Some CAD managers may serve as solid bridges of support between end users and IT departments, but what about those of us who struggle to build that bridge for better administrative support, faster turnaround times, and strategic planning for future department needs? It's easy to get stuck feeling the pressure or, even worse, seeing only one of 2 equally valid perspectives. In this class, attendees will learn how the speaker put the "manage" back in CAD manager by creating mutual understanding and improving collaboration between 2 departments that may not always see eye to eye.

"Dashboards with “monster models”, Digital Twins (IoT), BIM creation from a web page, AR/VR integrated with BIM 360, and more... Join Forge connoisseurs Jim Quanci and Cyrille Fauvel on their latest lightning tour of Forge Cutting Edge solutions that were developed in the last year. We'll feature a range of applications - from internal company tools to SaaS applications - and in a range of industries. We'll fly through a series of demos with their authors to understand how Forge helped in their solutions. You will also have a chance to get insights from these people about how they are solving challenging industry issues."

Ever wish you could visualize real-world data without leaving the comfort of your own office? Sound too wonderful to be true? Well, it isn't. Sending crews into the field to measure and collect information about assets is time consuming and costly. But when you have street-level spherical imagery and colorized LIDAR (light detection and ranging) data at hand, you have the freedom to quickly, accurately, and cost-effectively create photorealistic 3D models for planning, design, emergency and disaster management, regulatory compliance, and asset management. We'll explore the collection process and business implications for street-level reality capture and examine 2 alternatives, such as Google Street View and CycloMedia. We'll also discuss practical workflows for municipal governments using this data, including design and visualization, with a focus on water asset management and pavement surface markings. Finally, we'll describe how to effectively integrate these data sources with AutoCAD Civil 3D software and InfraWorks software.

Road infrastructure consists of many simple elements—road signs, traffic barriers, traffic lights, and so on. Creating and placing them separately in large infrastructure projects can be very labor intensive. In this technical presentation, we’ll demonstrate how to automate the creation of an intelligent model for road infrastructure using Dynamo scripts and universal Revit families. This class will teach you how to organize a geographic information system (GIS) system of a traffic management plan in Civil 3D software and effectively transfer it to an InfraWorks model. Learn how to set up an effective link between a 2D plan and the consolidated intelligent model in accordance with the information embedded in the vector objects. We’ll also cover the creation of parametric barriers in Inventor software for InfraWorks, and how to apply parametric barriers for component roads in InfraWorks. See a demonstration of the Dynamo script that places barriers on the appropriate position in the consolidated model in accordance with the attributes of the barrier’s points from the 2D plan.

Visualizing BIM and CAD projects in real-time 3D offers many advantages, but the workflow for creating these interactive, immersive experiences needs streamlining. That’s where Unity Reflect comes in; a new product that creates interactive real-time 3D experiences for any device (mobile/desktop/AR/VR) from Revit in one click. It helps every project stakeholder, from ownership to design and construction teams, make the right design decisions in real-time. During this session, we’ll showcase how Unity Reflect can be used out of the box or customized (developed on top of) to give designers, architects and engineers the ability to seamlessly federate their Revit models for real-time 3D. Learn how to enable real-time decision making, reduce time between revisions and meetings, and ultimately improve design review and construction planning processes.

Interest in the Internet of Things (IoT) continues to grow as governments, companies and individuals begin to realize the potential that a data-driven world has to offer. This talk explores how the construction industry can use the data it collects via tools like BIM and sensors to feed into the wider IoT agenda and the benefits this could bring. We will discuss how we can utilise the data we collect for a variety of purposes including benchmarking and continuous improvement, while also considering how we can combine our data with data sets from other sectors to create greater insights for the industry, client, and end user. Finally, we will look at how we can manage some of the challenges of being a data-driven industry including data management and storage, pain/gain share, ethical considerations, and the need to recruit staff with different skill sets.

