Author: graitecgroup

Autodesk acquires Advance Steel and Advance Concrete

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GRAITEC Advance Steel, Advance Concrete, AutodeskGraitec SA and Autodesk, Inc. have signed a definitive share purchase agreement allowing Autodesk to acquire Advance Steel and Advance Concrete product lines. This acquisition is expanding Autodesk’s BIM portfolio for structural engineering. The transaction is expected to close during the 4th 2013 quarter.

Until the completion of the transaction and importantly thereafter, GRAITEC will continue to sell Advance Steel and Advance Concrete, as before, as well as all the related services (maintenance, training, hotline) with its subsidiaries and resellers. Moreover, GRAITEC continues its development process, sales and technical support for the entire range of existing products.

See also:

  Advance Steel and Advance Concrete customers letter

  Customer Letter

  Customer FAQs

 GRAITEC press release

 Autodesk Press Release

Download GRAITEC wallpaper for October

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Download GRAITEC wallpaper for October

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GRAITEC announces the release of the new BIM Structural version: GRAITEC Advance 2014

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GRAITEC, European software developer and vendor for modeling and drawing creation for the construction industry, announces the release of the GRAITEC Advance 2014 suite.

GRAITEC Advance 2014

Designed for structural engineers and professionals in the construction industry, GRAITEC Advance Structural BIM solution provides a complete environment for the development, design and production of all drawing and materials for steel, concrete, and wood structures.

GRAITEC Advance is a unique solution provider in the BIM field since it allows users to complete the entire structural process in a consistent environment, from finite elements analysis, to design according with the latest norms (Eurocodes, ACI, AISC…) and automated documentation production required for the fabrication: drawings, bills of materials and NC files.

GRAITEC Advance consists of three main structural software solutions: Advance Design, Advance Steel, Advance Concrete, completed with Advance CAD.
The “BIM GRAITEC” main characteristic feature is related to its capability to perform structural analysis and fabrication documents under the same concept. More than 10000 users, working daily with GRAITEC Advance, are involved in the design process of various structures such as towers, stadiums, civil engineering works, industrial buildings, stairs, etc.

For Francis Guillemard, CEO of the GRAITEC Group: “An accelerated growth of over 30% in the last two years and more than 10000 new users who joined our community means that GRAITEC Advance is the reference of the BIM Structural field. An innovative, technology, that helps engineers and construction professionals, to design and build their projects within time constraints and increasingly stringent quality.“

 

Advance Steel Release 2014

ADVANCE STEEL 2014: TAPERED BEAMS & IMPROVED ERGONOMICS

Advance Steel® is specifically designed for steel professionals who require an easy-to-use 3D, powerful structural steel detailing software for automating drawing production, BOMs and NC files.

Among all new functionalities of version 2014, two major developments stand out: significant enhancement of tapered beams in Advance Steel and the continuous investment in the ergonomics and ease of use refinements of Advance Steel.

ADVANCE STEEL 2014: WELDED TAPERED PLATE BEAMS

ADVANCE STEEL 2014: WELDED TAPERED PLATE BEAMSOn a continuous growing market in the emerging countries that invest more and more in their infrastructure, the use of tapered elements for steel structures increased, especially for portal frames having large spans. However, without dedicated tools to complete large and complex steel projects, the design process can take longer. Advance Steel 2014 provides valuable assistance to all designers with a very comprehensive set of features: a new object, “tapered beam”, which allows the user to define elements having a variable cross section, including the possibility to combine different constraints on each segment (fixed or variable lengths, parallel flanges or not, etc.).

Moreover, the user has the possibility to define tapered elements having a hollowed cross section with many options: continuous web or flanges, automatic welding features, etc.

All automatic connections work together with this new object – tapered beam. Thus, with Advance Steel 2014 users will obtain quickly all required drawings, BOMs and NC files for these steel members.

ADVANCE STEEL 2014: FOCUS ON ERGONOMICS

ADVANCE STEEL 2014: FOCUS ON ERGONOMICS

GRAITEC continues its efforts to improve the ergonomics and ease of use of its software solutions. The Tool Palette has now a variable design: its content can be changed interactively, and a “Favorites” category can contain the frequently used commands. The same principle is used for the management of assemblies and collision checks commands which are still accessible even when the user performs other operations.

