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About this Issue…. Welcome to AECWeekly! @Last Software is a small software company that has gained a surprising following with its simple, but highly effective SketchUp program. Founded in 1999, SketchUp was created by a group of design software veterans who wanted to create a program that would allow design professionals to actually sketch on the computer to develop their ideas. Inexpensive and simple, SketchUp is something that nearly everyone can use, but has tremendous potential for professionals.
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AECWeekly examines select top news each week, picks out worthwhile reading from around the web, and special interest items you might not find elsewhere. This issue will feature Industry News, Acquisitions/Alliances/Agreements, Announcements, New Products, Around the Web and Upcoming Events.
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Industry News
At Last, an Inexpensive 3D Modeling Tool
By Susan Smith
@Last Software is a small software company that has gained a surprising following with its simple, but highly effective SketchUp program. Founded in 1999, SketchUp was created by a group of design software veterans who wanted to create a program that would allow design professionals to actually sketch on the computer to develop their ideas. Inexpensive and simple, SketchUp is something that nearly everyone can use, but has tremendous potential for professionals.
According to the literature, most users are able to create a useful model within the first hour of playing with SketchUp. The product is a 3D modeling tool that allows you to design in 3D. The product works will all major file formats and is designed to be compatible with most modeling, image editing and illustration applications. The SketchUp component library contains over 3,000 high quality files that allow nearly everyone to create whatever models and scenes they need for their work.
The software is priced at $495 for a single user license.
Recently, SketchUp 5 has added new “snappy dialogs” which make all the settings panels stick together. New ways of managing keyboard shortcuts have been added and there are some new tools, called “the Sandbox,” which adds modeling terrain and other organic shapes capabilities. The product is valuable for both CAD and GIS users, and you are able to bring in survey data and create a surface from contours, draw a surface from scratch, build berms and hills, put roads, building pads etc. in your model with the new Stamp Tool, and project 2D geometry onto any complex 3D surface with the new drape tool, plus add the Add Detail Tool to add resolution to any surface.
In addition, SketchUp 5 has focused on organizing and managing your model with the following enhancements:
- The Outliner which gives you a new view of your model
- Replace Selected lets you swap in new components, or modify a general design and make it more detailed on the fly.
- You can now lock SketchUp groups and components in order to keep from editing inadvertently.
- Select All Instances lets you select all in-model instances of a selected component, so that you can more easily replace them all at once.
- FaceMe Shadows helps you to make more realistic shadows by giving you shadows cast as if the object were facing the sun.
Import and Export capabilities allow a smooth transition in and out of SketchUp, with the new DWG/DXF export and import. If not using DWG/DXF, then the 3DS exporter is great for those other users who need options such as:
- Large meshes greater than 65K vertices or faces split into multiple meshes.
- Smoothing now supported
- The welding of vertices now supported.
Announcements
Bentley Systems, Incorporated announced that thus far this year, more than 30,000 students representing the future of engineering have become empowered by MicroStation PowerDraft CAD software. The software is being offered by the BE Careers Network to all students and instructors through a free download.
Bentley Systems, Incorporated, through BE Careers Network and Deutsche Investitions und Entwicklungsgesellschaft mbH (DEG), a German development finance institution, are helping architecture and engineering (AE) schools in the Philippines modernize their computer systems and software technology. The goal is to improve the instruction of Filipino students studying AE and, thus, enhance their employment opportunities upon graduation.
Wind2 Software announced an 80% increase in attendance for their 5th annual users' conference, held this year in New Orleans, La. Based on conference evaluations, company leaders tie the record attendance to the addition of sessions focused on client success. Customers from the United States, Canada, and Australia voiced enthusiasm for the users' conference and cited it as further proof of the company's on-going commitment to customer service and support.
The DWF 7.0 Toolkit allows a 3rd party developer to develop applications that read or write multi-sheet drawings in DWF (Design Web Format) format. The toolkit contains a C++ library that aids in the generation, reading, and parsing of DWF files. Experienced C++ programmers can use it to work with DWF files without having to understand their complete underlying data format. This toolkit contains support for the DWF file as defined with the release of AutoCAD 2006. The DWF Toolkit is not intended for Visual Basic programmers who wish to work with the API of the Autodesk DWF Viewer. These users should consult the Autodesk DWF Viewer API
AVEVA announced that Petroleo Brasileiro S.A. Petrobras, the national oil company of Brazil, has decided to migrate its legacy data from four of its refineries to AVEVA's Plant Design Management System (PDMS). The decision came following a successful working translation from Intergraph's PDS plant design product using AVEVA's PDS to PDMS Translation Service. This is the first time that such a translation has been used in production.
