Beruflich Dokumente
Kultur Dokumente
Vol. 4
Advanced ArchiCAD
Credits
Trademarks
ArchiCAD is a registered trademark of GRAPHISOFT.
All other trademarks are the property of their respective holders.
Credits
Courtesy of GRAPHISOFT
Contents
CONTENTS
Introduction ___________________________________________ 6
Chapter 1 - Project Setup ________________________________ 8
The Example Project ________________________________________ 9
Creating a Template________________________________________ 10
Project Info _______________________________________________ 11
Attribute Management (Composites, Building Materials, Surfaces,
Fills, Custom Profiles) ______________________________________ 13
External Content __________________________________________ 18
View Sets _________________________________________________ 20
Layer Combinations________________________________________ 24
Model View Options _______________________________________ 26
Layout Book Structure _____________________________________ 29
Publisher Sets_____________________________________________ 36
Dimension Preferences _____________________________________ 37
Contents
Contents
Introduction
Introduction
Welcome to the ArchiCAD Training Series!
This Guide is part of the ArchiCAD Training Series, which currently includes the following
materials:
You are now reading Vol. 4, Advanced ArchiCAD a comprehensive hands-on training to
familiarize you with the advanced modeling and documentation tools of ArchiCAD. This guide is
meant for advanced ArchiCAD users and students. We strongly recommend that you complete
Training Series Vol. 1-3 before starting with this one.
This guide is also suitable for using as BIM Curriculum Exercises - for Hands-on Practice in
universities where ArchiCAD is taught to students. Lecturers who would like to use this guide as a
BIM Curriculum should visit the educational sites of the GRAPHISOFT website
(www.graphisoft.com/learning/education) where, after registration, they will be entitled to
obtain a full set of training materials suitable for seminar lectures.
Contents of this guide:
Training guide e-book: The PDF guide includes detailed explanation of every step, with several
screenshots.
ArchiCAD project file: The preset training file will help your learning process. Preset project views
help you to navigate between different steps thus you can focus on the core knowledge.
Movie clips: Narrated movie clips are available on the YouTube channel for GRAPHISOFT
ArchiCAD (www.youtube.com/user/Archicad) providing step-by-step instructions for each step
of the training guide. The ArchiCAD YouTube Channel can also be accessed from the Help menu
of ArchiCAD. Enter the name of this Training Guide in the search field to locate the related videos.
Introduction
You must have ArchiCAD 18 or later version installed on your computer to use this guide. This ebook and the movie clips were made with the English language version of ArchiCAD. For your
convenience we recommend you to download and use the same version for practicing.
If you do not have ArchiCAD yet, please visit myarchicad.com to obtain a free ArchiCAD installer:
If you are a student, a teacher or a representative of a school, register and download a fully
functional Education Version of ArchiCAD for Students and Teachers.
If you are a professional architect, register and download a fully functional 30-day trial version
of ArchiCAD. Projects saved with this TRIAL version can be automatically upgraded to FULL
versions upon purchase of a commercial license.
Please contact your local distributor for purchasing commercial ArchiCAD licenses:
www.graphisoft.com/info/where_to_buy.
How to use this training material?
Open the related movie clips from the GRAPHISOFT ArchiCAD Youtube Channel.
Follow the instructions given in the PDF guide and the videos.
We hope you will find this training useful and wish you success with your future ArchiCAD
projects!
Good Luck!
Creating a Template
Setting up a proper template file for the office is the responsibility of the BIM Manager in close
collaboration with the Project Architect and the Model Manager, who is responsible for the
document output and usually is a highly experienced ArchiCAD user.
Our template will include only some of the default settings that can be stored in a template, such
as:
generic project info - like standard company data that we always need to add to our layouts
attributes - composites, building materials, surfaces, fills, custom profiles that the office
usually uses with a uniformized look and settings
external content - such as a library of additional project specific objects or textures for
rendering
view sets - to define how to filter the model view for different project phases and different
disciplines (architectural, structural, MEP, etc.)
layer combinations - the groups of visible layers for the views above - a necessity for creating
proper view sets
model view options - to set how simple or detailed the display of the visible elements is
regarding different purposes
layout book and master layouts - the generally used paper sizes for publishing and a preset
structure to organize the drawings
Besides these, templates can also store pen sets (pen thickness and color), lines, linetypes,
predefined publisher sets, project preferences, DXF/DWG translation settings, favorites, default
tool settings and so on.
By using a template we can highly ease our work, since we will not have to set these every time,
but choose a predefined setting from the template when reaching a specific phase in our
projects.
Note: Making a real template needs lots of experience and takes weeks of work to
get completed, therefore it can not be fully covered within this training guide, but
hopefully the highlighted points below will give some food for thought for your
next real project.
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Project Info
Project Info is useful as it can be easily retrieved, mainly as autotexts on layouts, which means that
text does not have to be typed manually all the time, but will be automatically filled out with the
information we provided once. Let's set some basic information that will have to be displayed
several times later.