More simplification: the fusion of all features (holes, notches, cuts etc.) which can be applied on profiles, plates or concrete elements. Likewise, all functionalities used to define structural elements (portal frames, purlins, bracings, connections etc.) were grouped into a new dedicated page in the Tool Palette.

ADVANCE STEEL 2014: MORE ENHANCEMENTS…

Advance Steel 2014 also provides many other features designed to extend the possibilities for design and improve user efficiency:

  • Improved BIM Interface (IFC, Revit)
  • Improved performance and functionality of integrated CAD platform
  • New automatic connections (Overlapping bolted purlin joint)
  • New special features used in the custom connections
  • Enhancements to the weld preparations
  • Possibility to define the detailing direction
  • New options for the camera presentation
  • Creation of XML DStV files for controlling welding robots, etc.

For Dennis BAK, VP-Engineering at Steelway Building Systems (Canada): “Specializing in the design, detailing and fabrication of Pre-Engineering Buildings, which extensively utilizes many types of welded tapered plate beams, we participated in the discussions and checking of the enhanced features in Advance Steel 2014. We were impressed by the number of useful plate features and true parametric connections achieved and we now believe we have the best 3D CAD software for modeling, detailing and manufacturing of welded tapered plate beams“.

 

Advance Concrete Release 2014

ADVANCE CONCRETE 2014: PERFORMANCE & ENHANCED PROFESSIONAL EXPERTISE

Advance Concrete® is specifically designed for structural engineers and reinforced concrete detailers who require professional and easy-to-use 3D BIM software for automating drawings creation.

With increased performance, Advance Concrete 2014 improves the user efficiency experience, especially when it is used on its integrated CAD platform. It also provides several functional changes in response to user requests.

ADVANCE CONCRETE 2014: IMPROVED PERFORMANCE

ADVANCE CONCRETE 2014: IMPROVED PERFORMANCETwo of the key features of Advance Concrete (Multi File data storage and multi CAD platform) have been at the heart of version 2014. Performance and robustness have been brought in these two areas: the time to create new views and updating of existing views, has been largely optimized. More improvements in performance, which are very significant, are available: faster reinforcement elements renumbering in complex cases faster “3D Copy” feature which allows the users to copy the 3D reinforcement of an element in all corresponding views with its identification, symbols and associated dimension lines. Lastly, required corrections were made in Advance Concrete, with the target to deliver more stability and significantly higher robustness for Advance Concrete 2014.

 

ADVANCE CONCRETE 2014: MORE ENHANCEMENTS

Advance Concrete 2014 has many improvements in response to the feedback and different requests Graitec collected from Advance Concrete users:

  • Improved BIM exchange with Revit: all objects are now imported in Advance Concrete, without limitation in terms of geometry. Steel elements are also imported.
  • Improved modeling capabilities: evolution of the “Adjust” command for circular elements, adding new functionalities to handle the control surfaces (roofs and ramps), etc.
  • Improved functionality for reinforcement: changes in pattern recognition algorithm for the renumbering of reinforcement bars and meshes, new options for submitting bending details for bars and meshes, etc.
  • Improved localization for the Czech market (grades, symbols, labels, representation styles, etc.).

 

Advance Design Release 2014

ADVANCE DESIGN 2014: BIM AND EXTENDED DESIGN

Advance Design® is specifically dedicated to structural engineers who require a professional and easy-to-use BIM solution for structural FEM simulation and optimization according with specific design standards (Concrete, Steel or Wood).

Advance Design 2014 has many new features and improvements, mainly focused in two directions: BIM and the enrichment of design capabilities.

ADVANCE DESIGN 2014: BIM SIMPLIFIED EXCHANGES

ADVANCE DESIGN 2014: BIM SIMPLIFIED EXCHANGESIn a context where all structural designers are increasingly receptive to the BIM concept and its associated gains in terms of productivity and safety, Advance Design 2014 provides a set of new features designed to facilitate the BIM exchange in the design offices structure or between the architects and the design offices. The model which is used for structural simulation by the engineer can be a variation of the geometrical model produced by the architect which, in the end, can be significantly different: the elements are coplanar, intersecting axes, the elements extremities which are to closed are merged, small details of the facade are not modeled, etc.

Advance Design 2014 offers a range of tools that allows the engineer to greatly simplify the processing of geometrical models into analytical models.

