03 graphisoft collaboration guide.pdf
Post on 21-Nov-2015
237 Views
Preview:
TRANSCRIPT
-
GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
GRAPHISOFTVisittheGRAPHISOFTwebsiteathttp://www.graphisoft.comforlocaldistributorandproductavailabilityinformation.
GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuideCopyright2014byGRAPHISOFT,allrightsreserved.Reproduction,paraphrasingortranslationwithoutexpressprior
writtenpermissionisstrictlyprohibited.Trademarks
ArchiCADisaregisteredtrademarkofGRAPHISOFT.Allothertrademarksarethepropertyoftheirrespectiveholders.
-
ContentsContentsIntroduction ___________________________________________________________________________________________ 9InternalCollaborationintheArchitecturalOffice_____________________________________________________________ 10CollaborationRequirementsofArchitecturalFirms ............................................................ 10SmallMediumFirms.........................................................................................12
DynamicWorkflow .......................................................................................12LargeFirms ................................................................................................13
ControlledWorkflow .....................................................................................13SoloArchitects..............................................................................................14
RemoteWorkflow........................................................................................14CollaborationSolutionsinArchiCAD _______________________________________________________________________ 15TheTeamworkConcept ................................................................................... 15EvaluationoftheTeamworkTechnology.........................................................................18
Benefits ................................................................................................18Limitations ..............................................................................................19SuggestedUsage .........................................................................................19
WorkingonaSharedModel ............................................................................... 20ElementReservation .........................................................................................22
ReservationbySelection ...................................................................................22ReserveElementsbyCriteria ...............................................................................23ReservingOtherProjectData ...............................................................................24
ReleasingElementsandProjectData ...........................................................................24RequestingElementsandProjectData ..........................................................................25AssigningElements ..........................................................................................26FeedbackonElementOwnership ..............................................................................27GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 3
-
ContentsTaskOrientedInstantTeamCommunication.....................................................................29SimpleTextMessages ....................................................................................29ElementBasedMessages .................................................................................30TaskMessages..........................................................................................31
CustomizingtheTeamworkEnvironment.....................................................................32RemoteandCentralManagementofServerContent .............................................................32GRAPHISOFTBIMcloud/BIMServer ............................................................................33Projects ...................................................................................................33Users .....................................................................................................34Roles..................................................................................................... 37TeamworkLibrarySolutions..................................................................................39
EmbeddedObjects .......................................................................................40BIMcloud/BIMServerLibraries .............................................................................40
TeamworkDataSafety ....................................................................................42ScheduleProjectBackups ....................................................................................42Rollback ..................................................................................................43ProjectActivities ...........................................................................................43TheHotlinkedFileConcept ................................................................................44HotlinkedModules .........................................................................................44EvaluationoftheHotlinkedFileMethod ........................................................................ 47
Benefits ................................................................................................ 47Limitations .............................................................................................48SuggestedUsage ........................................................................................48
Xref......................................................................................................49Advantages.............................................................................................50Limitations ............................................................................................. 51SuggestedUsage ........................................................................................ 51
MixedConceptTeamworkandHotlinkFilesCombined ........................................................514 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
ContentsExample1 .................................................................................................51Example2 .................................................................................................53SummaryoftheTeamworkandtheHotlinkFileConcept ....................................................... 54DocumentationConcepts________________________________________________________________________________ 55SingleFileConcept ....................................................................................... 56DocumentationSeparatedfromtheModelFile ............................................................... 58MasterFileMethod .........................................................................................58UseofPMKDrawings ........................................................................................59ComplexFileStructure .......................................................................................61Mergevs.Linkvs.Open ......................................................................................63TeamandProjectSetup _________________________________________________________________________________ 64TeamOrganization ....................................................................................... 64SettingupaTeamProject.....................................................................................64
StructureoftheTeams ....................................................................................65TypicalStructureofaMidSizeOffice ........................................................................66TypicalStructureofaLargePractice .........................................................................67
ProjectSetup ........................................................................................... 70ProjectStructure(Navigator) ..................................................................................71Libraries...................................................................................................73
StandardArchiCADLibrary .................................................................................73OfficeStandardLibrary ....................................................................................74ProjectLibrary ...........................................................................................74
Interoperability________________________________________________________________________________________ 75BIMasaPlatformforCommunication ....................................................................... 75FileFormats ............................................................................................ 77SharingtheBIMModel:IFC ................................................................................ 78
AdvantagesofUsingIFC ...................................................................................80GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 5
-
ContentsIFCTranslators..........................................................................................81IFCTranslationSetup.....................................................................................81SharingDocuments:PDF ..................................................................................82SharingDrawings:DWGDXF ...............................................................................84
DXFDWGTranslatorSetup ................................................................................84UsingDWGDXFFilesinArchiCAD ..........................................................................85
ReviewingandRedlining:DWF.............................................................................89CoordinationwithEngineers _____________________________________________________________________________ 91PreparationofDataforExport .............................................................................91Classification .............................................................................................. 92
IFCElementType ........................................................................................ 92StructuralFunction ...................................................................................... 92Position ................................................................................................93
LayerSystem ..............................................................................................94StandardProfiles...........................................................................................95FilteringbyElementRepresentation.........................................................................95PartialStructureDisplay .....................................................................................95Visualization ...............................................................................................96
LayerDisplayModes .....................................................................................96Trace&Reference ....................................................................................... 97
StructuralDesign,AnalysisandProduction ...................................................................98StructuralApplications ......................................................................................99StructuralDesignWorkflows ................................................................................100
StructuralRelatedArchiCADFeatures......................................................................104ManagingChanges.........................................................................................105
Compare3DModels(ModelBasedExchange)...............................................................105DisplayingChangesin2DWindows(ModelorDrawingBasedExchange) ........................................1066 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
ContentsEnergyAnalysis......................................................................................... 107IntegratedEnergyEvaluation .................................................................................108DataExchangewithExternalEnergyAnalysisApplications.........................................................110MEPDesign ............................................................................................ 111GRAPHISOFTMEPModeler ..................................................................................112DataExchangewithExternalMEPApplications ..................................................................113CollisionDetection .........................................................................................114GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 7
-
Contents8 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
IntroductionIntroductionDesigning,buildingandmanagingabuildingisahighlycomplexprocessthatrequiressmoothcommunicationandcollaborationamongallmembersoftheprojectteam.Oneofthekeyfactorsofsuccessfulcollaborationistheefficientsharingofprojectdataamongteammembersandexternalconsultants.Effectivecollaborationtechniquesareabletoadapttotheprojectteamsizeandtheofficeorganization.ArchiCADsindustryleadingteamworktechnologiesofferintegrateddatacommunicationanddatasharingsolutionsforallprojectstakeholders.TheaimofthisbookistoprovideadetailedoverviewofthevariouscollaborationtechniquesinArchiCADandtheirstrategicuseinthearchitecturaloffice.ThefunctionaldescriptionoftheArchiCADfeaturesandcommandsareoutofthescopeofthisdocument;thosecanbefoundintheArchiCADHelpfile.GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 9
-
InternalCollaborationintheArchitecturalOfficeInternalCollaborationintheArchitecturalOfficeWellestablishedcommunicationprotocolsintheofficearecriticaltominimizetheriskofprojectcoordinationerrors.Moreover,complexorlargebuildingsrequirethattheBIMmodelbesharedamongprojectteammembers.ArchiCADoffersanumberofsolutions,whichcanbeusedaloneorincombination.ThischapterreviewsthenewTeamworktechnologyandthefilehotlinkingsolutionsofArchiCAD,aswellastheirsuggestedusageinthearchitecturalfirm.
CollaborationRequirementsofArchitecturalFirmsBeforeBuildingInformationModeling(BIM),theonlyavailableworkflowinvolved2DCAD,inwhichallprojectdocumentswerestoredinstandalonefiles.Themainadvantageofthissolutionwasitsflexibility:eachmemberoftheteamcouldworkcontinuouslyandsimultaneouslyonseparatefiles.Ontheotherhand,coordinationwasverylimitedessentiallyreducedtovisualcomparisonofthedrawingsbyoverlayingthemasexternalreferencefiles(Xrefs).BIMapplicationsarebasedonacompletelydifferentconcept,accordingtowhichdrawingsarederivedfromthemodel,andcoordinationofthedifferentdrawingsiscarriedoutbythesoftwareitself.Thisworkflowresultsinfewererrorsinthedocumentationphase,providedthattheBIMmodelismaintainedduringtheentirelifecycleoftheproject,anddrawingsarenotdetachedfromthe3Dmodel.AlthoughallBIMapplicationssharethesamethecoreconcept,theirinternalcollaborationsolutionscanbequitedifferent.MostcurrentBIMsolutionsarebasedonthefileservertechnology,accordingtowhichacentralprojectfileisstoredonaservermachineandtheusersworkonlocalcopiesofthecentralfileusingtheirlocalBIMapplication.Toavoidconflictswithotherteammembers,allusersmustreservecertainpartsoftheprojectsbeforetheystartworking.Whenevertheywanttocheckthecurrentstatusoftheproject,theymustsendandreceivechangesbetweentheirlocalfileandthecentralfileontheserver.Duringtheseoperations,theentireprojectfileissentoverthelocalnetwork,whichcanresultinlongwaitingtimesiftheprojectislarge.10 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
InternalCollaborationintheArchitecturalOfficeTheFileServerConceptThisconceptwasbasedonthetraditionalpaperbasedworkflow,inwhichlargepartsofthebuildings(e.g.entirefloors)areassignedtoindividualteammembers.DatacommunicationwasbasedontheLocalAreaNetwork(LAN),sincehighbandwidthInternetconnectionsweregenerallyunavailable.Today,collaborationrequirementsarelargelydeterminedbythesizeandthestructureoftheoffice.However,forallofficesregardlessofsizeFlexibility,SpeedandEaseofusehavebecomekeyfactors.BeforewegointodetailabouttheradicallynewcollaborationsolutionsinArchiCAD,letsexaminethespecificneedsofarchitecturalfirmsofdifferentsizes.GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 11
-
InternalCollaborationintheArchitecturalOfficeSmallMediumFirmsDynamicWorkflow Workspacereservationshouldbeveryflexible;accesstoprojectelementsmustbeavailableonthefly,in
accordancewiththefirmsdynamicworkflow. Sincetheteamissmallandeffective,anydowntimeduetocollaborationlimitationsofthesoftwareis
unacceptable.Teammemberswanttoworkcontinuouslyontheprojectevenwhenotherteammembersarechangingattributes,viewsorlayouts.
SuchfirmsusuallydonthavededicatedCADmanagersintheoffice,sotheywishtostartandsharenewprojectsveryquicklywithoutanyspecialpreparations.
Ashortlearningcurveisamust:nospecialtrainingshouldbenecessaryforcollaborationusingArchiCAD.
WorkflowoftheSmallMediumFirms12 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
InternalCollaborationintheArchitecturalOfficeLargeFirmsControlledWorkflow Teammemberswantthesameworkflowflexibilityasthesmallmediumfirms,butalsorequirethestrictcontrol
exertedbytheprojectteamleaders. Advancedusermanagement:allusersneedtoknowtheirrolesandrightsonallmanagementlevels. Multiplelocationsupport:allusersneedeffectivemodelbasedcommunicationeveniftheyarenotlocatedinthe
sameoffice.Theycanbeworkingonthesameprojectfromdifferentofficesorevendifferentcountries.
WorkflowoftheLargeFirmsGRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 13
-
InternalCollaborationintheArchitecturalOfficeSoloArchitectsRemoteWorkflow Independentarchitectsusuallyjoinforceswithotherstemporarilyforalargeprojectorcompetition.Theyalso
workforlargerfirmsonacontractualbasisfromhome. Foreffectiveremotework,soloarchitectsneedthesecapabilities:
WorkviaInternetWorkwithoutneedingextratrainingWorkaseasilyasinasoloproject,whilereceivingallnecessaryinformationfromotherteammembersFeelfullyconnectedtotheproject,evenwhileworkingfromoutoftheoffice
WorkflowoftheSoloArchitects
ArchiCADisthefirstBIMapplicationthatoffersaflexible,fastandeasytolearncollaborationsolutionforarchitecturalofficesofanysize.14 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
CollaborationSolutionsinArchiCADCollaborationSolutionsinArchiCADArchiCADprovidestwobasicmethodsforsharingtheBIMprojectamongtheteamofarchitects: theTeamworkapproach, theuseofHotlinkedfiles.Thesesolutionscanbeusedeffectivelyaloneorincombination,inbothsmallandlargefirms.Inthischapteryoullfindacomparisonofthetwoconceptsandtheirrecommendedusageindifferentprojectscenarios.
TheTeamworkConceptSince1997,theTeamworkconcepthasbeenGRAPHISOFTsprimarysolutionforsharingBIMdataamongteammembers.Overtime,collaborationrequirementsforarchitecturalpracticeshavechangedsignificantly,duetoincreasedfilesize,increasedcomplexityofprojects,andtheextensiveuseofInternetbasedcommunication.Today,ArchiCADsnewTeamworkrepresentsabreakthroughincollaborativeprojectwork,specificallydesignedtomeetthedemandsofamodern,internationalteameffort.Thistechnologyisbasedonclientserverarchitectureandisdesignedtoensuremaximumflexibility,speedanddatasafetytoenableteamseventhosespreadoutaroundtheworldtocollaborateonlargeprojects.DetailsoftheTeamworkapproachareexplainedontheaccompanyingfigure.GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 15
-
CollaborationSolutionsinArchiCADTheArchiCADTeamworkConcept16 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
CollaborationSolutionsinArchiCAD Thekeystoneofthisconceptistheclientservertechnology.InArchiCAD,thisconsistsoftheGRAPHISOFTBIMcloud/BIMServerandArchiCADasaclient.TheintelligentserverapplicationmaintainsthecompleteanduptodateBIMmodelofaproject.TeammembersworkonlocalcomputersandregularlysendandreceiveprojectchangesbetweentheserverandtheirlocalArchiCAD.Duringsendandreceive,onlymodifiedelementsoftheprojectaresentoverthenetwork,ratherthanthefullmodeldata:thisresultsinmuchfasterdatacommunicationsandenablestheentireteamtokeepworkinginparallel.
Anotherkeyelementofthisconceptistheflexiblereservationsystem.Individualmodelelementsandotherprojectrelateddata,likeprojectattributesorviews,canbereservedandreleasedonthefly,allowingforaverydynamicandflexibleworkflow.Thereisnoneedtoreservelargeareasintheprojectpriortostartingwork.Theuserreservesonlytheelementshe/shecurrentlyneeds;elementscanbeeasilyreleasedaftertheworkisdone.
Teamcommunicationissupportedbyabuiltin,elementandtaskbasedmessagingsystem. TheBIMcloud/BIMServerManagertoolrunninginastandardwebbrowserallowsCADmanagerstoremotely
manageprojects,servers,users,rolesandresponsibilitiesacrosstheentirefirm.TheServerActivitiespageofServerManagerprovidesdetailedfeedbackaboutthecurrentstatusoftheserver,helpingtheCADmanagertoidentifyriskfactorsthatmayaffecttheserversperformance.GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 17
-
CollaborationSolutionsinArchiCADEvaluationoftheTeamworkTechnologyBenefits Effective:Userscanworkonthesameprojectsimultaneously,andifthemodelsizeismanageable,thereisno
needtodivideitintomultiplesoloprojectsorhotlinks. Organized:Nooverlappingworkspaces;onlyoneusercanworkonagivenprojectelementatonetime.Team
membershavededicatedrolesandrights. Transparent:Teammemberscancheckthecurrentstatusoftheprojectatanytime. Easy:Collaborationtechniquesareveryeasytolearn.Thereisnoneedforextensivetraining. Fast:DuetotherevolutionaryDELTAserverTMtechnology,onlythechangedelementsareexchangedbetweenthe
clientandtheserver.Averagedatapackagesizeshrinksbyanorderofmagnitude,frommegabytestokilobytes.Becausetheamountoftransferreddataisrelativelysmall,datatransferdoesnotdependonthefilesize:youcanworkthroughanykindofnetworkandeventheinternet.
Flexible:Duetotheondemandelementreservationsystemandfastdataexchange,teammemberscanaccessanyelement,atanytime,regardlessthesizeofthefirmorthecomplexityoftheproject.
DataSafety:Theserverbecomesadynamiccomponentintheprocess.Theintelligentserverapplicationdoesntallowcorrupteddatatobemerged.Iftheclientsdatabecomesdamagedonthenetwork,theserverwillfilteritout,andwillnotmergethedamageddatatotheserverdatabase.
OfflineWork:UserscancreatenewelementsormodifythosebelongingtotheirworkspaceevenifthereisnoonlineconnectionbetweentheBIMcloud/BIMServerandtheirlocalArchiCAD.Oncetheonlineconnectionisestablished,theycansendandreceivechangesagain.18 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
CollaborationSolutionsinArchiCADLimitations SomefunctionsofthenewTeamworkareonlyavailabletotheuserwhenhe/sheisonline. Teamworktechnologyinitselfcannotdividelargeprojectsintoeasytohandlesmallerparts.Forthis,youhaveto
combineTeamworkwithhotlinkedmodules.SuggestedUsageTeamworkshouldbeyourprimarymethodforsharingthecontentoftheVirtualBuilding,asithasmanybenefitscomparedtootherfilesharingsolutions.Foraverylargeorcomplexproject,youmighthavetoconsiderdividingtheprojectintosmallerpartstoavoidanyperformancedrawbackscausedbythelargefilesize.BigbuildingscanbesplitintoseveralsmallerTeamworkfiles,usingthehotlinkedfilemethods.Thisway,youcansignificantlyreducetheregenerationtimeofthe3Dmodelandoftheprojectdocumentation.LetstakeacloserlookatthemajorcharacteristicsofthenewTeamworktechnology.GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 19
-
CollaborationSolutionsinArchiCADWorkingonaSharedModelGRAPHISOFTsTeamworktechnologyallowstheteamofarchitectstoworksimultaneouslyonVirtualBuildingmodelswithoutconflictsorlimitations.
TheTeamworkPalette20 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
CollaborationSolutionsinArchiCADTheprinciplesofreservationaresimple: Anyusercancreatenewelementsordata;noreservationisneededtocreatesomethingnew.Newelements
createdbyyouwillbereservedbyyouautomatically. Tomodifyordeleteanelement,attribute,orotherdatatypefromthesharedproject,youmustfirstreservethat
element/datatype. Typically,youwillreservetheelementsasyouneedthem,andthenreleasethemwhenyouaredoneworkingon
them.Thus,elementsthatarenotcurrentlybeingworkedonwillbealwaysavailabletootherusersforreservation.
Feedbackonthereservationstatusofanyitemintheprojectisalwaysuptodate,aslongasyouareonline. Incaseyouneedanelementreservedbysomebodyelse,youcanaskforitwiththerequestcommand.The
elementsownerwillautomaticallyreceiveamessagewithyourrequest. YoucanassignyourcurrentlyownedelementstootheruserswiththeAssigncommand.
QuickWorkspaceReservationfromtheTeamworkPaletteInTeamwork,bothmodelelementsandotherprojectdata(suchasattributesorprojectviews)canbereservedusinganidenticallogicanduserinterface.GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 21
-
CollaborationSolutionsinArchiCADElementReservationProjectelementscanbereservedeitherbysimpleselection,orbycriteria.ReservationbySelectionThisisthemoststraightforwardwaytoreserveelementsthatarevisibleandeasilyselectableinthecurrentprojectview.AllselectionmethodsofArchiCADcanbeused.
CurrentReservationscanbeeasilyHighlightedReservationbyselectionisavailableinall3Dand2Dprojectviews,includingfloorplans,sections,elevations,detailsandotherprojectmapitems.22 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
CollaborationSolutionsinArchiCADReserveElementsbyCriteriaToreservealogicalgroupofelementsthatcannotbeselectedeasilywithmanualselection,youcanusetheReserveelementsdialog.Thisallowsyoutoselectmultipleelementsindifferentviewsbasedonpredefinedorcustomselectioncriteria.Thismethodisveryusefulinthefollowingcases: Elementsarelocatedindifferentprojectviews(e.g.columnsplacedondifferentstories) Elementsareallofthesametype(e.g.2Delementsinsections) Elementssharethesameattributes(e.g.wallsplacedonaparticularlayer) Elementssharethesamenonvisualinformation(e.g.doorshavingthesameID)
CriteriaBasedElementReservationGRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 23
-
CollaborationSolutionsinArchiCADReservationcriteriasetscanbestoredandsharedamongprojectusers,allowingforasmoothsharingworkfloweveninlargeandcomplexprojects.ReservingOtherProjectDataNonelementmodeldata,suchasattributes,viewsorlayouts,canalsobereservedveryflexibly.Thereisnoneedforexclusivesigninorotherextraefforttomodifythem,souserscanreserveandreleasethemonthefly.TheTeamworkstatusoftheprojectdataelementsaredisplayedbycontrollights(red,greenandblue)atthebottomofthecorrespondingsettingsdialogs.
TeamworkStatusofProjectData
ReleasingElementsandProjectDataElementsthatyoucurrentlyowncanbereleasedwithjustoneclickusingtheReleasecommandfromtheTeamworkmenuorintheTeamworkPalette.Ifyouwish,youcanreleaseonlytheselectedelements,or,ifnothingisselected,thenallyourreservationswillbereleasedwiththeReleaseAllcommand.Itishighlyrecommendedthatyoureleasethoseelementsanddatathatyouarenotusing,sothattheotherteammemberscaneasilyaccessthem.24 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
CollaborationSolutionsinArchiCADRequestingElementsandProjectDataUseRequestiftheelementordatatypeyouwishtoreserveiscurrentlyownedbyanotheruser.Requestingisbackedupwithanintelligentmessagethatisautomaticallysenttotheelementsowner.Youdontevenhavetocheckwhotheowneris;themessagewillalwaysbesenttotherightperson.TherequestmessagecontainsabuiltinGrantbuttonwithwhichtheelementcanbegrantedtotherequester.Themessagewillstayonthecurrentownerstasklistuntiltheelementisgrantedordeniedtotherequester.
RequestingElementsGRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 25
-
CollaborationSolutionsinArchiCADAssigningElementsYoucanassignanyofyourownelementstoanotheruser,evenifthatuserhasnotrequestedthem.Todothis,selecttheelement(s),thentheAssignElement(s)commandfromthecontextmenuortheTeamworkmenu.Thisfunctionallowstheprojectleaders(e.g.theLeadArchitect)toorganizetheworkoftheteameveniftheyarelocatedindifferentoffices.26 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
CollaborationSolutionsinArchiCADFeedbackonElementOwnershipForbettercontroloveruserworkspaces,itisveryimportanttobeabletoinstantlycheckthecurrentelementassignmentsoftheusers.Teamworkoffersseveralsolutionsforthis: TheColoredWorkspacesfunction,intheTeamworkPalette,providesvisualfeedbackonthestatusofthemodel
elements.Thisfunctionworksinthe3Dand2Dwindowsalike.WithColoredWorkspaces,teammemberscanvisuallyidentifytheircurrentlyownedelementsandthecurrentworkspacesoftheirteammates.
ColorCodedWorkspacesGRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 27
-
CollaborationSolutionsinArchiCAD TheInfotagalsodisplaysthenameoftheselectedelementscurrentowner.
ReservationInformationintheInfoTag Fornonelementprojectdata,suchasattributesorviews,theownersnameisdisplayedunderTeamworkStatus,
atthebottomoftheirsettingsdialogboxortheNavigator.Reservedelementsaremarkedwitharedlamp;yourownelementsareindicatedbyagreenlamp.Abluelampmeansthattheelementisfreeforreservation.28 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
CollaborationSolutionsinArchiCADTaskOrientedInstantTeamCommunicationInanyarchitecturaldesignworkflow,effectivecommunicationincreasesproductivityandreducestheriskofdesignproblems.ArchiCADsnewTeamworkintroducesanefficientandeasywayforuserstoinstantlycommunicateandtomanageworkspaces.TeamworkMessagingisintegratedwiththeArchiCADproject:itsfunctionsaretiedtoelementsandactionswithintheproject,sothatmanymessagingfunctionsareautomated,reducingtheamountofuserinitiatedcommunicationsneeded.Furthermore,youcancommunicatewithuserswhoarenotonlineatthemoment:theywillreceivetheirmessagesthenexttimetheyareonline.AllmessagingfunctionscanbemanagedfromtheMessagingpaneloftheTeamworkPalette.ThereareseveraltypesofmessagesavailableinTeamwork.Thesecanbeusedindifferentcommunicationscenarios,describedhere:SimpleTextMessagesStandardtextmessagescanbesenttoindividualusersortotheentireteamwithinArchiCAD.Themessageswillautomaticallypopupontherecipientsscreen.
TeamworkMessageGRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 29
-
CollaborationSolutionsinArchiCADElementBasedMessagesAkeyfeatureofthismessagingsystemisthattextmessagescanbeattachedtomodelelements.ElementbasedmessagesaresentwitheveryRequestandAssignoperation.Themainadvantageisthattherecipientcaneasilyfindthecorrespondingmodelelements,justbyclickingtheShowElementbuttoninsidethemessage.Thiscanbeextremelyusefulifyouareworkingonaprojectviewwherethetransferredorrequestedelementsarenotvisible.
ElementBasedMessaging30 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
CollaborationSolutionsinArchiCADTaskMessagesTheorganizedworkflowoflargeofficesrequiresasolutionforassigningtaskstoteammembers.Teamworkmessagescanintegratethefollowingtasks: SendChanges ReceiveChanges ReleaseAll LeaveProject ReviewSelectedElementsThemessageincludesacommandbuttonthatimplementstherequestedoperation.Forexample,ifyoureceiveamessageinstructingyoutoSendChanges,theSendChangescommandbuttonisincludedinthemessage;clickthebuttontoSendinallyourchangestotheBIMServer.MessagesremainonyourToDolistuntilyourespondtothem.CompletedmessagesdisappearfromtheToDolistandareautomaticallymovedtotheCompletedlist.Requestswhichyousenttootherusers,andwhicharewaitingforaresponse,arelistedinthePendingRequeststaboftheMessagingpanel.
TeamworkMessagingInterfaceGRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 31
-
CollaborationSolutionsinArchiCADCustomizingtheTeamworkEnvironmentRemoteandCentralManagementofServerContentThehierarchicalworkflowoflargefirmsrequirestheCADmanagertobeincontinuouscontroloftheprojectservers,files,libraries,usersandtheirrolesandrights.ArchiCADsTeamworkoffersabrowserbasedmanagementinterfaceforBIMcloud/BIMServer,whichcanmanageaBIMcloud/BIMServerlocallyorremotely.Thisenablesmultiofficefirmstoimplementcompanystandardsacrosstheentirecompany.32 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
CollaborationSolutionsinArchiCADGRAPHISOFTBIMcloud/BIMServerTheGRAPHISOFTBIMcloud/BIMServerisanintelligentapplication,whichhandlesTeamworkprojects,users,rolesandrightsandmanagesthedatacommunicationbetweentheArchiCADclientsandtheBIMcloud/BIMServer.OneBIMcloud/BIMServercansupportseveralsimultaneousprojectsandusers;however,youmaywanttosetupseveralBIMserversorasingleBIMcloudwithinoneofficetoincreasetheperformanceofdatacommunication.BIMcloud/BIMServercanbemanagedremotely,sotheCADmanagerhascentralcontroloverallBIMcloud/BIMServerswithinthefirm.
ProjectsUsetheBIMcloud/BIMServerManagertomanageallTeamworkprojects.Existingprojectscanbedeletedorusedasatemplateforcreatingnewprojects.ProjectscanbemovedbetweendifferentserverswiththeExportbutton.Multiofficefirmscanstorethestandardtemplatefilesononecentralserveranddistributethemamongthedifferentoffices.TheProjectSettingsdialogallowstheadministratortoadduserstotheprojectortochangetheirroles.TheGRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 33
-
CollaborationSolutionsinArchiCADProjectactivity,whichlistsprojecteventssuchasloginorsend/receiveactions,isalsoaccessiblefromtheProjectSettingspage.
UsersTheAccesspanelofProjectpage(intheBIMcloud/BIMServerManager)listsusersauthorizedtoaccessthevariousprojects,togetherwiththeirroles.Bydefault,Everyonecanaccesstheproject:EveryoneisaspecialGroupuserwhichincludeseveryuserdefinedontheserver.EvenifyoukeepEveryoneasuser,theindividuallyaddedusernamescanbegivendifferentrolesonthisproject.34 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
CollaborationSolutionsinArchiCADGRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 35
-
CollaborationSolutionsinArchiCADThisflexiblesetupallowsthesmallfirmstostartnewprojectswithjustoneclickwithouthavingtodefineusersrolesandrights,andforlargefirmstomaintainstrictcontroloveruserrights.
TeamworkUserSettings36 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
CollaborationSolutionsinArchiCADRolesThemajorrolesintheprojectteamcanbedefinedontheRolespageoftheBIMcloud/BIMServermanager.ThedefaultRolesincludeViewer,DraftsmanandLeadArchitect,butyoucandefinenewonestobestmatchyourteamsetup.Foreachrole,youcancustomizetherightsassignedtoit.Forinstance,thedraftsmencancreateandmodifyallconstructionelements,buttheyarenotallowedtomodifytheattributesoftheproject.ThisverydetaileddefinitiontableintheRolespageenablesadministratorsatlargefirmstopreciselydescribeandregulatetherolesofeveryteamuser.
TeamworkRoleSettingsGRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 37
-
CollaborationSolutionsinArchiCADAccesstoArchiCADFunctionsareControlledbytheUserRoleSettings38 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
CollaborationSolutionsinArchiCADTeamworkLibrarySolutionsPropermanagementoflibrariesisextremelyimportantwhenworkinginteams.ToavoidmissingoroutdatedlibrarypartsintheTeamworkproject,youshouldunderstandthemajorlibraryhandlingstrategiesinArchiCAD.Toenableremoteaccesstolibraryparts,withouthavingtoarchivefilesandextractlibraryparts,ArchiCADsLibraryManager(asofArchiCAD13)usesthefollowinglogic:
ArchiCADLibraryManagerGRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 39
-
CollaborationSolutionsinArchiCADEmbeddedObjectsSpecializeduserconfiguredlibrarypartsincludingbutnotlimitedtoStair,Truss,Patch,imagefills,textures,customcomponentswillnowbeautomaticallyembeddedintotheproject.EmbeddedobjectswillalsobepartofTeamworkprojects;theycanbereservedindividuallyfromtheLibraryManager,modified,andsenttotheserverlikeotherelementsinTeamwork.Embeddedobjectscreatedandaccessedbyyou(suchaswhencreatingoreditingaStairwithStairmaker)willautomaticallybelongtoyou.Becausetheseobjectsareembeddedinthesharedproject,allusersregardlessoflocationcanseeandaccessthesespecializedlibrarypartswithoutrunningintodifficulties.TheLibraryManagerlistsalltheprojectsembeddedobjects.Userscanselectandreservetheseobjectsonebyone.BIMcloud/BIMServerLibrariesSharedlibrariesarehostedonaBIMcloud/BIMServer.Eachuserautomaticallyobtainsacachedcopyoftheselibraries,andanyupdatestothemarereceivedbyallusers.Anyuserhavingtheproperaccessrightscanaddanewlibrarytothesharedproject;thislibrarywillhenceforthalsobelocatedontheBIMcloud/BIMServer.(Inmostcases,theprojectmanagerwillrestrictthisrighttocertainkeyusersontheteam.)AlsofromtheLibraryManager(whenaddingaBIMcloud/BIMServerLibrary),youcanaccesstheManageBIMcloud/BIMServerLibrariesfunction.40 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
CollaborationSolutionsinArchiCADThisfunctionalsoavailablefromtheFile>LibrariesandObjectsmenuenablesProjectorServerAdministratorstoremotelyupdateandmaintainthelibrariesontheserver,thusgreatlyreducingthepossibilityofusingoutdatedlibraries.
ManageBIMcloud/BIMServerLibrariesGRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 41
-
CollaborationSolutionsinArchiCADNote:Separateorlocallibrarieswereusedfrequentlyinthepast;theyarenotusedanylongerduetothegreatincreasesinLANspeedandnetworkstability.Theuseofseparatelibrariesalsorequiredextensivemanagementeffortstomakesurethatallteammateswereusingthelatestlibrarycontent.
TeamworkDataSafetyScheduleProjectBackupsTheBackupspanelofProjectSettingsallowsyoutodisplayandmanagethebackupsoftheproject.Automaticandmanualbackupsarealsoavailabletoensuremaximumdatasafetythesebackupscanalsobeusedtostoredifferentvariationsoftheproject.
ProjectBackupDialog42 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
CollaborationSolutionsinArchiCADRollbackTheRollbackbuttoninProjectSettingscanbeusedtoreplacethecurrentprojectwithanyselectedbackupcopy,ortocreateanewProjectoutofthebackup.
ProjectActivitiesTheActivitiespanelstoresthemajorTeamworkeventsinthehistoryoftheprojects: Share Send(includinganyComments) ReleaseofProjectData(includinganyComments) Backups(bothmanualandautomatic) Join/LeaveactionsofanyuserTheActivitiespanelisusefulforprovidingasnapshotofprojectprogresswithinagiventimeframe:forexample,tocheckwhetherallusersreallydidsendintheirchangeslastnight.
TeamworkActivitiesGRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 43
-
CollaborationSolutionsinArchiCADTheHotlinkedFileConceptThepreviouschapterintroducedTeamwork,theprimarycollaborationmethodinArchiCAD.Nowletsevaluatetheotherbasicprojectsharingsolution/internalcollaborationmethod:theconceptofhotlinkedfiles.Thisapproach,typicalforalmostallCADapplications,allowsyoutodevelopandstorepartsofthemainprojectfilealsocalledthehostinaseparateexternalfilealsocalledthesourceormodulefile.Theprojectfile(host)includesonlyareference(hotlink)tothecontentofthesourceormodulefile.Modificationsthathavebeenmadetothesourcefilewillberepresentedinthehostfileautomatically.Theprojectfilecancontainseveralinstancesofthesamehotlinkedmodule,makingthismethodidealformanagingrepetitiveelementsinaproject.Accordingtothetypeofthehotlinkedfile,wecandistinguishtwosolutionsinArchiCAD:
HotlinkmodulesforArchiCADprojects Xrefsfor2DdrawingssavedinDWGandDXFformat
HotlinkedModulesWithHotlinkedModules,externalArchiCADfilessuchasmodules,planfilesandTeamworkprojectscanbeinsertedintothecurrentlyopenproject(host).Hotlinkedelementsinsertedintothehostreflectallmodificationsmadetothesourcefiles(assoonasyouupdatethehotlinks).TheelementsofhotlinkedmodulesareincludedintheProject,whichmeansthatevenifthehotlinkedsourcefileisnotcurrentlyavailable,theModulesarestillpresentandvisible,althoughtheycannotbeupdatedaslongasthereferredsourcefileisabsent.ArchiCADalsosupportsthehotlinkingofamoduleintoothermodules.Thesearecallednestedmodules.44 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
CollaborationSolutionsinArchiCADArchiCADsHotlinkManagerdialogprovidesanoverviewofthehierarchyofevenverycomplexhotlinkfilestructures,plusfeedbackonthestatusoftheindividualmodules(updated,outdated,broken).Updatingtheentirehotlinkmodulestructure,orjustindividualhotlinks,requiresjustamouseclick.
HotlinkManagerGRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 45
-
CollaborationSolutionsinArchiCADForexample,HotlinkedModulescanbeusedtomanagetherepetitivestructuresofbuildings,suchashotelsoroffices,whichhavealargenumberofidenticalrooms:youcanmodifyallinstancesinasinglestep.Moreover,thesamestructurescanbeusedinmultipleprojects.Thisisalsoagoodwaytosubdividelargeprojectsintoeasiertohandlesmallerfilesandtoreducethefilesizeofthehostproject.Ifabuildingcontainsseveralidenticalstories,youcanhotlinkthetypicalstoryofthehostfileintotheotherstories.Inthisspecialscenario,thehotlinkedmodulesourceiscontainedwithinthehostfile.
TheHotlinkedModuleConcept46 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
CollaborationSolutionsinArchiCADEvaluationoftheHotlinkedFileMethodThehotlinksolutionhasadvantagesanddisadvantagescomparedtotheTeamworkmethod.Theconceptitselfiseasytounderstandandcanbeusedwithanykindofproject.Itcanbeveryeffectivewhenmultipleinstancesofthesameelementsareusedinaproject(e.g.theroomsinahotel).However,theHotlinkedfilemethodcannotsolvetheprojectcoordinationproblemsofanarchitecturalfirm,sincetheprojectownerdoesntgetanyfeedbackaboutthekindsofchangesmadeinthemodulefiles.Thelocationandnameofthesourcefilesarecriticaltoprojectconsistency,sothismethodrequiresactivefilemanagementfromtheprojectteamleader.Furthermore,iftheprojectiscomplex,changingthehotlinkfilestructurecanbeverydifficultatalaterstageofthedesign.Benefits Modulefilescanbeupdatedautomaticallyormanually. Updatingamoduleisfastandeasy. Thehostprojectfilesizecanbegreatlyreducedbyplacingrepetitiveelementsasmodules. Hotlinkedmodulesenablelargermodelstobedividedintosmaller,easiertohandlelogicalparts. Teamworkfilescanalsobehotlinkedtoeachother.Thisway,thesizeoftheTeamworkprojectfilesandthe
regenerationtimeofthe3Dmodelsandthedocumentationcanbereducedsignificantly. ComprehensiveuserinterfaceprovidesaclearoverviewofModuleinstancesandhierarchy.GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 47
-
CollaborationSolutionsinArchiCADLimitations Ownerofthehostfiledoesnthaveautomaticcontroloverthecontentofthehotlinkedsourcefiles. Changestothehotlinkedsourcefilecancauseconflictsinthehostproject. Movingordeletingthehotlinkedsourcefilewillbreakthehotlinktothehostfile. AccesstothecontentofthemodulescannotbecontrolledfromArchiCAD. Adetailedmoduleorganizationcharthastobecreatedbytheprojectcoordinatorbeforetheprojectisstarted.
Changingthehotlinkstructurecanbedifficultinlaterstagesoftheproject. Matchingofattributesneededbetweenthehostfileandthemodules. Thestoryheightofthemasterprojectandofthehotlinkedmodulesshouldbethesame.
Tip:Thecreationofmodulefilesshouldbedonewithinthehostproject:thisway,themodulefilesinherittheattributesetofthehostproject,andyouavoidcreatingunnecessaryandunwantedlayers,pens,linetypes,fills,etc.(alsoknownasattributepollution).
SuggestedUsageAlthoughhotlinkmodulescanbeusedasanalternativetotheTeamworktechnology(e.g.differentfloorsofamultistorybuildingcanbedrawninseparatehotlinkedmodules),theycantprovidethesameflexibilityandsecurityasTeamwork.Themainpurposeofusinghotlinkedmodulesshouldtomanagerepetitiveelementsandtodivideverylargeprojectsintoeasytohandlesmallerparts.48 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
CollaborationSolutionsinArchiCADXrefExternalReferences(Xrefs)arealsobasedonthefilehotlinkconcept.However,theycanonlybeusedtoreference2Ddrawings.XrefsprovideaneasywaytomanageandmergetheconsultantsDWG/DXFdrawingsintotheArchiCADproject.ExternalDWG/DXFdrawingswillbeupdatedintheArchiCADprojectiftheyarereferencedasanXref.
TheXrefConceptGRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 49
-
CollaborationSolutionsinArchiCADXrefsareListedintheXrefManagerDialogAdvantages DWGandDXFdrawingsfromconsultantscanbeeasilyintegratedintotheVirtualBuildingasXrefs. RepetitiveDWG/DXFfiles(suchasdetaildrawings)canbecontrolledandmodifiedeasily. ModificationsmadebyconsultantsareautomaticallyupdatedintheArchiCADproject.Collisionsanddesign
conflictscanbeeasilylocatedbyusingtheVirtualTracefeature. ThecontentoftheXrefdrawingissavedwiththeArchiCADproject.IfthehotlinktotheDWG/DXFfileisbroken,
thedrawingcontentisstillvisible.50 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
CollaborationSolutionsinArchiCADLimitations Xrefscannotbeusedtohotlink3DdataintotheArchiCADproject. DWGTranslatorSettingsmustbesetmanuallypriortoattachingtheDWG/DXFfiles. ThelocationandthenameoftheXrefsshouldntbechanged;otherwisethelinkwillbebroken. Matchingofattributesneededbetweenthehostfileandthelinkedfile.SuggestedUsageXrefsshouldbeusedalmostexclusivelyformergingconsultantsdrawings,legacyAutoCADprojectsorstandardmanufacturerdetailsintotheArchiCADproject.WerecommendplacingtheXrefsontoindependentArchiCADworksheets,ratherthanontothefloorplan,tokeeptheBIMmodelintact.
Tip:UnusedXrefsshouldalwaysbeUnloadedinordertoremoveallXrefrelatedlayersandotherattributesfromthemasterproject.
MixedConceptTeamworkandHotlinkFilesCombinedThepreviouslydescribedprojectsharingmethodscanbecombinedtoprovidethebestpossiblecollaborationsolutionforverylargeandcomplexprojects.LetsillustratethecomplexprojectsharingcapabilitiesofArchiCADwithtwoexamples.
Example1Thefirstprojectisahospitalbuildingthatiscomposedoffourwellseparatedunits.Sinceeachunitisdifferentinsize,shapeandfunction,thelogicalsetupistodividetheBIMmodelintofourparts.EachunitissavedasastandaloneTeamworkfile,sofourindependentprojectteamscanworkinparallelwithoutdisturbingeachotherswork.GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 51
-
CollaborationSolutionsinArchiCADInadditiontothehospitalunitmodules,afifthTeamworkfileiscreatedtoaccommodatethesiteplanmodel.Thefivefilesarehotlinkedintothemainprojectmodelfilewhichstorestheentirebuildingmodel,andwhichisalsoaTeamworkfile.Furthermore,theindividualunitscanbetemporarilyhotlinkedtoeachothertoensurethecorrectconnectionbetweenthem.ThemainprojectmodelismanagedbytheprojectarchitectandtheBIMmodelmanager.Sincetheprojecthasaveryextensivedocumentationsetthatwouldsignificantlyincreasethesizeofthemodelfile,theLayoutbookisstoredinaseparateTeamworkFile.Thissolutionalsoallowsthedocumentationteamtoworkindependentlyfromthemodelingteam.ThedrawingsarepublishedasindividualPMKfilesintotheLayoutBookfileandupdatedonlywhennecessary:thisreducesthetimeneededtoupdatetheentiredocumentation.
ProjectSharingExample152 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
CollaborationSolutionsinArchiCADExample2Oursecondprojectisahighriseofficebuildingconsistingoftwotowers.Thefloorplansofmostofthestoriesarecompletelyidentical;moreover,typicalofficeunitsareplannedthroughoutthewholebuilding.AswithExample1above(thehospitalproject),thisofficeprojectinvolvesindividualTeamworkfilesusedtohostthesiteplan,themainprojectmodelandtheLayoutBook.However,inthisproject,thetypicalstoriesarecontainedinamodulefilethatishotlinkedtothemainmodelfile.Furthermore,thetypicalofficeunitsarealsosavedasmodulesandhotlinkedtothetypicalfloormodule,resultinginamultiplelevelhotlinkhierarchy.Finally,theexternalshellandthecoreofthebuildingconstituteanotherstandaloneTeamworkfile,sothatthemodelingandvisualizationteamcanworkonasignificantlysmaller3Dmodel.
ProjectSharingExample2GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 53
-
CollaborationSolutionsinArchiCADSummaryoftheTeamworkandtheHotlinkFileConceptThefollowingtablegivesyouaquickcomparisonoftheTeamworkandtheHotlinkfileconceptsinArchiCAD.
Teamwork Hotlink
StartWork Justsharethefileandletusersjoin. Filestructuremustbecreatedandhotlinkedmanually.
Changeworkspace ReleaseandReservenecessaryelementsasneeded.
Filestructuremustbereorganized.
Workoffline Necessaryelementsmustbereservedinadvancetoworkwiththeminofflinemode.
Ifinternetconnectionisrestoredallchangescanbesenttotheserver.
Hotlinkedfilesarenotupdatedinthehostfileifthenetworkconnectionislostorifthefilelocationhaschanged.Youcanupdateorrelinkhotlinksmanually.
Messaging BuiltinelementbasedmessaginginArchiCAD.
Onlyexternalmessagingsystemscanbeused.
Sendandreceivechanges
Userscansendandreceivechangestotheserveratanytime.
Whenthehotlinkedsourcefileissaved,thehostwillupdatethehotlinkfileinstancesautomatically.
Sentdata Onlythechangedelementswillbesenttotheserver.
Theentirehotlinkedfiledatamustbesentoverthenetwork.
Projectfilesize Teamworkdoesntreducetheprojectfilesize.
Hotlinkedmodulescanreduceprojectfilesize.54 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
DocumentationConceptsDocumentationConceptsThecoreconceptofBIMisthatasinglemodelfilecanstoretheentireprojectdocumentation,sincethedrawingsareautomaticallygeneratedfromthe3Dvirtualbuildingmodel.InArchiCAD,thesinglefileconceptisnotrestrictedtothesoloArchiCADfiles(PLN);itisalsoapplicabletoTeamworkprojects.Thesinglefileconceptiswellproveninsmallfirmswithsmalltomediumsizedprojects.Naturally,largerfirmswithlargerprojectshavetodivideprojectsintoseveralfilesformanypracticalreasons.Thosereasonsincludeperformancelimitationsresultingfromthesinglefilemethod,andworkflowbottlenecksresultingfrommultipleusersworkingononefile.ArchiCADsupportsavarietyofdifferentlyscaledprojects,providingatransparentmethodforhandlingmultiplesessionsandmultipleviewswithinacompletecollectionoffiles.BasicallytherearethreetypicalworkflowsinArchiCAD,whichcanbecombineddependingontheprojectathand:GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 55
-
DocumentationConceptsSingleFileConceptThisisthesuggestedArchiCADworkflowforsmalltomediumsizedprojects.Thecomplete3Dmodel(virtualbuildingdata)withitsrepresentations(floorplans,sections,3Dviews,schedules,etc.)andthefinaldrawingsheets(layouts)areallincludedinoneArchiCADfile.