Open the Project Info dialog, by choosing File/Info/Project Info....
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by index: overwrite the current attributes with the new ones that have the same index
numbers
by name: overwrite the current attributes that have the same names as the new ones
Go to the Building Materials tab page. Sort the entries by clicking on the Name header on the
right. The needed materials are marked with an @ symbol. Here we can also decide if we want to
create the cut fills and surfaces that are associated with the building materials. In this case we can
transfer the fills and surfaces as well at the same time, so check Cut Fills and Surfaces options.
Select the marked items on the right and click << By Index. This way the new materials will be
added and the associated cut fills will be overwritten as well by their index numbers and no
unnecessary duplicates will be created.
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External Content
If there are several project specific folders (textures and objects) in the office the BIM Manager
can define the content which should be linked to each project type. We will now load a library
with some textures and save it into the template. This way ArchiCAD will always look for the
linked content at startup when using the template.
Open File/Libraries and Objects/Library Manager....
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View Sets
Before putting a documentation set together we have to decide what type of views we will need
later. The views can be organized in various categories, such as project phases or by disciplines,
scale and so on.
First, select and delete all the elevation viewpoints (markers) on the floor plan. Click Delete
Viewpoint and Delete anyway in the upcoming dialogs. We will create and position the
elevations in the actual project file.
Open the Navigator - View Map, it already contains a predefined structure which provides views
for generic architectural representation, structural and ceiling plans. This would not comply with
our needs, so let's create a completely new View Map structure.
Select all View Map items, except the topmost element (named Training Series 04) and click the
Delete button in the bottom. In the upcoming warning dialog click Delete anyway.
Click the New Folder... button to create a new folder and name it ARCHITECTURAL.
With the previously created folder selected click New Folder again to create a folder within the
ARCHITECTURAL folder, name it Schematic Design. Create another one as well named Design
Development and one called Construction Documentation, all within the ARCHITECTURAL
folder.
Deselect the last folder created and make an additional folder named STRUCTURAL.
Later we can save specific views into these folders, but we can already make our job easier with a
few more settings. There will be several floor plans and we could save time and be more
productive if the new viewpoints that are created in the Navigator - Project Map would be
generated into View Map views automatically (there are only three stories now in the Project
Map).
Click the Project Chooser at the top of the Navigator and choose Show Organizer.
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Note: Settings like layer combination, model view options, scale, etc. could already
be set now, but since these are unknown yet, we will let the documentation team
fine tune the views later and we just create the structure of the views now.
Repeat cloning with the Sections and Elevations into the Design Development folder.
In the same manner, clone Stories, Sections and Elevations into the Construction
Documentation folder as well.
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Layer Combinations
Layer combinations are named sets of layer settings, mostly specifying the layer visibility in the
views. Lets create one and fine tune it.
Open Document/Layers/Layer Settings (Model Views)....
Select 03 Plans - Preliminary layer combination and click New... at the bottom left corner. Name
it @Schematic and click OK. The layer combination will be duplicated.
Turn off visibility for layers:
Annotation - Label
Annotation - Structure
Annotation - Text
Dimensioning - General
Dimensioning - Site
Marker - Elevation
Marker - Section
Morph - General
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04 Plans - Approval: turn on Finish - Wall and turn off Annotation - Text
When finished, select the 02 Drafting layer combination and click OK to make it active. This is the
layer combination that we would like to be the default when starting a new project with the
current template.
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check Override Cut Fills with Solid Foreground, uncheck Show Skin Separator Lines
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Doors: Simple
Windows: Simple 1
Doors: Detailed 2
Windows: Detailed
Store as @Structural.
Select 03 Building plans in the list to make it active and close the dialog.
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Now we have to customize the folders to have a proper naming system. We would like to
incorporate abbreviations of the project phases (SD/DD/CD), drawing scale (1:100), paper size
(A0), as well as generic numbering.
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Now we only have to create the A0 master layout for the construction documentations.
Click the New Master Layout... button in the bottom.
Name it A0 Landscape and choose A0 (ISO) - Metric as size. Click Create. Create another master
layout as well, named A0 Portrait, check Portrait orientation radio button.
Open the A1 Landscape master layout by double-clicking on it. We will copy the content to the
newly created A0 sheets and arrange it accordingly. Hit Ctrl/Cmd+A to select all elements and
copy-paste them to the A0 Landscape master layout.
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Repeat the same with the A0 Portrait master as well (offset the upper edge only).
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Publisher Sets
The final publisher sets will be assembled by our documentation team, but again, we can set up
guidelines for them. We already know who we want to share our projects with, nevertheless the
actual file formats will be decided individually for the different projects only after the
documentation is done.
Open the Publisher Sets on the right and click the arrow button to see all the available sets.
Select the Layout Book to be shown on the left.
Click New Publisher Set... in the bottom and create four sets below the existing ones:
Client
Contractor
MEP
Structural
Open Client and select AA_ Design Development folder in the Layout Book.
