Please post your water puns here. It's something we highlighted in the Great Drainage Debate Civil 3D vs Autodesk Water CITE meetup on May 8, 2026. Show More

As we expand our older systems in a growing pipeline and retire old lines I am asked to divide the attributes from the shape files for a distribution line that is made up of multiple polyline segments but may be different pipe sizes and some steel, polyethylene, or PVC. When I bring in 1 shape file that has all this data in attributes can it be separated in layers and linetype, or does each one have to be created in GIS on a different distribution type (ie 4"steel, 6"steel, or 6"PE or 2"PVC ) to import differently? Show More

  The Migration Toolkit: DMT & BUT Kitty introduced a workflow designed to solve the two biggest migration headaches: slow upload speeds and broken file references. 1. Drawing Integrity & Migration for Docs (DMT) Purpose: This tool scans your local project before you upload it. It identifies missing references, broken links, and data integrity issues that would cause "chaos" once in the cloud. The Output: It generates a relationship JSON file. This file acts as a map, telling the cloud exactly how every drawing and reference (XREFs, DREFs) connects to one another. Performance: Version 3 is a massive upgrade—reportedly up to 74x faster than previous versions for large projects. 2. Bulk Upload Tool (BUT) Purpose: While Desktop Connector (DC) often struggles or fails with projects over 100GB, BUT is built for speed and stability. Modes of Operation: Upload with References: Uses the JSON from the DMT to ensure all file relationships stay intact. Simple Upload: A faster method for when you don't need to preserve specific reference structures. Pro-Tips & Lessons Learned The "Golden Window": Kitty emphasized that you should use the JSON file immediately after exporting it from the DMT. If someone changes the folder structure or file names locally after the JSON is made, the upload will likely fail or have broken links. ProjectWise Migration: Users shared that migrating from ProjectWise is particularly difficult because of how it handles folder IDs. The Reference Manager (the standalone AutoCAD tool) is still a favorite for remapping these paths before the final push to Form a. DC vs. BUT: If your project is small (under 1GB), using the upload feature directly in the DMT (which uses Desktop Connector) is fine. For anything larger, the Bulk Upload Tool is a "game changer." Community Q&A Highlights The "Manage Portal" Struggle: A significant portion of the meeting was spent discussing the difficulty of accessing these tools in large corporate environments. Users noted that "Global IT" often locks down the Autodesk Manage portal, making it hard for BIM managers to get the latest installers without opening up permissions for thousands of employees. Feature Request: There was a strong suggestion to integrate the old-school Reference Manager (which checks for support files like SHX, CTB, and PC3) into the modern Drawing Migration Tool to provide a "one-stop shop" for project health.   Show More

  The Big News: ACC is now "Autodesk Forma" The most significant update of the meeting was the rebranding of Autodesk Construction Cloud (ACC), effective March 24. Stacy Morikan from Autodesk clarified that while the names are changing, your data, URLs, and workflows remain intact. Old Name New "Form a" Name Autodesk Construction Cloud (ACC) Autodesk Form a Account Admin Hub Admin Autodesk Docs Form a Data Management BIM Collaborate Pro Form a Design Collaboration Autodesk Build Form a Build Mobile App Autodesk Form a App Key Strategies for Project Success The leadership team (Shelby, Gil, and Tom) discussed how to move from "manual mode" to a standardized environment: Permissions Over Titles: Tom and Shelby recommended setting up Roles based on project access (e.g., "Civil Team," "MEP Team") rather than individual job titles. This simplifies permission management across folders. The Golden Rule of Templates: Templates must be applied at the start of a project. You cannot retroactively apply a project template once a project has been created. Cleanliness is Godliness: Gil emphasized that templates should be built from the ground up, not by "saving as" an old project. This prevents carrying over corrupted data or unnecessary styles. Account-Level Management: To maintain consistency, users should be added at the Account/Hub Admin level so that default companies and roles are automatically assigned. Community & Q&A Highlights SITE is Global: The community has expanded with a new group focused on the Netherlands and Australia. Restricting Project Creation: A common "lesson learned" shared was that Account Admins can (and often should) toggle off the ability for Project Admins to create new projects in the account settings. Feature Request: There is a strong demand for Distribution Groups in Form a Build to allow for better notification management (e.g., notifying all "Checkers" or "Approvers" at once). Stacy noted this is a known request and encouraged users to vote for it on the Autodesk Idea Board. Revit Deprecation: There was a brief discussion regarding the potential deprecation of cloud support for Revit 2021 and older versions following the release of Revit 2027. Show More

I work with a team of civil engineering staff, whom have very mixed levels of AutoCAD C3D experience.  We primarily work in public road/bridge infrastructure projects.  I'm curious as to how other managers (of AutoCAD staff) measure work performance, especially where it relates to design versus productivity.  Any thoughts to share regarding how to effectively measure productivity (when working in AutoCAD)?  Show More