The principle: a first audit function identifies non-intersecting axes or nodes which are too close and presents an interactive list of errors. The software then provides automatic adjustment features (magnetic modes, quick projection onto a plane, axis adjustment, etc.) which facilitate the correct geometrical conversion of the models provided from different partners.

After the calculation of the structure, when the elements are optimized, Advance Steel and Advance Concrete can retrieve all changes which took place in Advance Design (synchronization mechanism) and update the assembly plans or fabrications drawings. With Advance Design 2014, the aim is to enable the engineer to save a significant amount of modeling time by reusing the information through BIM expertise, while keeping in control the necessary adjustments to achieve the analytical model.

 

ADVANCE DESIGN 2014: ENRICHMENT OF ENGINEERING EXPERTISE

ADVANCE DESIGN 2014: ENRICHMENT OF ENGINEERING EXPERTISE

Another development for Advance Design 2014,the enhancement and enrichment of the design engines: automatic calculation of the support rigidity based on the properties of the soil layers, considering of real transverse reinforcement for columns (Eurocode), many changes regarding the steel connection design, 2D climatic generator for a quick design study (New !), possibility to post-process results on a pre-defined grid for planar elements allowing designers to achieve full gantry and quick study, able to post-process the results of an independent grid mesh element.

 

ADVANCE DESIGN 2014: MORE ENHANCEMENTS

Advance Design 2014 has many changes and other adjustments:

  • Extensions in the time history analysis option
  • New options for post-processing results
  • New options for reports
  • New options for the element’s display
  • Ability to export just the support reactions and reuse in another calculation

Download GRAITEC wallpaper for September

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Download GRAITEC wallpaper for September

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Advance Design Steel Connections

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One of the most complex and time-consuming phases of the steel structures design is the steel connections calculation. This long and complex process requires precision and efficiency and can become a source of errors with unwanted consequences.
Advance Design Steel Connections (ADSC) is an easy to use and accurate module that offers multiple advantages when it comes to connection design and verification.

Available connection types

The most frequently used connections are available in ADSC. For each connection type, you have a set of advanced options that allow you to modify and customize the corresponding connection. For the calculation of connections and loads combinations, ADSC uses standard methods in accordance with the latest versions of international standards: Eurocode 0 EN1990 – 2003 and Eurocode 3 EN 1993-1-8 – 2005).

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Fast connection design

ADSC provides the option to create connections with all the corresponding components and features with a single operation. Starting from these templates, the user can completely customize the connection.

Advance Design Steel Connections: Fast connection design

Detailed properties definition

Each connection has a complete set of properties that can be easily defined. For a better understanding, each parameter is illustrated by a small picture in the dialog box. The changes made in the properties dialog box are automatically applied. You can view the modifications in real time, in the graphical area.

Advance Design Steel Connections: Detailed properties definition

Advanced visualization options

For an efficient handling of your model, ADSC offers zoom and view commands that are intuitive and easy to access, pan and orbit functions, various rendering modes, including realistic representations, etc.

Advance Design Steel Connections: Advanced visualization options

Complete calculation reports according to Eurocodes 3

You can obtain complete or synthetic calculation reports for each combination as .rtf or .html files. The reports can be customized to suit your preferences. You can select the information to list in the report along with the verification status:

  • The combination from which the highest stress is obtained, for each verified component.
  • The theoretical formula.
  • The formula for failed verifications only.
  • The work ratio for each verification.

Advance Design Steel Connections is part of the Graitec Advance Suite

Advance Design Steel Connections is part of the Graitec Advance SuiteAs part of the GRAITEC Advance Suite, ADSC can be either used as a standalone application or linked with Advance Design.

In standalone mode, ADSC will allow you to easily define the connection (geometry, connected elements, loads, etc.) and design it in a few clicks. Then, you can generate automatically a detailed calculation report and the corresponding drawing.

It is also possible to use this model with Advance Design after a finite element analysis. In this case, Advance Design calculates all the envelopes internal forces for the connection design. Just click in the contextual menu of the connection to export it to ADSC.

Click here to read the full article

Download GRAITEC wallpaper for August

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Download GRAITEC wallpaper for August

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GRAITEC will be exhibiting at BuildTechAsia 2013 in Singapore on July 31-August 2, 2013

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Singapore – July 22nd, 2013. The GRAITEC Advance suite team is pleased to announce that they will be exhibiting at BuildTechAsia, International Building Technology Expo at Singapore EXPO on July 31-August 2, 2013.

