Architectural Services: What kids of architectural solutions are provided through them?

With the emergence of CAD and Building Information Modeling in Architecture Engineering and Construction industry, the demand for architectural services is growing with a steady speed. Toady building owners have huge expectations from architects when it comes to the esthetic aspect of the design. Today be it the construction of commercial or residential buildings, design and construction of architecture remains at the heart of building construction. And that’s the reason demands for architectural CAD services and architectural BIM services are growing with an exponential rate.

Hence general contractors make it very sure that they hire architectural services from a highly reliable and distinguished architectural and engineering outsourcing company which can deliver them with extremely precise or error-free architectural CAD drafting services and BIM modeling services. All kinds of technical drawings are provided by outsourcing company to the clients with the help of the specifications or basic sketches which are given to them by contractors or architects.  Information rich site plans, floor plans, elevations and sections etc are delivered to the clients by the service providing company, which are developed by the CAD drafters on AutoCAD.  Apart from that high end 3D architectural design is developed by modelers with the help of Revit Architecture which is delivered to clients in the shape of 3D model. The 3D architectural model developed in the digital environment of Revit Architecture, provides all the intricate details about architectural elements which prove to be highly significant for architects.

With the assistance of detailed architectural model, design and construction professionals can perform clash detection by comparing its elements with structural and MEP elements in Navisworks Manage. Countless element collisions or overlapping conditions are identified by design and construction professionals when they perform clash detection in 3D project review software Navisworks Manage.

Apart from that 3D architectural model can be used in Architecture Engineering and Construction industry for performing 3D rendering services. When 3D rendering services are executed by AEC professionals they can generate high quality photorealistic images and models for representing interior and exterior part of the building. 

Impeccable 3D parametric models can be developed from point clouds

Over the last decade  point cloud modeling got enormous attention from design and construction professionals as it assists architects, multidiscipline engineers and BIM modelers to create outstanding 3D parametric models for renovation and retrofit etc. Point cloud modeling is adopted by design and construction professionals because 3D laser scanned data (point cloud data) provides extensive existing building information to them which makes it easy for them to develop 3D parametric Building Information Models.  Building Information Models are created by Architecture, Engineering and Construction industry professionals in 3D building design software Revit, which is launched by Autodesk the original developer of AutoCAD.

If architects and engineers do not have the accessibility of construction documents and drawings of the existing building which currently requires renovation then they are bound to generate drawings and models for it for the proper accomplishment of the project. And measuring an existing building is truly an uphill task, which demands high level of physical efforts if manual surveying is carried out by architects and engineers, and on top of that its accurate measurement is seriously doubtable. Architects and engineers cannot claim to provide accurate dimensions to BIM modelers as they have to face high level of complications during manual survey process.

Hence 3D laser scanning process is believed to be highly feasible when it comes to the measurement of dimensions and spatial relations between elements of an existing building. If highly potential 3D laser scanners are available to professionals performing the survey process, they can correctly measure the dimensions and geometry of the as-built building. Laser beams which reach out to every possible section of the building bring accurate building information with them and that information is captured into point clouds. When these point clouds are provide to architects, engineers and modelers they can execute point cloud modeling services from them and can develop immaculate 3D parametric BIM models for performing renovation. Parametric models can be developed for architecture, structure and MEP since point clouds contain adequate information about all these building disciplines which is necessary for developing 3D models.c

Role of Revit models in increasing the productivity of AEC professionals

Revit models which are created for various disciplines are very important for architects, engineers, contractors and fabricators when it comes to the effective construction of buildings. The 3D models which are created by highly expert teams are largely utilized by key building professionals such as architects, engineers and fabricators etc for showing and accomplishing their outputs.

Generally when a building project is carried out, architects play highly important roles as they have to start with the development of architectural design based on which designs for other building trades are developed. Architects are liable for releasing the initial sketches for the building which are utilized by the designers or engineers of other building trades for developing their own design. For example the initial sketches produced by architects are generally sent for the reference of structural engineers and MEP engineers so that they can have some idea about the architectural design of the building and which can help them in developing their own design.

So based on the preliminary sketches developed by architects, structural engineers and mechanical, electrical and plumbing engineers, Building Information Models are developed by design and construction professionals in Revit. The entire design development phase is mostly dominated by Revit Architecture, Revit Structure and Revit MEP apart from Navisworks and 3ds Max etc. Highly error-free and immaculate building design is developed by architects, engineers and modelers in Revit, since the software effectively helps in facilitating cooperation between modelers. All the crucial design information can be smoothly passed among the modelers during the design development process in Revit, which reinforces the development of immaculate models.

On top of that, clash detection services can also be performed for the sake of identifying design errors. The kind of design errors which cannot be directly identified by design and construction professionals are easily pointed out during clash detection by Clash Detective tool of Navisworks Manage. Design errors pointed out by Clash Detective tool, are properly sorted out by modelers after implementing changes in the design. Since any kind of alterations can be effectively done in BIM models, implementation of changes for resolving clashes becomes too easy for AEC professionals. Last but not least Revit models are highly important for developing high quality buildings. 

