Beyond Design: the Construction and BIM blog

Revit to BIM 360 Glue improvements

It's fair to say I get overly excited about small improvements in our products, and this is one I've been waiting for a few months for.

When pushing a model from Revit to Glue historically we have created a lightweight DWF file to push up to BIM 360 Glue, this minimises the bandwidth used rather than uploading the entire Revit model, and allows you to run the faster iterative design review more quickly. In the latest release of the Revit exporter in BIM 360 Glue we now give you the option to push to DWF or the Navisworks NWC file format.

You may be wondering why you may want to use NWC to push to Glue instead of DWF as you always have. The main areas of improvement are: -

• Viewing of materials has improved, any materials that come from the standard materials library will be available to view on any machine which already has the library installed, e.g. current versions of Revit, AutoCAD or Navisworks. Note: This isn't currently available through the iPad.

• Improved colour support, this is important for your MEP especially to help easily define between HVAC and sprinklers for example.
  
  
• Improved object names and model tree hierarchy, This will allow you to identify similar elements or look at items by Level or floor as you have had in Navisworks for years. Also the naming convention in DWF typically picks up the Element ID of the object, NWC just has this information as a property, reducing the chance of confusion and making it easier to create Sets for BIM 360 Field and when you open the live file in Navisworks.

• Improved Property support, the NWC file will bring through properties in the same way as Navisworks allowing you to access a wider range of properties. You'll also see that you can access different groups of properties within the model using the dropdown. So you can quickly find information about Phasing, or materials of that item.

 

• This also improves the way you can map properties for BIM 360 Field. With improved naming of items and the fuller range of properties available you can right click and Create an Equipment Set from any item or Property, which can then be used in BIM 360 Field to collect information against that item.

Of course you can still use DWF for existing projects or for specific requirements but we think you'll like the improvements available by using NWC with BIM 360 Glue.

Let us know what you think in the comments below.

What else is new in Autodesk Navisworks 2014?

We really have been busy this last year. As well as the headline new features in Navisworks 2014, there's plenty more 'under the bonnet' to speed up your workflows and make you more productive.

• Sectioning improvements, the Fit Selection tool allows you to select items that the section plane or box will fit to
• Clash Detective (Autodesk Navisworks Manage only)
  • Preserve Clash Highlighting when exporting Viewpoint reports allows you to save Viewpoints with the same view you see in the results tab including redlining. These Viewpoints can also be seen in Simulate and Freedom
  • Color highlighting of the clashing elements which can be customized
  • Comment column in the results to shows if a Clash has a comments and how active the clash is
  • Clash Filters allow you to filter down to clashes only involving selected items
  • Clash Report Filter allows you to only report on those filtered items
  • Save explicit views related to a clash result
• Timeliner
  • Export Selection Sets of the items attached to each task
  • Support for Primavera P6 v8.2 Web Services
  • Support for Microsoft Project 2013
• File formats
  • AutoCAD 2014    
  • AutoCAD Architecture 2014
  • AutoCAD MEP 2014
  • Autodesk Plant 3D 2014
  • Autodesk Inventor 2014
  • AutoCAD Civil 3D 2014
  • Revit 2014
  • Autodesk 3ds Max 2014
  • Improved IFC 2x3 support
  • Faro SDK 5.1
  • Exporters for Graphisoft ArchiCAD 14, 15 and 16

There's also some new features in design application Revit that will improve interoperability between the two packages.

• Construction Parts can now be generated from Wall Foundations, Slab Edges, Fascias, and Gutters, making Timeliner Simulations even more accurate. This is on top of Walls, Floors, Roofs, Ceilings, Structural slab foundations, Structural Framing, Columns, Structural Columns which are already supported, see the link for more information about Creating Construction Parts in Revit.
• Revit Switchback improvements, where a new 'Navisworks Switchback' view is created in Revit, you can modify the Visual Style and Detail Level and Shadows of this view and switchback will use these settings
• Displaced views (like your own exploded view) can be exported to Navisworks, using these in combination with Switchback will make the navigation of complex models even easier. I've had some fun with this already, blowing the roof off our Sheffield office (see below)
• Materials from the Revit material library are also brought through, also shown in the image below

Anyway, you'll be able to get hold of this in the next couple of weeks, let us know on Twitter and Facebook which features you're most looking forward to.

