From Concept to Creation: Bridge the Gap Between Architecture and Manufacturing Using Informed Design

RAMYA PALANI: Hello, all. Before we begin, a quick disclaimer. Today's focus is on knowledge sharing, not sales. We are here to empower you. Please do not make any purchase decisions based on this presentation.

Welcome to our session, From Concept to Creation, where we'll explore how Autodesk Inform Design bridges the gap between architecture and manufacturing. Before we go further, while the term Informed Design might evoke a general concept, today we are zeroing in on something far more tangible and powerful. We are diving deep into Autodesk Informed Design, a cutting-edge, web-based tool that's set to redefine how [INAUDIBLE] collaborates.

Launched this past year, Informed Design isn't just another software. It's a game-changer, in my opinion. So these are the two plugins that you download for Inform Design. And these are the ones that we are going to talk about today. Now let's meet your speakers for today's session.

HARISH PALANI: Hello, everyone. Thank you so much for joining us today. I'm Harish Palani, a design application technician at Perkins & Will Data Studio.

I have a background in architecture with a master's degree from NC State University. I bring four years of experience to the table helping translate designer's dream into realities. I'm also a computational designer, who gets into the nitty gritties of tools and breaks them apart and play with it on a daily basis.

RAMYA PALANI: Thank you, Harish. I'm Ramya Palani. I'm a customer success advisor at Autodesk. And I'm also a subject matter expert.

I have around seven years of experience in the field. I also have a master's in architecture. I'm passionate about empowering designers and helping them achieve their goals. That's what my job here at Autodesk is.

And as you might have guessed from our last names, Harish and I are not married. We are siblings. I chose not to change my name after my marriage. We share a love for design, which is why both of us gravitated towards architecture field. And we are passionate about merging the lines of architecture and technology.

Let's map out our path for today's exploration. We'll start by covering the common frustrations in building design, setting the scene for why we need a change. We'll then do what-- we will then understand what we really want from our design process. We'll see how Informed Design delivers it.

Get ready for a-- get ready for a close-up look at Informed Design, who it is for, how it works, and where it fits into your workflow. We'll break down the model structure and see how it all flows, highlighting both the upsides and downsides. We'll tie it all together with the key takeaways, leaving you inspired. And of course, you've got plenty of time by the end of the session.

What we will not be seeing today is the technical documentation of how Informed Design integrates with [INAUDIBLE]. This is all more focused on the designers, engineers, and architects.

Have you ever poured your heart and countless hours into a stunning architectural design, only to face the crushing reality that it's simply impossible to build? The clash, the real clash between creative vision and manufacturability has always been a problem in [INAUDIBLE] industry for far too long now. This causes frustration, delays, and costly rework.

Today we are here to explore the possibilities to break this cycle. Let's start by acknowledging the challenges, those shared pain points that resonate with the [INAUDIBLE] industry.

We all have been there, grabbing a SketchUp model here, a BIM model there, or even sometimes from open source to plug a gap in our design. Or maybe we rely on trusty old details from past projects. But here's the problem. These copy-paste solutions often lead to a cascade of issues. We end up with products that quite don't fit. They can't be manufactured efficiently. And we also miss the mark on cost, sustainability, and maximizing the waste. So the product that, in Inventor, looks like that or, in real life, looks like that, we will actually be modeling it like that in Revit. So that's the difference we are talking about.

And you are always left wondering, can this be built? Will it break the bank? Is there a more efficient way to achieve this look? Imagine driving a car blindfolded. Sounds terrifying, right? Yet that's how often how we feel to design without real-time feedback on practicality. We don't really have that conversation with the manufacturer in the beginning of the design stages if this is even closely possible or if it's too expensive and when the value engineers will come in and stop us.

Manufacturers are experts on what they make, but they are often left out of the design loop. The communication channels are so narrow and the information are sparse. A card sheet here and a data [INAUDIBLE] there-- that's typically what we get. This leaves the architects and the designers guessing and making an assumption, potentially designing something that's impossible or unnecessarily expensive to produce. We get a shaft opening when we should have actually got a lift model or an elevator model, like that.

