Vectorworks 2011 – A Preview in Boston

Several weeks ago Nemetschek Vectorworks Inc. (formerly Nemetschek North America), contacted me about a private preview of the next version of Vectorworks – version 2011. Of course an offer to see pre-release software is something you never want to refuse. After all we live for this stuff!

The company flew up three of its senior staff to meet me in Boston. And for several hours I was treated to a showcase of new features in the next release.

Summarizing Vectorworks 2011

The most important overall change in Vectorworks 2011 is that the program is now, more than ever, a true 3D modeling and 3D CAD environment. The company emphasizes the phrase “true 3D modeling” environment in its upcoming brochures which you can obtain on their website starting today, but the reality is this is both a true 3D CAD and 3D BIM environment. So why emphasize modeling?

Part of the answer is because Nemetschek wants you to know that there is no longer any reason to model anywhere else. No reason to model in SketchUp, Bonzai or formZ or whatever package you like to model in. Or at least that is part of the emphasis. Of course the company also recently announced a new partnership with Maxon about its integration of the CINEMA 4D rendering engine; because of that partnership there is also the excitement that more Vectorworks users will upgrade to the complete Maxon C4D software package. And inside that package there things you can do with modeling that you cannot do with Vectorworks 2011.

But that is another story. The story here is that Nemetschek Vectorworks has dramatically improved its software for serious schematic and final stage 3D modeling. And they did this by introducing a new and improved planar environment and by improving its existing Push/Pull tool. Up in Boston I spoke to Dr. Biplab Sarkar, CTO of Nemetschek Vectorworks.

Lessons from the MCAD World

AFR: Biplab, you guys have introduced serious changes to the 2D/3D workflow by affecting this new Planar environment where you can access and utilize all 2D and 3D tools regardless of what plane you are working on and whether or not that plane is parallel to the screen plane. Why such dramatic change? (see image 01)

DBS (Dr. Biplab Sarkar): Existing users were asking for tool consolidation where the 2D/3D cursor, 2D/3D reshape tool and other 2D/3D tools could work on any plane. They also wanted to draft on arbitrary planes and accomplish things like 3D hatching and 3D dimensioning. So now all the drafting operations can be achieved without changing any view, we took the active working plane approach–which is a well known workflow in the MCAD world.

AFR: So now you can draft and dimension and use symbols like the section cut symbol in 3D views?

DBS: Yes. And you can apply hatching in 3D views, which was very important to many of our customers.

AFR: Vectorworks uses the world-leading Parasolid modeling kernel. And it looks like you have truly added powerful Push/Pull capability in this release. Does it work on NURBS surfaces too? What does it not work on?

DBS: Yes it works on NURBS object or any planar object. This includes lines, arcs, polys as long as they are on the active working plane. The Push/Pull tool works on planar surfaces of almost all solid objects including, extrudes, sweeps, cones, fillets shells and more.

AFR: The new Face Selection Feedback is part of the new Push/Pull tool improvements. I can see how much easier it is to identify that you have selected the planar surface you want to affect with Push or Pull. Can you customize this color?

DBS: Yes, the face selection highlight follows the tool highlighting settings in the Interactive Appearance Settings dialog.

AFR: Is the program now 100 percent Parasolid-based?

DBS: Yes! All objects are now Parasolid based. Several of the newer features like the 3D wall components and slabs with components are making heavy use of the Parasolid modeling engine.

The new Vectorworks 2011 is not just 100 percent Parasolid-based it incorporates brand new features that take advantage of the other new features. One such new feature is the Extract Planar Objects, which can create instant planar objects from a 3D surface in the Extract Surface mode.

Vectorworks 2011 – A Powerful Citizen in the BIM World

As the afternoon in Boston unfolded Robert Anderson, AIA, VP of Nemetschek Vectorworks, reviewed the new features that would make version 2011 a more powerful player and rival in the competitive BIM (Building Information Modeling) market.

Anderson noted that as far as a BIM player is concerned the company believes Vectorworks 2011 has no equal in the 3D modeling arena. Nemetschek’s Vectorworks is one of only two BIM software programs to utilize the powerful Parasolid modeling engine. Only Bentley uses it besides them. This is the same 3D geometry engine powering most of the leaders in the MCAD and PLM space, including Siemens’ own Unigraphics NX line (also available for Mac) and SolidWorks by SolidWorks Corporation.

