Classroom Training – Open Classes

Know It. Ideate Training.

Position yourself to land dream projects. Tap the full potential of your software solutions. Increase your facility, fluidity and capability to maximize the value of your precision software tools.

Here are a few of the training opportunities Ideate has to offer in the coming weeks:

4.17-19::San Francisco
Revit Architecture Fundamentals
4.23-25::Seattle
Revit Architecture Fundamentals
5.1-3::San Jose
AutoCAD Fundamentals

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AutoCAD Civil 3D 2014 Pressure Pipe Network Enhancements: Creating a Pressure Network from an Object

At Ideate, we are reviewing and summarizing the enhanced features of the latest releases of Autodesk Software. In this blog post, I will be discussing one of the numerous additions to the editing functionality of Pressure Pipe Networks in Civil 3D 2014. Specifically, Autodesk has added the ability to create a Pressure pipe Network from an AutoCAD or Civil 3D object.

Pressure Pipe Creation Options in Civil 3D 2013 vs. 

Pressure Pipe Creation Options in Civil 3D 2014

This function is accessible from the Pipe Network drop down menu on Create Design Panel of the Home Tab and works in the same way as creating a gravity pipe network from an object. After starting the command, selecting the object, and indicating the flow direction, the Create Pressure Pipe Network from Object box appears. 

Create Pressure Pipe Network from Object Dialog Box

In this dialog box, Pressure Network properties and options are specified for creation as shown in the image above. Click OK to complete the process, and the new Pressure Network appears in the drawing and in the Prospector tab under Pressure Networks.
 
If you’ve taken advantage of the Pressure Network tools in Civil 3D 2013, be sure to give this new feature a try when you install the 2014 release.

Don’t forget to look through other great features our Ideate Technical Team has found in the new 2014 releases for Revit Structure, Revit Architecture, Revit MEP, AutoCAD and more: ideateinc.com/2014

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Kate Ming
Ideate AEC Application Specialist
Kate has a BS in Civil and Environmental Engineering from UC Berkeley. Prior to Ideate, she worked at a multinational company for four years doing general civil design on large infrastructure projects. She is versed in roadway, rail, and utility design. She also has experience with utility demand analysis and Low Impact Development plans. At Ideate, Kate provides training and support for Civil 3D, AutoCAD, and Navisworks.  

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Autodesk 2014 – Network License Behavior and License Cascading

This is Derek Wielkopolski, Support Manger with Ideate, Inc. We always seem to get a lot of questions about network license behavior when we get a new release. 2014 products are rolling out and it’s always a good idea to have a refresh on this topic, especially with the cascading sequence.

So what is license cascading? By definition, “Cascade Licensing is implemented for mixed-product environments where a single license manager is servicing multiple Autodesk products. Cascade Licensing allows an Autodesk product to obtain a license that belongs to another Autodesk product in the same license pool. With Cascade Licensing, lower ranking product licenses can be used before higher ranking product licenses; when all lower ranking product licenses are in use, a product will cascade up to use the license of a higher ranking product.”

Some really good docs to keep on hand are Understanding Cascade Licensing For Autodesk Products and 2014: Cascading Sequence For Autodesk Products.

A note about license behavior and previous versions; if a single user is working in identical products but different version years this will consume two separate licenses. For example if I’m working in Revit Architecture 2013 and switch to a different project and launch Revit Architecture 2012, I will pull two licenses. Take a look at the Autodesk document Understanding Previous Version Support For Autodesk Point Products for more info.

As always email me at support@ideateinc.com if you have any questions.