Click Add Shortcut >>, this way the connection between the layouts and the publisher sets will
be live.
In a similar manner add AA_ Construction Documentation to Contractor and MEP sets and
STRUCTURAL to Structural.
Close the Organizer when finished.
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Dimension Preferences
To access this screen, go to Options/Project Preferences/Dimensions....
The available dimension options will vary depending on the unit (metric or imperial) you choose
and on the dimension type whose preferences you are setting.
We would like to have our dimensions displayed in millimeters for linear dimensions and square
meters for area calculations. This only applies to dimensions. Working units are set to millimeters
by default, so that will be our input base when modeling.
Select Plain Millimeter from the list and select the Area dimension type. Change the Unit to
meter and Decimals to 2. Store it as Training Series.
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Setting Up Stories
One of the key concepts of the ArchiCAD Virtual BuildingTM is that all the stories can be included
in one project file. Since this is going to be a multi-story office building, lets define the stories
first. Select Design/Story Settings... from the menu. A dialog box comes up where we can define
number, vertical position and height of the building floors. As a start, we already have three
stories defined.
First, lets define the story heights, set the Height to Next values to 5400, 3700 and 3700.
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Now we will remove the unnecessary columns from the grid. Return to the 0. Ground Floor and
select the Marquee tool in the Toolbox. Define an area around the left six columns of the top
row, then activate the Column tool and select the columns with Edit/Select All Columns or the
equivalent keyboard shortcut (Ctrl/Cmd + A). Delete the selected elements with the Backspace
key.
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Select the Marquee tool and define a new area around the right six columns of the bottom row.
Select all columns in the marquee and delete them, as earlier.
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Scroll the Info Box sideways to make the additional wall options visible. Link the wall top to the
21. Story. Press Select Story... first then select the story from the list.
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Lets start to draw the wall at the upper left corner from the 2E column to lower left corner of the
2B column, where the cursor changes to a checkmark.
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In the next steps we will create the slanted curtain walls and connect them to the vertical external
walls. Double-click on the 1. Story in the Navigator. First we have to create a section for accurate
editing. It will be more convenient to adjust the slanted curtain walls in a vertical section than on
the floor plan.
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Click on the Section tool and draw a line between axis 3 and 4. Move the cursor along axis F near
to the halving point between the two previous axises. When it changes to a checkmark, click to
start drawing the line. Double-click on the second point defined similarly to finish the section
line.
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Modify the size of the A panel to 3058 and the B panel to 668.
Add 10 new panels to the Secondary Grid Lines. To do this, click the + button. The sizes of the
panels are 755; 1800; 1800; 1800; 600; 1800; 1800; 1800; 600; 1800; 1800; 1800 and 755.
Click to mark the solid panels in the preview window. The gray panels will belong to the distinct
class. (Curtain Walls can contain two default panel types: main and distinct. You can define
different materials for each of them. Later you can modify the panels individually if needed.)
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d (depth of panel): 0
check Use Frame Building Materials Surface checkbox on the Model panel
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b (depth): 300
d: 0
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a: 100
h: 250
b: 250
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Click OK.
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For the breakpoint first we create a guide line. Move the cursor above
the right edge of the column at axis C. Click the orange dot when it
appears, drag it and move the cursor to the right. Type d1800 and hit
Enter to set the distance.
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To finish the curtain wall, we have to double click on the intersection point at the right edge of
the wall and the 21 Story line.
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This point will be the first point of the curtain wall. The next point (breakpoint) will be the
intersection of the 11 Story line and guide line.
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ArchiCAD allows you to connect curtain walls to walls in an intelligent way. This is advantageous
because the connected walls will follow all changes of the curtain wall during the entire lifecycle
of the design and all quantities remain accurate. For instance, if the curtain wall slant angle is
modified, the wall connection will be immediately updated. We are going to connect the walls
and the curtain walls in 3D window. Press F5/Fn+F4 to open 3D. Select the two walls and one
curtain wall with the Arrow tool.
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The mullions of the curtain walls are not at the correct heights. The top of the distinct panel
mullions should be 150 mm above the story levels so that the distinct panel would cover the slab
edges as well as the space above the suspended ceiling. We have to adjust the scheme of the
curtain wall accordingly.
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Measure the distance between the top of the mullion and the 13 Story level line on the right
side curtain wall. Use guidelines parallel to the frame if necessary to create an intersection with
the story levels.
We have to lower the panels by the measured distance minus 150 mms so that they extend past
the story levels. (We are assuming a floor cover thickness of 150 mm above the story level.)
Select the curtain wall and choose Edit in 3D.
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Select the upper part of the curtain wall and click on a transom and choose Move Grid from the
Pet palette. Move the cursor downwards (make sure that the plane indicator shows that you are
on the plane of the scheme) and type the necessary distance value, d601 (in our case 751150=601) and press Enter. The scheme will change immediately.
