Autodesk Enhances Sustainable Design Capabilities With Acquisition of Ecotect

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SAN RAFAEL, Calif., June 26 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- As part of its on-going commitment to support the practice of sustainable design and green building in the architecture, engineering and construction (AEC) industries, Autodesk announced another acquisition to improve building performance analysis in the building information modeling (BIM) process. Autodesk announced that it has completed the acquisition of substantially all the assets related to the Ecotect software tools for conceptual building performance analysis from both Square One Research Ltd. and Dr. Andrew Marsh.

The acquisitions of Ecotect and the Green Building Studio assets will support Autodesk's vision to deliver software that enables architects and engineers to design more sustainable projects. With improved building performance analysis capabilities, Autodesk will be uniquely positioned to offer a comprehensive suite of software solutions for sustainable design and analysis, enabling a BIM process that can facilitate cost-effective design and delivery of high-performing, resource-efficient buildings and infrastructure.

The Ecotect tools can measure how fundamental criteria, such as solar, thermal, shading, lighting, and airflow, will affect building performance in the conceptual and detailed phases of design. Their capability to forecast building performance over time better equips architects and engineers to deliver more energy efficient and sustainable building designs.

ECOTECT is a complete building design and environmental analysis tool that covers the full range of simulation and analysis functions required to truly understand how a building design will operate and perform. It finally allows designers to work easily in 3D and apply all the tools necessary for an energy efficient and sustainable future.

ECOTECT: Features in detail

ECOTECT offers a vast range of modelling, visualisation and analysis features. The following links provide detailed information about the different capabilities of the program and how they are implemented and applied.

Autodesk Ecotect can measure how fundamental criteria, such as solar, thermal, shading, lighting, and airflow, will affect building performance in the conceptual and detailed phases of design. This capability to forecast building performance over time better equips architects and engineers to deliver more energy efficient and sustainable building designs.

ECOTECT: Lighting Design

ECOTECT uses the BRE Daylight Factor method for daylighting calculation and the Point-to-Point method for electric lighting. For more detailed analysis you can export your model directly to tools such as DAYSIM and RADIANCE.

Lighting Analysis

ECOTECT now includes a Lighting Wizard to guide you through the process of calculating light and daylight levels in your building.

You can calculate daylight factors and illuminance levels at any points in your model or, as shown above, over the analysis grid.

Geometric and material information in ECOTECT can be exported directly to RADIANCE for a physically accurate lighting simulation.

Using the Radiance Image Viewer that is part of ECOTECT, you can easily generate contoured or false-colour lux and DF images.

Once you have calculated daylight factors in your model, you can use ECOTECT's advanced daylighting features to determine potential savings due to daylight-linked lighting controls or export directly to DAYSIM for a detailed analysis of daylight autonomy.

ECOTECT allows you to edit or import the IES profiles of different lights and luminaires, displaying them directly within the context of your model as you design your lighting system.

These profiles are based on user-definable design illuminance levels set for the zone to which the lights belong, showing illuminance contours as a volumetric boundary at which the required zone illuminance is exactly met by each light.

ECOTECT: Ventilation & Air Flow

ECOTECT allows you to generate both the geometry and analysis grids for export directly to computational fluid dynamics (CFD) tools such as NIST-FDS, Fluent and WinAir4. After the calculations in these tools are complete, it is then possible to import results back into ECOTECT for display within the context of the original model.

If you set up a 3D analysis grid within your model, ECOTECT can export this information directly to a range of Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) tools, the results of which can then be imported.

Once you have the results imported back into ECOTECT, you can choose many different visualisation and persentation options.

This can even be viewed as volumetrically as you move about in 3D.

The same processes can be used to look at air flow both through and around buildings or complex urban environments.

Prevailing Winds

Using data in the hourly weather file, ECOTECT can overlay wind speed and direction directly on top of the current model, making it especially relevant to natural ventilation and wind shelter strategies. This plot can also show temperature, humidity and rainfall, over any date and time range.

Plots of prevailing winds from weather data, showing annual wind frequency and speed (left) and summer wind temperatures (right).

Ventilation

The thermal analysis routines in ECOTECT are based on the CIBSE Admittance Method which does not require detailed air-flow and ventilation information. However, as you can see from the Thermal Gallery page, ECOTECT can be used as a pre and post processor for external computational fluid dynamics tools that fully consider air flows.

You may also be interested in the gallery pages, for more examples of ECOTECT in action.