Don’t forget to look through other great features our Ideate Technical Team has found in the new 2014 releases for Revit Architecture, Revit MEP, Revit Structure, Civil 3D, AutoCAD and more: ideateinc.com/2014

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Derek Wielkopolski
Ideate Technical Support Manager/Application Specialist
Derek holds a Bachelor of Architecture degree from Roger Williams University, Rhode Island. He is experienced working within the AEC industry from concept design through construction administration for both small and large scale projects. As Ideate’s Support Manager he ensures a timely and quality response to support requests and questions. Follow Derek on Twitter: @dwielk

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What’s New in Revit MEP 2014: The Situation is Terminal! Ability to Add Air Terminals to Duct

Revit MEP 2014 has some great enhancements, one of the best is the new ability to place Air Terminals directly on Duct. 

One of the most common workarounds that we come across when supporting Revit MEP for HVAC designers at Ideate, Inc. is how to show a Air Terminal coming off the duct AND have the flow calculations still be correct. Now with this new feature, users will be able to place/host air terminal devices (grilles and diffusers) directly on the face of a duct and have air propagate correctly in the system. 

This new feature supports the placement of air terminals on the surface of ducts to reflect real-world installations. 

This feature: 

• Place air terminals directly on a duct face, including rectangular, round and oval duct. 
• Drag the air terminal on to the duct face with the “Air Terminal on Duct” command enabled. 
• Check if the engagement length works well for the connection of the air terminal to the duct. 
• After placing the air terminal on the duct face, copy the air terminal along the duct or rotate the duct to check the connection.

Don’t forget to look through other great features our Ideate Technical Team has found in the new 2014 releases for Revit Structure, Revit Architecture, Civil 3D, AutoCAD and more: ideateinc.com/2014

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Bill Johnson
Ideate Senior MEP Application Specialist

Bill has over 20 years experience in applying AEC design solutions for large commercial companies. A graduate of Pasadena Institute of Technology, he has worked for TEECOM Design Group, GTE/GTEL, Greg LeDoux and Associates, and Scottish Power in England. Bill has also had the opportunity to act as Lead AutoCAD Designer for multimillion dollar communication sites which have included structural, electrical, HVAC, conduit, cable plans and equipment layouts. He has a Sustainable Design Certification from the University of California at Berkeley.

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eLearning – Upcoming Classes

Join the Ideate Tech Experts for eLearning – live online classes that provide your entire organization with easy access to premium education. 

Upcoming classes include: 

4.9.13::Revit 201:
Revit for Interior Designers
4.15.13::Civil 101:
Civil 3D for Beginners
4.16.13::Revit 201:
Site Tools

Each class is designed to give you specific, improved results in a particular topic. You can interact with the instructor right from your own office, while eliminating travel time. Because the class schedule rotates, you can easily select your topics of interest and choose the day which best meets your schedule.

Click here for class descriptions, times and registration link. Questions? Contact education@ideateinc.com

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AutoCAD Civil 3D 2014 Pressure Pipe Improvements

Civil 3D 2014 has been released and you are scrambling to find out what’s new.
 
Relax! Ideate brings to you a series of blog posts and YouTube videos telling you exactly what’s needed to plan accordingly. In this post we discuss some of the enhancements in pressure pipe networks.
 
With the release of Civil 3D 2013 you saw the introduction of Pressure Pipe Networks. 2014 moves the agenda forward and adds some exciting features to this functionality. Here are some major improvements. 

Create Pressure Pipe from Objects
Create a pressure pipe network from objects viz. line, polyline, feature line or survey figure.

Add Pressure Networks to Section Views
Well, as it says, see the figure below – blue: storm drain pipe; cyan: water pipe

Sort Pressure Network Part Lists by Size
As you can see below there is a sort option

In the forthcoming posts we will focus more on these functionalities.