In fact, the company is now possibly going to start pushing up against the “what is possible” ceiling limits with the world’s top geometry modeling kernel if they push even harder to find that dreamy balance between “parametric-driven” modeling and “explicit modeling” within the context of what architects really would like. (see Architosh’s 2010 BIM Survey report for a detailed discussion of what architects are really asking for with modeling in a BIM environment.) Dr. Biplab Sarkar said when asked if the kernel was limiting that, “yes, it’s not yet possible with Parasolids.”  The truth about BIM products and ideal modeling for architects in AEC is that all the benefits of parametric BIM (especially history-based) have not yet been merged with all the benefits of explicit modeling tools (with true solids) like legendary modeling applications in AEC such as formZ.

In some ways, what was described and asked for in our BIM report by architects far and wide is still far off in the future. In other ways, the two modeling processes are in competition with each to govern design-modeling processes. For now, Nemetschek Vectorworks believes it is providing the ultimate balance and capability within the BIM market in the area of modeling. I asked Anderson what else, besides its superb modeling, was making Vectorworks 2011 a first class BIM player now.

AFR: Robert is your new Space Object just as feature rich and compliant with any other BIM program out there now? Can you speak specifically about the GSA requirements too?

Robert Anderson (RA): I believe our Space Object to be an industry leader. As far as I am aware, we are the only such object that allows user graphics to define a custom “tag”, and we are at parity or beyond for other feature areas. As for standards? We allow any standard naming style for room and department names, including BOMA, OmniClass, DIN, or user-defined. And we have dedicated fields for all the GSA requirements, including Zone, GSA internal space category and GSA numerical occupant category. GSA features may also be hidden for those users who are not using them.

AFR: You have some powerful new wall components and new offsetting. Can all wall components be offset and have varying heights or just non-structural wall components?

RA: Yes. Each of the wall components can have its own height irrespective of whether or not it is structural (core) or not.

AFR: BIM is partly about “information” and you have new powerful ODBC database connectivity in this release. Can you give me an example of how an architect would use this capability?

RA: Sure. A typical use of this feature could be facilities management (FM). The user could have a database file–for example a FileMaker database file–containing a table called “Office Spaces” with specific information in the table columns, such as name, phone number, area, equipment, etc. The user could also have a Vectorworks file with the floor plan of the building containing Space Objects. The user then wishes to connect the spaces from the Vectorworks file and update the space name and number of the Vectorworks objects using FileMaker to push this data to Vectorworks. The user may also wish to update the area information in the FileMaker file from data in the Vectorworks file. The updates can happen manually or every few minutes. This is all specified by the user.

AFR: Another big new features for architects is the ability to utilize a Section Viewport into a Design Layer. Can you explain why this is useful?

RA: The purpose of the DLSVP (Design Layer Section Viewport) is two fold. Firstly, the user can reference the sections in another document and secondly the user can create sections from the model in the design layer environment and use parts of the DLSVP for further modeling. The DLSVP is also less restricted when compared to Sheet Layer Section Viewports (SLSVP) from view manipulation as it behaves like any other object on a design layer. The section plane elements in a DLSVP are drawn as planar objects. That means objects on the working plane coincident with the section plane can be used for further modeling. (see image 2)

As far as architects and BIM are concerned in Vectorworks 2011 there are many new features that will speed up their workflow. For those doing BIM the new Window and Door interface makes the editing and placement of these objects into your building much faster. Architects will also like the ability to do Batch Printing using multiple Vectorworks files. And the program doesn’t care if they are opened or closed files. This is a key enhancement for a system that uses a “federated file” approach to BIM versus the “single file” approach.

BIM improvements don’t stop there though. There is a new Connect Roof Faces command and dramatic stair tool improvements. IFC support has been improved and updated for interoperability with other BIM tools. And lastly, architects who care about computer-generated renderings will be super pleased to see that the company has incorporated Maxon’s CINEMA 4D engine into Renderworks. Speaking of which, we asked Dr. Biplab Sarkar to further explain that decision.

AFR: Why CINEMA 4D engine now?

DBS: We felt that it gave us superior quality and performance over Lightworks. And it is a part of our Nemetschek Group’s overall technology prowess. (see image 3)

AFR: Does the new Send to CINEMA 4D Command replace the CINEMA 4D – VW plugins?

DBS: Yes, this new command is the preferred way to work with CINEMA 4D now.

AFR: Are the Camera options in Renderworks coming entirely over from CINEMA 4D? Do they match what is possible in C4D?