GRAITEC announces Reseller Agreement with VR CAM Technologies in Malaysia

The GRAITEC Team will be demonstrating Advance Steel 2013, the powerful and user-friendly 3D structural steel detailing and fabrication software that automatically creates drawings, BOMs and NC files, and that communicates with Autodesk® Revit® among other systems.

GRAITEC will also be offering free Product Presentation on Day 2, Thursday August 1st at 12:00-12:20 in the Yellow Zone.

Come see us at booth #P07, in the IT Pavilion.

Graitec Asia-Pacific

 

BuildTechAsia is a part of:

GRAITEC announces Reseller Agreement with VR CAM Technologies in Malaysia

GRAITEC BIM CONNECT – From Advance Design to REVIT

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Graitec BIM Connect is the latest BIM technology available from Graitec enabling structural models created in GRAITEC BIM software to be exported to Autodesk REVIT applications.

In this example a Reinforced Concrete structure with several steel members, was created in  ADVANCE Design. The structural elements are organized into different groups, each one representing a different level. This model also contains a number of different load cases which are also grouped by their load type.

Notice that all the frames, slabs and walls are concrete while the vertical bracings are defined with steel cross sections.

Using the standard transfer functions available in all Graitec Software, this structural model will be exported using our unique Graitec BIM *.gtcx format; a light-weight file  which can be shared with other systems using our free GRAITEC BIM Connect technology.

With Graitec BIM Connect installed in Autodesk Revit Suite and available under in the Add-Ins Tab you can see that the same file can be quickly transferred to Revit.

After the transfer is complete the structural model is imported preserving all its original geometry. Especially important to notice is that all the sections have been automatically converted to their corresponding Revit families defined in the Autodesk Revit Suite, creating a true Revit model. The loads & load cases have also been fully transferred.

Graitec BIM Connect allows model data to be shared in both directions so an Autodesk REVIT model can also be imported into any GRAITEC Advance Software.

Even more powerful is the unique ability to synchronize these models across different applications – only possible with Graitec BIM Connect.

Last minute deal! 1 Day Essentials CAD Training Course in Southampton on Tuesday 23rd July

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Do you need basic CAD training?CAD Training Course

This course offers users that are new to the CAD environment a fantastic opportunity to understand the fundamental principles of using a 2D CAD system.

Spaces are limited so book now!

July webinars: Discover (or re-discover) Advance Steel 2013

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Advance Steel Release of Version 2013

Did you miss our User days and could not discover the new enhancements in the new Advance Steel 2013 release? Or you would like to review some detailed possibilities by a web presentation done by one of our GRAITEC specialist?

 

 

Webinar 1: Create your own custom connections

Register now! Date: July 18th at 9h (CEST time)
Date: July 18th at 17h (CEST time)

Webinar 2: Complete set of new cold rolled systems

Register now! Date: July 23th at 9h (CEST time)
Date: July 23th at 17h (CEST time)

Webinar 3: Intelligent manual dimensions & welding lines

Register now! Date: August 1st at 9h (CEST time)
Date: August 1st at 17h (CEST time)

Download GRAITEC wallpaper for July

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Download GRAITEC wallpaper for July

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Advance Steel Project: ARS Electronica Center

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Project location: Linz, Austria
Software used Advance Steel
Design Office: Grömer Stahl GmbH
Contracting Authority: Immobilien Linz GmbH & Co. KG
Architecture Office: Treusch Architecture ZT GmbH

Advance Steel Project: ARS Electronica Center

Project description:

The Ars Electronica Center (AEC) is a center for electronic arts, situated in Linz, Austria, at the northern side of the Danube. The new Center, opened in 2009 – the year Linz served as European Capital of Culture, is an enhanced and updated version of the 1996 original. It is also known as the “Museum of the Future” and is one of the most important sights in Linz. The Ars Electronica Center is the architectural expression of what Ars Electronica is all about: a place of inquiry and discovery, experimentation and exploration, a place that has taken the world of tomorrow as its stage, and that assembles and presents influences from many different ways of thinking and of seeing things. The most modern techniques from the technology sector are presented to the museum’s many visitors.