In this course, the Evangelist Team will share how Fusion 360 software and Autodesk Generative Design tools in Fusion 360 can be used as part of a design exploration strategy for industrial designers, expediting the process from conceptual development to product development, helping to make decisions on the design strategy and aesthetic directions of a product.

The presentation will open with veteran cycle designer Mike Burrows, who will introduce the design strategy behind his initial frame design for the vehicle. He will describe the proof-of-principle model created to road test rolling resistance, wheel size and tyre selection. From that data, he designed and fabricated a carbon frame through a craft, analogue process, building on his considerable experience but without the use of any digital design aids. The courses were modelled mathematically in respect to the drag induced by the terrain. By the end of 2017 an initial prototype vehicle was ready for track testing and evaluation. This prototype will be used for UK speed and hour records in early 2018. Following Mike's introduction, Glen Thompson of London South Bank University will describe the aerodynamic considerations. Concurrently to the frame design, he was developing the external faring for the vehicle around datum points from Mike?s design. Approximately 30 iterations of form were generated over a period of 2 years, slowed by the requirement to solve models locally. The drag coefficients of early designs were benchmarked against models of the existing world record holder, Varna, and subsequently refined to absolute values with a goal to minimise the size of the transition zone to reduce drag. The second half of the presentation will be made by Barney Townsend of London South Bank University, and will focus on Autodesk's contribution to the project: the use of generative design and cloud computing to develop the next generation HPV design for the world speed record. Autodesk CFD will be used to validate existing results, and employ cloud computing to massively accelerate design improvements on the faring. This second-generation, hopefully world-record-breaking, vehicle will be manufactured in June with help from the Autodesk Advanced Manufacturing facility. At time of writing this abstract, the existing frame has been 3d scanned and imported to Fusion ready for subsequent rebuilding of the model for use with Generative Design. The presentation will conclude with the latest road test results and designs, and future plans for the record attempt at Battle Mountain, Nevada in September 2018. It will also summarise plans for a future spinout of the project as an HPV design project for STEM education in schools.

There was a time not long ago that architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) was one of the lowest-ranked industries for adoption of technology. We won't go so far as to say that AEC has become a high-tech industry—but it is surely on its way. We've seen a massive increase in the available tech across design and construction. We find ourselves dealing with multiple tech providers, constantly changing products, and implementation after implementation with our employees. For the people focused on technology, it is manageable. For field staff, preconstruction teams, and everyone else, it can be a lot to handle and take in. We spend all this time implementing a solution, and a year later a new one comes along that we're expected to learn. Managing this with our teams has been a real challenge, and it isn't going away anytime soon. We hope to communicate to everyone our strategy for managing this onslaught of new tools, our decision-making criteria for what we're moving forward with, and how to keep our teams sharp. Join us to learn more!

If you have any queries regarding the functionality and operation of Vault software, or if you would like to learn more about a specific feature, this session will offer an excellent opportunity to engage with the Vault team. The team comprises both the Engineering team and Product Management, and they will provide candid and insightful responses to any inquiries you may have about Vault.

This roundtable discussion will explore the power of computational design in promoting sustainable development. We'll provide practical knowledge of the tools and techniques used to implement circular design principles, and we'll evaluate the ethical and social implications of using data analytics and modeling to evaluate the environmental impact of design decisions. This topic highlights the importance of resource conservation and regeneration and promotes a more sustainable future. The concept of the circular economy has gained momentum in recent years as a more sustainable and efficient model for resource use. In this context, computational design has emerged as a key enabler of the circular economy by optimizing material usage and reducing waste.