Ensuring that your creative vision aligns with real-world manufacturability can be a significant challenge with just the top three of these issues. And today, we are going to concentrate on how to bridge these issues or resolve or take a step towards resolving these issues.

Studies show that nearly 30% of projects experienced cost overruns due to design changes and unforeseen complexities. It's time to break the cycle and empower architects with the tools to design with confidence. Late-stage design changes, budget overruns, and project delays can all stem from a disconnect between design intent and construction feasibility.

What do we want as architects? What do we want as designers or engineers? One of the foremost concern during this process is ensuring that the design choices made are manufacturable. It's crucial to know as early as possible whether a particular design element can be practically built or incorporated. However, the current solutions in our industry often fail to provide this crucial feedback in a timely manner. This delay and uncertainty can lead to costly redesigns and project delays, impacting the overall efficiency and success of construction projects. Architects want to know their design choices are manufacturable during the building phase, but current solutions cannot provide a timely feedback.

Let's discuss solution. Do we have a solution? I think so, yes.

In the past, manufacturers were often brought in late in the game, leading to those frustrating it can't be built moments. But with Informed Design, we are flipping the script. Informed Design isn't just about technology. It's about fostering a powerful partnership between designers and manufacturers. By bringing these stakeholders together early on, we create a collaborative environment where creativity and practicality go hand-in-hand, resulting in better, more efficient buildings. We can also have the manufacturer contribute to the BIM data.

Let's keep it simple and real. I know I spoke a lot. So what is Informed Design? Informed Design is an incubation product by Autodesk. Do you need to buy it? No, you don't require any-- there's no cost attached to it. As long as you have AC collection, Revit or Inventor, you should have access to Informed Design.

Informed Design is a platform-based solution where the manufacturers will publish their model to Autodesk Construction Cloud, and then the architects will have an opportunity to browse through their products and then choose or discover products on the web browser and then add that instance to their Revit project as a family. And those are the two add-ins that we were talking about. So you will get a Revit version of the add-in and also an Inventor version of the Informed Design add-in.

Who benefits from this collaborative tool? The answer is simple. It's everyone. Manufacturers finally have a direct line to the design table, showcasing their expertise and ensuring their products are specified accurately. No more guessing work for architects and engineers. No more frustrating surprises. Informed Design empowers them to design with confidence, knowing their choices are buildable. Contractors can get the clarity they need for smooth installation, minimizing on-site issues and costly delays.

Where can we leverage it? While looking at the design process, there are several stages from conceptual design to schematic design, then design development, and, finally, construction drawings. Let's not focus on the craziness of conceptual design. In the bigger scheme of things, Informed Design can be helpful in the schematic design phase all the way through this series.

Let's break down what our typical workflow looks like or an ideal workflow should look like. We start exploring design options, often relying on manufacturer's website or our knowledge of specific manufacturer's products. Depending on the project and customization needs, we loop in the manufacturer during the SD or DD phase.

We dive into the nitty-gritty-- finishes, colors, available options, and any limitation we need to be aware of. We request detailed sharp drawings, cut sheets, and call-outs from the manufacturer. As designers, we create basic Revit model and incorporate manufacturers details in that. Remember, this model might look very different from what the actual product is going to be. The design goes through QA/QC phase, and then we wait for the green light. This back and forth with the manufacturer is how things usually roll.

HARISH PALANI: Whoa, whoa, whoa. I need to stop you right there. This is not how things usually roll. So let me clarify the real workflow that happens on a daily basis. So it usually starts with a happy designer, the one that you're looking at right now. So they want a product, so they reach out to a manufacturer.

The manufacturer then finds them to their website. So they go to the website and look for the products that they like. They look at the pictures, and they get a PDF. Well, I cannot import the PDF into my model. That's not what I want. Let me look further. So then I get a AutoCAD drawing. That's not what I want. That's when I get my first cup of coffee.

