Archi-Tech

Cover of Mastering Autodesk Revit Architecture 2014

Normally there is only one post every week, but there is going to be a small exception to this rule that we have and make another post. The reason why I am doing this exception is because if i post this next week it is going to be already too late.

Yesterday I received an announcement on me e-mail about a lecture that will be taking place in London South Bank University regarding Building Information Modelling.

You would think that this is not as important as it sounds or that you are fed up attending to evening lectures that are not directly connected to your course etc., but that might change your mind when you learn that this lecture is actually committed by RIBA.




The fact that the lecture is sponsored by RIBA doesn't mean that it's the only reason for somebody to attend. Building Information Modelling is the new technology that professionals in the construction industry will be using for collaborating in a project with a lot of people. It is very important for students to get to know about BIM and learn to use it in their projects as it is going to be a highly required skill in the future.

The event will take place in Keyworth Centre Building at London South Bank University on the 5th of December at 19:30.

To register for attendance you need to send an e-mail at ribasouthlondonbranch@gmail.com. 
There is going to be an entrance fee of £5. Even though everyone would prefer to go for free, five pounds is not that much to spend.

This is especially for the viewers from Ireland! (Or whoever can travel to Ireland for the specific event)

Building Information Modelling (BIM) is frequently used nowadays to transform building designs from 2D paper into 3D in a digital form. BIM is not just about geometry, it is also used to show the spatial relationships, analyse the light orientation, properties of building components, quantities etc.

A site in a digital model form

Building information  modelling can be considered as an illustrated prototype of either a building, a site or even a city. It allows any aim of a design's performance to be stimulated and assessed before it is built, helping us to understand the design more and easier. BIM is not just a 3D model, it's information gathered together that can be used by all the members of the team that work on a project.

It is a very convenient method to use in the industry as the digital model goes from one professional to the other allowing them to make the changes they need to do on their field of expertise. BIM goes through a life-cycle when a project takes place: Management of building information models, Building Information Modelling in construction industry and Building Information Modelling in facility operation.

While architects are mostly making models out of materials, architectural technicians are strictly required to know how to use BIM software. However, BIM is starting to becoming a fashion whereas actual models are slowly fading away resulting architects to be required to use such softwares too (in the same way of how AutoCAD was originally for architectural technicians and architects would draw by hand).






















Softwares for BIM:

There are many different softwares that can be used to illustrate a 3D digital model. I have tried only three of them and these three I am going to talk about.

Rhino is a software which is about generally making digital models, not only houses, therefore this is not used only in the construction industry, it is a model making software for general views, and for this reason it's considered to be the hardest to use.

Screen shot of a work made with Rhino software

SketchUp is another software that can be used. A software special for designing buildings, personally I find this software the hardest to use as when I got my hands on it I couldn't draw a single line because of it's complexity. However, as I have previously seen from some of my colleagues work, if you manage to learn to use this software, a lot of realistic designs can be illustrated on it!

Samples from SketchUP software

A software I would highly recommend is Autodesk Revit. It is obviously provided by Autodesk, which means it's strictly for building modelling only.

Screenshot from a work of Autodesk Revit Architecture

I find that software very easy to use, especially if you know how to use AutoCAD (which is required). It is just like how AutoCAD is being used but what makes it even easier is the fact that you don't need to determine the wall thickness, or the design of the roof etc. Revit has all these things ready for you - you select to draw a wall, you set up what type of wall you want and with a single lien you have it all.

Another reason why Autodesk Revit is easy to use is when you draw your model you don't already draw it in a 3D form, you draw the floor plans and with a simple click, the software will turn your drawing into a model. And there you have it.

Screenshot from a work of Autodesk Revit Structure

Note: Autodesk Revit used to be divided to two software: Autodesk Revit Architecture and Autodesk Revit Structure, Revit Architecture is based mostly on the design of the building and how it will look and Revit Structure is based on designing the structure of the building. Until 2012 these two softwares where divided like that but in the 2013 version Autodesk decided to combine the two in one software.

I came across this new software Autodesk which was not released long ago, only few months back.

This software is divided in three applications: Catch, Design and Make.



The Catch app allows you to insert multiple angle pictures of an object and the fotware will turn these pictures in a digital model, all by itself. (download from: http://www.123dapp.com/catch)



The second application, which is the 123D Design app of the software allows you to design an object however you want it (see examples: www.123dapp.com/design). The application is available for PC and Mac, iPad and there is a web app. This way you can carry on any work you have instantly and anywhere you are.
(visit www.123dapp.com/design for video and examples)

The next app, is also my favourite, it's the app called 'Make'. It literally does what it is called. Any models you have caught on picture and put it in your software or made it in the software can be materialised. In this part, the software makes your model into layers where you can extract and print each layer separately and will guide you to put them all together to form the model you have made.
(visit http://www.123dapp.com/make for video and examples)