TheArchiCADVirtualBuildingConcept56 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
DocumentationConceptsThismethodcanfullyexploittheadvantagesoftheVirtualBuildingconcept,suchaseasyfilemanagement,automaticdrawingupdatesandlists.However,aboveacertainprojectsizeandcomplexity,theArchiCADplanfilemustbedividedintosmallerpartstoavoidperformanceandprojectmanagementproblems.
TheArchiCADSingleFileConceptGRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 57
-
DocumentationConceptsDocumentationSeparatedfromtheModelFileThedocumentationandthedesignteamscanworksimultaneouslyontheprojectifthedocumentationfileisseparatedfromthemodelfile.Thesizeofthemasterfilecanalsobereducedifyouadoptthismethod.ArchiCADfullysupportsthisworkflowsinceyoucancontrolcomplexfilehierarchiesintheNavigatorpalette.Therearetwostrategicwaysofseparatingthedocumentationfromthemodel.
MasterFileMethodInthisscenario,thereisamasterArchiCADfilethatcontainsthecompleteArchiCADmodel,togetherwithitssavedviews.Theseparatedocumentationfilecontainsthelayoutsanddrawings(viewsplacedfromthemodelfile)andautomaticallyupdatesthedrawingsifthemodelfileischanged.Thismethodisapplicabletomediumandlargeprojects.
Ifyourprojectcontainsasignificantnumberoflayouts,youareadvisedtoconsiderthismethod.
SeparateModelandDocumentationFiles58 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
DocumentationConceptsUseofPMKDrawingsDuetosizeandspeedissues,verycomplexorlargeprojectsusuallydonothaveamasterfilethatcontainsallthedrawings.Consequentlythebuildingmodelisstoredinmultipleprojectfiles(someofthemcanbeTeamworkfiles;otherscanbesimpleArchiCADprojectfilesthatrefertohotlinkedmodules).Therearetwowaystoimportthedrawingsintothedocumentationfile.1) DrawingsaresavedindividuallyasPMKfilesandlinkedtotheArchiCADdocumentationprojectfile.Inthiscase
thereisnodirectlinkbetweenthemodelfileandthedocumentfile,sothedrawingsonthelayoutdonotautomaticallyreflectthechangesinthemodelfile.ThismethodisonlyrecommendedifthePMKfilesarerarelyupdated,oriftheautomaticdrawingupdatefromthemodelfileistooslow.Thismightbethebestsolutionforverylargeprojectswithextensivedocumentationsets.Ifthismethodisused,theBIMManagerorDocumentationManagermustcontrolthesavingandlinking/updatingofthesePMKfiles.
ManuallySavedPMKDrawingsLinkedtotheDocumentFileGRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 59
-
DocumentationConcepts2) DrawingsareimportedintotheLayoutBookdirectlyfromoneormorebuildingmodelfilesandotherexternalfilesources(DWG,DXF,PDFs,imagefiles,PMKs,etc.).Foraverycomplexbuilding,thedocumentationfilecanalsobesubdividedintotwoormorepartsforeasierdrawingmanagement.
PMKDrawingscanbeSavedAutomaticallyfromthePublisher60 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
DocumentationConceptsThisisacomplexsystembutverypowerful,andinsomecasesmaybetheonlywaytohandlelargeprojects.Wherecomplexdocumentationstructuresareusedintheoffice,itiscrucialthattheBIMManager/projectleaderdeveloptheproposedfilehierarchyanddistributethistotheprojectteammemberspriortostartingthedocumentation.
ComplexFileStructureComplexorlargeprojectsrequirespecialcollaborationsolutions.Thesuccessfulcollaborationapproachshouldbetailoredtotheofficeorganizationandthetypeofproject.Asarule,largeprojectsshouldbedividedintosmaller,logicalpartsusingacombinationofTeamworkandhotlinksolutions.Forexample:Amultistoryofficebuildingisintheconstructiondesignphase.ThebuildingconsistsoftwowingsthatarestoredintwoindependentTeamworkfiles.Fromtheveryearlystagea3Dmodelofthewholebuildingwasbuilt,containingonlythoseelementsessentialforvisualizationandconceptualdesign.Basedonthismodel,twoTeamworkfileswerecreated(oneforeachtower)thatservedasthebasisoftheconstructiondocumentation.TheTeamworkfilesrefertoexternalhotlinkedmodulesandXrefssuchascolumngrids,landsurveysandotherconsultantdrawings.GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 61
-
DocumentationConceptsThedocumentationisstoredintwoLayoutBookfilestoreducethesizeoftheTeamworkprojectsandtoallowtheprojectdocumentationteamtoworkinparallelwiththedesigners/architects.
ComplexProjectFileHierarchy62 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
DocumentationConceptsMergevs.Linkvs.OpenThepossiblewaysofusingthemodeldata,CADdrawingsandreportsreceivedfromanotherapplicationinArchiCADarethefollowing:MergeUseMergetoaddthemodelordrawingcontent(orpartofit)tothecurrentlyrunningArchiCADproject.MergedmodeldataareconvertedintonativeArchiCADelements,whichcanthenbeusedasaprotectedoreditablereference.Theimportedcontent,usedasareference,isseparatedfromthehostprojectelements,andcanbedisplayedtogetherorindependentlyfromtheoriginalprojectdatabychoosingavisualizationtechnique.LinkAsanotherreferencepossibility,youmayopenareceived3DmodelasanewArchiCADprojectfirste.g.tovisuallyfilteroutthepartsyouwillneedthenlinktheproject,orapartofit,toyourcurrentprojectasaHotlinkedModule,whichwillserveas(noneditable)content.DependingonthefileformatsyoucanalsouseXREFand/orDrawingconnectiontolinkexternaldrawingsintoArchiCADprojects.OpenTheOpencommandlaunchesamodelorCADdrawingasaseparateArchiCADfile,independentofanyotherprojectcurrentlyopeninArchiCAD.ThisimportedfilecanbeaddedlaterasareferencetotheappropriatepartofanotherArchiCADprojectasmentionedbefore.GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 63
-
TeamandProjectSetupTeamandProjectSetupThesize,complexityandtypeoftheprojectaswellasthesizeoftheprojectteamallhavetobeconsideredtofindthemosteffectiveprojectsharingstrategy.ItisrecommendedthattheprojectleaderortheBIMmanagerdefinetheprojectsharingstrategypriortostartinganewproject.Theprojectsharingdocumentshoulddescribethehierarchy,name,location,ownershipandthecontentofthevariousprojectfiles.SinceArchiCADsupportsdifferentteamworkingmethods,theprojectsharingconceptcanbeflexiblychangedtobestmatchtheproject.
TeamOrganizationThesizeandtheorganizationoftheofficedeterminethecollaborationproblems.Atypicalprobleminsmallarchitecturaloffices(510architects)isthelackofdedicatedCADmanagerswhocansetupandmaintainCADandITstandards.Sharingtheworkinthesmalloffices,however,isnotascriticalasinlargefirms,sincetheprojectsaretypicallynotverybigandtheprojectteamisrelativelysmall.Ontheotherhand,thesharingoflargeprojectsiscriticalforlargeoffices,whichfacethisproblemeveryday,soitishighlyrecommendedthattheyimplementstrictsharingmethods.
SettingupaTeamProjectAlthoughitispossibletostartaTeamworkProjectfromscratchandusethedefaultsettingsprovidedbyArchiCAD,itisrecommendedtodefineanumberofbasiccriteriabeforesharingtheProject,sincechangingthemwhentherearealreadyseveralarchitectsordraftsmenworkingonitismoredifficult.Thesebasicsettingsaffectcertainelementsoftheprojectfile,suchasattributes(layers,pensmaterialsetc.),navigatorstructure(views,layouts,publishersets),favoritesandlibraries.ThesedefaultprojectsettingsarebestdefinedbythepersonwhoisgoingtoactasTeamLeader,whowillaccessandmodifythemduringthelifeoftheTeamProject.64 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
TeamandProjectSetupStructureoftheTeamsArchitecturalpracticesemploydifferentapproachesforthesetupoftheirteamstructure;eachsetuphasadvantagesanddisadvantages:ArchitecturalStudiosoperateasindividualorganizationswithinthecompany.Asingleteammanagestheprojectthroughouttheentirecycle.SpecializedTeamsaremostcommoninlargerarchitecturalpractices.Inthesesetups,theprojectisstartedbyteamA,andatagivenpoint,usuallywhentheconceptualdesignisfinished,istransferredtoteamBfordetaileddocumentation.
DynamicTeamsareflexiblegroupsthatadjusttotheprojectphasesandrequirements.GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 65
-
TeamandProjectSetupTypicalStructureofaMidSizeOfficeThefollowingchartshowstheorganizationalhierarchyofatypicalmidsizearchitecturaloffice.Inthisexample,therearetwoindependentprojectteamswithonearchitectandtwodraftsmenworkingoneach.TheprojectarchitectofthefirstteamalsoservesasaparttimeBIMManagerintheoffice.Duetotherelativelysmallfirmsizeandthegenerallylimitedsizeprojects,informalcommunicationissufficienttohandleprojectcoordinationissuesinmostcases.
OrganizationalChartofaMidSizeOfficeThetypicalproblemforofficesofthissizeisthattheycantaffordafulltimeCADandITManager,sosomebodyintheofficehastotakeontheresponsibilitiesonaparttimebasis,whichnaturallydecreasestheirproductivity.66 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
TeamandProjectSetupTypicalStructureofaLargePracticeThelargearchitecturalofficeworkflowsshowninthenextfigurespresentatypicalworkflowusingthe2DCADworkflowandtheBIMworkflow.Themaindifferencesbetweenthetwoworkflowsare: IntheBIMworkflow,thereisnoneedforaDocumentationTeam,sincemostoftheconstruction
documentationinformationisderiveddirectlyfromthecentraldesignmodel.Theprojectteamsmighthavededicatedpersonsfocusingonfinetuningthedocumentation.
TheBIMmanagermustmanageallphasesoftheprojectdesign,decideaboutthenumberandqualificationofpersonnel(HRrole),andmanagecollaborationrelatedtaskswiththeextendeddesignteam.
BIMworkflowdoesnotincludeastandalonevisualizationteam;thepersonnelresponsibleforthistaskarepartofthedesignteam.GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 67
-
TeamandProjectSetup ThelargeofficestructureusingtheBIMworkflowissubdividedinto3teams.Thefirsttwoareworkingonalargeproject,andtheirtasksarecoordinatedbyaprojectdirector.TheprojectdirectorandtheleadersoftheothertwoprojectteamsreporttotheDesignDirector.InthisexampleafulltimeITandBIMManagerassisttheprojectteams.
