What's New: OFCDesk Connect Features

You can view your designs within the Connect web interface before you start your render.

Show your true colors

Now you can view your designs on the web with enhanced clarity and vibrant color, before you render.

After opening your uploaded design in Connect, you can apply finishes and see the results in stunning color.  You will see the colors applied to all designs that have associated color swatches.

This will help you visualize your designs even better, before sending them to be rendered.  

Revit materials in color: All of the colors that you have applied in CAP, or in the Connect interface, will be attached to the Revit Families that you translate through color materials. 

This means that your customers who use Revit will be able easily change materials inside designs you send them, visualized the way that you created them....with color. 

Take a better picture

Before you render, you can place the camera anywhere you want in the space.

Our Connect camera, found in the viewer window, is new and improved. 

There are no limitations as to where you can place the camera. This allows you full control over what portion of the design you would like to render.

Zoom in nice and close. Pull all the way back, or view from underneath the object, for a long shot of your design.  The choice is yours.

Here is the finished product, after it has been rendered:

Click HERE to learn more about Connect.

5 Things Designers Dislike About Downloading Symbols From Your Website

Ever wish you could be a fly on the wall when a designer visits your website to find and download your symbols?  Imagine what they might say--would you be proud?

As I always preach (because of repeated confirmation from designers), your website is the #1 place that designers will look for your symbols.

That's a good thing, because on your website you can control your product message.

It's your website that presents all of the spec sheets, photos, and symbols--your site is a shrine to your products.

Here are a few complaints that I've heard from architects and interior designers about manufacturer websites and the challenges they faced when they tried to download the symbol they want.

1.They can't select the individual product symbol they need

Many manufacturers make the mistake of posting their symbol library online by offering a link to a .zip file or folder where the designer has to download the entire product library.

On some occasions this may be the desired way to access your symbols, but more often than not, designers look for an individual product and not the entire product line.

Give them the ability to come to your site and download the exact model they need to get started on their design.


2. There are no product images associated with the symbol search results

Even if you give the designer the ability to download individual products from your website, do you give them the ability to see a thumbnail or an image of the product symbol?

I reviewed several manufacturer sites where the search results lead to an endless tree of product numbers and codes.  You have to drill down through folders and folders of numbers and letters to find what you need.

Then, once you've found the product number you need, how can you be sure what model truly is?

This is the problem with the "folder tree" interfaces that were popularized by Windows '95.  It's too many numbers and alphabets and not enough eye pleasing images.

Designers tend to be visual people, so make sure your symbol search results give them an idea of what they will download.


3. You'll never believe this one... There is NO search field available

Come on!  How many times have I seen symbol search interfaces on manufacturer websites that don't offer the ability to search for the product that is needed.

 In this world of "Google this and Google that," place a search box next to your symbol search interface so designers can search for the specific symbol they need.

4. They can't search by product category or product line

Some symbol search interfaces on manufacturer websites offer the ability place a search via a field but not a way to search by a category (ie: "desk" "chair" etc.), or a way to search by product line.

Let's say a designer sees your new chair at NeoCon, they have a new Revit project, and they would like to include your chair.

They go to your site: furnituremanufacturer.com and find your symbol search interface and search for the Revit chair you offer them.  

But you haven't given them a drop down list of your products... just a search field.  

How will they be able to find your gold winning chair for their design?

On your symbol search interface, give the designer the power to click a drop down of all your products and refresh their memory.

I'm sure they'll find the Revit model they need and will place an order with you!

The same goes for product category.  When they come to your site and they want to find a chair model for their design, give them the drop down menu where there is a list of product categories: "chairs," "desks,"--you name it.

5. There is no way they can search by file type

You've given them all of these creative ways to slice and dice your symbols and download them from your website.  Lets help your customers get even more specific...

Often, manufacturers don't give customers the ability to choose which file type they would like to download which can make for a tedious search experience.

It's important to include a drop-down or selection field where users can pick and choose the file types they want to download, whether that is AutoCAD, Revit, or SketchUp models.

Learn about how Connect Search can make it easy for your clients to download your symbols.

Why AutoCAD Files Just Don't Work in Revit

Yes, its true:  AutoCAD .DWG files just don't work in Revit.  You can import a .DWG file into Revit, but you won't be pleased with the results.