So I dig in further to see if I can get a 3D model. Oh, I get an FBX. This is still not a Revit family. This is not what I want. And there goes my second cup of coffee. Then I dig in further. So I look deeper. I get the OBL. I don't even care what OBL is. I don't know what OBL is. I get my third cup of coffee. So going further and further, finally, I get the Revit family file. By then, the happy designer who got into these things is already frustrated to just find this one Revit family.

Now I would like to tell a story that I experienced. So we had this lighting fixture, and guess how much it is? It's a $26,000 lighting fixture. And we spent a whole day to just find a Revit model for it or a good 3D model that we can import into Revit to just do the representation of it. So we went through the entire frustration for even a $26,000 lighting fixture and ended up not getting a good one. So, at the end of the day, it's not about the product. We just had to look for another one so that we can visualize it. So it's all about visualization right now. So we need to represent it in a way. So these 3D models are very important in a design workflow. This is the real workflow.

RAMYA PALANI: Are you serious? They did not have a model for $26,000 light fixture?

HARISH PALANI: This is something that we deal every single day.

RAMYA PALANI: OK, thank you. So you see that that's the problem. But with Informed Design, it is going to be different, Harish. It is going to be your same starting point, but with a twist. We explored designs directly within a platform like Autodesk Docs, browsing through your trusted and trusted manufacturers and their product library. So you are not going through a website. You're not going through random products. You are going through your trusted manufacturer's project. You will be invited by them.

We nail down our product choices during the SD or DD phase, and then here's when the magic happens. Instead of chasing down drawings and building models from scratch, we directly click a button and import the model as a Revit family from the manufacturer's project into your project. All those constraints and details are baked right in as parameters. Streamlined and efficient, the design is ready for review and approval process.

You see the difference. Informed Design cuts out a lot of manual steps, letting us focus on the design itself. Informed Design simplifies the design process by providing a centralized platform for product exploration, documentation, and accessing the model. It also improves communication and collaboration between the designers and manufacturers, which lead to better design decision and with fewer misunderstandings.

Direct model input importing minimizes the risk of errors that can occur during manual model creation or data transfer. You can imagine your staircase, just how the inventor would assemble it on site. You can just bring that to your BIM data. The ability to look quickly find and incorporate manufacturer-specific information saves valuable time and boosts overall project efficiency.

Think about those real-life examples. Think about those complex balcony system, the stunning GFRC panels, or operable metal windows. These elements rely heavily on manufacturers' expertise. From custom installation to essential building systems like staircase, elevators, escalators, we almost see these systems on a day-to-day basis, which requires the manufacturer's input. Informed design puts the power of manufacturing innovation in your hands or a few clicks away.

It actually doesn't stop there. We are talking about revolutionizing the way we approach modular construction. Picture an entire bathroom pod, even entire housing units all manufactured offsite and seamlessly integrated into your projects. It's efficient, accurate, and you will have all the constraints in place during your early design phases.

Well, here's a breakdown of how we'll navigate through the information. And I know I spoke a lot-- too many examples out there. I've thrown a lot. But let's get real and show you how to access it.

It is very simple. Head to manage.autodesk.com. Click on All Products and Services. Search for Informed Design. You will simply search, and you will get an icon like that. Hit Access. Once you hit Access, it will take you to a web page called informeddesign.autodesk.com. So that's going to be a web page where manufacturers will be publishing the model and architects will go through your manufacturer's project to identify which project they want.

So these are the two add-ins I am referring to since the beginning. These are free add-ins. You don't have to buy anything. This is Informed Design for Inventor, Informed Design for Revit. And you can download it-- any version higher than 2024. You can use them. And you will be able to download them from their Informed Design web page.

Let's get an overview of how the workflow works. The product designer will meticulously create their product models in Inventor. They will also be adding all those important parameters and defining the BIM content before publishing them to the platform.