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Then check the bottom part of the curtain wall and repeat measuring and editing (at the 9 Story
level line). The distance of the move is different than in the previous case (736-150=586 mm).
We must carry out similar modifications on the other curtain wall on the other side of the
building. Measure the required distances in the section window and than carry out the
modifications in the 3D window so that the upper point of the top of the mullions are 150 mm
above the story levels.
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Lets get back to the floor plan by double-clicking on 1. Story in the Navigator.
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Since the two towers will be centrally symmetrical, repeat the same with the upper four columns
on the opposite side. Now 3x10 columns remain shown in the center. This will be the column
arrangement of a typical story.
Lets look at our tower on different floors. Note how the cut lines of the curtain walls vary
according to the level of the different stories cutting planes.
Note: To better visualize the concept, try different settings by selecting both
curtain walls and opening the Curtain Wall Settings dialog. In the Floor Plan and
Section panel, lets select Projected with Overhead and choose Entire Element
instead of To Floor Plan Range. Browsing the floors you can see that the elements
are represented differently on different stories depending on the height of the
current cut plane.
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Go up to the 2. Story.
To place the intermediate slabs in the tower, we are going to modify the height of the Floor Plan
Cut Plane. This way we can easily track the contour of the building even at the slanted curtain
wall segments.
3D construction elements on the floor plan are displayed as if they were cut horizontally along a
theoretical plane; this is the Floor Plan Cut Plane.
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Draw the slab from the upper right corner of the insulation to the bottom right corner.
Now we will copy the slabs to the other stories in one step. While being on 2. Story, choose
3. Story to be shown traced.
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Click Continue in the prompt dialog. This way all slabs will be moved horizontally and vertically
as well up to the 11th story.
Check the result in the section. Now go to 11. Story and trace 12. Story. Repeat the Multiply
command, but choose 10 as Number of copies. In this case it is easier to set the horizontal
distance at the bottom part of the slab.
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Height: 400
Width: 500
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Note: The beams are grouped if created with the chained geometry method.
Ungroup them in the Edit menu to be able to work with them individually.
We have to place the beams on the other 20 stories, but we definitely do not want to draw them
on each story one by one.
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Now we will multiply these in 3D similar to what we have done before with the slabs.
Hit Ctrl/Cmd+U to open the Multiply dialog. Set 20 as Number of copies, Distribute method and
make sure that the Set Home Story by Elevation checkbox is checked.
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Select the copied beams on the 11st story and repeat the multiply operation between story 12
and 21.
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Draw a rectangle around the first tower with the Marquee tool using the All
Floors option (bold marquee).
This will select all elements within the marquee area on all the stories. Select Edit/
Move/Rotate a Copy from the menu.
The center of the rotation will be the mid-point between columns D6-D7.
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We can either click to the grid line opposite to the starting point or enter an Angle value of 180
in the Tracker by typing a180 and pressing Enter. The walls, curtain walls and slabs will be
duplicated and rotated.
Click Continue in the prompt dialog. Remove the selection and the Marquee by pressing Esc.
Now, we have to rotate copies of the vertical beams along the Y direction. We can do this on the
floor plan, story by story, but it would be very time consuming. Lets see another method in the
axonometric 3D window. Open Generic Axonometry from Navigator - Project Map.
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Restore the view settings so that all types of elements will be shown in 3D except the Zones.
Check out the result in 2D, too. Open the 1. Story in the Navigator.
Now we only have to fill the middle part, so lets activate the Slab tool and change to @200 RFC
Slab_150 Tile.fl in the Info Box.
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Select the Section tool in the Toolbox. Draw a longitudinal section across the towers. Now click
above the section line, where the section should face.
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Then click below the building envelope to create the elevation line. When the cursor changes to a
little eye, click towards the building.
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Turn off Outside Surface Override and set inside to Stucco - White Rough.
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Select the new interior walls and the two horizontal exterior walls and choose File/External
Content/Save Selection as Module... from the menu. In the upcoming browser window, give a
name to this module like Staircase.mod and click Save. With this click you've saved the selected
elements into an external module file and at the same time placed one instance of this hotlinked
module into the host file. Now if you select the walls, their element information pop-up tag states
that they are part of a hotlinked module.
In many respects, a hotlinked module is very similar to a reference file (Xref ). It resides outside the
project file but is linked to the central (host) file. If changes occur in the module file, the host file is
updated to show these changes. But unlike a reference file, the elements of the hotlinked
modules are actually placed as elements into the host file, so if the external data is not available
(file is missing), the information is still not lost.
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Lets add windows first. Open the Window Settings dialog. Select the Storefront Window 18
window from the Storefronts 18 folder. Change the settings as follows:
Width: 1500
Height: 2600
Reveal to Wall Face: 0 (change from Wall Core by pressing the arrow button)
Anchor: Side 1
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Click OK.
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Click the intersection point of the guide line and the wall exterior side. Click inside to define
opening direction.