OrganizationalChartofaLargeOfficeUsingTraditional2DWorkflow68 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
TeamandProjectSetupOrganizationalChartofaLargeOfficeUsingtheBIMWorkflowGRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 69
-
TeamandProjectSetupProjectSetupIdeally,intheprojectsetupphase,youdefine: Theskeletonofyourproject,includingitsstorystructureandthemainNavigatorviewsetsyouwillworkwith. Themaininherentlogicofyourproject,includinglayers,layercombinationsandthewaytheprojectisshared. Themaincommunicationprotocolsyouwillusetocommunicatewiththeinternalandexternalmembersofthe
projectteamandtheclient. Thebasicbuildingblocksyouwillworkwith,includingfavoritesforthebuildingelementsandintelligent
parametricobjectstobeusedintheproject. Themainstructureofyourdocumentation,includingyourLayoutBookandyourpublishingsets.Beforeyoustarttheactualprojectsetupinthesoftwareapplication,youshouldhaveananswertothefollowingquestions:
Whatarethedeliverablesoftheproject? Whattypesofprojectmaterialsanddocumentationareavailabletostarttheprojectwith? Whatarethedrawingstandardstobeused? Whatarethemaindesignprinciplesoftheproject? Whatbuildingmaterialsandstructureswillbeused? AtwhichprojectstagewilltheBIMimplementationstart? Whatarethecommunicationprotocolswiththeconsultants?TheprojectsharingandcollaborationprotocolsinArchiCADshouldbedefinedupontheanswerstothesequestions.70 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
TeamandProjectSetupProjectStructure(Navigator)OneofthemostpowerfulcapabilitiesofArchiCADistheNavigatorPalette,whichprovidesoverviewandcontroloverevenverycomplexprojectstructuresandextensivedocumentationsets.Moreover,thecombineduseofNavigator,HotlinkManager,XrefManagerandDrawingManagerallowtheprojectarchitecttocontinuouslymonitorthestatusofnotonlythemainprojectfilebutalsotheexternalfileslinkedintoit.TheNavigatorservesseveralbasicfunctionsintheprojectworkflow: TheProjectMapallowsnavigationintheBIMmodel. TheViewMapstoresdifferentviewsofthemodelorganizedbyvariouscategories. TheLayoutBookprovidesaccesstotheentireprojectdocumentation. ThePublisheristheprimarytoolforcommunicatingtheBIMprojectdatainprintedandelectronicformat,
includingDXFDWGandPDF.GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 71
-
TeamandProjectSetupModesofArchiCADsProjectNavigator72 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
TeamandProjectSetupLibrariesLibrariesareacrucialpartofArchiCADprojects.ArchiCADisshippedwithanextensivedefaultlibrary,butyoucancreateadditionallibraryobjectstoserveanyimaginableneedofyourproject.Inatypicalarchitecturalfirm,threetypesoflibrariesareused: StandardArchiCADLibraryisthemostcurrentversionoftheArchiCADobjectlibraryorinsomecasesjusta
subsetofit.ThesubsetlibrarycontainsonlythoseelementsofthestandardArchiCADlibrarythatareregularlyusedinthefirm.
OfficeStandardLibraryisacollectionofthoseobjectsthathavebeendevelopedtomeettheofficerequirements.Thislibrarytypicallyincludesannotationelements(e.g.markers,labels,drawingframesetc.)and3Dobjects(e.g.doors,windows,curtainwallsetc.).
ProjectSpecificLibrariesconsistofcustomelementsdevelopedspecificallyforthisproject.Mostoftheseobjectsarecreatedbytheprojectteammembers.
Theabovelibrariescanresideonthecompanyfileserver,BIMServer,orontheteammemberscomputer.Forthebestperformancewesuggestthefollowingstrategyforlibrarystorage: ArchiCADLibraryandOfficeStandardLibrariesareinstalledonthecompanyfileserverorforTeamworkprojects
ontheBIMServer.Librariesarestoredincontainerfileformat(LCF)orasBIMServerLibrariesandusersarenotallowedtomodifythem.OnlyServerAdministratorshavetherighttoupdatethem.
ProjectSpecificLibrariesaretypicallystoredintheprojectfileasembeddedobjects.TeammembershavingtherequiredTeamworkrolesettingscanfreelyedittheseobjects.
StandardArchiCADLibraryTheStandardArchiCADLibraryshouldalwaysbeloadedbydefaultwiththefirmstemplatefile(s)andwitheachproject,asitcontainsalloftherequiredmacrosandnecessarycomponentstomakeallobjectsfunctionproperly.TheArchiCADLibraryshouldbeupdatedcentrallybytheITorBIMmanager,thuswerecommendtostoreitontheBIMserver,asaBIMServerLibrary.ThecentralizedupdateofArchiCADlibrarieswillpreventusersfromloadingoutdatedlibraryversions.GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 73
-
TeamandProjectSetupOfficeStandardLibraryTheOfficeStandardLibraryisdefinedasthelibrarythat,inadditiontotheArchiCADLibrary,willbeloadedwitheachandeveryprojectwithinanoffice.TheOfficeStandardLibrarywillcontainalloftheobjectscreated,editedoradaptedbythefirmasastandardtosuitspecificneeds.LiketheArchiCADLibrary,itisbestiftheOfficeStandardLibraryisaccessedasacontainerfile(LCF)orasaBIMServerLibraryinsteadofinextractedform(GSMobjects);thisdecreasesloadingtime,andmaintainsthelibrarysintegrity.TheBIMManagershoulddetermineaworkableOfficeStandardLibrarybaseduponstaffskills,projecttypesandfirmprovidedservices,andberesponsibleforitsmaintenance.ContentoftheOfficeStandardLibrary: Standardannotations Details TypicalstructuralelementsandfurnitureProjectLibraryTheprojectlibrarycontainsprojectspecificelementsonly.Thesecanbe: Customstairs Customdoorwindowpanels Backgroundimages Textureimages CustommodelelementsusedonlyintheprojectTheProjectSpecificLibraryisdefinedastheindividuallibraryfolderthatiscreatedspecificallyforeachprojectwithinanoffice.Itisincludedwithineveryprojectsdirectory/folderatthetimeitiscreatedandismaintainedasanEmbeddedLibrarytoallowtheeasymodificationoftheobjects.TheProjectSpecificLibraryisthestorehouseforallcustompartscreatedfortheparticularproject,includingtextures,stairs,etc.TheProjectSpecificLibraryiseffectiveinanofficebecauseitgivestheusertheflexibilityofcustomization,whilemaintainingtheintegrityandofficestandardizationcontainedwithintheOfficeStandardLibrary.Oncecreated,custompartscanbeevaluatedastotheirrelevanceforinclusionintotheOfficeStandardLibraryatanytime.74 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
InteroperabilityInteroperabilityArchitectsmustcontinuouslysharetheirdesignwithmanyprojectstakeholdersduringthewholeprojectlifecycle.Todaytheyspendmoretimeoncommunicatingtheirdesignintentwithotherprojectparticipantsthanontheiractualdesignwork.Tofurthercomplicatematters,thetypeandthecontentoftherequireddataoftendiffersgreatlydependingonwhowantstouseit.TheBIMmodelprovidestheidealplatformforsharingthebuildingdatainsideandoutsideoftheoffice.IFCandotherfileprotocolsallowtheBIMprogramtocommunicatewithdiverseapplications,suchasstructural,energyanalysisandcollisiondetectionprograms.ThischapterdescribeshowArchiCADsupportsdifferentmeansofcommunicationoutsidethearchitectsoffice.
BIMasaPlatformforCommunicationDesigning,constructingandmaintainingabuildingisusuallyaverycomplexprocessthatrequirestheclosecooperationofseveralpeopleworkingindifferentfields.Thefigurebelowshowsthemanypossibleparticipantsofabuildingproject,includingthebuildingowners,developers,contractors,engineers,facilitymanagersandofcoursethearchitect.Thearchitecthasaveryimportantroleinthishierarchy,sincehe/sheistheonlyonewhocontinuouslyhastoprovidedataaboutthecurrentstatusofthedesignforalltheotherprojectstakeholders.Ifanarchitecturalfirmdoesnotadapttothiscommunicationcentricandcollaborativeworld,itwillslowlybecutoutfrombigprojects.GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 75
-
InteroperabilityTheBIMModelasPlatformforProjectCommunicationTheBIMmethodoffersaveryefficientandautomatedcommunicationplatformforthebuildingindustry.ByusingtheBIMmodelinpractice,thearchitectwillnotbetheonlybeneficiaryofthevirtualproject.Theownerandallthemembersoftheprojectteamalsobenefit.Thekeyisthatthearchitectisthefocusoftheentireprocessandaddssignificantvalueandgetspaidhigherfees!Thisisthenotionofmovingfromafilebasedenvironmenttowardsadatabasedenvironment:whatwecallaBIMproject.76 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
InteroperabilityTheBIMmodel,whenimportedintoexternalanalysisprograms,allowsawiderangeofanalyticalactivitiesincludingstructuralanalysis,energyefficiencyanalysisandcodechecking(collisiondetection).Thesetoolshelpminimizetheriskofconstructionanddesignerrors.
FileFormatsOneofthekeyproblemsofbuildinglifecyclemanagementisthatdifferentprojectparticipantsrequiredifferenttypesofinformationfromthearchitect.Datathattheconstructioncompanyneedsarequitedifferentfromthoserequiredtooperateacompletedbuilding.ArchiCADisabletocommunicatewithotherprogramsviaseveralfileformats,suchasIFC,DXFDWGandPDF.
ArchiCADsupportsmanyFileFormatsGRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 77
-
InteroperabilitySharingtheBIMModel:IFCIFCIndustryFoundationClassesisaneutralfileformatthatmakesitpossibletoexchangeinformationbetweendifferentCADsystemsandothersystemsinthebuildingandfacilitymanagementsectors.TheIFClanguageinterpretsthedescriptionsof3Dbuildingmodelelements(suchasslabs,walls,columns,beamsetc.)betweenvarioussoftwareapplicationsduringthedesignprocess.IncomparisontoDXF,whichismerelyagraphicelementformat,IFCfilesalsodefinethefullpropertiesofarchitecturalobjects,suchastheir3Dgeometricalcharacteristics,materialsandtheirrelationshiptootherobjects.TheIFCformatisISOcertifiedandcanbeintegratedintoanyexistingqualityassurancepolicesyourofficemayhave.IFCisdevelopedinpartbytheIAItheInternationalAllianceforInteroperability.
SharingtheBIMModelviaIFC78 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
InteroperabilityBuidingSMARTisanallianceoforganizationsdedicatedtobringaboutacoordinatedchangefortheimprovementofproductivityandefficiencyintheconstructionandfacilitiesmanagementindustry.BuildingSMARTpromoteseffectiveinformationexchangeamongallsoftwareplatformsandapplicationsservingtheAEC+FMcommunitybyadoptingBIM.MajorapplicationvendorsinthefieldsofBuildingInformationModeling,Structuralengineering,HVACdesign,thermalanalysis,codechecking,quantitytakeoffandcostestimationhaveallincorporatedIFCcompatibilityintotheirproducts.GRAPHISOFThasplayedanactiverolewithintheBuildingSMARTorganizationsince1996andsupportstheIFCstandard,whichenablesArchiCADtocommunicatewithotherdisciplineswithinthecontextofthebuildingmodel,andtocoordinateabuildingprojectentirelyin3D.ThebuildingmodelcanalsobeexportedbacktoliterallyhundredsofothersystemsthatsupportIFC.IFCbaseddataexchangecanbeenhancedbyusingthesocalledBIMCollaborationFormat(BCF)basedcommunication.BCF,anopenstandardformatofficiallyendorsedbybuildingSMART,isusedbymanystructural,MEPandmodelcheckerprogramstoaddcomments,screenshots,camerapositionand3DcuttingplanestoIFCmodels.Inthisworkflow,youcanassigncommenttopicstoIFCmodelelements.Basedonthese,theotherusercaneasilylocatethereferencedelementsintheIFCmodel.BCFbaseddataexchangeisparticularlysuitedforidentifyingoverlaps(e.g.collisions)whenseveralmodelsfromdifferentapplicationsarecombinedinoneprogram(e.g.ArchiCADoramodelchecker).