Service Pack 1 now available for Autodesk Navisworks 2013

UPDATE: Service Pack 2 is now available from our website which contains all the fixes below and more.

A service pack is now available for Autodesk Navisworks 2013 products. You can download and install the Autodesk Navisworks 2013 Service Pack 1 from our website

If you have experienced any of the following issues then we recommend you upgrade to the Service Pack 1

• File refresh not working after Options changed
• Timeliner 'Find Unattached Items' not working
• Inconsistencies in Clash grouping
• Google Earth model exported from Navisworks placed below surface
• Construction Parts in Revit Linked Files not working
• Save back to earlier Navisworks versions from Batch Utility
• Faro files loaded in at the wrong orientation
• Re-running clash tests with Isolation > Hide Other selected in Results tab, results are classed as resolved
• Merging Clash data inconsistencies
• Changing the selections in the Select tab in Clash causes Tolerance to revert to previous value
• Dates linked to from DataTools are displayed as previous days date in Properties window
• Sort button is disabled when there are items in Sets window.
• 'Cut, paste, copy' context menu not appearing when right clicking on Sets name.
• Selecting multiple Search Sets is not updating the Current Search
• Properties for piping and pipe supports from CADWorx 2013 not appearing
• Navisworks closing unexpectedly when: -
  • when linking to Microsoft Project file
  • when selecting a property in Freedom
  • in certain graphics card drivers
  • after refreshing during Autosaving
  • in Search and Selection Sets dialog
  • when machine locked or a screensaver is running
  • using the Simulate tab in Timeliner

Please select the relevant 32 or 64 bit version for Manage, Simulate or Freedom. This can be installed on each individual machine which already has Navisworks 2013 installed, included in the installation, or included in a deployment, the readme contains more instructions.

Should you have any issues installing the service pack, please use the Installation and Licensing forums which are monitored by Autodesk experts.

Revit MEP pipes, accessories and fittings appearing as lines in Navisworks

We've had a couple of reports of pipe fittings, pipe accessories and in some cases pipes from Revit MEP 2013 just appearing as lines in Navisworks as shown below.

If you are seeing this behavior, there is a straightforward workaround.

1. In the 3D view in Revit change the Level Of Detail from Medium to Fine

   

2. Export an NWC file from Revit 2013, if you don't have the Navisworks exporters for Revit check this blog.

These pipe fittings should now appear correctly when opened in Navisworks.

A workaround for importing Revit files suggested by Travis Beecher in the comments is to edit settings for the visual graphics in the family itself to show up in medium and fine then when the Revit file is loaded into Navisworks you will see all your fittings. 

Navisworks Help now also available online

There's a lot of information out there on the internet and sometimes it can be difficult to know where to find the answers you're looking for. With this in mind we recently published our product help online, meaning that you can quickly find all the answers that you're looking for.

You can access the product help using the following links:

Navisworks Manage

Navisworks Simulate

Navisworks Freedom

This online help contains comprehensive information on how to use all aspects of Navisworks, and gives you an understanding of both the features that you use regularly, and those that you may be less aware of.

You can use the Table of Contents to navigate your way through the topics, and find information about the features that you're interested in. Alternatively you can use the help books as tutorials, and work your way through them all to learn about the full functionality of Navisworks – why not teach yourself to be a super-user!

You can also use the Index and the Search tabs to find specific information that you're looking for.

The content is structured in a logical manner that fits in with your workflows. Overviews of concepts are detailed under the Concept tab. Click the Procedure tab and you'll be taken to a list of related procedures. The Quick Reference tab gives you information on items in a specific window, such as buttons, icons or context (right-click) menus.

Using the buttons in the top right of the online help as displayed in this image, you can show the topic you are currently viewing in the contents, save the topic to your favorites which can be invaluable if you use topics regularly, go back to the home tab, or email a link to a colleague.

Let us know what you think about the new online help by adding a comment below.

Auditing a Navisworks model for very distant items

I'd like you all to try something, open a large Navisworks project you are working on, if you press 'Page Up' to zoom out to the entire model, and you can no longer see the model or it looks tiny then you should audit it for very distant items.