Place a window to the opposite side of the wall as well. Use Side 2 anchor point now and type
x300+ when defining the distance from the new guide line. (You can also mirror a copy of the
previously created window.)
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As the final step, well place a window in the stairwell. Lets go back to the floor plan. Open the
Window Settings dialog box. Modify the Anchor Point to Side 2.
We are going to place the window flush aligned with the right side of the left vertical wall.
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After the project opens, the changes we made to the module file are clearly visible.
The real advantage of this technology is that you can create multiple instances of even very
complex modules with just one click. Furthermore, any changes in the source module files are
instantly updated in all placed instances. Lets complete the stairway now and place the
previously created module on all stories.
Select any element of the module, all module elements are selected at once. Choose Edit/Move/
Multiply from the menu. On the Multiply dialog choose Elevate. Set Number of copies to 19,
Vertical displacement to 3700, method to Increment. Dont forget to check Set Home Story by
Elevation checkbox and press OK.
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Lets go back now to the 5. Story. We are going to open the tower walls to join them with the
central part of the building. In order to join the spaces of the module and the tower, we have to
remove some parts of the wall. We will use the Split command. This command basically shortens
the existing element and creates a new one on the other side of the splitting plane. This will also
have an effect on the curtain wall connections, because the newly created wall will not have any
automatic connections, while the existing wall will no longer need both side connections.
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Define a split line by two points below the horizontal wall and click with the eye cursor upwards
to keep that part selected after splitting the wall.
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Repeat the same with the other towers wall. Be careful, the wall reference line direction is the
opposite on the other side, so we have to delete the bottom curtain wall connection.
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Lets now save the project file and return to the module file for further modifications.
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Staircase
Lets continue the project by creating the stairs. These elements in ArchiCAD are handled as
library objects. You can either use prefabricated GDL objects from the ArchiCAD library or create
new custom stairs with the StairMaker tool. This time we will use an existing object from the
library.
Double-click the Stair tool in the Toolbox. The Stair Default Settings dialog box opens.
We can choose from several highly parametric prefabricated stair objects. This time well place a
new U-shape stair. Choose Stair U-Shape 18 from the Complete Stairs 18 folder.
Define parameters of the stairs:
Height: 3700
In the Railing Type - Right section choose Wired, leave Railing Left as Same as Right.
Set Show on Stories to Home & One Story Up and Tags and Categories: Load-Bearing Element.
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Partition Walls
The staircase also incorporates the toilet blocks of each story, now we are going to create its
partitions.
Lets return to the floor plan to add some partition walls. Open the Wall Default Settings dialog
box and set:
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Click OK.
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The connection of the composite walls is incorrect. The connection of construction elements and
composites in all model views are determined by the intersection priority settings of Building
Materials. When Building Materials with unequal priorities intersect, the element with higher
priority will remain intact in 3D and will be in front in 2D.
The element of lower priority will be cut and the intersected part will be removed.
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One option is to lower the priority of the Brick - Structural material. Scrolling down the list
however, we can see that the Brick building material has a lower priority (540), which means that
we can replace the material in the partition wall composite without touching the priorities.
Close the dialog.
Select the partition wall, right-click and choose Edit Selected Composite... in the context menu.
In the list of skins click Brick - Structural and choose Brick from the pop-up list.
Repeat the same with another composite as well: Brick Single Plastered.
Important: We have to modify the Composite Structure in the main file too, so the
walls would appear correctly. Next time when you open the host file repeat the
same changes.
Create a horizontal wall with same settings as before, 2070 mm away from the upper side of the
structural concrete wall in the middle.
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When done, use Drag a Copy and create a new wall by 2858 mms above. Change its composite
to Stud Partition after positioning.
We would like to close the right side of the passage with a vertical wall. This wall will have the
same length as the structural concrete wall in the middle, but positioned on the right side of the
layout.
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Doors
Doors are part of the extensive ArchiCAD Object library. There are several fully parametric doors
to choose from or modify freely in the default library and of course you can download or create
new ones if required. Let's place a few doors in the central block of the building.
Double-click on the Door tool in the Toolbox to open the Settings dialog.
In the Library, select the Door 18 object by entering door in the search field on the top left.
Anchor: Center
Sill to Wall base: 150 (change vertical anchor by the arrow button)
Browse the settings for frames, leaves, tresholds, etc. and use your preferred settings.
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The next step determines the opening direction of the door, click the top right quarter. The door
will be placed accordingly.
Use the same method to insert another door in the concrete wall. We can either create a Guide
Line or move a door horizontally to make sure the doors are vertically aligned.
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Note: The Skip Nested Modules checkbox allows you not to display the modules
nested (if there are any) into the hotlink you are about to choose.
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The module is placed immediately, click outside the bounding box to finalize its position. Check
the 3D. We can see that the elevation of the fixtures is the same as the concrete walls in the
middle which is incorrect since we have a 150 mm high flooring on top of the structural skin of
the slab in the main ArchiCAD file.
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The module will be updated but we can see that the composite modifications still have to be
carried out to achieve the same result as in the module file.