Formoreinformation,see:http://www.buildingsmart.com/.GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 79
-
InteroperabilityAdvantagesofUsingIFCThemajoradvantageofusingIFCinsteadofotherfileformatsisthattheBIMinformationispreservedduringthedatatransfer.Forexample,wallswillremainwalls,preservingallthepreviouslyset2Dand3DinformationaftertheIFCfileisopenedinanotherapplication.NotonlydoestheIFCprotocolpreservethefullgeometricdescriptionin3D,butitalsoknowsobjectlocationandrelationships,aswellasalltheproperties(orparameters)ofeachobject.TheIFCbasedcollaborationworkflowfulfillsalltherequirementsofthereferencemodelconceptsusedduring3Dmodelsharingamongdifferentdesigndisciplines,andoffersseveraladvantagesforthearchitecturaldesignfirm: AccessobjectdataforimproveddesignandcoordinationinArchiCADforexample,youcanimportabuilding
serviceengineersHVACductworkorwaterpipinglayoutas3Dobjects. Exportyourdesignforanalysisbyanotherspecialistsuchasathermalanalysisenablingbetterunderstandingof
yourbuildingperformance,oradvancedvisualization. Exportamodelforcosting,estimationbiddingorprocurementtheintegratednatureoftheIFCinformation
makesyourdatabasemorevaluablebecauseyourinformationiseasytoaccessandanalyzebysuchpackagesascostingapplications.80 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
InteroperabilityIFCTranslatorsImportingandexportingmodeldatausingIFCtakesplaceaccordingtothesettingsoftheIFCtranslatoryouareusing.ArchiCADprovidespredefined,factorydefaulttranslators,butyoucandefineyourowncustomonesaswell.Predefined(butcustomizable)TranslatorshelpyouapplyIFCmodelexchangesettingsassimplyaspossible,providingoneclickexport/importsolutions.
IFCTranslationSetupGRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 81
-
InteroperabilitySharingDocuments:PDFPDFisaproprietaryfileformatdevelopedbyAdobeSystemsforrepresentingtwodimensionaldocumentsinadeviceindependentandresolutionindependentformat.PDFiscurrentlythemostcommonfileformatforsharingdocumentsontheInternet,sinceitstores2Ddatainacompressedformat.ArchiCADsinternalPDFenginesupportsboththeexportandimportofPDFdocuments,aswellassavingtothePDF/Aarchiveformat.PDFisidealfordesignersandarchitects.ProductdetailsfrommostbuildingelementmanufacturersarenowavailableinPDFformatontheInternet.Thesereadymadedrawingscanbeinserteddirectlyintotheconstructiondocumentationwithasinglemouseclick.ThefollowingfigureshowsthepossibleuseofPDFwithArchiCADprojects:
PDFDocumentInputandOutput82 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
InteroperabilityTheEntireDocumentationSetcanbeExportedinPDFFormatfromthePublisherGRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 83
-
InteroperabilitySharingDrawings:DWGDXFDespitetheirincreasedrelianceonmodelbaseddataexchange,architectsandengineersstillrelyoneachothersCADdrawingstouseasareferenceintheirrespectivemodels.DXFandDWGarestillthemostcommon2Ddrawingexchangeformatbetweenarchitectsandconsultants.Exchangingdatabetweendifferentapplicationsisnevereasyandthereisalwaysachancefortranslationerrorsduetotheconceptualdifferencesbetweentheprograms.SinceDWGfilesharingisanecessity,ArchiCADmakesitpossibletocreateconfigurationfiles,whichfilterattributesoffiledataduringconversion.TheseDWGtranslatorscanbeassociatedwithPublisheritemsintheNavigator.ArchiCADsDXF/DWGtranslatorsupportsformatsuptoAutoCAD2010andaccuratelymapslayers,pencolors,fontsandblocks.ArchiCADcanwriteoutDXF/DWGdatathatcontainsbothPaperSpaceandModelSpaceinformationinthesamefile.DXFDWGTranslatorSetupTheDXFDWGtranslatorwilleasethecommunicationbetweenthearchitectandtheotherpartiesduringtheentiredesignprocess.DefininganddevelopingDXFDWGtranslatorfilesrequiresextensiveknowledgeofArchiCADandAutoCADandthecarefulconsiderationofmanycircumstances: ExistingDXFDWGstandardsintheoffice(layers,pens,fills,namingetc.) Requirementsofthepartners(structuraldesigners,engineers,facilitymanagers,buildersetc.) ConceptualdifferencesbetweenArchiCADandAutoCAD GoalsofthetranslationMostofthetime,asingletemplatefilecantfulfillalltheseneeds.WerecommendtheuseoffullycustomizedDWGtranslatorsetsfordifferentpurposes.ToavoidincorrectDWGoutput,thetranslatorshavetobecarefullynamedanddocumentedinthecompanyBIMguidelines,andtherighttranslatorshavetobeassignedtotheDWGpublisheritemsinthestandardtemplatefiles.84 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
InteroperabilityUsingDWGDXFFilesinArchiCADTherearethreewaystoincorporateDWG/DXFfilesintoArchiCADProjects.ThefirstistoMergetheDWG/DXFfile.
ArchiCADsSmartMergeFunctionAllowsIntelligentImportofDWGDrawingsThesecondistoAttachtheDWG/DXFfileasanXreffile.ThethirdoneistoplacetheDWG/DXFfileasanExternalDrawing.GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 85
-
InteroperabilityThefollowingtableshowsthedifferencesinthethreemethods:
Merge Xref PlaceasDrawingAttributesCreated?(e.g.Layers,Linetypes,Filltypes)
Yes,createdduringMerge. Yes,createdduringAttachment(Xreflayersareseparatedinthelayerlist).
Noattributescreated.
CreatedAttributesDeleted? Mustbedeletedindividually. WhenDetaching,allattributescanbedeletedinonestep.
Noattributes,nosuchproblem.
IndividuallayersofDWG/DXFfileturnedon/off?
Yes Yes No
CanfilebeplacedinModelViews?
Yes Yes Yes
CanfilebeplacedonLayouts?
Yes No Yes
CanfilehaveitsownPenSet?
No No Yes
Canitselementsbesnappedto?
Yes Yes Yes
Canitsdrawingcontentberesized?
Yes Yes Yes
Contentsincorporatedintoandsavedwiththeproject?
Yes,immediatelybecomespartoftheproject.
Yes,useBindcommandinXrefManagementDialogBox.
Yes,useExplodecommand.86 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
InteroperabilityBasedontheabovetable,thesolutionsforthemostcommonscenarios/requirementsare:1) Cleannessofattributes.WhenaDWG/DXFfilesismergedorattached,dozensofattributesmaybecreated.Ifyou
wishtoavoidthat(e.g.longlistofLayersintheLayerSettingsDialog),usethePlaceExternalDrawingmethodinstead.
2) Cleaningupcreatedattributes.TheXrefmethodispreferabletotheMergemethod,becausewhenyouDetachanXreffilefromtheProject,ArchiCADofferstodeleteallattributescomingfromtheXreffileinonestep.
XRefLayersareSeparatedintheArchiCADLayerListGRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 87
-
Interoperability3) AbilitytoturnLayersON/OFFindividually.WhenusingtheMergeorXrefmethods,youcanturntheLayersoftheimportedfilesonandoffindividually.WhenusingthePlaceExternalDrawingmethod,allDWG/DXFdataarehandledasasingleunitandareplacedonasinglelayer.Thedrawingssourcelayersarenotmergedintoyourproject,butyoucanuseDrawingSettingstosetthevisibility(show/hide)oftheDWGssourcelayers.
4) PlacementonLayouts.XreffilescannotbedirectlyplacedontoLayouts,soifyouneedtoplaceDWG/DXFfilesontoLayouts,youshoulduseeithertheMergeorthePlaceExternalDrawingmethod.(YoucanplaceDWG/DXFfilesinModelViewsusinganyofthethreemethods.)
5) UsePenSetfromDWG/DXFfile.IfyouwishtomakethePenSetoftheDWG/DXFfilepartoftheProject,usethePlaceExternalDrawingmethod.ThenyoucansavethePenSetoftheDrawinggeneratedfromtheDWG/DXFfile.
6) MakingDWG/DXFdatapermanentlypartoftheProjectFile.TheMergemethodistheonewhichimmediatelyresultsinDWG/DXFdatabecomingpartoftheProject.AnExternalDrawingmustbeexploded.AsforXreffiles,theBindcommandisrequiredtoachievethesameresult.
SincetherearesomefundamentaldifferencesbetweenthehandlingofattributesinArchiCADandAutoCAD,youhavetopayspecialattentiontotheirtranslation.BeforeimplementingthecompanystandardTranslators,werecommendthatyoutestthemonasamplefilethatincludesallthecompanystandardlayers,fills,linetypesandpentypes.AddingashortdescriptiontoyourTranslatorsisagoodideaiftherearemanyoftheminthecompanytemplatefile.
TranslatorDescription88 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
InteroperabilityReviewingandRedlining:DWFDWF(DesignWebFormat)isanopensecurefileformatfromAutodesk.DWFallowsCADuserstocommunicatedesigninformationanddesignintenttoanyoneneedingtoview,review,orprintdesigninformation.
DWFFileBasedRevisionWorkflowinArchiCADThereareseveralfreeDWFviewersdownloadablefromtheInternetthatcanopenthedocumentssavedinthisformat.ArchiCADcansaveorPublishDWFdocumentsdirectlyfromthePublisher.GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 89
-
InteroperabilityProjectPublishedwithArchiCADReviewer90 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
CoordinationwithEngineersCoordinationwithEngineersCoordinationofprojecttradesintheBIMofficerequiresintelligentfilteringoftheBIMmodeldataandfindinginconsistenciesandcollisionsintheconsultantswork.ArchiCADofferseffectivesolutionsforbothproblems.TheBIMmodelexchangeviaIFCallowsthearchitecttofindanycollisionsinthe3Dmodelwiththehelpof3rdpartymodelcheckerapplications.ModelcheckersaremostlyusedtofindcollisionsbetweenthestructuralelementsandtheMEPsystems,especiallyinlargeandcomplexbuildingswithextensiveductworkandpipinglayouts.
PreparationofDataforExportPartnerofficesusuallydonotrequirethefullydetailedarchitecturalmodel;asimplifiedmodelissufficient.Forexample,structuralmodelsaresimplifiedversionsofarchitecturalmodels,whichcontainonlytheloadbearingbuildingelementssuchascolumns,beams,slabs,walls,roofs,andtheloadbearing(core)partsofcompositestructures.AnyBuildingMaterialusedasanairgapincomposite/complexelementscanbedefinedaccordingtowhetheritshouldparticipateinCollisionDetection:thisway,onlyelementpartshavingrealgeometrywillparticipateinCollisionDetectioninIFCmodelcheckersandinArchiCAD'sMEPModeler.Ifanarchitectplanstoexchangemodelswithastructuralengineer,he/sheshouldkeeptheserequirementsinmindwhencarryingouttheirdesignwork,tomaketheeventualmodelexchangeeasier.GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 91
-
CoordinationwithEngineersClassificationInArchiCAD,youcanoptionallyassigncertainclassificationstoanystructuralelement.Suchaclassificationassignsspecialparametersandfunctionstotheseelementsforusebyotherapplications:tointerpretdata,tomakemodelstransparent,tolocateelements,forlistingpurposes,etc.Foreachconstructionelement,youmaysetthefollowingthreeClassificationcontrolsintheListingandLabelingpanelofitsSettingsdialogbox:IFCElementTypeFormoreaccuratemodelmapping,youcanclassifyArchiCADelementsbytheirIFCentitytype.WhileeachArchiCADElementTypehasadefaultcounterpartinIFC(whichisusedifyouusetheArchiCADTypeoptionhere),youcanassignanyotherIFCtypetoaparticularelementforexample,ifthereisnospecificArchiCADtoolcorrespondingtotheIFCelementtypeyouwanttomapitto;orifyouhaveusedcertaintoolstomodelelementsofadifferenttype,suchasusingtheSlabtooltomodelaceiling,orusingtheWalltooltomodelacurvedbeam.YoucanalsosearchforelementsbytheirIFCelementtypeclassification,usingthecriteriaoftheFind&Selectdialogbox:forexample,searchforjusttheslabsusedtorepresentceilings.Also,InteractiveElementSchedule(IES)canlistpropertiesandparametersbytheElementClassification.StructuralFunctionStructuralElementorNonStructuralElementIncollaboratingwithpartnerswhoareusingstructuralprograms,youcanexportyourArchiCADmodeltoIFCformat:theStructuralFunctionclassification(assignedinArchiCAD)automaticallyaddstheloadbearingpropertytostructuralelementsintheexportfile.92 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
CoordinationwithEngineersStructuralFunctionletsyoulimittheexportedIFCmodeltostructuralelementsonly,therebystreamliningthecollaborationprocess.Thisclassificationisusefulforlistingpurposesforexample,youcancalculatethematerialsneededforallstructuralwallsorcolumns,separatelyfrommaterialsofnonstructuralelements.IfyouhaveclassifiedmodelelementsasLoadBearingElement,thenyoucanusethePartialStructureDisplayCoreofLoadBearingElementsOnlyoptiontodisplaythoseelementsonly.
