NOVEDGE blog

AutoDesSys Family Grows: the New bonzai3d is Here!

I've been waiting for some time. The couple of sneak previews I had only made me even more curious. And finally, on June 5th, 2009, AutoDesSys officially released bonzai3d.

formZ is not anymore the single child (with polymorphic incarnations) of Alexandra and Chris Yessios' company. From now on, formZ has a little brother. It's called bonzai3d.

bonzai3d being based on a powerful geometric engine, creates 3D models described by exact geometry

How is bonzai3d different from its older and more popular brother? bonzai3d is a sort of Google SketchUp without the limitations of the polygonal geometry. While SketchUp can create "good looking" 3D models and pictures, its geometry is mostly useless and can't be passed down to the manufacturing or construction processes or reused in a professional CAD system. bonzai3d however, being based on a powerful geometric engine, effortless creates 3D models described by exact geometry that can be successfully used in all the processes that follow the conceptual design.

bonzai3d doesn't have any ambition to compete with formZ, but rather to provide a valuable support for  conceptual design while complementing existing design systems thanks to very good import/export capabilities.

Why not to try bonzai3d by downloading the trial version (Mac or Win)? Try bonzai3d now and let me know your impressions!

Franco Folini

Video Introduction to bonzai3d UI AutoDesSys products are available from Novedge

CadSoft Releases EnvisioneerExpress 5.0 as a Free Download

CadSoft Corporation just released EnvisioneerExpress 5.0, a residential design program. EnvisoneerExpress is the free version of Envisioneer Professional 5.0, the well known architectural design system by CadSoft.

EnvisioneerExpress uses commands matching objects in the real world

EnvisioneerExpress has been specifically developed to introduce clients to the simple creation of floor plans, 3D models, and interior design concepts. EnvisioneerExpress uses commands matching objects in the real world such as walls, doors, windows, and stairs. This approach makes creative projects fast and easy.

EnvisioneerExpress can also be used to display and review professional models made by many other popular Design Software packages including Envisioneer and 3D Home Architect.

EnvisoneerExpress can be downloaded for free from the Novedge website.

Franco Folini

Interview with Anthony Frausto-Robledo, Owner of Architosh

Creative professionals have always had a fascination with Apple products and the Mac personal computer in particular. While Mac was one of the first personal computers to have a graphic user-interface, the connection seems to goes beyond that -- and to continue even after the GUI became a standard. One of the first websites who endorsed the partnership of Architecture and Mac was Architosh. This website survived the collapse of the dot-com bubble and still today brings fresh news from the computer graphics and architectural field, high-quality interviews, product reviews, and offers a public forum where Mac fans can exchange opinions and share experiences. The person that makes this possible with his daily work and dedication is Anthony Frausto-Robledo.

Anthony, can you tell us a bit about yourself?

Sure. I'm a design person by nature, not a tech person and I think that gives me a slightly different perspective about tech in design fields.
I have a bachelor's of architecture degree. I have worked in architecture firms since I was in high school. I was always very good at art. Because I am old enough to have experienced the architecture firm prior to the computer I remember the predominant feeling of a typical pre-computer firm. It felt like a studio. The spectrum of focus was unbroken. When computers came into practice there was this mental shift that occurred. The spectrum of focus within the creative firm got split, like an axe splitting a log. This interrupted the combination of energy and calm that I normally felt and associated with an architect's office.

I'm a design person by nature, not a tech person and I think that gives me a slightly different perspective

When I graduated from architecture school I went to work for Fred Koetter of Koetter Kim & Associates, in Boston. Fred was dean of architecture at Yale at the time -- he's an absolute brilliant architect -- and he was my primary architectural hero. Anyway, his office had the same focus of the pre-computer office yet it had computers everywhere. And they were Macs. What I learned was this office did amazing things with these Macs, with great efficiency and simplicity, and that these computers calmly fit into the backdrop of the office. In other words, they never got in our way. And because of this there was no need for the spectrum of focus to be split. The Macs simply "served us."

Did you really feel that strongly about technology interfering with the design process? When did Architosh start?