Open Options/Element Attributes/Composites... and change the Brick - Structural skin to
Brick for Brick Double Plastered and Brick Single Plastered composites.
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Repeat the same setting with the door as well and save the module file.
Go back to the 0. Ground floor of the main file. Open File/External Content/Hotlink
Manager....
All modules are present in the dialog, the top part lists the actual modules that are present in the
project, while the bottom part shows the sources of the modules. We can see that the Fixtures_1
module is part of the Staircase module.
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Open the 0. Ground floor again and choose 1. Story to be traced. We will place some elevators.
Activate the Object tool and open its settings.
Type elevator into the search field and choose Elevator 18 when shown.
Rotation Angle: 90
go back to the Preview and Positioning panel and change size to 1800/2900
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Click OK and place two elevators into the corner of the middle part of the staircase.
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Deselect the slab and open the 3D, now all elements are visible.
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Choose Subtract from Polygon again and draw a rectangle around the holes on the bottom slab
by using the Magic Wand (keep Space key pressed). Click the edge of the reference plane
through the holes of the bottom slab.
The subtraction will be projected to the slabs that are still selected and the command will be
carried out on all of them in one step. Repeat with the other two holes and orbit the model to
check the result. Always make sure that all slabs are selected during the action.
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Deselect the slabs, show all in 3D and close the Find & Select palette.
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As a final step, select the topmost slab and change its composite to @200 RFC Slab_150
Tile.fl_Roof.
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Shell
We would like to create a nice restaurant on the 21. Story. The roof of the restaurant will be a
ruled geometry element, which we create with the Shell tool. The Shell in ArchiCAD is a real
building element with a wide range of creative uses. We can use it to model elements ranging
from the entire exterior of a building to a single custom object.
In the first step we are going to place a curtain wall from a module file. Apply File/External
Content/Place Hotlinked Module.... Choose New Hotlink... and browse for Curtain
Wall_Shell_ROOF.mod, set Elevation to 205 and paste it to Original location. Check the pasted
module in 3D.
The inserted module contains the curtain wall envelope of the restaurant and the 2D outlines
that will help us to create the roof shell.
Creating a ruled shell needs editing planes for its profiles, now we will provide them temporarily
by placing a bounding geometry around the desired shell on the 21. Story floor plan. Open the
Wall tool settings and set:
Thickness: 0
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Open 3D, select the two walls and show selection only in 3D.
Change the overrides to @Concrete - Formwork and set Load-Bearing Element structural
function.
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To create the first profile of the shell we will draw a rising line from the bottom corner on the left
to the upper corner on the right.
Click the bottom corner, then double-click the top corner to finish creating the first profile.
Now define the Profile Plane of the second profile: click the other transparent wall.
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Change their layers to Hidden in the Info Box to make them disappear.
Now we will curve the profiles of the shell in the context of the building. Click on the edge and
activate the Curve edge icon from the Pet palette. Move the cursor upwards and click when the
arc is acceptable (do not go below 350 000 with the Arc Radius value). Repeat this editing with
the other profile.
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Finally, we are going to trim the curtain wall with the shell. Since the top floor elements are part
of a hotlinked module, editing them is not possible at the moment, so lets merge them into the
project. Go back to the 21. Story, select the curtain wall module and choose Hotlink Manager...
from the context-menu.
Select the Curtain Wall_Shell_ROOF Hotlinked Module and click Break Hotlink.
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It should be noted that elements trimmed to each other are associative: modifying one element
will immediately affect the connected element.
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Go back to 21. Story and ungroup the curtain walls by selecting them and using the Edit/
Grouping/Ungroup command.
Activate the Section tool and draw a section marker through the red hotspots near the curtain
wall on the left and face them towards the interior. We will use this section and create new ones
as well temporarily for editing the curtain wall boundaries.
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With the fill still selected apply Design/Modify Curtain Wall/Boundary Editing in Section/
Redefine Boundary from Fill. The fill disappears, now click on a horizontal curtain wall frame to
finish boundary editing.
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Profiled Elements
Wed like to place an attic wall around the top slab.
Double-click on the 21.Story in the Navigator palette and open the Wall Settings dialog. Leave
Wall Top as Not Linked and modify the height to 1200 mm, change Bottom Offset to 0 and
change the Composite to @200 Block_Ins_Air_Alu.sheet. Set the reference line position to Core
Outside. Choose @Metal - Aluminium_Panels Surface Overrides.
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Repeat the same with the other tower, draw counter-clockwise again.
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Select the attic wall in the 3D window. Activate Design/Complex Profiles/Capture Profile of
Selection from the menu, the Profile Manager and Profile Editor will open.
We can edit our profile in the Profile Editor window. We want a zinc cap on this wall. The list of
profiles already contains a zinc cap that we could add on top of our existing wall, but we want the
whole structure to be handled as one element. We can either draw the zinc cap, or copy it from
the cap profile. Lets do the latter one.
