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3d drafting???


dlxowhd

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i'm a drafter working for an engineering company.

we do a lot of stuff including building envelopes and a lot of structural stuff.

my company wants to send me to school learn 3d drafting but they have no idea about it and i have no idea about it.

 

which program should i learn?

i've heard programs like vectorworks, solidworks, sketchup (something like that..).

which is the most popular/useful program? (like autocad is the most popular for 2d drafting).

 

i heard autocad can also do 3d but not really as good as other programs.. is this correct?

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which program has more market share?

let's say if i'm not working right now and i want to learn a 3d cad just to get a job.

which will give a better chance of finding a job?

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Revit for sure. The reason is because Revit is a base platform that has 3 different major disciples, (1) Revit Architecture (2) Revit MEP and (3) Revit Structure.

 

Revit is the new "big thing" that is being pushed in the construction industry. But once you learn one, you can learn them all (as far as the interface and "how" it works). The only thing you would need to learn if you were to pick up a different version of Revit would be the trade specific knowledge. :)

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ok and what about 3d drafting in just autocad?

is it pretty much useless?

i guess that's the case and the reason why people use programs like revit?

i've been using autocad for 2 years now and i haven't done any 3d drafting so far so i have no idea.

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AutoCAD is more than capable of doing 3D stuff, but you have to remember these applications are designed for a very specific purpose. Most people would tell you to stay far, FAR away from plain AutoCAD when doing 3D, and for the most part it's true. Stick with a new parametric program such as Revit, and you'll be fine. :)

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I'll second Styk's recommendation to get something task specific and look into Revit. That said, plain AutoCAD will definitely do 3D. It just takes more time and effort. Plain AutoCAD does not come with an extensive library of structural elements (tube, pipe, channel, angle, beams, etc.) among other things.

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Revit Structure might be the best thing for structural buildings and shells. That is the new and upcoming 3D software package that most architects and mechanical, electrical, and plumbing/piping contractors are using now. Here's a link:

 

http://www.autodesk.com/revitstructure

 

not most, some ;p

 

Autocad Architecture is still the top dog in terms of purchases in the Architectural world.

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what's inventor?

is it more mainstream than revit?

i will go with more mainstream one.

 

by engineering do you mean mechanical or structural? That is going to steer you in the direction you should be going. Revit Structure is for structural engineering, while inventor is more geared for mechanical. Revit has been pushed quite a bit the past few years. I myself am learning it, but it is far from the market share holder in terms of the BIM programs, Autocad Architecture, MEP are still top dogs in terms of sales. Revit is the future in terms of Architectural / Structural design, so it might be a good idea if you are doing structural to pick up some working knowledge of the program. Do not think of it as creating something in 3-d, think of it as creating and building the structure in the computer before anyone touches a tool on the site. BIM design is more than just the pretty model it produces, a wall knows its a wall a W12x26 will know that it is a steel beam, and thus more information including loads etc. are easily found. In terms of Architectural a wall knows its a wall, a door knows its a door and will or can have information attached to it regarding the hardware, the materials, glass tempered or not. It is much more than just 3-d

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Yeah it really depend on mechanical or structural background. mechancal = inventor, structural = revit.

 

Revit i played with but wasnt paying attention and didnt learn anything from the course. It has its power from having structural components ready in the program and its a matter of dropping them in.

 

Inventor is a fantastic 3d program in which you could really create anything. Although smooth curved surfaces such as car bodies etc are possible but more difficult to model. Inventor was really really easy to learn though, i pretty much used the help files and tutorials and after 6months id say im quite the expert at it.

 

Added a jpg of a platform i did for work in inventor.

Platform.jpg

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not most, some ;p

 

Autocad Architecture is still the top dog in terms of purchases in the Architectural world.

Eh, maybe, but here in Dallas Texas, Revit has completely taken over most of the big architectural firms that we deal with, and trust me it will continue being pushed and adopted. And I would even debate AutoCAD Architecture being used, ESPECIALLY for 3D which is what the original poster was asking.... :wink:

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Inventor, hands down. I use it for mechanical engineering. I hated revit with a passion!

Inventor is awesome, but you have to remember which trade you're in. I'd hate to use Inventor for Mechanical Ductwork layouts.... hehe :lol:

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Revit for sure. The reason is because Revit is a base platform that has 3 different major disciples, (1) Revit Architecture (2) Revit MEP and (3) Revit Structure.

 

Revit is the new "big thing" that is being pushed in the construction industry. But once you learn one, you can learn them all (as far as the interface and "how" it works). The only thing you would need to learn if you were to pick up a different version of Revit would be the trade specific knowledge. :)

 

styk whats the learning curve like moving from plain cad to revit mep, i've been doing 2d hvac pipe layouts for about 6 months and wondering if its worth learning a 3d package to make myself more employable.

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Everything in Safwah's post above (with image) I've done using plain AutoCAD. Not to say that is the way you should go but I think Inventor would not be your best choice in software.

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styk whats the learning curve like moving from plain cad to revit mep, i've been doing 2d hvac pipe layouts for about 6 months and wondering if its worth learning a 3d package to make myself more employable.

The learning curve is pretty steep at the beginning, only because most people (including myself) make the mistake of opening up Revit and thinking it works like AutoCAD. It is NOTHING like AutoCAD at all in most cases. However, once you get the hang of it, it's extremely easy to draw out ductwork and place units, etc. Getting into the advanced features, like creating Families and doing engineering work is where the true test starts coming in.

 

It's not a miracle program at all, but it is becoming a very good platform to use. I do not use Revit on every job, only when the job calls for the program. You still get AutoCAD and AutoCAD MEP packaged with it, so it's not like you're stuck with only using Revit. It's a suite of three applications rolled into one box. :)

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StruCAD would be another choice to look into if you are to develop manufacturing drawings.

Along with tekla stuctures x-steel program.

If its more of a general architecture design, i would go with revit.

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