Because of this, it's recommended that you don't send your customer, who uses Revit, your AutoCAD files.  Watch the video above to see why...

This is the challenge that manufacturers face: they offer symbols, but the majority of them are .DWG files (the most common AutoCAD file type).  This is great for your customers who use AutoCAD, but not so good for Revit users.

Your customers who want to interact with your products in Revit, won't like the fact that they have to insert a .DWG file into their precious design.  

Here are a two additional reasons your Revit design customers won't insert your AutoCAD .DWG files into their Revit projects:

1. AutoCAD .DWG files are HEAVY in Revit

Revit users often work on large scale projects.  Their designs could include entire buildings or floors, so .DWG files are not ideal.

Because .DWG files were not meant to reside in Revit projects, they are "heavy." 

This means that they slow down the Revit software, include too much detail, and are not parametric (the ability for users to turn product options on and off).  

In short, they're not made for Revit and don't allow the user to experience the best functionality that Revit can offer.  

Imagine adding a table and a chair 30 or 40 times into an entire Revit floor using clunky .DWG files. Your Revit project would come to a stand still.

The end result is a computer that crashes and an unhappy customer.

2.  AutoCAD .DWG files are not flexible in Revit

As we have shown in the above video, .DWG files used in Revit are inflexible and stiff.  

Let's say you've created a furniture typical configuration in AutoCAD and you then import it into Revit.  If your customer who uses Revit wants to make a change, they will struggle to adjust the model in Revit.  

The .DWG file in Revit imports just as you created it in AutoCAD and cannot be moved or easily broken apart.  The entire typical is essentially a stiff, unmovable block that slows down your customer's Revit project.

Also, .DWG files that are imported into Revit lose all "data," meaning that any specification information that the .DWG file contained will not show in Revit.

In conclusion: it's not a good idea to offer your AutoCAD files to a Revit user.  Give them the Revit version of your products they need, and they'll place an order.

5 Reasons Interior Designers Use Revit/BIM Software

Photo by Jakob Salovsky

For contract furniture manufacturers and dealers, understanding how their customers are using their products in a virtual space is becoming more and more important.

This post is a primer for members of the contract furniture industry to understand how their customers are interacting with their products in a BIM environment.

For those of you new to BIM, the acronym stands for Building Information Modeling. BIM is a streamlined, collaborative process used by architects, engineers, construction companies, and interior designers to efficiently plan and visualize buildings.  

Revit is a BIM software that works in this process.  In comparison, AutoCAD is not a BIM software.

In many cases interior designers may work with a manufacturer's products in a virtual space before even seeing the physical product.  

Designers may design a space using your task chair (provided you have Revit models available for them) before they've had the opportunity to sit in it.

This is the new reality for interior designers who collaborate simultaneously with other disciplines on BIM projects, the most popular BIM software being Autodesk Revit.

BIM has become an integral part of most large scale building projects and those who work with interiors have been in the process of making the switch for the past five years.

Here are 5 reasons that interior designers are making the transition to the BIM process using Revit:

1. Revit helps them visualize in 3D

BIM software, like Revit, helps designers create their space in 3D and then view that space. The ability to switch between 2D and 3D views helps the designers on both practical and creative levels.

In our interview with Linette Kilbourn, an interior designer working at Interior Architects, we learned the importance of BIM in the interiors space.  Linette told us:

"Personally, I feel that the (BIM) benefit for interior designers is even more than for architects.  First, we can immediately see the space in 3D, even right after the plan is drawn." 

For example, the concept of "clash detection," the ability to avoid errors when two objects are laid out in the same space, become more important. Designing in 3D makes inserting objects into a space as intuitive as placing a physical object in a room.

Revit designers use 3D Revit views to generate basic renders for their clients.  This is an opportunity for designers to impress and discuss their ideas for the layout for a given space within the building. 

It's in this phase that the designer showcases the furniture in the space, making it even more important for manufacturers to offer accurate Revit representations of their products.

Photo by stuart.childs

2. Data is easier to manage

There are a lot of 3D design tools on the market that the interiors community can use for free.  But the real power of BIM comes, not only in the ability to design in 3D, but in the easier management of all the data that can be used to plan the space.

