How to use 2D floorplans efficiently for modeling?

[Anonymous]

Hi there, I'm new to ACA but not regular CAD and I want to start modeling homes. I work at a small company and my employer wants me to model and render some of his designs. I have access to all working drawings floor plans, elevations and roof plan so I was wondering what the best way is to make use of that for a 3D model?

I was thinking of trying revit but ACA seems easier to deal with. I don't need to build the interior and most projects are residential homes. I tried searching around and finding tutorials but couldnt find as much on autocad architecture. I hope you can point me to the right direction so I can figure out my workflow. Not sure how to go about it.

Thank you

[ntellery]

How are you going to render?  In ACA or seperate.   The OOTB method is generally create in ACA then export to MAX for high quality render.   I can give an example of a custom system for using ACA to design, render document but it's different to OOTB.  I believe there is great efficiency to be had doing things a little differently for residential work.

Come visit my blog and have a read.  Post a comment with your email (I WONT publish) and I can send you a sample file

http://ausaca.blogspot.com/search/label/Multi-Levels

Where are you?  I'd assume US.  I am in australia and my system is based around local practise. If you are US then also check out visionrez.com as they have a custom package specifically for US practise.

Neither Revit or ACA are 'easy' to use.  Both take some time to master.  If you are only going to use for modelling then you may be just in for the fun part.

archidigm.com is a goldmine for info.  Buy some content (cheap) and you get access to the classroom big plus.This is a link to all of ACA (old but mostly still very current except ribbon).

http://www.archidigm.com/classroom/adt_4_development_guide/adt_5_dg_cover.htm

cheers & good luck.

[ntellery]

...and maybe I didn't quite answer your question.  I would underlay (Xref) the 2d drawings in a trace the 3D walls etc over the top.  

[jaich]

> I was thinking of trying revit but ACA seems easier to deal with.

I found Revit to be WAY easier to learn than ACA.  If you are just going to be doing exterior renderings, go with Revit.  Iterative conceptual design for things like roofs is way easier and faster in Revit than ACA.  

Here is the top 10 list re why you should buy ACA: http://aec-top-reasons.com/autocad-architecture/  That's a list right from the mothership.  They don't mention modeling in there at all.  They are positioning the product such that it is more useful as a 2D drafting tool for producing CD's.  They will often refer to it as ACAD for Architects and then tout the detail componant manager (which is pretty cool, but not really cool for your purposes).  They haven't sold it for its 3D capabilities since Revit started being used by more offices.  

[ntellery]

I somewhat agree with the post about Revit - that's what lead me to investigate different ways of doing things than that pomoted OOTB in ACA.  There are many processes that are way over the top and are not very efficient.  As I regurly design, doc and render inside ACA my process for residential work is way more productive than that OOTB method.  Which is why I posted.  ACA including autocad is a very good 3d modeller.  Don't believe the press!   If you already have skills in autocad you can use them in ACA.

cheers

[Anonymous]

Thanks guys, I think I'm gonna use revit for modeling and ACA for 3D details.

[doug]

I am proficient at both and have used ACA on multiple projects and Revit on multiple projects - both with projects of varying sizes.

I have to say that I believe that you should pick either ACA or Revit and do the entire project in one of them and not mix them on a project.  Using both softwares on the same project ends up causing more pain than it is worth in the long run and can cause duplicity of work.  If you are doing your first project in Revit, it is common to reuse standard AutoCAD details while you are transitioning to doing all detailing in Revit.  However, that is not an ideal situation and should be considered a temporary situation.

My 2 cents. 

[jmcintyre]

I've been using ADT/ACA for over 10 years and have switched to revit. Not that one is 'better' than the other, it's just that Adesk have obviously lost interest in developing it. Both programs have a steep learning curve and if you're going to spend time learning one, I'd suggest it be the one with a future.

[Anonymous]

Thanks again, yea ACA is losing interest. Wish Revit had more similarities with AutoCAD for simpler workflow but I will mostly focus my time in Revit and learn a bit of 3d max for rendering.

I still have to use AutoCad since the small company I work for are old school, but that's all 2D which I can use in revit as a reference when having to build a model.