While professional artists use high-fidelity animation techniques—pioneered and refined by Autodesk's animation products MotionBuilder, 3ds Max, and Maya—in games, film, and design production pipelines, we ask the questions: What if the user is not as skilled? What if their requirements for control are not as stringent Could we leverage new input modalities to allow untrained creators to record and edit 3D motion in just a few minutes? We'll discuss the speed and utility afforded by animating in a completely new paradigm: One that allows you to express intent with your body, fingers, face, gaze, and speech while enhancing presence, storytelling, and collaboration in real-time immersive experiences, and engaging your spatial understanding, reasoning, and memory to author 3D animations. Come and hear what our panel of experts from Meta Platforms, Workshop XR, Entertainment and Media Solutions as well as Autodesk Research have to say.

Through this conversation, you'll see the journey of five different architecture, engineering, construction, and operations (AECO) professionals from different countries and backgrounds. They'll talk about their experiences maneuvering through the AEC industry and the unique situations they've faced. Learn how they adapted to the new environments, cultures, and practices while working to provide excellence in their respective fields. This conversation will provide insight into how diversity, equity, and inclusion can positively impact your company, its culture, the way it's perceived in the industry—and its bottom line.

This panel, consisting of thought leaders from the AEC industry will explore the impact of using the digital thread for infrastructure management. We will discuss how this approach can streamline project execution, reduce time and cost waste, and provide a single source of truth for stakeholders. The panel will also cover the cost implications of not adopting a model-driven approach and the benefits of maximizing data throughout the asset lifecycle, from planning to operations. By adopting a model-based approach and maximizing the digital thread, infrastructure stakeholders can prepare for a sustainable, data-driven future that will be the catalyst for the digital twin.

Today's structural engineers struggle to consider the holistic constructability of a structure; including how their steel framing decisions impact connection design complexity, erectability, and material availability. Their lack of influence is exacerbated when structural engineers delegate connection design to the fabricator, since design changes in the preconstruction stage are challenging to implement. The impact of this leads to RFIs and change orders that result in cost overruns, excess carbon, and schedule drift. This session will cover how WSP, a leading engineering firm and innovator in the steel industry, delivers early connected steel models to overcome these challenges. By incorporating connection design early in the project timeline, WSP delivers highly detailed 3D models to ensure greater cost and schedule certainty.

Join us for a talk on how you can easily integrate generative artificial intelligence (AI) into various 3D project workflows using tools such as Revit software or 3ds Max software via the NVIDIA Omniverse platform and OpenUSD interchange. We’ll show you examples of how to automate tedious 3D work and alleviate time-consuming tasks to help accelerate time to production and maximize creative exploration. You’ll learn how to connect generative AI tools and technologies such as ChatGPT or LLM integrations, Instant NeRF, and Omniverse DeepSearch to take over repetitive work, freeing up time to focus on more-meaningful work. You’ll also learn how to use generative AI to improve the quality of your work and create new and innovative products and services. This talk is essential for anyone who wants to stay ahead of the curve in the ever-changing world of technology. Don't miss out on this opportunity to learn how AI can help you do more of what you love.

The most important part of the extendable platform are people who contribute to extending the functionality. Come listen to the stories of the development teams that have successfully built their solutions on top of Autodesk Forma. Learn not only about functionality provided, but also about motivation behind extending the ecosystem and ideas about where the industry is heading next!

Join us for an engaging panel discussion with real-world applications at the intersection of robotics and extended reality (XR) in the AEC industry. Learn how companies like DPR Construction harness these technologies to safeguard the well-being of their craft teams, deliver quality work, and exceed customer expectations. We'll discuss how robots are transforming construction work with precise installation lines, and explore how XR is revolutionizing the way owners experience their projects and data, gaining their buy-in before work begins. Get valuable insights from industry experts as they share the work they're doing today, while shedding light on the future of these transformative technologies. Speakers will be Rayya Karaa, Senior virtual design and construction (VDC) PM at DPR; Tim Gaylord, Corporate Director of Innovation at DPR; Roy Malcom, Senior virtual design and construction (VDC) PM at DPR, Nicolas Fonta, senior director and general manager of XR at Autodesk and Alex Bingham Associate Architect at Cushing Terrell.