Appointments
U.S. General Services Administrator Stephen A. Perry announced the appointment of Anthony Costa as Acting Commissioner of the agency's Public Buildings Service (PBS).
Paul Sills has joined the AEC CADCON, Inc. (AEC) team as a new Applications Consultant. He will be working out of the firm's Cincinnati, OH office, as well as serving all of our locations.
Brian Peters has joined the AEC CADCON, Inc. (AEC) team as a new Account Manager. He will be working out of the firm's Cincinnati, OH office, as well as serving all of our locations.
New Products
Dexter + Chaney has released an advanced dispatch schedule for its Forefront(R) Construction Management Software that helps make service technicians more efficient and enhances customer service by streamlining dispatching and service operations. The advanced dispatch schedule is part of Forefront's Work Order module, which provides a complete billing, tracking and dispatch system for construction companies that perform service work. Work orders fully integrate with the rest of Forefront, including purchasing, payroll, inventory, billing and jobs.
Epson is introducing its newest scanners to the consumer market -- the Epson Perfection 4490 Photo, Perfection 3590 Photo and Perfection 3490 Photo -- each delivering its own set of unique and rich features for a variety of customers, ranging from the advanced amateur photographer to the Chief Memory Officer(TM). Priced from $99 to $249, these versatile scanners offer everything a customer needs for restoring cherished photos, negatives, and slides, as well as completing other tasks and projects with ease.
Oce, a digital document management and delivery solutions organization, announced that the Oce TCS400 integrated large format color print, copy and scan system is now supported by the InterPlot Driver Pack from Bentley Systems, Incorporated. The InterPlot Driver Pack is part of Bentley's Digital InterPlot(TM), a high- performance plotting solution capable of electronic plot creation, storage, and network and Internet distribution, especially over wide geographies to large numbers of users.
Upcoming Events
| AIA Alabama Annual Convention and Product Show | |
| Date: | July 31 - August 2, 2005 |
| Place: | Perdido Beach Resort
Orange Beach, AL USA |
| The leadership is looking for destinations for the 2005 and 2006 Annual Conventions. A poll at the convention produced the following results: 1st Choice - Perdido Beach Resort, 2nd Choice - A Cruise departing from New Orleans, 3rd Choice - Marriott.s Grand Hotel What.s your opinion? Email the AIA Office at AIA@gmsal.com and let us know where you want the Alabama Council Convention to be held in 2005 and 2006. It.s your organization - speak your mind...
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| Leading-Edge Planning and Management Models for Capital Projects and Facilities Management | |
| Date: | August 1 - 2, 2005 |
| Place: | The Westin Horton Plaza
San Diego, CA USA |
| The new management and business models for capital projects and facilities management are leaner, more leveraged, more highly automated, lower-cost, more efficient, and increasingly data-driven. Bottom-line, they are raising capital productivity, lowering overall infrastructure expense, and moving corporate and institutional thinking toward a more integrated approach to infrastructure planning and management (capital and operations). Attend this conference to learn the big money-saving strategies for capital programs and operations that are being pursued, and build on the advanced management thinking and lessons learned of others. This is
a unique opportunity to evaluate your plans and programs against “new-model” features concerning performance metrics, processes, contracting philosophies, data collection and management, technology use, organizational models, staffing skill-sets, and “total spend” formulas.