Don’t forget to look through other great features our Ideate Technical Team has found in the new 2014 releases for Revit MEP, Revit Structure, Revit Architecture, AutoCAD and more: ideateinc.com/2014

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Gaurav Bagga
Ideate Infrastructure Solutions Application Specialist

Gaurav is a well rounded Application Engineer and Project Manager for Infrastructure Solutions at Ideate based out of San Francisco. He has over 15 years experience in construction industry and has been helping numerous small, medium and ENR 500 firms maximize their CAD investment for the last ten years. Gaurav is an Autodesk Certified Instructor and Autodesk Civil 3D Implementation Certified Expert. He has taught at several conferences, CAD Camps and Autodesk University. He has taught AutoCAD, Civil 3D, Land Desktop and Map 3D to thousands of students and helps Ideate develop the Infrastructure Services curriculum and courses. With his extensive CAD technology background he helps Bay Area engineering and surveying firms analyze and improve their design and drawing production process thereby improving productivity and the bottom line. Follow Gaurav on Twitter: @BeGeez

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Autodesk 2014 Products and Hardware – Recommendations from Ideate Technical Support

It’s that time of year again, rollout! This is Derek Wielkopolski, Technical Support Manager and Application Specialist here at Ideate. As we’re getting all the latest info on the new Autodesk 2014 products I’ve been re-working our hardware recommendations. It’s one of those things – as software changes so does the hardware that’s required to run them. 

When it comes to running Autodesk products what hardware components are key? I look at processor, memory (RAM), video card, storage (hard drive), and operating system. 

Let’s start off with OS, because we get a lot of calls on this in support; especially with the release of Windows 8 a couple months back. 2014 products are now supported on Windows 8. But heads up, there are some Autodesk products that are supported only on certain versions of Windows 8. For example Revit 2014 isn’t supported on Windows 8 32-bit, just 64-bit. Want to know more about 2014 products and Windows 8? Take a look at the post by David Haynes. Personally, I’m still recommending Windows 7 64-bit, unless you absolutely must have those tiles!

Processor – Remember the days when faster was better? Well that still applies but you also have to factor in multi-processor and multi-core capable machines. Generally speaking, an Intel i5/ i7 or Xeon multi-core processor will suffice. If you’re an AMD fan take a look at their Athlon series

Memory – Always a hot topic especially with some of the more memory hungry applications like Revit. I’m recommending nothing lower than 8GB on production machines, 16GB preferable. Now here’s the important part – make sure you have available slots to add more memory down the road. For example our application specialists’ machines have 16GB installed but with 2 extra slots expandable to 32GB. Memory is cheap these days, no need to skimp.

Video Card – In the last few years or so we’ve been seeing a lot more importance in selecting the right graphics card. First things first, you need a dedicated card; not an integrated card that utilizes CPU resources to power the GPU output. Next make sure you’re looking at a workstation grade video card as opposed to a “gaming” card. In our experience gaming cards can be more problematic. The card also needs to have a good amount of dedicated memory.  What’s good? No less than 512MB on the card, 1-2GB is preferred. I strongly encourage our customers to take a look at the Autodesk Certified Hardware page. This is where you can check whether or not your card has been tested and certified and where to download the recommended driver.

Storage – I have to tell you, since switching to a Solid State Drive (SSD) I don’t think I’ll ever go back to a spindle drive. They’re more expensive and typically come in smaller sizes but they are blazingly fast. Computer boot times and application launch is almost “instant on.” But if you are looking into a spindle drive shoot for 7200 RPM drives or faster if possible. For network storage typical server grade hard drives will be faster and usually will have some type of RAID redundancy fail over in place.

Well, I hope that helps. Be sure to take a look at our 2014 Migration Recommendations document for even more information.

Don’t forget to look through other great features our Ideate Technical Team has found in the new 2014 releases for Revit MEP, Revit Structure, Civil 3D, AutoCAD and more: ideateinc.com/2014

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Derek Wielkopolski
Ideate Technical Support Manager/Application Specialist
Derek holds a Bachelor of Architecture degree from Roger Williams University, Rhode Island. He is experienced working within the AEC industry from concept design through construction administration for both small and large scale projects. As Ideate’s Support Manager he ensures a timely and quality response to support requests and questions. Follow Derek on Twitter: @dwielk

Get it. Know it. Use it.

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