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Select the fills in the Profile Editor and copy them (Ctrl/Cmd+C). Select the Custom profile from
the list again and paste the zinc cap fills by Ctrl/Cmd+V.
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We can also override fill settings concerning surface materials on the Components Default
panel and choose whether we want the surfaces generated from the building materials or from
an overriding surface. Select the concrete block fill and choose Uniform, @Concrete - Generic.
When finished, click on the Store Profile button and name it @Attic wall in the appearing dialog.
We are going to use this particular profile with walls only. Close Profile Manager and Profile
Editor now.
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Now lets cover the walltops of the staircase. Open Wall Settings dialog and apply Custom
Profiles again with @Zinc flashing, 0 Bottom Offset to 21. Story and as Non-Load-Bearing
Element.
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Orbit to the other side and create the other flashing as well.
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Select CFCHS273.0X12.5 profile in the list and click on Add Profile to the Project >>. The
selected structures now appear in the list to the right. Click Import. The profile is now available
for use in our ArchiCAD project.
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Morph
Next, we will create steel cables running from the top of the column to the edge of the roof. Open
the 3D window. Activate the Morph tool.
The Morph tool is a versatile modeling solution in ArchiCAD, allowing you to create complex solid
shapes, surfaces or even 3D lines. We will use a Morph to model the steel cables.
Choose the Structural - Bearing layer and the Polygonal geometry method with @Steel Stainless building material and Load-Bearing Element in the Info Box. Using this method, we
can create 3D lines.
Click on the center of the column and draw the cable to the corner of the shell. Double-click to
finish drawing.
Further cables should be placed 4000 mm in between each, starting from the corner.
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Place 4 cables on both edges of the shell. The result will be similar to the image below:
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The last modeling exercise will be to create a gate. This example illustrates the many possible
uses of the Morph tool.
Open 0. Ground Floor.
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Select the Morph and click on any edge and activate the Tube icon from the Pet palette. Pull the
rectangle upwards.
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We will also fillet the corners and edges of the morph in the 3D window. Select the entire morph
and choose the Fillet/Chamfer icon in the Toolbar.
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Chapter 5 Documentation
In this lesson, well create views for the documentation of our project. Well get to know the Zone
and dimensioning tools of ArchiCAD. To make the documentation more interesting and
meaningful, well also visualize the building in different ways.
Lets open the Office building_5.pln file from the ArchiCAD_Training_Series_4\Demo
files\Startup files folder or continue the project that you completed in Chapter 4.
Zones
Before we create the zones in the main file, lets briefly examine the possibilities. Select Options/
Element Attributes/Zone Categories... from the menu. The Zone Categories dialog box opens.
Click on the upper button to view the list of available zone categories.
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Zones in ArchiCAD are basically rooms or spaces that may be grouped according to their usage.
Usage types are called Zone Categories. To modify default zone color, click the color window and
select from color palette.
We have a Communication & Access category that will be used for the stairwell.
For the toilets well create a category called Sanitary. Click on the New... button. In the upcoming
dialog box, enter 10 as category code and Sanitary as the category name. Click on OK.
Define the color of the Sanitary category by double-clicking on the color field. Choose a light
blue color.Then change the color of the Communication & Access category to gray and Office
to some light orange.
A Zone Stamp object can be assigned to every category. The stamp shows the necessary
information about the zone, depending on the parameters defined in the bottom part of the
Zone Categories dialog.
Click OK.
Go to 1. Story and open the Zone Default Settings dialog by double-clicking on the Zone tool
in the Toolbox.
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Select the Communication & Access zone category. Enter Staircase as the Zone name, type 101
to the Number and choose Manual geometry method. Set 150 as Subfloor thickness and -200
Top offset. Link zone top to 2. Story (Home + 1).
We can define the format and visibility of the text of the Zone Stamp. We can also change the
order of the parameters.
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Zone Stamp panel:
Representation: check Show Zone Name, Show Zone No., Show Floor Finish, Show
Measured Area
Click OK.
Select the Rectangular option for Manual construction method in the Info Box.
Click on two opposite corners of the staircase. Once the rectangle is ready, the cursor changes to
the familiar hammer. Click to place the zone stamp.
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For the next zone modify the name to Corridor in the Info Box. The number will be changed
automatically. Create the next zones by clicking on the room corners. Use PolyLine construction
method. Create the zone for the kitchen by clicking over the internal perimeter of the room as
shown below and enter Passage/Kitchen as the name for the zone.
We will use the Automatic recognition method to create the following zones.
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In the Info Box, select the Inner Edge construction method, the Sanitary category and change
the name to Restroom. Double-click inside the room. The zone boundary is recognized instantly
(similar to the Magic Wand function with the slabs). Place the stamp somewhere in the middle.
Modify the name to Toilet and place the other zone stamp.
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Select all zones and activate Cover fills in the Info Box. Select Grid 30x30 and 102 for
Foreground Pen color.