The project with a high degree of complexity was designed using Advance Steel by Architecture Office – Treusch Architecture ZT GmbH, contracted by Immobilien Linz GmbH & Co. KG. The entire structure is covered with a 5000 square meter steel-glass facade, consisting of 200 tons of steel and 1100 square meters of grating. The steel-glass facade is the highlight of the project, because of the LED (liquid emitting diode) technology installed in the space between the two layers of the facade, which allow the building to be illuminated in various colors. Partly matte and partly transparent, the glass panels combine into one continuous glass surface on each side of the building.

The Ars Electronica Center is extraordinary, and not only because of its distinctive architecture. “Innovation” is also always present in the themes of its exhibitions, the structure of its offerings and its communication concept. It emphasizes discovery, experimentation and creativity.

The Ars Electronica Center was nominated at the World Architecture Festival, in 2009, for the cultural building category.

GRAITEC BIM Connect available on Autodesk Exchange for Autodesk Revit

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GRAITEC BIM ConnectGRAITEC, the fastest growing global structural analysis and detailing software vendor, announces the availability of the new GRAITEC BIM Connect 2014 release as well as its availability in the Autodesk Exchange for Autodesk Revit.

With GRAITEC BIM Connect, Autodesk Revit Architecture and Autodesk Revit Structure users quickly connect their Revit models to the GRAITEC Advance suite and then optimize the design of their structures in accordance with North American and Eurocode standards and produce effective and error-free general arrangement drawings, fabrication drawings, BOMs, NC files for both steel and concrete structures.

GRAITEC BIM Connect available on Autodesk Exchange for Autodesk Revit

  From Revit Structure to Advance Design for structural analysis

Essentially based on customer experience feedback, the new GRAITEC BIM Connect 2014 release focuses on details and performance. The new release provides full bidirectional transfer to GRAITEC Advance of any kind of building, regardless of the geometry complexity, starting from the simplest geometries to the most complex ones. This is achieved even if the structure contains custom profile shapes or random solid bodies, with no shape limitation. From common element sections to curved walls with various openings, curved foundations, any hole shape in structural members, stairs, curved ramps and roofs or sloped slabs, all these are perfectly transferred and allow a smooth data transfer between Revit and GRAITEC Advance, with an immediate effect on the time spent on the projects.

GRAITEC BIM Connect available on Autodesk Exchange for Autodesk Revit

From Revit Structure to Advance Steel for Steel detailing

More than that, the entire library of the Revit families was mapped to their correspondent profiles in the Advance Steel and Concrete library, leading to an accurate profile exchange.

GRAITEC BIM Connect was also reviewed by Autodesk and is now available for free in the Autodesk Exchange for Autodesk Revit for all Revit users.
The release is also available on www.graitec.com/revit.

For Manuel Liedot, Chief Product Officer at Graitec: “The partnership with Autodesk is key in the Graitec strategy to deliver BIM to structural engineers and detailers. Construction professionals now have powerful tools for going from structural engineering with Revit to structural analyses, design and detailing with Advance Design, Advance Steel and Advance Concrete.“

GRAITEC BIM Connect available on Autodesk Exchange for Autodesk Revit

From Revit Structure to Advance Concrete for concrete detailing

GRAITEC announces Reseller Agreement with VR CAM Technologies in Malaysia

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GRAITEC announces Reseller Agreement with VR CAM Technologies in MalaysiaGRAITEC, a leading worldwide software developer for CAD and structural analysis solutions has signed a new business partnership withVR CAM Technologies Sdn Bhd, a company located in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The cooperation agreement signed between the two companies entitles VR CAM Technologies to promote, sell and support GRAITEC’s 3D BIM Steel Detailing Software, Advance Steel, in Malaysia.

Changing demographics such as an annual population growth of about two percent, migration and socio-economic growth are resulting in the building construction market expansion, as these changing demographics increase demand for new buildings and refurbishment of existing ones. In Malaysia, construction of non-residential and residential buildings contributed between 40 to 55 percent of the total construction market between 2006 and 2009. The market revenues for building construction reached approximately $7.21 billion in 2008 and $6.67 billion in 2009, and it will potentially hit the $9.00 billion mark by 2015. (Source: Asia Pacific Environmental & Building Technologies Practice, Frost & Sullivan).

VR CAM Technologies Sdn Bhd is a solution provider for the Civil and Structural engineering disciplines, with focus on structural analysis and design for steel concrete and post-tensioned structures. Since 1996 VR CAM Technologies has grown from strength to strength and is now a formidable organization where the key focus in meeting client interest and offering professional training services is the core ideal. VR CAM Technologies service the Education, Government, Construction, Power and Oil and Gas Industries, with main focus being on Malaysia and minor focus on South East Asia.