Now the architects will discover the products, filter through the manufacturers projects, and then effortlessly insert those chosen products into the Revit project. Once their design is ready for QA/QC, you can share it with the contractors.

HARISH PALANI: Let's take a look at the whole process and setups involved in publishing and accessing products within Informed Design. It all begins where the product is modeled with constraints and parameters in Inventor. The idea is to convert the 3D object into a BIM object.

So there is an important step to provide the object with all the information needed. We can provide the BIM information by accessing the BIM properties of the model under the BIM Definition tab in Inventor, providing the model with required information like, how is the model going to be hosted? Is it wall-based or face-based or ceiling-based? And also choosing the category of where this product need to be categorized in Revit-- is it furniture, casework, panel, or speciality equipment, all those kind of things, and also providing further details and infos on the manufacturer, like a little more details on if the product has a very specific information. So all those kind of properties can be added to this model right here.

The next step is to publish this product to Informed Design Cloud. You can access it by the Informed Design tab in Inventor. We get this tab in Inventor once the plugin is installed. Here, we can publish the product by creating new product definition or making changes to an existing one that's already been created.

Once we create a new product definition, the first step is to provide the model name, specify the location, and locating the Inventor file from the root folder. Along with that, the DWG drawings and other drawing formats associated with the model needs to be linked, which can all be done right here.

The next step will be the most important one in Inventor. This is where we can control and specify the parameters that's needed to be published along with the object. These parameters allows the users to modify and control the product that they will be using. We begin by choosing all the parameters that needed to be published from the list of all parameters in this particular project. So once we select the parameters, we can see a preview of what the users will be looking at in the Revit interface on your right over there. So this is where it showcases all the parameters that the user will be seeing in a Revit interface.

Here, the parameters are not just selected, but can also be provided with a certain constraints based on the options of that particular product. This is a visual coding interface. If you're familiar with Dynamo or other visual programs, it's easy for you to get used to it. So it begins with setting up a logic. So as you can see, the parameters over there on the right, this is what they're going to be seeing in Revit interface.

I'm going to be specifically changing the divisions. The last parameter that you're seeing, the value right now is 6. I want to give a constraint to it. For this particular object that we created, all we need is just two options, one with six divisions and another one with eight divisions. So I can access all those parameters that we have inputted over here by putting this node. And you can see that's all the parameters that we chose earlier.

So for this parameter, we can choose-- we can say the minimum value or maximum value and type of the values that you can provide, or I can also give multiple values. So I'm going to go with the multiple values option. And now that we have chosen it, we need to give those multiple values. So I'm going to create a list of multiple values.

I can create it with that list creation node and the creation node needs a math input. So I'm just dragging on to that node, creating that value node, and just making a copy of it and adding it to the list, so converting the first value with 6 and changing the second one with 8. So we created a list of two numbers now. And I'm just simply docking it to this parameter and I get a list of two values now.

So as soon as I created this rule, once I update the Parameter tab, we can see that the divisions now gets a dropdown function to it. So the dropdown now has two values. One is 6 and 8. That's the rule that we created right now. So this would be the interface that the users are going to experience in Revit.

The next step is to specify the output. The user can access from this particular product, which includes the file DWGs, PDFs, and all those things that we have associated with the product. So over here, you can see in the interface where we can choose between the things that the users are going to get from this product, like the presentation, DWGs, if you have PDFs, and if there's bill of materials that they can generate from this particular product, you can add those things, and all other good stuff. There's so many things that you can add to the product.

So once you have all of those information added, you just simply save it and publish. So when you hit Publish, you need to specify the ACC hub that you need to push it to and choose the project that you want this product to be published to, selecting the folder and all those kind of things. Just simply hit Publish. The publishing is complete, so this would be the end of Inventor.

Now we can move into-- next slide.

RAMYA PALANI: Can I ask you a question?

HARISH PALANI: Yes, please.

RAMYA PALANI: So whatever we saw before, is that the manufacturer side of things?

HARISH PALANI: That's the manufacturer side of things, yes.