• Shadows & Reflections
• Shading Design
• Solar Analysis
• Lighting Design
• Right-to-Light
• Acoustic Analysis
• Thermal Analysis
• Ventilation & Air Flow
• Building Regulations
• Resource Management
• Visualisation & Import / Export
• Gallery
• Screenshots

Upgrades For Existing License Holders

Version 5.60 uses a very different license system, however you should be able to upgrade quite easily. If you go to http://ecotect.com/support , near the top should be a link with a title relating to finding your lost activation details. The resulting page will show you how to obtain your new activation code and download the very latest version that you can activate.

Autodesk Green Building Studio analysis tools now available

The Autodesk Green Building Studio analysis tools, now available at http://www.autodesk.com/greenbuildingstudio, provide improved design insight through whole building energy, water and carbon-emission analysis, helping architects and designers to maximize building economic and environmental performance. The tools are compatible with Autodesk design software as well as software from other industry providers through the Green Building XML (gbXML) schema and can now be directly accessed from within the Revit platform for BIM with a new plug-in now available for download. Green Building Studio Inc. launched the Green Building Studio web service in 2004.

The Autodesk® Green Building Studio® web-based energy analysis service can help architects and designers perform whole building analysis, optimize energy efficiency, and work toward carbon neutrality earlier in the design process. With faster, more accurate energy analysis of building design proposals, architects and designers can work with sustainably in mind earlier in the process, plan proactively, and build better.

With the Autodesk® Green Building Studio® web-based energy analysis service, architects and designers can evaluate building components for impact on energy consumption as well as improve economic and environmental performance early in the design process.

Compatible with Revit MEP

The Autodesk Green Building Studio service is an analysis tool that interoperates with Revit® MEP and other compatible energy-analysis software and facilitates team collaboration and information sharing at all stages of design.

Evaluate Energy Profiles of Building Designs

Green Building Studio tools enable architects and designers to evaluate the energy profiles and carbon footprints of various building designs. Files are shared between engineering software programs and among engineers and architects early in the design cycle, making sustainable design more efficient and cost effective.

With Autodesk Green Building Studio tools, you can

• Capture early sustainable design analysis to support the process of reducing or eliminating negative environmental impacts.
• Communicate among the extended building design team using Autodesk design applications and other compatible energy and green analysis software.
• Gain a competitive advantage with increased client satisfaction and improved environmental performance.

Autodesk Green Build Studios Q&A (pdf - 52Kb)

Autodesk’s acquisition of Green Building Studio’s assets was completed on May 1, 2008.

They've completed the migration of the web service to Autodesk’s hardware. New users and existing Green Building Studio customers can now access the web service in the following manner.

• Current ‘pay-as-you-go’ customers can take advantage of a limited free trial period scheduled to conclude on or about June 30, 2008. Log into your existing account, accept the new Terms of Use agreement, and start realizing carbon neutral design with free analysis on up to two building projects per account.
• New customers can take advantage of a free 30-day trial period. Create a new user account, accept the Terms of Use agreement, and start realizing carbon neutral design with free analysis on up to two building projects per account.
• Returning annual subscription corporate customers can continue to use the Autodesk Green Building Studio web service as usual for the remaining term of your original subscription purchase. Just login to your existing account and accept the new Terms of Use agreement.
• To purchase single user annual subscriptions ($745) and 10-user corporate annual subscriptions ($4,995), login to the Autodesk Green Building Studio web service, accept the new Terms of Use agreement, and select the Upgrade link on the Project List page. Please note, PayPal TM payment services are no longer available. A note to Graphisoft users, the ArchiCAD add-on is temporarily unavailable while we are making updates to our new servers. We do expect availability soon and apologize for the inconvenience.

Users of Autodesk’s Revit®-based software applications who register for the Autodesk Green Building Studio service can now access the service directly with a plug-in available from our Downloads page after login.

If you have questions about a new or existing account, please contact their technical support staff directly via email. Technical support can be reached at support@greenbuildingstudio.com.

Autodesk Quantity Takeoff 2009 Product

Link to Autodesk Quantity Takeoff 2009 Brochure


Autodesk Quantity Takeoff was first released in October of 2007. Autodesk Quantity Takeoff (AQTO) software enables cost estimators to gather design data, high-quality images, and precise information from intelligent design applications such as AutoCAD MEP, Revit MEP, and AutoCAD Civil 3D, as well as from “nonintelligent” CAD data and image formats. Use Autodesk AQTO to leverage property data to automatically or manually measure, count, and price various building objects.