Yes and no. I could see that some people were not as affected by the disposition between the machine and their craft. But for me it just really interfered and affected me more. When I am working at my highest level, creatively, I can't have any kind of major interruptions. But the personal computer is full of potential disaster and disruption. At this point in the late 90's I decided I needed to get a hold of technology for myself. I needed, in other words, to figure out how to get technology to simply serve, serve really well... and without interruptions. I needed to ensure that tech in practice would be a lot more like R2D2 in Star Wars versus his always yacking robot companion C3PO. So I started a consultancy in 1998 and launched Architosh.com in February of 1999.

I launched Architosh.com in February of 1999

When it launched it was simply a listing of my research on Mac software for CAD, 3D and AEC. I was just exploring back then, but I soon found I had a very large global audience. At that time the Net was all the rage and so I began to look at it differently. Within two years I realized I loved the journalism challenge and opportunities it presented.

As a long time Mac user can you explain the reciprocal fascination between the graphic world and the Mac world?

The relationship you speak of centers on just a particular body of creative people -- and not just in the graphics world. I think they see a reflection of themselves in the way the Macintosh computer is conceived as a whole. In other words, there is a shared sense of design values.

there is a shared sense of design values [between Mac and creative people]

The fascination part comes in because the personal computer by nature is an enchanting device -- like the TV was back in the 50's -- except that you interact with it. When you meet someone who shares the same values as you, sees the world the way you do, you feel affirmed and that mutual affirmation sponsors a bond. In a sense the Mac has a powerful way of affirming one's sense of values as they relate to being who they are -- as creative individuals.

Architects seems to be particularly attracted to the Mac platform. What are the specific features of the Mac that are more important to architects?

Well... architects are creatives like painters, photographers and other graphic artists. It makes even more sense that they would like the Mac because they often have large philosophical views about the world and they design and conceive at very large urban scales. The more important they hold their values the more likely they are going to want to surround themselves with same or supporting values. Apple's products speak with a crystal clear voice about the values behind them.

Apple's products speak with a crystal clear voice about the values behind them

This makes them ideal models for creation. I can't say that there are particular features of the Mac or any Apple product that make them more popular with architects. I would be speculating if I did that. What I can say is that Apple's products lead the world in the areas of ease-of-use, product and service integration, and that Apple's products are generally more beautiful, by both critical and popular agreement, than any competitor's products out there.

There is a large community of users that orbits around your website. What kind of interaction is there between the community and the sponsoring companies or companies that are simply the topic of discussions?

Architosh is somewhat famous -- at least in the Mac news world -- for its executive level interview articles. These are very popular with a company's end users. They get a chance to hear what might be coming down the pike, where a company's values lie, and what to look forward to.

[Architosh users] get a chance to hear what might be coming down the pike, where a company's values lie, and what to look forward to

However, company's now use Blogs to do a lot of this, but that medium cannot authenticate a neutrality around larger issues -- which is the primary value in independent journalism. Architosh will be launching a new site this Fall that will be building in more interaction capabilities into its journalism.

The business rules on the Internet are always changing. Your website has been able to adjust and adapt to new trends and users' expectations. How do you manage to thrive in this ever changing environment?

There is a lot of writing about companies being nimble and flexible in order to survive and thrive, but I think that publications work more around issues of trust. In this case, discussions about be adaptive are a little different. Architosh is here because of a strategic long-term bet I made personally about Apple a decade ago. What we write about today is more relevant than ever. But what is more key now is that we have built up trust, respect, and reliability by doing this back when nobody else was interested in writing about Apple.

we have built up trust, respect, and reliability

So I think what I'm saying is, we have taken the long-view approach and have stuck to our guns. But doing that is not enough to win or be right. One only needs to look at US foreign policy to understand that. What you really need with the long-view approach is to be able to read the situation correctly at the beginning.

You contribute to your website content with high quality, professionally written interviews and articles. What are the limits of user-generated content and how much space is left for editors and journalists like you?

When the new Architosh launches this Fall there will be even more possibilities for user-generated content. Right now, this is mostly contained within the Architosh forums, but this will grow both in the Fall and next year. As for space for editors and journalists?

Anybody can contribute an article for publication, and many user-readers have

We have an open policy. Anybody can contribute an article for publication, and many user-readers have. In general, our product reviews are only written by knowledgeable and experienced product review writers.