VR CAM Technologies’ engineers and specialists have experience in structural design for steel and concrete, including post-tensioned/pre-stressed Building and Bridge structures. Their engineers and specialist consultants have up to 15 years design experience and when it comes to training, they provide their clients with training on best practices and on the efficient use of the software they distribute.

Pascal Bergougnou, Managing Director of GRAITEC Pte Ltd (Singapore, Asia Pacific), comments: “I am pleased to welcome VR CAM Technologies into GRAITEC’s network. There are many Malaysian companies doing steel structural shop drawing and that are still looking for the right solution.“

Sundram Narendra, Managing Director at VR CAM Technologies Sdn Bhd adds: “We are particularly excited by our latest business relationship with Graitec who will be filling in an important hole in our software portfolio. Graitec now provides us and our clients an excellent steel detailing and fabrication solution Advance Steel that will allow us to compete and increase market share for a solution worthy to be positioned as the BEST!“

About VR CAM Technologies Sdb Bhd
VR-CAM Technologies Sdn Bhd is a privately owned engineering software distributor that was formed in 1996 to service the Construction Industry by way of structural and infrastructure analysis and design software. We have expanded our scope to include the fabrication, power, and oil and gas industries. Our state of the art solutions for drafting, modeling, analysis, design and detailing for multi-material structures including steel, reinforced concrete, and post-tensioned structures are by far the most widely used in the world. We stand by our products and offer support services which are renowned for timely delivery and accuracy. For more information, please visit www.vrctech.com

Video: Direct link between Advance Steel and BIM – Review from AceCAD

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GRAITEC and AceCAD offer a direct link so that a 3D model done in Advance Steel can be successfully imported in BIMReview and then StruMIS.
This movie demonstrates how users may take advantage of this link by exporting the Advance Steel model to a *.gtcx file format and how this fully detailed model is imported and can be viewed & manipulated like any other BIMReview model.
As you can see with this movie, GRAITEC Advance Steel is fully BIM compliant allowing easy and seamless data sharing with BIMReview for easy project collaboration.

FORUM 8’s Virtual Design World Cup

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GRAITEC partnership to FORUM 8's Virtual Design World CupGRAITEC, a leading software developer for CAD and structural analysis solutions, is supporting FORUM 8, its Value Added Reseller operating in Japan, by providing free Advance Steel and Advance Concrete licenses to the participants of FORUM 8’s 3rdStudent BIM and VR Contest open to students worldwide.

The theme of this year’s contest is “Sustainable Station Front in Global Metropolis“. The 2013 VDWC challenges students to devise a proposal of a new environmentally friendly urban space, which will most likely become one of Tokyo’s significant stopping off points for people transferring from one transport mode to another, which radiates from a new train station in Tokyo’s harbor district.

This is a contest open to students worldwide in which they compete amongst each other in designing their original model using BIM and Virtual Reality (VR) software for their chance to win a grand prize.

Work by each and every contestant will be uploaded on FORUM8’s cloud server, VR-Cloud® server, to be judged on its logistics, technical and design aspect, as well as its creativity, architectural aspect, and how innovative and environmentally friendly it is. They will be using Forum 8’s in-house developed software UC-win/Road, 3D interactive visualization tool, as a mandatory software and their choice of at least one other software to help them design and model cities. GRAITEC will provide free Advance Steel/Concrete licenses to all students taking part in this competition.

GRAITEC partnership to FORUM 8's Virtual Design World Cup

UC-win/Road, also known as VR-Design Studio, is the latest Japanese 3D Visual Interactive Visualization Technology for improved urban, transport, emergency & security planning, drive simulation, public consultation and human factors research and is ideal for visualizing BIM and VR models that portray various civil works.

The Award for the winner is a grand prize worth approximately US$3,000 including World cup Trophy and award certificates. Twenty-two other lucky winners will receive other prizes and every contestant will of course win a participation reward for their work. Applicants have until September 30th to register online. Once they have registered and created their VR model, they will need to submit their work including scripts during the period from October 1st to October 10th, and once they have submitted their work, they will be notified of the webpage on FORUM8’s VR-Cloud(R) server to which they can access to browse and test their submitted model, along with their login ID and password. FORUM 8 and special guest judges will come to a decision and determine the winners on November 21st and the best works will be awarded at the Awards Ceremony.