Think of well made Revit/BIM models as little computer programs that hold data and options for manufacturers' products.  The bulk of the work that uses BIM models relies on product data and is not concerned with graphics.

Revit/BIM models often contain valuable data that assists with GSA and LEED requirements to be calculated for the space.

3. The Revit schedule helps them slice and dice data

Schedules provide an organized foundation for extracting and using BIM data as designers work through their projects.  If you're familiar with a Bill Of Material, schedules are a similar concept. Revit schedules provide an interface that could be compared to Microsoft Excel.

Revit designers use schedules to edit and view data in different ways.  For example, Room Data sheets are commonly created from schedules for an inventory of products which are added to the design.

Adding non-graphic data within the individual Revit symbols, enables interior designers to perform accurate quantity calculations in relation to surface areas and material amounts with ease.

Picture by GotCredit

4. BIM promotes collaboration

Furniture is just one aspect of a building project.  Interior designers involved with building projects are not only looking at their piece, they're collaborating in a virtual model that is simultaneously being worked on by other disciplines.

The days of passing architectural data from architect to engineer to construction and finally ending in the designers lap are fading fast.

BIM helps multiple disciplines work data for a building simultaneously.  That means engineers, MEP, electricians, and designers could theoretically still have their hands in a BIM model at the same time.

Creating in Revit helps designers capture and manage the design with multiple options such as space layout and material selection, within a single model, while communicating with their colleagues in other disciplines.

5. No fudging, accuracy is improved

With BIM/Revit there are fewer change orders as well as requests for information from the contractor and their subcontractors.

Revit doesn't let you fudge the numbers because its a 3D software.  In the old 2D software, dimensions can be overwritten, making the finished documents incorrect.

Revit doesn't let designers make up the numbers, and they appreciate the software for its accuracy and honesty.  In a BIM environment everything is as it appears, and if it is modeled incorrectly it will be caught in advance and fixed as soon as possible.


What have you heard about BIM technology for interior design?  Leave us comments below.

How To Clean Up Your Designs With Connect

Photo by Kathryn Hile

Dealers use ofcdesk Connect to translate their CAP 20/20 layouts from AutoCAD to Revit.  Little do they know that Connect can "clean up" CAP designs as well.

In this post I'll show you how you can use Connect to analyze your CAP layout to find improperly scaled items, doubled items, or anything else that will muck up your design.

These symbols may cause problems, as you work to quote your project or translate your design to Revit. Connect's "clean up" will also make sure that your layout is accurate and ensures your Bill Of Material is correct.

This cleaning process is useful because it confirms that your masterpiece design translates properly to Revit, so your client receives an accurate design.

As you see below, after you select your layout in AutoCAD, using the Connect plug-in, a  pop up window will appear; this is the "Translation Analysis Window."

The Translation Analysis Window is the "broom" that helps you clean up your design.

Our server compares your design against our database of millions of up-to-date symbols and finds any discrepancies between what you've created and what the manufacturer can deliver.

The Translation Analysis Window shows you where there are troublesome symbols.  The window will also give you tips and fixes on ways to improve your layout.

Use this window as a way to get up close and personal with the problematic models in your design. The window contains buttons for zooming in, marking, and visually isolating the poor or customized models that you've inserted into your project.

For example Lets look at the most common types of models you insert into your CAP design that could cause problems for your Bill Of Material or Revit translation.

1. Invalid Item

This is an item that our system doesn't recognize.  This is a rare occurrence, though you may enter an AutoCAD file that is improperly named, so the Connect system can't find it.

2. Non-Block Reference

Connect will tell you if an item in your layout is a non block reference.  Connect typically suggests ignoring these items, as they don't have any data worth using in your design.

3. Duplicated Item

Duplicated items can ruin your design and your Bill Of Material.  Connect will tell you if there are two items with the same product number in the same position.  Delete the extra one and move on.

4. Revit Not Available

This means that Connect has concluded that there is no Revit file for the product that you inserted into your layout.  Connect will classify this item as a "Special."  Stay tuned for ways to work with Specials in future posts.

Even if you don't need to translate your CAP layout to Revit, you can use this simple analysis tool to clean up your design and avoid inaccurate quotes.