The Mac has popularized the concept of no barrier between the desktop and the cloud (Internet). How will this approach affect architects and their work process?

We have been writing about this for quite some time now. We do quite a bit in the cloud internally with Architosh and have been for more than three years.

The Architosh team is globally dispersed, from Germany to Perth, Australia

The Architosh team is globally dispersed, from Germany to Perth, Australia. What cloud computing will do -- for not just architects but all businesses -- will enable them to globalize their reach for talent and services. I believe that doing this will allow them to strengthen their competitive position relative to their peers.

I would like to thank Anthony Frausto-Robledo for taking the time to answer my questions. If you have any questions for Anthony or for Novedge, please leave a comment below and we will be glad to answer.

Franco Folini

An Interview with Brian Looney, Architectural Rendering Artist

Brian Looney started off as an entry level drafter straight out of technical school and now he is a professional architectural rendering expert. Brian learned the major rendering tools in the field, working with architects and clients at McFarland Davies Architects, in Tulsa, OK. When Next Limit Technologies new Maxwell Render was released, Brian tried the new product, liked it, and immediately integrated it into his production processes. In order to learn more about his experience with Maxwell Render and how Brian is using this tool I asked him for an interview.

Brian, can you tell us a bit about yourself and your professional activities at McFarland Davies Architects?

I was blown away by the quality of these (Maxwell Render) renderings!

My name is Brian Looney and I have been an AutoCAD technician for eight years with McFarland Davis Architects (previously Davies Architects). Eight years ago I and a friend decided to take a drafting class at a local tech school and it turned out to be a life changing decision. I started on AutoCAD R14, learning the basics of CAD and construction documents. Continuing on up through AutoCAD 2004, I started to tinker with AutoCAD's 3D capabilities. After doing some research, I and some of the other drafters I work with decided to try and push for our company to upgrade to Architectural Desktop with it's modeling capabilities and specialized architectural features. With ADT (Autodesk Architectural Desktop), I began using the Viz Render plug in to create simple arch viz renderings for client presentations and construction doc cover sheets. I soon realized that to take my renderings to the next level, we needed to upgrade to better rendering software. 3ds Max 8 and its Mental Ray engine seemed very capable of highly realistic architectural renderings. I created many successful renderings with 3ds Max8/9 and mental ray for McFarland Davies. Then one day I stumbled upon some gorgeous photorealistic renders on a 3D website that were made with a new program called Maxwell Render. I was blown away by the quality of these renderings! After trying the demo, and presenting some renders to our owners, we decided that to take our renderings for clients to the next level, and to achieve certain goals that we had set for our company, that this was the right software for us. So for over a year now, I have devoted myself to learning the intricacies of Maxwell Render and the Maxwell material system. So I would say right now, about 60% of my time is spent in AutoCAD Architecture 2008 and 40% with 3ds Max 9 and Maxwell Render.

Can you describe for us your creative process starting from the original AutoCAD design to the final rendering?

Maxwell materials can produce very realistic results if done correctly

It really depends on what phase the project is in. Most of the time I am involved with initial design concepts, which means that I will be working from the architect's sketches rather than CAD files. In these situations, I will do all of my modeling in 3ds Max 9. If, however, the client requires a visualization towards the end of a project, I will try and utilize the cad files as much as possible, depending on the quality of the cad model (sometimes the model is not fully 3D if the project is a renovation of an existing structure), All of the usable geometry is imported into 3ds Max where the rest of the scene will be created (trees, cars, people and landscape). I do all of this and render a few camera angles out for review, using only basic matte colors. When the camera angles and construction of the scene is approved, I then start on texturing the model. For Maxwell Render, this is the most important part, and it's main strength. Maxwell materials can produce very realistic results if done correctly. After the model is textured, I'll do some quick test renders for review, and then let the full high resolution rendering "cook" overnight.