ElementClassificationPositionInteriororExteriorThisclassificationisusefulifyouplantosendanIFCfiletopartners(e.g.energyanalyzers)whoareabletodifferentiateelementsbytheirlocationinthebuilding.WhenyouexporttheArchiCADmodeltoIFCformat,yourmodelelementsthatareclassifiedasInteriororExteriorwillcarrythisinformationtothepartnersapplicationviaIFC.GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 93
-
CoordinationwithEngineersLayerSystemArchiCADslayersystem(LayersandLayerCombinations)canhelpinnarrowingdownthepartsofthemodeltobeexported.Uselayerstogroupelementsconceptually(e.g.structuralelements)andtoseparatethemfromelementsnotneededintheexportedmodel(e.g.furniture).Forexample,youcanchoosefiltersthatwillexportonlyelementslocatedonlayerssettovisible,whileyouhidethelayersoftheelementsyoudonotneedtoexport.
IntelligentLayerCombinationsHelptheDataExchangebetweenProjectTrades94 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
CoordinationwithEngineersStandardProfilesIfyouexchangedatawithstructuralapplications,usingtheIFCstandard,itcanbehelpfultousestandardelementsasyoursteelprofiledColumnsorBeams.Duringthedataexchangeprocess,numerousstructuralengineeringprogramsareabletorecognizeandidentifysuchstandardelementsaccuratelyandcompletely.
FilteringbyElementRepresentationSincetheexportconsidersthedisplaysettingsofthecurrentexportedview,youcanfurtherfilterthemodelaccordingtotheelementsdisplaystatus:
PartialStructureDisplayArchiCADsPartialStructureDisplayfunctionallowsyoutodisplayorhidethemodelscomplexorcompositecomponents,dependingontheirtypeorclassification.Forexample,whencollaboratingwithotherdesignersorengineers,youmayprefertoignorenonstructuralwalls,andtodisplay/outputonlythestructuralcomponentsofcomplexelements.ThefirstthreeoptionsinthePartialStructureDisplaydialogbox(Documentmenu)displayorhidethecomponentsofcompositeorcomplexelements,dependinguponhowyouhavedefinedthosecomponents.Forexample: ChoosingCoreOnlydisplaysonlytheloadbearingskinofthecomplexorcompositestructures.Thepreferences
ofPartialStructureDisplaycanbesavedseparatelyforeachview. CoreofLoadBearingElementsOnlyconsidersallconstructionelements(notjustcomposite/complex),and
enablesyoutohideanyelementsyouhaveclassifiedasNonLoadBearingElement.(SeeStructuralFunctiononpage92.)ThissettingwilldisplayallelementsclassifiedasLoadBearingorUndefined,andthecompositeandcomplexoneswiththeirCoreonly.GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 95
-
CoordinationwithEngineers TheVeneerpartofColumnscanbedisplayedorhiddenbyPartialStructureDisplayaccordingtoitstype:Core,FinishorOther.
PartialStructureDisplay
VisualizationArchiCADoffersanumberofvisualizationtoolsthatmakeiteasytofindandviewtheimportedcontentwithinArchiCAD,and,ifneeded,todifferentiateitfromthearchitecturalmodel.LayerDisplayModesTodifferentiateelementsfromtheoriginalArchiCADelements,placethemontoaseparatelayer.(YoucansetArchiCADtodothisautomaticallyaspartofthemergeprocess,usingtheappropriatecontrolofIFCTranslationSetup.In3DViews,youcanuselayersettingstodisplayimportedstructuralandmechanicalelementsdifferentlyfromarchitecturalelements.Forexample,setthe3DViewDisplaymodeofarchitecturallayerstoWireframe,whileapplyingShadingmodeforallimportedelementlayers.96 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
CoordinationwithEngineersTrace&ReferenceArchiCADsbuiltinTraceReferencefeaturehelpstheuserstovisuallyidentifyanydifferencesbetweentwoviewsorlayouts.Thistoolcanbeusedeffectivelytocomparethearchitecturaldocumentationwiththeconsultantsdrawings.Forexample,createsomeviewsshowingarchitecturalelements,andotherviewsthatshowthestructural/mechanicalelementsonly.Ifyouactivateanarchitecturalview,youcanthenusetheTracefeaturetoviewastructural/mechanicalviewatthesametimedifferentiatedbyhighlightingorcolors,orsplittingtheviewsapartonscreen.
ComparingStructuralandArchitecturalFloorPlanswiththeTraceReferenceGRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 97
-
CoordinationwithEngineersStructuralDesign,AnalysisandProductionAbuildingsarchitecturaldesignanditsphysicalstructurearecloselyinterrelated:ononehand,thearchitecturaldesignofthebuildingdefinesthestructure;ontheotherhand,thestructuraldesignofabuildingreflectstheoverallarchitecturaldesign.Asstructurehasbecomeavisualandaestheticpartofthedesigninmodernarchitecture,structuresmustbeaslightaspossiblewhilemaintainingcompleteintegrity.Also,thestructuremustbeoptimizedforperformanceandprice.ArchiCADprovidessophisticateddesigninformationalongwiththenecessarylevelofmodeldetail.ThisinformationcanbedirectlyimportedthroughIndustryFoundationClasses(IFC)orotherspecialconnectionformatsintospecializedsoftwaretorunstructuralanalysisanddesign.
StructuralAnalysiswithBiDirectionalIFCConnectionIFCallowstheArchiCADmodeltobesharedwithmajorandlocalstructuralsolutionssuchasTeklaStructures,AutodeskRevit,SAP2000,Etabs,SciaEngineer,Dlubal,Graitec,Tricalc,Cype,AxisVM,FEMDesignetc.ForthecompletedescriptionofArchiCADsstructuralsolutionpleaseread:http://www.graphisoft.com/products/archicad/interoperability/structural/.98 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
CoordinationwithEngineersStructuralApplicationsStructuralapplicationscanbedividedintothefollowingmaincategories: Analysisanddesign(steel,reinforcedconcrete,timberetc.)applicationsTheseapplicationscarryoutanddocumentstaticcalculationsbasedonvarioustechniques(e.g.finiteelementmethod).
StructuralPreparation/ManagementThesecarryoutpreparatorytasksandensuretheconnectionbetweentheanalysisapplicationandthearchitecturalprofession.
Detailers(steel,reinforcedconcrete,precast,etc.)Thesecreatedetailedconstructiondocumentationofthestructureandcommunicatewiththemanufacturers.Someapplicationscoverseveralofthesefunctions.ThisdiagramdescribesthegeneralworkflowfordataexchangebetweenArchiCADandastructuralapplication:
TypesofStructuralApplicationsGRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 99
-
CoordinationwithEngineersStructuralDesignWorkflowsThemostcompletelevelofinteroperabilityisachievedusinganintelligent3Dmodelconnectionasopposedtoadrawingrepresentationinwhichthebuildingmodelbeingexchangedrepresents3Dstructuralobjects(slabs,walls,columns,beams,windows,roofsetc.),eachwithspecific,definedattributesandproperties.Modelbasedexchangebetweenthearchitectandthestructuralengineercanfollowoneoftwoconcepts: managingareferencemodel;or convertingthemodeltonativeformats.Thereferencemodelconceptensuresthesecurityofthearchitecturalmodelandthestructuralmodelfiles,sinceeachofficeremainsresponsibleforhis/herownmodel.Thus,thestructuralengineerreceivesafilefromthearchitect,butdoesnotmodifyit;he/sheusesthearchitecturalinformationasabasisforbuildinguphisownstructuralmodel.Thisoccursmanually,usingthetoolsofhisownsoftware,butautomaticelementconversionutilitiesalsoexisttospeeduptheprocess.Similarly,thearchitectleavesintactthefilereceivedfromthestructuralengineer,whiletakingintoaccountitssuggestionsformodelingloadbearingelements.Thisway,eachdisciplinesownfileisindependentoftheonereceivedasareference.100 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
CoordinationwithEngineersArchiCADStructuralWorkflowTheotherapproachtomodelbasedexchangeistoconverttheotherpartysmodelelementsintothenativeformatofonesownapplication.Theconvertedmodelistransformedaccordingtothespecificationsoftherecipient,sotheoriginalversionofthemodelisnotpreserved.Thisapproachismosttypicalofdataexchangebetweenarchitecturalandanalysisprograms.ArchiCADcancombinetheadvantagesofbothapproaches.The3DmodelobtainedfromthestructuralengineerregardlessofthemethodusedtoimportitisalwaystransformedintonativeArchiCADelements.Atthesametime,GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide 101
-
CoordinationwithEngineersitispossibletousetheimportedelementsasareference,sincetheycanbeautomaticallyplacedontotheirown,protectedlayers(whicharelockedtopreventediting).ThisreferencemodelapproachisalsosupportedbytheMergeandLinkworkflows.Sincetheincomingelementsormodificationsareconvertedintonativeformat,theybecomeanactivepartofthearchitecturalmodel,whileretainingtheirproperties(e.g.material,profile)assignedinthestructuralmodel.
The3Dmodelsexchangedbetweenthearchitecturalandstructuraldisciplinescanbeconsideredinthreecategories: Architecturalmodel Structuralmodel Analysismodel
ModelTypes102 GRAPHISOFTCollaborationGuide
-
CoordinationwithEngineersThearchitectworksonthearchitecturalmodel,basedonherowndesignandontheclientsrequirements.Alreadyduringthedesignphase,thearchitectshouldkeepinmindthatthemodelwilllaterbeexchangedwithastructuralengineer.Forexample,shecandefinethebuildingelementsstructuralfunction;defineinitialmaterialstobeused;choosecolumnsandbeamswithstandardprofiles;definetheloadbearingcoreofcompositeelements.Inadditiontothispreparatorywork,shecanfilterthemodelsoastonarrowdownthedatatobeexchanged:thisway,onlythestructuralmodel,containingjuststructuralelements,willbeexported.Naturally,thearchitectcanexporttheentirearchitecturalmodel,ifthestructuralengineersprogramiscapableoffilteringandcollectingthemodeldatathathe/sheneedstoworkwith.ExportingastructuralmodelfromArchiCADissufficientfordataexchangewithmoststructuralapplications(themanagementanddetailertypes).However,analysisanddesignsoftwaresrequirethesocalledAnalysismodelinordertoruntheircalculations.TheseapplicationscanoftenconvertthestructuralmodeltoAnalysismodelthemselves,ortheycanusetheAnalysismodelconvertedbyamanagement/deta
top related