This is something we recommend you do as a simple check whenever creating an NWD, large or small, but there are symptoms of models which desperately need this, I've listed a few below: -

• When you render your model through Presenter, only the background shows, or you seem to get holes or triangles missing from a render
• When you navigate the model it looks like you have a section plane in front of you, as described here
• Jerky performance when navigating
• Model disappears when rotating around the model
• When you zoom out the model disappears
• Two faces seem to occupy the same space giving a jagged looking surface

When focused in on the model select an item (not the whole model) and save this as a Selection Set. You will use this in a minute to identify the location of the model in the view, or return to the model at any time.

Press Page Up to Zoom out to the extents of the model. If the model is not zoomed out then the distant objects may be behind the model, rotate the model 90° and press Page Up again to Zoom back out.

Go to the Item Tools toolbar

Select the Move tool, a gizmo should now appear where the model is in the viewpoint.

Use the Selection Box tool to select the areas away from the gizmo and the model, in the image below I made four selection boxes, in the third selection box I found a single item, with the move tool still selected the gizmo shows where this item is. When items are selected, either follow the steps below for each item, or add them to a new selection set(s) for further investigation.

Use Page Down to Zoom in to the selected items.

There is a quicker route to do this by using the selection box to select the main model then inverting the selection, however this may miss multiple instances of the same item and will not give you as much control when looking for the distant items.

Once you have identified any very distant items there are several possible routes to improve the model quality.

1. The easiest method is simply to Hide those items, once they are hidden then the bounding box of the model will be vastly reduced, improving the symptoms listed above, the items however will still be in the model.
2. If this is a whole CAD file in a distant location you may need to apply a transform to place it correctly in the model or change the origin or coordinates in the CAD file so it comes into the correct location.
3. Go back to the native CAD model, use the properties to identify the object
   1. If it is distant from the model or at the origin coordinates in the CAD package then it should be placed correctly or deleted dependent on your model and practices. Save the model and refresh the Navisworks scene.
   2. If it is correctly placed in the model then you need to look more closely into why this part of the model has been translated incorrectly, check the options for reading the file in or look at alternate routes to bring the model into Navisworks. If you cannot find an obvious problem, log a support case with the model data and details of the very distant item (either on the Navisworks Forums or through the Subscription Center), we may also be able to use this to improve Navisworks file handling.
4. Check if the object has any transformation overrides placing it in the wrong place with Right Click > Reset Item > Reset Transforms.

Please let us know if this helps you out by leaving a comment below.

Installation of Autodesk 2013 products, things to remember

I've been getting round to installing the Autodesk 2013 products on my main machine and I wanted to put up a quick post to remind you of a few things to check before going ahead with installation and reduce the likelihood of problems further down the line.

1. Get Administrator Permissions. If you don't have them then speak to your Systems Administrator.
2. Check the System Requirements, can your machine cope with the new software, do you need upgrades, do you need to clear some space. Suites provide lots of useful tools but will need quite a bit of memory. Look at Autodesk System Requirements for more information.
3. If you have beta versions of the software on your machine, UNINSTALL THEM. It's amazing how often problems revert back to this. Beta versions are never intended to be used on production machines; we'd hope that you completely clean your machine first to avoid unintended problems.
4. If you have an intermittent, slow or problematic network connection, don't install from a network location, install from a local drive.
5. Switch off anti-virus whilst installing. This might seem like an odd step but many antivirus packages are constantly monitoring changes to the machine, these can prevent registry keys being registered or files being placed in the correct directory.
6. Make sure your Operating System is up to date, any updates have been applied and the machine restarted.
7. Last but not least, read the documentation. We hope the installation process is easy and intuitive for you, but it's always worth checking the documentation to familiarize yourself with the process and the readme files for issues that may affect you, this is available in the installer and on the relevant product support site.

For more help when installing your software including video guides and lots more detail about deployments and licensing go to the Installation and Licensing support site and the Installation and Licensing forums.

Navisworks Switchback and Navisworks exporters not available in Revit

This can be a frustrating problem that tends to happen when Revit has been installed after Navisworks, it leaves you without the Navisworks exporters or ability to use Navisworks Switchback with Revit.

This process shows you what to do with Navisworks 2013, the process is the same in earlier releases and with the standalone NWC exporters.

Firstly make sure the Navisworks Exporters are installed in Add Remove Programs, ensure these are the correct 32 or 64 bit exporters for your machine, if they are not there then you will need to install them.