3ds Max offers a good rendering engine (Mental Ray). What motivates you to also use Maxwell Render?

before I started using Maxwell, I had been spending a considerable amount of time tweaking render settings and rendering and re-rendering tests over and over

3ds Max 9 has an excellent built in renderer in mental ray. The Arch+Design materials are excellent for creating architectural visualizations. Also, occasionally I will use the "ink and paint" shader to create "sketchy" quick renders. However, before I started using Maxwell, I had been spending a considerable amount of time with mental ray tweaking render settings and rendering and re-rendering tests over and over. This was not an efficient use of my time. Animations must still be done with Mental Ray, for it's rendering speed. That is Maxwell's limitation for me right now. The ultra-realistic results that can be achieved with Maxwell are a trade-off in terms of it's relatively slow rendering speed, ruling out animations for us with our demanding deadlines.

Maxwell Render, being based on simulation of light, is intrinsically slower than the traditional rendering tools. Despite the evident beauty of the images generated by Maxwell, what else justifies the additional time spent to generate an image?

(with Maxwell Render) the amount of geometry in the scene has little effect on rendering times

There are many benefits that, to me, outweigh the relatively slow rendering in Maxwell. First, the process of rendering is completely different than other engines such as Mental Ray. Other engines render small sections of the total image, slowly filling in the render until it is "complete". With Maxwell Render, the engine renders the whole image all at once, with the image starting off grainy and gradually clearing over time. Therefore, the longer you let it render, the clearer the image becomes. Also, you can set the time limit of the render or you can manually stop it when you think it is ready. Another very impressive feature is Maxwell's Multilight. With Multilight enabled, you have a slider for each light in the scene that can be adjusted in real time while your image is rendering. No more having to adjust lights, test render, adjust, test render... This feature alone was worth the purchase of this software. It is absolutely invaluable in arch viz interior scenes. Plus, Maxwell lights are material based. You create a piece of geometry in your modeling program and apply an emitter material to it to create a light. Maxwell includes many preset light materials which are physically accurate such as 65 watt incandescent, 40 watt fluorescent, and so on. Another benefit is Maxwell's ability to handle complex and heavy geometry. I have noticed that the amount of geometry in the scene has little effect on rendering times. Resolution and refracting glass materials have the biggest effect on rendering time, in my experience. Although, in my work, I will mainly use the AGS (architectural glass system) material to decrease rendering time. This material has the reflectivity and transparency of glass, but without the calculation heavy refractions. There are many more features that I could get into that make Maxwell stand out, but this interview would get very long and technical!

Creating a rendering of an architectural model, where do you draw the line between your artistic and aesthetic sensitivity and your technical skill?

The render doesn't necessarily need to be technically correct

Very good question! I am not the one who usually draws that line, my employer is! Haha. There are a few things I have learned to remember when producing a rendering for a client. The render doesn't necessarily need to be technically correct. In fact, sometimes a technically correct, perfectly depicted, photo-realistic architectural rendering can scare a client into thinking that the design is complete and unchangeable, especially during the early phases of design. You want to find that balance between realistic and conceptual while producing a warm and inviting eye-pleasing design concept. Now, when the project is close to complete, the client may request a more finished render. This is when the rendering will be allowed to be technically correct and all the small details of the structure can be shown because they have all been decided on and will not change.

Can you share with us a time when the quality of the rendering really made a difference with a clear impact at the business level?

Most clients are not able to look at floor plans and elevations and visualize what it is they are actually looking at

All the time! Most clients are not able to look at floor plans and elevations and visualize what it is they are actually looking at. A lot of the time, they need renderings from a human perspective to see the beauty of the design that they are investing their money in. I have never seen a client look at a floor plan and say "Wow". I think, though, that the most important area of rendering presentation is in the marketing aspect. If your company is fighting for a project, and you bring beautiful renderings of your ideas and even previous projects, and the other guys are bringing hand sketches and scribblings, you really set your company apart from the others. Clients will also be impressed with a company that has and utilizes the latest tools and technology to get the job done quicker, and more efficiently.

Based on your experience, what would you recommend to an architect or a designer that wants or need to start creating rendered images?

plan on investing quite a bit of time learning the modeling program

I think it starts with the right software and the right training. Do your research on the various modeling programs, most of them have demo's that can be downloaded and tried for a limited time. Find out what others in your field are using. Choose one that you feel comfortable with. Plan on investing quite a bit of time learning the modeling program. Enroll in training programs that are tailored to your type of specialty. When I first started with 3ds Max, I took several courses at a local tech center, bought a few books, and worked through many tutorials included with the software. You will need to get comfortable with the basics of rendering in your 3d application. When you're comfortable with modeling and rendering in your 3d software, you may decide, like I did, that a separate renderer can fill your needs better and give you better results. Whatever you decide, if you are passionate about creating digital art, and you keep up with technology and what others are doing in your field, it will be a fulfilling and fruitful career. Good luck!