This contest provides a great opportunity for students to get a hands-on experience with FORUM8’s UC-win/Road as well as Advance Steel/Concrete/Design to learn all the great features and technology they have to offer.

If you are a student due to graduate in 2013 or later go to this webpage and register today!

For more information on the contest please click here.

For any inquiries, please contact: 
Europe, The Middle East, Americas, & Africa: office@forum8.com
Asia, Australia, New Zealand, & Oceania and all other general inquiries: yokoyama@forum8.co.jp

Check out last year’s winners here.

About FORUM 8
FORUM8, the Japanese 3D software specialist, produces state-of-the-art 3D VR and engineering software, in particular VR, FEM, Web, CAD solutions and services. Founded in 1987, FORUM8 is at the forefront of 3D Visual Interactive Simulation (3D VIS) technology and provides 3D VIS capabilities to specialists from various professions, including transportation, engineering, planning, emergency training, architecture, road safety and many more. The company’s premier product UC-win/Road is simply the best tool with the utmost 3D VIS capabilities that allows you to model your own 3D environment in which a highly accurate real-time simulation can be run quickly and easily. UC-win/Road interactive 3D environments can also be controlled remotely using FORUM8’s state-of-the-art cloud computing technology VR-Cloud® that enables the 3D environments to be broadcast over the cloud and accessed and interacted with by anyone with a PC or Android system anywhere at any time, thanks to VR-Cloud®’s underlying technology, the a3S cloud system, which allows data to be transmitted between client and server very quickly. FORUM8 obtained a patent for VR-Cloud®, defined as “Driving simulation equipment, server and program” that enables ‘driving simulation within the 3D VR environment using a computer keyboard’ from the Japanese patent office [Patent No. 5149426]. VR-Cloud(R) is by far the best solution for winning tenders or exploring alternative options in any kind of civil design project.
For more information, please visit www.FORUM8.com

Advance Steel – Stairs and Railings review by CAD Digest Magazine

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Advance Steel offers an extensive library of smart objects, automatic joints and specific tools for creating not only standard structures, but also stairs, railing and miscellaneous steel work. CAD Digest, one of the most popular online sources for CAD, CAM & CAE articles and testimonials, reviews the ADVANCE Steel – Stairs and Railings feature set.

For this review, the author created two sets of stairs, one straight andone spiral, describing each step of the process – drawing, editing stairs properties, adding, removing or modifying landings or handrails – highlighting the efficiency and ease-of-use of the software: “I was impressed with how easily Advance Steel creates stairs to my specification, and the ease with which I could modify their properties, along with associated components.”

With Advance Steel, it is easy to create, modify and customize all types of stairs, landingsand railings. Using the software’s advanced tools, with a few clicks defining the height, the tread width and the direction, the entire stair can be created.

Other benefits of the stairs and railing feature of Advance Steel include the large library of predefined objects and the automatic creation of all necessary documents (including NC files). “GRAITEC includes a large library of stair tread types, and I had the option to define my own types and save them as templates for future use. I recommend anyone looking for an efficient way to design and document miscellaneous steel projects to consider GRAITEC’s Advance Steel Software.”

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Download GRAITEC wallpaper for June

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Download GRAITEC wallpaper for June

With calendar

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Download GRAITEC wallpaper for June

Without calendar

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GRAITEC announces a Reseller Agreement with novaCITYNETS in Singapore

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New reseller in Singapore with novaCITYNETSGRAITEC has signed a new business partnership with novaCITYNETS Pte Ltd, a company located in Singapore. The cooperation agreement signed between the two companies entitles novaCITYNETS Pte Ltd to promote, sell and support GRAITEC’s 3D BIM Steel Detailing Software, Advance Steel, in Singapore.

