performing those scans on site. Quickly change the Status of the Markup to Complete and, if needed, attach an image of the equipment setup. In the field, you might even use different colors if you’re running several scanners at the same time. The more data the better, in case the scope changes unexpectedly.

    I know all these functions are possible in advanced software created for design. My intent is to show that you don’t need expensive CAD software to get information out of the PDF drawings. If you like these tips and want to see the technical steps, check out my YouTube Playlist.

    Hopefully, you’re inspired to look a little deeper into the civil workflows possible in Bluebeam Revu. How are you using Revu in your workflows? I’d love to hear your feedback or any new ideas you may have had while reading. You can find and message me on LinkedIn.

    Civil 3D Double Click Customization

    Posted on by Rikki Kenzhebayeva

    Is there a Civil 3D object that you would like to double click and run a specific command?  if so, read on.  (This works for AutoCAD commands too.)

    Try double-clicking an Alignment.  The AutoCAD properties palette appears.  What if we want the Alignment Properties dialog instead?  Or if you want the Feature Line Quick Elevation Edit tool to be run when you double click a Feature Line.

    Edits to the CUI file are required.  Please do yourself a favor and create a partial CUI file and make these edits in there.  And while you’re at it, save this file somewhere like My Documents.

    1.  Determine the object name.  Run the LIST command and select the object.  The object name will be shown.  Mine is AECC_ALIGNMENT.
    3. Run the CUI command.  The double-click assignments are stored in the CUI file.
    4. Right-click to add a new double-click action.  Name it something like Alignment Properties

    5. On the right half of the CUI editor, enter the appropriate object name.

    6. Find the appropriate command in the bottom-left window.  In this case, Alignment Properties.  Drag it onto your new double-click action.

    7. Close the CUI editor.

    8. You’re done!  Double click the object and the command will be run.