Estimators can leverage precise property data to automatically or manually measure, count, and price walls, doors, windows, and other building objects. Results can then be printed, exported to Microsoft Excel, or published to Autodesk DWF, all of which means that Autodesk Quantity Takeoff software supports workflow, from design to cost estimation.

With the integration of 2D and 3D design data, Quantity Takeoff brings drawings and data together seamlessly. The software addresses key requirements for cost estimators by giving users more flexibility than stand-alone design documents, databases, or spreadsheets. The software's open architecture is flexible enough to meet the needs of the multitude of disciplines involved in estimating construction costs.

AQTO sotware is based on Autodesk Design Review software, which provides a complete and all-digital way to view, print, measure, mark up, and revise 2D and 3D designs without the original design creation software. Creating precise and timely cost estimates of 2D and 3D digital design content has never been so easy.

AQTO software has a full set of intuitive manual takeoff tools, enabling you to perform polyline, area, and count takeoffs. Quantity Takeoff also provides more advanced manual takeoff tools for such tasks as backing out specific areas of a measurement, enabling you to account for changes in materials or voids in areas such as atrium space or mechanical chase.

AQTO software leverages the data within intelligent objects created in Revit MEP, AutoCAD MEP, and AutoCAD Civil 3D design applications. This enables cost estimators to quickly and easily search for and count similar items across a project using the Search Takeoff feature.

Cost estimators working in 3D with Quantity Takeoff software can perform intuitive, interactive walkthroughs for examination and estimation of all object details. By utilizing 3D DWF files imported from applications build on the Revit platform, they can perform an entire model takeoff of all 3D design objects with a single click. Object visibility and transparency are adjustable according to building section or component type.

ThomasNet - Source for downloading 3D Manufacturer Equipment

ThomasNet - Source for downloading 3D Cad Models

I found this website where you can insert specific manufacturer equipment as solid objects into your AutoCAD MEP dwg directly from the website. Once the dumb 3D solid is inserted, you can create an MvPart from it, and add electrical, hvac or plumbing connectors to it so that it can be used to perform as it would in the BIM Model. You can add property set data to the part as well completing the convertion from a dumb 3D solid; to a rich, data filled working part.

You can also download them in the following formats:

DXF 3D, Step, Acis, Iges, jpg, bmp, png, tif, xml

The ACIS solid will allow you to insert the 3D solid into a Revit MEP family template so that you can add either electrical, hvac or plumbing connectors to it and make it more intelligent and more useful in your BIM Model. You'll be able to add various parameters to this ACIS solid once you convert it to a Revit Family so that you can generate tags and schedules for the equipment.

The advantage of these solids is that they have all the various model sizes and options that the manufacturer provides which is almost unlimited. The drawback is that you can end up creating millions of parts because they are static in size and shape. One of the advantages of drawing them in Revit MEP or AutoCAD MEP instead is that you can create parametric solids that can flex based off of dimensions that can be driven from the users input, or a table. That way you only need one model to drive all the various sizes a part can come in.

It's not exactly what we're looking for in the industry, but it's a start. This gives you the ability to finish the 3D solids yourself and create your own manufacturer specific MEP content in either AutoCAD MEP or Revit MEP. There is 2D content there as well, but that old technology is really worthless in this new age of BIM.

Some day, manufacturers will not only provide their equipment in 3D, but also with all of the needed connectors, data, and also make them parametric so that they can easily be modified on the fly.

CAD Categories
Automation & Electronics

Pumps, Valves & Accessories

Plastics & Rubber

Materials Handling

Instruments & Controls

Engineering & Consulting

Custom Manufacturing & Fabricating

Process Equipment
Plant & Facility Equipment

Metals & Metal Products

Machinery, Tools & Supplies

Hardware

Electrical & Power Generation

Services

Other

Transfer Filters from a Previous View in Revit

There is a fast way to transfer the filters from one view to another whether you have already created the filter, or need to create a new filter for your views.

You can get to the View templates from the SETTINGS pulldown menu, and click on one of the existing View Template names on the left, and Edit the properties of that view template on the right. There you will create a new Filter that will apply to this template. You can also create a new View template on the left, and edit the view properties on the right.

Then you can apply that view template to as many views as you want. You can select multiple views, right click, and apply a view template to them.



If you already created a filter in another view, you can go to the VIEW pulldown menu and create a view template from the current view that you created the filter from already. Then go back into view template settings, and make any additional modifications to that view template. Then select all the views that you want to apply it to, right click, and apply this view template to them.