For more information go to http://www.TradelineInc.com/Models or contact Bill Nothofer @ 925-254-1744 x 19 or via email at bill@tradelineinc.com |
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| AIA Tennessee Convention | |
| Date: | August 3 - 5, 2005 |
| Place: | Hilton Suites
Nashville, TN USA |
| Knowledge by Design/AIA NW+ Pacific Case Study Conference | |
| Date: | August 4 - 6, 2005 |
| Place: | Seatlle, WA USA |
| AIA Seattle welcomes all colleagues to join in a knowledge-seeking quest – a gathering and exchange among practice and education communities within and beyond the territory of the AIA Northwest + Pacific Region. Using geographic diversity as a laboratory for learning, conference attendees will focus on knowledge from case study submittals based on significant projects from around the region, chosen for both design excellence and a range of achievements required for design success. |
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| Ideas in Form: Architecture Model Exhibit | |
| Date: | August 4 - 21, 2005 |
| Place: | Rainier Square Atrium
1333 5th Ave, 1st Floor, Seattle, WA USA |
| Rainier Square Atrium, 1333 5th Ave, 1st Floor
A primary role of the architect in society is to create designs that enhance the communities they serve. For architects, “built models” are central to the creative process and fundamental to making a design into a reality. For the community, architectural models are strong visual representations that help communicate possibilities for the future. In August 2005, we present IDEAS IN FORM, a non-competitive, juried exhibition open to both professionals and students. By bringing together a variety of models—from foam and wood structures to computer generated 3-D presentations—IDEAS IN FORM illustrates the beauty, power and potential of architectural models, as it uses
them to convey the story of how “process” becomes “place.”
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| CACE Annual Meeting | |
| Date: | August 10 - 13, 2005 |
| Place: | Governor Hotel
Portland, OR USA |
| PORTLAND, OREGON—VIBRANT, DIVERSE, BIG ON LIVABILITY, AND QUITE ACCESSIBLE!
Portland calls itself the city of “books, beer, bikes, and blooms.” So get ready for a fun-filled, educational CACE Annual Meeting that will challenge you to take center stage for your successes and to laugh at your mistakes within the warm embrace of your colleagues and exchange stories with new and old friends.. While enjoying the city, CACE members can walk through some of the areas that prompted Portland’s selection as America’s favorite walking town by Walking Magazine. There will be time to sip the Northwest’s best java and quench your thirst at one or more of the 25 craft breweries that have earned the city its nickname, “Munich on the Willamette.” The 2005 CACE Annual Meeting will feature thought-provoking speakers and workshops for new and seasoned component leaders. Would you like to know what the national trends are for membership organizations? Are you still trying to solve that dilemma that woke you up at 3:00 a.m.? Do you need help to prioritize yesterday’s “to-do” list with today’s crisis? Have you figured out what your role will be in creating “one AIA”? This meeting will help answer these questions and give you the opportunity to explore Portland, learn from your peers, network, and hear stimulating speakers. If you would like to extend the pleasure and value of your time with CACE this August, please consider a pre-visit to Seattle. AIA Seattle invites everyone to attend the AIA NW + Pacific Region Conference, “Knowledge by Design,” August 4–6; the conference will focus on advancing the practical value of the AIA Knowledge Initiative. |
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| Avatech Solutions Presents CAD Training Camp | |
| Date: | August 18, 2005 |
| Place: | Lexington Conference Center
Lexington, KY USA |
Avatech Solutions, Inc. (OTCBB: AVSO.OB), presents CAD TRAINING CAMP at the
Lexington Convention Center, August 18th, 2005, which includes a day of
Autodesk 2006 product training from Avatech's renowned industry specialists.
Attendees will each participate in six unique sessions:
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| Mega Projects of the West Coast IV | |
| Date: | August 19 - 20, 2005 |
| Place: | San Francisco, CA USA |
| A day long program with a second day site tour, Mega Projects of the West Coast sets itself apart by focusing on Bay Area mega projects then concluding with a tour of one of the projects. Beginning at 7:00am with breakfast, day one quickly transitions into ten 45 minute sessions, to finish the day around 5:30pm. The site tour on day two begins at 8:00pm and ends around 12:30pm. Recent highlights include the Bay Bridge East Span in Oakland including a site tour, the BART Warm Springs Extension and the Lower Northwest Interceptor Program. |
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| 2005 AIA Western Mountain Region Conference | |
| Date: | August 25 - 26, 2005 |
| Place: | Arizona Biltmore Resort
Phonix, AZ USA |
| August 27 - WMR Design Awards Banquet on Saturday
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You can find the full AECCafe.com event calendar here.
To read more news, click here.
-- Susan Smith, AECCafe.com Managing Editor.