Double click "Autodesk Navisworks 2013 32 or 64 bit Exporter Plug-ins", not the Language Packs.

Then select Add or Remove Features

Ensure Revit 2013 is checked, if it is not then check it but you may need to browse to the Revit folder.

Follow the Update process agreeing to any further dialogues.

Restart Revit, if exporters not available then restart machine.

You should now find the exporters available in the Add-Ins menu.

And in Revit 2013 you will also find the exporters under the Export menu.

If you still have problems please use the Navisworks forums to request more help.

Autodesk Navisworks 2013 products released

I've been working with Navisworks products for 7 years, Paul even longer, and I'll be honest, this is the most excited I've been for a product release in that time. I think the features we've added to this year's Autodesk Navisworks 2013 release are the biggest leap forward we have had in all that time.

Here's a quick overview of the main highlights and we'll be covering all of these in more depth in the coming days and weeks with more blogs, tips, videos and more!

• Improved Revit^® Interoperability
  • Native RVT file support
  • Hierarchy representation
  • Category, family, type, instance
  • Improved level association
  • Subparts named by material
• Grids & Levels Support
  • Display of Revit grids & levels in scene view
  • Hover-over intersection for grid reference
  • Head-up-display (HUD) position readout
• 4D / Scheduling Improvements
  • Drag-and-drop sets/selections/objects to tasks
  • Auto-add tasks from sets, respecting folder hierarchy
  • Export task hierarchy to Microsoft^® Project XML
  • Editable task hierarchy
  • Improved user interface
• 5D / Cost Simulation
  • Associate costs with schedule tasks
• Clash Detection Enhancements
  • Clash result locations by level and grid reference
  • Sort results by grid reference, level, proximity, etc.
  • Quick filter results by status, level, assigned to, etc.
  • Undo support
  • Improved user interface
  • Comprehensive API
• Improved Selection Tools
  • New Selection Inspector Tool
  • Improvements to Sets window
  • Support for drag-and-drop
• Additional File Format Support
  • Siemens NX
  • Dassault Systèmes SolidWorks
  • Dassault Systèmes CATIA^®
  • Microsoft Project 2010
  • Primavera^® P6 v8
  • Graphisoft^® ArchiCAD 14 & 15
  • Faro 4.8
• Vault Integration Enhancements
  • Open & append all supported file formats via the vault
  • Vault browser docking window in Navisworks
  • Advanced search tools
• Navisworks Freedom Enhancements
  • Sectioning support
  • Embedded Database property support

Autodesk Navisworks 2013 will be available very shortly from http://www.autodesk.com/navisworks

Tell us which features you'd like to know more about using the comments below, and we'll try to prioritize these first.

Cleaning up Revit files for Export to Navisworks

If you are having difficulties exporting large Revit files to NWC, or just want to clean up your files prior to export then this article gives some tips about how.

1. Create a new View in Revit specifically for Navisworks, then in the Visibility Overrides of the view switch off things you won't need such as Lines, or specific details that won't be needed for your TimeLiner Simulation or Clash Detection.
   
   

   Once you have created your View, you can save this as a template for future use.
   
   
   Then when exporting, change Export to 'Current View' in the settings.
   
   

2. Now look at your Navisworks Export Settings; is there anything you don't need - rooms, URL's, or even linked files?
3. If you do have linked files, do you need them all? Just keep the ones you need. If you are having problems when exporting files with many links, do they export correctly individually?
4. You can use the 'Purge Unused' button on the Manage tab of Revit to delete unused families or unused family types from the model. You will be able to select which items are Purged before proceeding.
   
   

   You may want to open each individual linked file and purge it until there is nothing left to purge; this may take two or three passes. After all individual linked models have been purged, purge the main model and try again to export.

Other things to check if you still have problems exporting

1. Does Revit needs a restart? If you are working in the application all day and then try to export at the end of the day, you have been potentially caching your project all day. Save the project, restart Revit, reopen the file and try to export. If you still have problems and the machine has been left on for days or weeks then a restart of the machine may also be a good idea.
2. As with any memory hungry operation, try to minimize the number of other programs competing for resources.

We know there other methods you use to pare down your files - please get in touch if you feel there's any that you can't live without that we should include in this article.