I would like to thank Brian Looney for taking the time to do this interview. A special thanks also to Nicole van der Burg of Next Limit Technologies for putting me in contact with Brian. If you have any questions for Brian or for Novedge, please leave a comment below and we will be glad to answer.

Franco Folini

Update: a gallery of Brian's rendering images is available on Maxwell Render forum (free registration required).

An Interview with Paul Wilkinson, AEC Collaboration Expert and Writer

Paul Wilkinson is a British AEC expert and writer. In October 2005 he published a very interesting book, Construction Collaboration Technologies: The Extranet Evolution, about collaboration tools and processes for the AEC sector. The book is not an academic exercise but is based on his long professional experience. Paul also keeps a blog (Extranet Evolution) where he discuss topics and issues related to collaboration in the AEC world. It's surprising to see this kind of initiative coming from a design area that for many years has been considered conservative in the adoption of new software technologies. I asked Paul a few questions to better understand how the AEC sector is evolving and what impact collaboration technologies are having on existing processes.

Paul, can you tell us a bit about yourself and your professional activities?

I ended up in construction almost by accident

I ended up in construction almost by accident. While doing my criminology doctorate at London School of Economics, I needed a part-time job. I ended up working for a consulting engineering practice (Halcrow) for seven years, well beyond my PhD completion. After four years doing PR and marketing for a contractor (Carillion), I ran my own consultancy for a while, then joined start-up UK collaboration vendor BIW Technologies back in 2000. So-called ‘project extranets’ were in their infancy then, but seven years later they have become much more widely used, and BIW is the UK market leader.
While working for BIW, I started two freelance projects in 2005. I wrote the first guide to construction collaboration technologies (“Construction Collaboration Technologies: The Extranet Evolution”, published by Taylor & Francis); then I started writing a supporting blog (ExtranetEvolution.com). While my book is mainly UK-focused, the blog is more international in outlook – I flew over to the US in March last year to attend a collaboration conference at Harvard, and it was interesting to compare extranet experiences on opposite sides of the Atlantic, and I have looked at developments in France, Denmark and Australia, among others.
I’m also active as BIW’s representative in the UK collaboration vendors’ group, the Network for Construction Collaboration Technology Providers (NCCTP) – an interesting example of collaboration vendors collaborating!

You claim that the AEC (Architecture, engineering and construction) sector, always considered the most conservative of the design area, is changing in more ways than we would expect. Based on your experience can you give us some examples?

adoption of BIM will force entire supply chains to collaborate upon shared information from the earliest stages of a project

When I started at Halcrow 20 years ago, most designs were completed by draftsmen working at drawing boards; these drawings were then shared with remote team members in hard-copy form, and comments often took days to arrive back; and designers and contractors tended to keep separate. Today, designers almost always work and communicate electronically, feedback loops are often completed within minutes with much less re-keying of information; and integrated teams – while still not the norm - are becoming more common.
Like many others, I expect such changes to accelerate. Adoption of building information modeling (BIM), in particular, will force entire supply chains - from clients through designers and constructors to manufacturers and materials suppliers - to collaborate upon shared information from the earliest stages of a project. Defensive or adversarial attitudes will hopefully become a thing of the past, but there are some big structural and contractual hurdles to overcome.

I remember during the dot-com boom, everybody was pushing for synchronous-only collaboration solutions. Now we are finally realizing that collaboration is mostly asynchronous. When would you recommend going for synchronous collaboration?

we don’t work in an industry which lends itself to constant synchronous collaboration

Most AEC industry processes currently involve the creation of data and then its onward communication to another person or persons. As that information is often complex, the recipient normally needs time to assimilate and assess it. So we don’t work in an industry which lends itself to constant synchronous collaboration.
However, AEC people still need to communicate in real time. In design team meetings, for example, people will share and exchange ideas and solutions, and employ the full range of verbal, graphical and written communications, plus body language, etc. Face-to-face meetings are ideal then, but sometimes time, distance and/or cost preclude such gatherings and we have to look at alternatives, perhaps audio- or video-conferencing. My experiences to date with these, though, suggests that the technology can often get in the way of truly effective interpersonal communications, but future cohorts of web-savvy AEC professionals may a) have better technologies and b) fewer reservations about using them.