After that, take the next step to sharing and visualizing your award-winning layout to win the project.

Learn more about ofcdesk Connect.

7 Signs Dealers Need to Invest in Revit Technology

Contract manufacturers and commercial furniture dealers always ask us about the value of investing in Revit technology for their businesses.  The most common question is:  "Is Revit a fad?"

In other posts, we've proven time and time again that Revit technology in the commercial furniture industry is not a fad.  Your clients’ demand for Revit designs is only going to grow in the coming months.   

From conversations that we've had with our clients, I've compiled seven, clear signs that it's time to invest in Revit technology, if you're a dealer.  Read through the following list and ask yourself:  is this something I need to look at?

1. You received an RFP for a project that required you to provide your designs using Revit symbols.

This is the simplest reason to invest in Revit technology.  Your potential customers who have considered you for a project have decided to reach out to you for a chance to win their job.

Most importantly, they see your company as forward thinking enough to offer them the technology they need to help them with their project.  Don't let them down.

2. Your client has told you that they are using Revit.

Clients who use Revit might not always tell you.  This doesn't mean you can overlook the design tools they use.  Anytime you share designs with them they're going to put in more hours to take your design and bring it into their Revit projects.  This process can be taxing and time consuming for your client.

You'll add more work for them and not know it, as they may view you as a company who could not help them.

Ask your clients and see what design tools they use, and then, as you make the transition to Revit technology, you can be prepared to win them over with new capabilities.

3. You've never received a customer request for your designs in Revit... ever.

This is a problem.  If you've never received a request, beware.  This could mean one of two things:  your competitors are receiving those bigger Revit bids, or your clients don't think you have the ability to work with Revit technology.

Either way, there is an opportunity to help your client by understanding their design process, so that you are considered for Revit bids.

4. You're looking for new services to offer your clients.

Competition is high in the dealer world, so businesses are looking for new ways to stand out.  Enabling your business to offer Revit technology to your clients is a potential new revenue stream.

Provide ways you can save your clients' time with Revit designs in the beginning or during the project.  They may be willing to pay a little more, to give you some of their Revit work.

5. The manufacturers you represent have created Revit symbols.

The manufacturers you represent are just like you, businesses looking to increase profits.

If you find that the manufacturers you represent do offer Revit symbols, it's a good sign that they have researched to find that their customers are requesting Revit content from them.

6. You had to turn down a project because you didn't have the ability to offer Revit designs.

If the RFP or bid requires Revit designs and you don't have them, someone else is going to win the bid.  In our experiences, dealers are reactive and not proactive about responding to Revit bids.

Plan ahead and be ready to respond with confidence to those RFPs by having your Revit tools in line. 

7. The number of requests for your designs in Revit has increased in the last three months

When it comes to Revit technology for your business, it's important to assess the demand.  Is it the right time to invest in Revit technology?

You need to justify your investment in Revit technology.  The final and simplest answer to this question is:  If the number of Revit requests has increased in the last three to six months, it's time to invest in Revit technology.

The Revit tidal wave is coming, so prepare for the splash.

Ofcdesk uses new Autodesk technology to help contract furniture dealers speak the same language as their customers.

Chicago, IL (June 1, 2015) Ofcdesk llc, a member of the Autodesk Developer Network, released Ofcdesk Connect, a tool that translates 20/20 CAP Studio® designs to Autodesk Revit® designs, using new Autodesk cloud and web browser technology.

“We’d been hearing complaints for years about the disconnect between commercial office furniture dealers and designers using Revit®,” said Ofcdesk’s CEO, Mauricio Ritzmann, “so we decided to apply new Autodesk technology to make it easier for the two parties to share designs.”

Utilizing the new Autodesk technology, Ofcdesk developed Connect, a primarily web-based system that translates 20/20 CAP Studio® and AutoCAD® layouts to an equivalent native Revit® layout.  The user can view the final output in their web browser and email the Revit® file to their clients.

Ofcdesk’s new Connect software uses translation technology originally created for Ofcdesk IDC. The IDC plugin won Ofcdesk the Best of NeoCon Gold Award for Software Technologies in 2014.

While planning to sell the IDC plugin to the contract office furniture dealer market, Ofcdesk’s CTO, Fernando Malard, attended an exclusive cloud accelerator where Autodesk developers were invited to work together on their product ideas, using the new platform.