DBS: Renderworks cameras were introduced in Renderworks 2009 and its settings are not the same as CINEMA 4D cameras but are similar. We don’t export the Renderworks Camera object as a CINEMA 4D object right now, but I can see this as a useful future enhancement. We only export the current view at present.

AFR: Are there any new OpenGL improvements and what of OpenGL 3?

DBS: The most significant change in OpenGL is this version is the support for planar objects. OpenGL rendering now supports the rendering of objects on working planes with their specific attribute settings, including texts and dimensions.

AFR: Can you explain the feature of DXF/DWG Export into Design Layer Viewports? What do you mean by entirely bound into the current drawing? Is this related to the use of a Shuttle File as presented back in Vectorworks 2008?

DBS: In Vectorworks 2010, Design Layer viewports (DLVP) were always exported to DXF/DWG as separate DWG files and were referenced from the master DXF/DWG file. In Vectorworks 2011 users have the option of choosing between creating separate DWG files for each DLVP or automatically including its content into the currently exported document. This helps customers who have trouble with managing many multiple files.

Other Features and Benefits for Vectorworks 2011

Vectorworks 2011 has a plethora of new smaller features that add up. There are new Tile Fills for 2D objects, Saved Settings of the Eyedropper tool, and a great new dividing lines command. CAD managers will also like the new option to replace existing classes during a class import. This will aid office standards enforcement as well as provide useful flexibility in the appearance of files and drawings.

For LandMark there is a powerful new Retaining Wall Site Modifier feature. This will aid the accuracy of cut and fill calculations. There is a new Create Stepped Wall command plus new Grade and Existing Tree tools.

When it comes to terrain modeling Vectorworks 2011 does not use the Parasolid modeling engine. “Most of the operations in terrain modeling are not driven by Parasolid,” said Dr. Biplab Sarkar. “This is mostly because of the trade-off between speed and accuracy.”  Landmark has many more improvements than we are mentioning here so please visit Nemetschek’s website to learn more.

Spotlight also has interesting new features, including new options for seating layouts and better focus point support for lighting instruments. A big new change with the Vectorworks 2011 product line is the elimination of Vectorworks Machine Design. The company said this was the least successful product for them and it is not worth promoting as a separate application. Vectorworks 2011’s base 2D/3D capabilities continue to make it a solid choice for machine design work.

Closing Comments

Nemetschek Vectorworks looks to have produced a very compelling update to its flagship product line. Sending such senior brass up to Boston to meet me to show me this upcoming 2011 release was a sign that the company had something really special to show. I would remiss if I didn’t summarize these milestone improvements in the recent history of the product.

For starters Vectorworks 2011 marks the conclusion of the company’s adoption of the Parasolid geometry modeling kernel. This is no small achievement and places Vectorworks on the leading edge of solid and surface modeling technology in the CAD and BIM space. Now the company is in the enviable position, having fully implemented the kernel, to push its future capabilities as a customer of Siemens PLM Parasolid technology, molding them to the needs of its users.

Secondly, Vectorworks 2011 marks a significant point in its development history with the adoption of the new Planar surfaces workflow which Dr. Biplab Sarkar has so elegantly described. This flexibility with 2D/3D tools in various views or orientations, plus the ability to draft in 3D, is remarkable. In fact, we were touting the ability to draft in 3D and utilize 3D text in our discussions of BoA nearly ten years ago. We saw that as valuable and important then and feel it is just as much today. Other than BoA, I’m not sure what other program out there allows you to place text and symbols in 3D.

Thirdly, the Push/Pull and Face Selection Feedback features that are new in Vectorworks 2011 seriously put pressure on competing modelers which are popularly utilized alongside Vectorworks-centered workflows. This would include SketchUp as much as Bonzai 3D.

Fourthly, for years many observers and CAD analysts and pundits have wondered why the Nemetschek Group did not produce more synergies between its various sister companies and their technology. The relationship between Maxon’s CINEMA 4D and its fleet of BIM programs being a prime example. Vectorworks 2011 actually takes the bold step many have imagined by integrating the CINEMA 4D’s rendering engine directly into Renderworks. This is one of the nicest things they have added to this release.

Those are four major milestones in the development of this release. And to top it all off there are dozens and dozens of new features and improvements sprinkled throughout the product. Vectorworks 2011 is a landmark achievement for the America-based, German-owned software company. To learn more visit them online here.