Working with AutoCad Files

[Pixelab]

My technique is quite brutal, but it has changed my workflow (in good) since i've begin to use it.

I make a JPEG of the cad files and put them on planes... Multimaterial for the floor plane, with a matId for each floor. Then a Material modifier to choose the floor to display. Idem for the elevations and slices

Precision ? I open the file on a second screen and take the measures in autocad (another program in my case )

Snapping ? When you have some elements already in place, you snap on them. When you have a cad imported, it always snap evreywhere and you can never snap on the good vertex anyway...

I got rid of all the dwg import crap and it changed my life, believe me

[RErender]

pick one spline, then go to attach, and join them all into one object. grouping thousands of objects is a very slow way of doing it. works the same with meshes too.

i always collapse meshes together once im done on them. like all floor plates etc. models become much lighter, i always bin modifiers too. once it collapsed all is not lost with a bit of quick poly modeling.

It's a lot faster to just move them all to the same layer ( 0) in Autocad.

[tct70]

It's a lot faster to just move them all to the same layer ( 0) in Autocad.

Second that.

[TutanMark]

It's a lot faster to just move them all to the same layer ( 0) in Autocad.

yes, but is not so practical when u have tons of entities to map.

I prefer standard DWG import, because .. don't know... meshes looks more "clean" and similar to max's objects.

Make sure to optimize import menù, using parameters calculated making tests. If you have many "curved" objects or "filleted" entities, for example, "mesh subdivision" it's really important and sometimes could slow down the entire project.

I use blocks to create windows, doors, particulars, etc... that are really cool to map one by one (when i need).

btw: one time in this forum someone posted a script to convert / eliminate autocad "blocks" objects from max files.... anyone remember?

Don't prefer to use Xrefs... i agree.. they slow down a lot.

Cheers
MArco

[RErender]

Ahh, 3D from Acad now that's a whole different deal, I meant for linework.

[unknown]

pick one spline, then go to attach, and join them all into one object. grouping thousands of objects is a very slow way of doing it. works the same with meshes too.

i always collapse meshes together once im done on them. like all floor plates etc. models become much lighter, i always bin modifiers too. once it collapsed all is not lost with a bit of quick poly modeling.

It's a lot faster to just move them all to the same layer ( 0) in Autocad.

yeah u can do that. dont really use autocad much, so u can do either way. i generally hate autoCAD, its the devils program. but making sure u have a clean autocad file is great help! pity architects dont seem to think the same way! lol

[grasshopper]

Well i have gone through all my autocad files and strip the arse out of them, purged, cleaned, put everything on one layer and re-imported them and my file size has come down from 100Mb to 7.8Mb which isn't bad at all and every thing is running smoothly. Thanks for your advise folks i'm sure the effort will pay for itself down the line.

I just hope they don't have a major change in the design cause it has taken me about 6 hours. Why are architects such messy F@#k*?rs when it comes to layering and tidying?

[unknown]

something i have often asked. talk about un-organised. the only set of drawings i have ever had, that match, for a start, and are layered properly was from my girlfriend, she seem to be the only neat architect I have ever worked with!

must be hell for them if there is more than one person working on something. its no wonder that when on site builders make things up, as the damn plans rarely match anything.
there is a building near where i live that has a column that shifts half way up, coz the architect forgot to move the columns on all the floors to match. lol, so it goes up, then then another colomn sits on it, half and half, looks hilarious!

[grasshopper]

I had to work on some interiors a while ago, the architect didn't like the design when he saw the visuals. He asked me to fudge it until it look good, then he sent the drawings out for construction without making any changes to them. What did they expect the contractor to build it from my visual???

Unsurprisingly they were disapointed when it didn't turn out how they expected it.

[Neilg]

it has taken me about 6 hours.

You'll get far faster, given a few more and itll take you 10 minutes a time. Right click and quick select is a godsend, then copy & paste into a new drawing to get rid of hidden blocks and you should be able to explode the remaining blocks without it locking up. After that, theres not much left to strip down from a drawing.

[RErender]

Helps to use the express tools too, layer off and layer delete are my favorites

[jacksc02]

express tolls with keyboard assignments is good too!

[Jean-Brad]

If your autocad objects (3d and 2D) are too far from the origin some troubles may occur in viz