“This new technology helps Ofcdesk leverage all of IDC’s features in the cloud. By using the Autodesk Cloud API, Ofcdesk Connect will help dealers translate AutoCAD® designs to Revit®, collect information, and manage projects, all in a web browser,” Fernando said.

 “Because most of the Connect interface uses a web browser, we can offer a subscription model that means more price flexibility for dealers.” Ritzmann said.

A designer at a dealer can subscribe at connect.ofcdesk.com, download a simple plugin for AutoCAD®, select their CAP Studio® design, and upload it to the Connect web page, all for a minimal monthly fee.  From there, the Ofcdesk server will translate their CAP Studio® layout to the equivalent layout, using Revit® symbols.

Ritzmann added, “The Connect process makes it easy for a commercial office furniture dealer who doesn’t want a large upfront investment in Revit® technology, to be able to share their designs with their customers in a more cost effective way.”

Connect subscriptions are available at: http://connect.ofcdesk.com/

Interview: Linette Kilbourn, Interior Designer using Revit



 

 

We recently chatted with interior designer Linette Kilbourn about Revit / BIM and how she uses Revit for her designs. She also gave advice for contract furniture manufacturers who are looking to offer their products in Revit.   

Linette has over 20 years experience in corporate interior design and has worked for top design firms including HOK, RHK Design, and Gensler.

How do you see Revit/BIM benefiting Interior Designers in A+D firms as a tool and a process?

 

Personally, I feel that the benefit for interior designers is even more than for architects.  First, we can immediately see the space in 3D, even right after the plan is drawn.  Secondly, we can import pre-created Revit families that substantially speeds up the design process.  And in addition, we can use the BIM feature to verify quantities in the CD phase. 

 

 

On a technical level, what challenges are you confronted with, as designer, if you don't have Revit/BIM symbols for your Revit projects?

Accurate Revit families are extremely important to ensure that the actual furniture can fit in the space well.  This is so important when laying out systems furniture.  If we do not have the Revit symbols from the manufacturer, we have to create them ourselves, which can cost us hours of lost time.

There is a reason why clients continually see the same furniture over and over again in every Revit rendering or wireframe.  There are thousands of Revit families of furniture out there, but they are very difficult to find and tedious to download.  

What sorts of things are designers at A+D firms doing if they don't have the appropriate Revit/BIM symbols for their projects?
 

We use whatever manufacturers product that is most similar.   Then if the client sees it in the 3D, they may prefer to use the other product.  This is not the ideal situation for designers, as we want them to love the furniture we have selected!
 

Where are designers in A+D firms going to find their Revit symbols?
 

Best if easily obtained on the internet, rather than a CD.  In general, most of our work is done on a PC, so apps are not that useful at this time.

 

How has the emergence of Revit/BIM changed the relationship between the contract furniture dealer and designer in A+D firms?

 

The problem we are running into is that most furniture dealerships are still using AutoCAD, or worse, their own proprietary programs.  This creates a huge problem when incorporating their data into our Revit files.  Often it is imported, and then becomes very cumbersome to change when the interior architecture changes.   In addition, the BIM properties are lost, so quantities cannot be checked by the designers.

A popular question that I get from manufacturers: at what phases in a design project are Revit symbols from contract furniture manufacturers used?

 

I use Revit from the very beginning of a project, therefore it is extremely important that I have access to the Revit families at this stage.  

 

What are some positive ways that you've seen contract furniture manufacturers embrace Revit/BIM?

These days, designers are more likely to select furniture from the internet, rather than the office library.   The best websites have the option to download furniture symbols while browsing each item. 

 

Any final thoughts or advice that you would like to share with the contract furniture industry about Revit/BIM?

 

Almost all firms are now standardized on Revit or are planning to in the future.  The best way to ensure your product will be used in projects is to provide easy access to the Revit families, so the product can be displayed accurately from the very beginning of the design stage.

 




Linette Kilbourn is Managing Director at KDR with over 20 years experience in corporate interior design.  She has most recently worked as a Designer at HOK, Managing Director at RHK Design in their Shanghai office,  and as a Senior Designer at Gensler.