RAMYA PALANI: And now this is going to--

HARISH PALANI: Now we are moving into the web version of Informed Design. This would be a transitional phase, where the manufacturers and also the designers can access and get information from. So this is the common platform between both parties. So similar to what we did earlier, you just navigate to the hub and then find your projects. And under the Projects, you can typically see all-- if the products are listed in, you can see all the product folders, and you can go to the releases to find all the products that's been uploaded to this particular hub. So I can choose between different products.

And the best part about it is you don't need to open the project to see what file you have. You can simply click on that product. And you can see the 3D view of the product along with all the parameters that's associated with the product. So the parameters that we created earlier is shown over here. And we can also identify the folder location and also when this product was created and uploaded. So if you have multiple products, you can see it over here. All of those public products that's being published will be uploaded and can be viewed in the Informed Design web version of it.

So, as you can see, there's multiple products and this particular product over here has multiple options or different releases. So if there is change in updates being made from the manufacturer side, we can upload it and create more variations or have different releases of that particular product. You can go to the next one. The next slide, please.

So we have done with the Informed Design web part of it-- so we looked at Inventor, then we went to the web, and now it's the Revit version of Informed Design. So if once you install the Revit plugin, you'll obviously have the Informed design tab in Revit, and you can access the products from the Products icon. Once you click on it, it'll take you to the Informed Design web link, where all the products have been published so you get a direct connection to it. And similar kind of step-- you choose your hub and then choose your project, and you'll get the folder structure. You can navigate through that folder structure to find the product that you want.

Even over here, even before importing into Revit, you'll get a 3D view of that particular product, and you can browse through this folder structure and choose your product. And once you like a product, you can simply hit Open, and it's going to take you to the next dialog box, where you can make changes to the parameters that we saw earlier. So all those parameters that we published in Inventor is being translated over here, and we can make changes to those parameters to our specific needs and then create a product that we want. Or we can also create multiple variants of it and save it.

Over here, you can select between different options and then insert it into the project. So, as soon as we hit Insert, it's going to take some time, few minutes or a second to create that new variant because it needs to change all the parameters and create that new variant. Once the new variant is created, you can simply just import it into Revit. So as you can see, over here, it created a Revit family that I can place in Revit. So there you go. You have the family that you created in Inventor being translated into Revit.

And, as you can see over here, this is an experiment I had to learn Inventor to do this. But you can see the object is oriented in a different plane, where it needs to be upright, but it's kind of down there. So this is a good place to understand that these objects are built in Inventor, and it needs to talk to Revit. It's two whole different programs which has whole different interfaces. So we have to be mindful about the way we create these objects. So as soon as I go to Edit Type, I can see all the information that comes along with this product. Anything that we have specified in the BIM properties in Inventor, we can simply see it over here and also extract those data in Revit.

So, typically, we don't just get a family and just import it into a project and that's it. No, we get into it. We need to make some changes to it. We tend to change all the families. We break some parameters and all those kind of things.

But with this family that you get from Informed Design, you cannot make any changes to it in the geometry aspect. So I went into the Family Editor to see how it's built. So all you can see is a simple import. It's more like a DWG import that you do in Revit. It comes in as a block. So all we see is just a block over here. I cannot make any changes to it. I cannot change the geometry of it, but it still brings in the family with all the material property that's been assigned in Informed Design.

So it's really important for us to know that when we are building these products, we need to make sure that we give it the right material and right kind of visual aspect to it. It's not just about the information and the geometry, it's also about the visual aspects of it because we use all of these products on a daily basis to do a lot of renderings. We need to see how these products fit in our environments or fit in the spaces that we design. So it needs to have all the material property to it, but we cannot make any changes to it. If we need to make changes, we need to go back into Inventor to make those changes. That's not--

RAMYA PALANI: Can I interrupt you for a minute.

HARISH PALANI: Yes, please.

RAMYA PALANI: So you said you cannot change-- if you ungroup the model, it is going to mess things up or we potentially will mess the parameters up, correct?