Benefits of architectural rendering for building stakeholders

In construction industry architectural rendering services are gaining popularity drastically since they have equal benefits for all the building stakeholders.  Though architectural renderings are predominantly utilized by AEC professionals for marketing and sales activities which generally carried out after post design phase, but they are also utilized for understanding the design of the building.  Building stakeholders of residential projects optimize a variety of architectural visualization tools such as interior and exterior renderings, and architectural animation videos for fulfilling a variety of construction requirements. For example, builders can utilize rendered bird-eye views of the building to analyze how it looks once it is finally constructed in the real world. On the other hand they can optimize detailed rendered images of building interiors as well as exteriors to communicate its design to building owners.

Similarly high end photorealistic architectural images wherein colors, textures, lighting effects, shadow effects and furniture etc. is effectively applied in controlled form by rendering artists are utilized in marketing presentations. Similarly high end architectural walkthrough videos and flythrough videos can be provided to potential customers for having an understanding of the project.

That means potential customers are largely benefitted by 3D architectural renderings since they obtain an in-depth perspective about the building in question which can never be obtained through plain 2D drawings and 2D floor plans. On the other hand when it comes to visualizing and analyzing esthetics of a building it can be effectively done by utilizing architectural walkthroughs and flythrough videos by clients as well as AEC professionals. In this case photorealistic images are also helpful which provide detailed description of a particular part of the building. If in case owners find that the building design doesn’t look that attractive, efforts can be made to alter it since the actual construction hasn’t kicked of yet.

Last but not least, architectural renderings and architectural animation videos are the best tools for contractors and homebuilders to communicate, promote and market or advertise design ideas to potential buyers who can take quick decisions on buying the property.  

What is the importance of as-built drawings and as-built models?

When it comes to design build projects, one of the most paramount thing is the development of as-built drawings and models which can be used for multiple purposes in future. In other words, today it has become important and necessary for contractors to supply effective as-built drawings and models to owners which can assist them in enriching their knowledge about the whole process. Both as-built CAD drawing Services and models contain detailed information on construction process and the kind of modifications that have been made in the design from time to time.

Generally what happens, when the construction contract is signed between contractors and building owners it’s clarified that in the end when the final product will be delivered to owners it will be accompanied with as built drawings and models.

So wherever a modification is done in the design it is effectively included in as-built drawings that means not even single information is left unrecorded by AEC professionals concerning the project in question. These crucial construction assets which are provided by contractors to owners are utilized by facility managers and AEC professionals during building’s maintenance.

When it comes to renovation and refurbishment of a building, these as-built drawings and models become the biggest source of information to AEC firms. Information that is highly important for renovation of the building can be effectively extracted by architects, engineers and contractors from these final construction assets. That means architects and engineers can get the information on materials, design and resources that were utilized during building’s construction which can help them in understanding the technicalities of renovation process effectively. Information related to dimensions, sizing, and fabrication etc. is clearly included in as-built drawings hence maintenance and renovation of a building can be effectively carried out by AEC professionals with their assistance.

Hence for cost effective renovation, refurbishment and redevelopment of a building both as-built drawings and models are necessary. Apart from that these critical as-built construction assets can be utilized for claiming insurance if the building disintegrates or collapses because of natural calamities. 

Point cloud modeling is an important aspect of BIM services

A few decades back design and construction professionals had no choice but to execute all types of construction projects only with the assistance of their own skills and efforts, as the use of technology was absolutely impractical at that time. Forget about having the accessibility of high end software at that point of time, the truth is that such things were out of their understanding and imagination. But as change is constant, construction scenarios started to change fast,  as in the case of other industries, AEC industry also started to adopt technology which resulted into the acceptance of ‘Computer aided design technology’ and Building Information Modeling.

Once CAD and BIM is optimized by design and construction professionals a phenomenon called seamless construction started to become prevalent in Architecture, Engineering and Construction industry. Building Information Modeling broke all the barriers when it comes to developing flawless design as high end building design software Revit became a part of design development process. In its earlier stages uses of BIM were only applicable on fresh building projects but slowly and gradually its area of application widened and it started to be utilized in renovation and retrofit projects. This is how scan to BIM process came into picture, wherein point cloud modeling remains at the heart of this process.

That means BIM modelers started to utilize point cloud data which is achieved after scanning the as-built building by using laser scanners for developing 3D models. Now these 3D models can be gradually updated and elevated by adding new dimensions to them such as 4D, 5D and 6D etc which can provide huge information about renovation projects.  

Point cloud modeling is a highly successful method of developing accurate BIM models for renovation and refurbishment projects etc. as scanned data comprises of correct information. The output of point cloud modeling results into saving huge money and time, as AEC professionals can extract information on construction, design and materials etc from BIM models. In short point cloud modeling makes the entire renovation process effective and efficient and largely saves project cost. 