Singapore is a gateway to key markets in Asia. From commercial to residential, new development to upgrade, retrofits to restorations, Asia is the engine of growth. The Singapore construction sector has enjoyed robust growth with building contracts worth S$25.7 billion, representing an annual increase of 14% in recent years. To further propel this growth, the Singapore Government and the Building & Construction Authority (BCA) have been steering the construction industry to achieve higher productivity through the buildable design legislation. This has gained great momentum with the introduction of the S$250 million Construction Productivity and Capability Fund (CPCF). Funds from the CPCF are allocated to firms seeking to improve productivity through technology adoption, re-engineering. We are beginning to see builders adopting productive technologies like construction IT and Building Information Model (BIM); such as the ones provided by GRAITEC.

novaCITYNETS began as a pioneer in developing and implementing specialized building and construction solutions, consultation services to various government and private sectors locally and overseas. In 2007 with the rise in Building Information Modeling (BIM), novaCITYNETS started a business unit, novaBIM to embarked on a fully focused BIM solution where BIM consultation and implementations are tailored and customized to the individual company’s needs, thus, assisting numerous companies with ground zero knowledge to be BIM ready for future projects. Today, novaBIM is the leading solutions and service provider of design and technology for the Architecture, Engineering and Construction (AEC) industry, with works spanning across many notable and iconic developments both locally and regionally including Reflection in Keppel Bay, Garden by the Bay, Tanjong Pagar Tower, V in Shenton, Bedok Residence, The River in Bangkok, Al Najaf in Iraq (400 Bed Educational Hospital in Iraq), Al Ain Hospital in Abu Dahbi and Anglier Hydroelectric Dam in Canada. Currently with offices in Singapore, Malaysia, Taiwan and Philippines, our staffs from both architecture and engineering background bring about invaluable knowledge to the field.

The choice of a promising partnership between GRAITEC and novaCITYNETS in Singapore has clearly been driven by the aforementioned market opportunities and mutual fields of complementary skills and expertise.

Pascal Bergougnou, Managing Director of GRAITEC Pte Ltd (Singapore, Asia Pacific), comments: “Today, BIM managers, architects, engineers, detailers, draftsmen and fabricators want compelling products, which include not only the software, but the services, dedicated industrial applications and customer support that bring value and increase productivity. GRAITEC and novaCITYNETS will combine their strengths to deliver an end-to-end lifecycle environment to our Clients in Singapore and beyond.“

Eddy Tan, Vice President & Head Virtual Construction at novaCITYNETS Pte Ltd adds: “We are excited about this partnership with GRAITEC. Our customers thrive when fueled by innovation and strong local presence support. This partnership provides incredible scale, vast expertise in best practice processes and software innovation and a proven ability to execute projects.“

About novaCITYNETS Pte Ltd
novaCITYNETS Pte Ltd is the leading Solution and Service Provider of Design Technology for Building & Construction industry in Asia. For the past 20 years, novaCITYNETS has been partnering with some of world renowned AEC application software developer and involved in numerous prestigious projects with its solutions and services. NovaCITYNETS, a member of BuildingSMART Alliance Singapore Chapter, is actively promoting Building Information Modeling (BIM) and Industry Foundation Classes (IFC) for the benefit of AEC/FM industry to improve the communication, productivity, delivery time, cost, and quality throughout the design, construction, operation and maintenance life cycle of buildings.
For more information, please visit www.novaBIM.com

Advance Steel Project: Bridge and Skylight in BULGARIA Mall

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Bridge and Skylight in BULGARIA MallSoftware used: Advance Steel

Construction Office: Beta Consult-1 LTD,  AVV Engineering

Project location: Sofia, Bulgaria

Project description:

Bulgaria Mall is a mixed-use retail and office project with approximately 130,000 m2 of total build-up area. The shopping center includes four underground (parking and a hypermarket of approx. 5,600 m2) and four above ground levels with retail and entertainment. The parking provides more than 1,100 lots with very convenient entrances to each underground parking deck. The office part, which consists of an office high-rise tower and an office building, will exceed 25,000 m2 of rentable area. The mall has one of the biggest skylights in Central and Eastern Europe.

Eng. Vasil Vasilev, AVV Engineering, talks about Bulgaria Mall’s skylight project: “At first, when I saw the architectural idea I thought I can`t do it. The shape was very complex (it is a combination of truncated cylinder with two spheres in both ends). Most important, designing the steel structure was to form a flat plain between main frames and purlins (not to twist the quadrangle, because the glass had to be also quadrangle, not to cut it to triangles).”

Using Advance Steel, the design office was able to create an easy to assemble structure, with joints bolted with minimum quantity of welds.

“All elements fitted perfectly, because we provided NC files for the fabrication of the elements. After assembling the whole structure, the contractor cheered us for the flawless drawings, which wouldn`t be possible without using Advance Steel“ continued Eng. Vasil Vasilev, AVV Engineering.

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