HARISH PALANI: That's exactly what I'm doing right now. So you can see I'm going to click on that object. I've ungrouped it. And then now we have a simple import. I'm going to explode it. And you can see, as soon as I exploded it, it changed gray, which is it's just categorizing it under a generic model. So it just removed its material property. You don't hold on to its material properties anymore. All you have is just a simple geometry that you cannot use for anything. You cannot make any big changes to it. You cannot add any properties to it. At this point of time, it's just not useful for you anymore.

RAMYA PALANI: So the manufacturers need not be worried that their designs will be tampered with because you cannot change it. You cannot do anything with it.

HARISH PALANI: Yes, they don't have to worry about it. There's no changes that we can do other than just exploring the geometry and getting the base geometry to fit. We don't have any kind of information other than just the geometry information that we get from it. It's similar to what we get from web, but it's all being closely integrated into the object and into the cloud.

So if I want to come back and get a new variant, if you want a new option, you don't have to go into the family to change it, you just simply go back to the Informed Design tab, get into the products, and you can create new variants and change the parameters in your-- so you can see, have different parameters with different divisions. And I can simply just overwrite this object that I have created with a new variant that I can simply just import into Revit. So this would be the Revit side of Informed Design.

With that, let's move to the next one. So this would be the final step. So we've seen the Inventor part of things. We've seen the web part of things, and we have imported our objects into Revit. So once we publish our model, say we have done with everything, we can simply come back to Informed Design web and browse through a project to see what are the products that we've used in this particular product-- in this particular project. I can go through this model and see how many different options of products I've used. I can get a list of it.

And in the step that you're looking at right now, I can also request the manufacturer to get the information from them in terms of a PDF. If I need further information, I can get a PDF or DWG drawings, all those kind of good stuff. You can get it and access a good platform for us to interact with them and get their products from them.

And there's a checkout option that you're looking at right now. This comes with a token. I might not be the right person to talk about it, but you can look into the nitty-gritties of this one to get to know more about it. But it just gives us an option of where we can bring in all the information of the product, not just the geometry of it. With this, I'll hand over to Ramya.

RAMYA PALANI: Nice. Thank you, Harish. That wasn't as long as I expected. Nice. As we wrap up this session, let's reflect on how Informed Design empowers us as architects, designers, and engineers to push the boundaries of creativity while maintaining a firm grip on practicality. That's kind of our end goal, just to get the line between or be the middleman between art and engineering. That's kind of our job.

It is not about just about bridging the gap between architects and manufacturing. At this point, it's about propelling us towards a future of industrialized construction. I'm probably throwing in a lot of words. But industrialized construction is the next future, with all our housing needs and sustainability requirements. Let's say how Informed Design is going to do that.

Informed Design lays the foundation for streamlined, efficient building processes that minimizes waste, reduces errors, and it also accelerates project timelines. It's a stepping stone to a world of prefabrication, modular construction, and sustainable practices. That's how we'll move towards industrialized construction or productization.

Anyhoo, key takeaways-- what did we learn? I know we spoke a lot. We finally wrapped everything with industrialized construction. But what is your takeaway from today's session? You learned how to use Informed Design. Informed Design can reimagine AC workflow by enabling early collaboration and informed design-making. We learned how Informed Design streamlines communication between designers and manufacturers, promoting transparency and efficiency. We also learned how to integrate manufactured product into the world of BIM modeling, where you can actually achieve that LOD 400 or LOD 450. I'll stop there.

And we also learned how product standardization can happen across your projects. The future of design and construction lies in embracing industrialized construction and productization to build a more sustainable, efficient, and accessible environment.

Thank you for joining us on this journey from concept to creation. We hope this session has sparked new ideas and inspired you to explore the new possibilities of this tool Informed Design. Remember, the future of Informed Design is informed, collaborative, and efficient. Embrace the power of Informed Design and unlock a world of possibilities for your projects.

HARISH PALANI: Thank you.