The AEC is slowly embracing 3D, and not only as a way to create nice pictures and videos. How does collaboration differ in a 2D and 3D environment?

3D appraches will not become common-place until fully interoperable BIM solutions become widely adopted

You’re right: 3D was once regarded as a snazzy way to give the client or end-users a “walk-through” the proposed project. These remain useful areas for collaboration, I think (so long as the cost, time and bandwidth involved in creating and exchanging data doesn’t become prohibitive) – especially to involve non-AEC professionals in decisions about their built environment.
But there are other dimensions of the project which can be modeled: time, cost, sustainability, for example. At the BuildingSMART conference in London in May, I saw some good examples of designers and contractors employing ‘nD’ approaches to show the impacts of design decisions on project programs, but these will not become common-place until fully interoperable building information modeling solutions become widely adopted and all parts of the supply chain are involved from the earliest possible stages.

What is the role of visualization tools in a collaboration environment?

visualization tools can help overcome some interdisciplinary issues

The AEC industry is all about delivering projects in the built environment that people will interact with in some way. It is natural, therefore, for people – particularly owners/operators and/or end-users – to want to visualize what the new building, bridge, road or harbor will look like, how it will fit into its surroundings, and how it will be constructed.
Within a project team, too, visualization tools can help overcome some interdisciplinary issues, improving the scope for integration and coordination of design, buildability and facilities management inputs from different professionals throughout the design development phase. Assuming all parts of the supply chain are involved early enough, they could design, construct and even occupy and operate their facility in a ‘virtual’ environment before irrevocable decisions have been taken.

When do you recommend collaborating on the original document and when it is better to work on a digital copy (without the original geometry) such as a PDF, or a DWF ?

some research suggested that, for the majority of team members, access to the native CAD file was unnecessary

When BIW first started offering its collaboration environment to the UK AEC market, we found some research which suggested that, for the majority of team members, access to the native CAD file was unnecessary – most members simply wanted to be able to mark-up (‘red-line’), add a comment, or simply acknowledge that they’d seen it. In such circumstances, digital copies are perfectly adequate (though I have met one or two architects who have resisted using on-screen mark-up tools, preferring – as one put it to me – to “bleed all over paper drawings”). Such copies are also usually smaller file-sizes and so are quicker to open.
There will, of course, always be a minority of team members who would like to be able to re-use native CAD files. So long as the original author of the file is happy to allow this, I don’t see this as an issue – it avoids having to re-key existing data, for a start – though such re-users need to beware of overwriting the original file with their revised version (most collaboration platforms automatically save revised files as new versions, thus maintaining a full change audit trail).

What are the major obstacles that are slowing down the adoption of collaboration tools in the AEC field?

AEC collaboration is at least 80% people and processes and only 20% technology

An industry ‘rule of thumb’ suggests successful AEC collaboration is at least 80% people and processes and only 20% technology.
Accordingly, the major obstacles to adoption tend to relate to the culture, attitudes and behaviours of individuals, departments, organizations and the industry as a whole, or the hierarchies, policies and decision-making procedures created by these. Too many projects are still conducted in an atmosphere of mutual suspicion and distrust. If we can motivate people to work more collaboratively, to share information and work towards agreed objectives, then technology adoption is relatively straightforward.
As technology providers we can do our bit to address the 20%. Thankfully, we have come a long way from the days when professionals insisted on getting information in paper form; inadequate telecomms are less common; and browser-based environments and viewer applications have helped reduce interoperability issues. But genuinely collaborative approaches by the people involved remain the exception rather than the rule, and that’s the biggest obstacle.

I would like to thank Paul Wilkinson for taking the time to answer my questions. If you have any questions for Paul or for Novedge, please leave a comment below and we will be glad to answer.

Franco Folini