Important BIM services that are executed for developing MEP systems of a building

When it comes to design and development of MEP (Mechanical, Electrical and Plumbing) systems of a building, a variety of BIM services are performed for maintaining their high accuracy. With the close cooperation of MEP engineers, modeling services are executed for developing effective design for multiple systems such as HVAC, power distribution and plumbing system of the building.

Digital 3D models are created for each system and they thoroughly represent their design. Inclusive information is required by modelers for executing MEP modeling services, which is acquired from CAD drawings, which are generated at the time of drafting process and specifications sent by architect and engineers. Be it mechanical, electrical or plumbing engineer they all use Revit MEP for developing BIM models for their respective systems. As per my knowledge, it is the best software for developing MEP design since it facilitates effective coordination between modelers who are ultimately answerable for generating building information models. That means data related to design and development of MEP systems can be effectively circulated among team members which helps in elevating design quality.

Apart from this clash detection services are performed for identifying design errors between different MEP systems. For discovering design clashes between elements of HVAC, electrical and plumbing systems design and construction professionals have to compare them for clashes in Navisworks Manage. Several clashes are identified by AEC professionals, which can be distinguished as hard clashes and soft clashes. When one MEP element overlaps another MEP element the clash can be identified as hard clash on the other hand when any two elements belonging to different systems come increasingly close to each other it is regarded as soft clash. Modelers do not go ahead with the process until and unless they sort out all the clashes.

After this MEP coordination services are executed by design and construction professionals wherein models belonging to mechanical, electrical and plumbing systems are coordinated into single MEP model in Revit. When MEP systems are developed after referring this model engineering hardly come across any problem. 

For streamlining construction process get all the information from BIM models

Building Information Modeling (BIM) is the paramount reason behind the steady growth of Architecture, Engineering and Construction Industry in the last few decades. Before BIM, entire industry was undergoing a tough time in terms of project execution as no concrete tools were available to design and construction professionals which could help them in planning, design and construction.

But suddenly BIM came into picture and started to provide support in all the crucial phases of construction. The main function of BIM’s application in construction is to develop high end design for multiple building disciplines such as architecture, structure and MEP which is most important for constructing a building. Can you ever imagine developing a building without having an effective design? I am sure no one can do that, not even the best architect in the whole world. Hence it is important that AEC professionals such are architects and engineers have effective building design with them before commencing final construction. And this requirement or necessity is effectively accomplished by Building Information Modeling, which successfully focuses on the developing the design for each trade. Revit which is used in modeling has its different flavors for each discipline such as Revit Architecture, Revit Structure and Revit MEP. Since, for every building discipline there is an individual software product, design and construction professionals can develop highly functional models for them. BIM models are developed by modelers after collecting inputs from various sources such as architects, engineers and contractors etc. for acquiring inclusive information. For each discipline 3D, 4D, 5D and 6D models can be developed and a variety of information can be obtained by AEC professionals from them. Information accommodated in these BIM models is effectively discussed by key building professionals during preconstruction for finding out project complications.

BIM models produce information such as material take offs, construction schedules and bill of materials etc apart from giving details on building design. With this all-inclusive information AEC professionals can effectively anticipate all the major challenges of the project. And all these challenges can be successfully evaluated and addressed by them before final construction.  

Use BIM for developing high performing architectural, structural and MEP design!

The overall building design comprises of the design of its main trades which include architecture, structure and MPE. That means for achieving effective building design it is crucial that flawless design is created for different building disciplines. And Building Information Modeling becomes indispensable for design and construction professionals in this case which empowers them in creating error free 3D modeling Services for multiple trades.

Autodesk has develop software products specially for executing BIM services such as Revit, Navisworks and 3ds Max, all of which are utilized during preconstruction for elevating the quality of building design. Revit is optimized for executing architectural, structural and MEP modeling services for a building project wherein highly factual 3D models are created by BIM modelers.

Today AEC professionals have the accessibility of different Revit flavors which include Revit Architecture, Revit Structure and Revit MEP which are used specifically for developing the design of individual building trades. Suppose architectural design is developed by a team with the assistance of Revit architecture its design information can be effectively coordinated to other disciplines. Each Revit discipline incorporates the tools for file linking which allow them to link other Revit models into them. This means modelers working on Revit architecture can successfully link Revit structure and Revit MEP models into architectural model for acquiring comprehensive information. This clears the doubts of architectural design team about structural and MEP design. Architectural design team can take necessary steps for avoiding errors in their design and can ultimately prevent the clashes of its elements along with the elements of other two disciplines.  

Similar steps can be taken by structural and MEP design teams they can also link the models of other two disciplines for obtaining greater clarity on building design. In this way design clashes can be reduced or minimized to a great extent by multidiscipline design teams accountable for developing architectural, structural and MPE design.

For further minimizing design clashes between multiple trades clash detection process is executed by design and construction professionals with the support of Navisworks Manage during design phase. This improves the quality of 3D models wherein errors are completely eliminated from them.