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Dimensions
In ArchiCAD we have the choice of either placing dimension lines one by one or letting
Automatic Dimensioning do the job. In order to be more productive with the documentation,
lets use the latter one.
Select all the elements by pressing Ctrl/Cmd+A. Open Dimension Settings and change Witness
Line to Sized Height.
Click OK.
At the bottom of the screen, the status bar tells us what to do next.
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Click on any horizontal or vertical element (e.g. on a slab edge). The point is to define an angle
parallel to the main building directions.
Click to place the dimension lines outside the perimeter of the building when the cursor changes
to a hammer.
Dimension lines are placed instantly on all four sides of the building.
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With all elements selected now choose Interior Dimensioning... from the Automatic Dimension
menu as before. Check Dimension Each Skin and click OK.
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Now you only have to draw a polyline, which will turn into a dimension line. Draw a line
longitudinally through the doors and double-click to finish it and place with the checkmark cursor.
Dimensions in ArchiCAD are associative, meaning they are tied to the elements they refer to, so if
the element is moved or changed, dimensions follow these changes automatically.
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As mentioned earlier, dimension lines can also be placed individually, but instead of that, lets use
automatic dimensioning in another way. Open the S-01 Building Section.
Open Dimension Tool Settings, change to Elevation Dimension Type and modify Marker size to
2 mm.
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Select all slabs in the section and run Automatic Dimensioning. Check all checkboxes and place
the dimension line.
The cursor changes to a hammer. Simply click anywhere to place the dimension line.
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Labels
Labels are optional text blocks or symbols linked to construction elements and 2D fills, allowing
you to identify or comment elements or parts of your design.
Labels can contain custom text specification, predefined automatic texts or a symbol.
There are three kinds of labels:
Associative labels can be added to placed elements or assigned automatically when the
element is created. Typically, you will use associative labels to identify model elements and
their parameters.
Member labels can be added in Section/Elevation windows only to any individual Curtain
Wall member.
Labels can be placed individually or we can also automatize their placement by elements. We will
place them manually first.
Go back to 1. Story and activate the Label tool. The label type can be chosen in the Info Box, by
default Independent label is set with Text content.
Lets open the Label Settings. In the Content and Preview panel you can see all types of labels.
Selecting each of them, the defaults can be set for all different types. We want to label the wall
structures, beams and slabs.
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Select Wall Tool in the Content and Preview panel and change content to Structure Label 18.
Unfold the Structure Label Settings. Check Flip Label and Mirror Label and uncheck Marker
Head.
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Now select Beam Tool and change to Dimension Label 18.
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Select Slab Tool label as well, set Structure Label 18, Font Size to 2,00, check Reverse Skin
Order and uncheck Marker Head in the Structure Label Settings panel.
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Click OK to close the settings dialog and choose Associative label type in the Info Box.
Click on the two vertical external walls, the labels will be placed automatically with the skin list of
the composites.
Now click some of the beams, the associated type of labels will appear.
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Lets automatize labeling now. Open S-01 Building Section. Select the roof terrace slab, the
bottom slabs of the ground floor and the first floor slab. Hit Ctrl/Cmd-T to open their settings.
On the Listing and Labeling panel check Label Slab.
Click OK, labels will appear automatically. Select them individually while the Label tool is active
and arrange them.
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Interactive Schedules
Its time now to see what building components the project is made of. One of the major benefits
of the BIM technology that we can derive quantity take-offs, schedules and element lists at any
time.
Double-click on the Door List in the Schedules/Element section of the Project Map.
Instantly we see a list of all the door elements used in the building, according to type, size and
orientation. We can adjust the height/width of the last column in the schedule by double-clicking
on the small handle on the rulers.
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Click the Scheme Settings button and add Height and Width Window/Door parameters in
the Fields/Door list panel. Move them in front of 2D Symbol by dragging them by the small
arrows on the left side before the 2D Symbol item.
In the Fields panel, we define which information from the selected elements should be listed.
There is a general set of attributes (layer, height, story, quantity, surface area, volume, etc.) that
can be associated with any element. Also there is an element-specific (here door-specific) set of
attributes (like orientation, thickness, etc.). Attributes that can be modified in the Interactive
Schedule are shown in blue. Already selected attributes are grayed.
Click OK.
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Select the Double Door with 2 Sidelights, Transom 18 door in the schedule. Since we are
working on a live, editable BIM model, we can even modify certain elements from the Interactive
Schedule lists. However, since all doors are now part of Hotlinked Modules, they are locked.
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To make the doors editable, lets return to a floor plan view, open Hotlink Manager and use
Break Hotlink for the storefront module placed on the ground floor.
Now the schedule fields of the entrance door are editable again. Change the width of the
selected element to 5200 mm and height to 4000 mm.
Use the icon in the upper panel of the schedule to select particular elements of the schedule on
the floor plan as well.
This way, the Interactive schedules are not merely lists of elements and their parameters, but real
interactive model views where all changes are reflected in the other views.
In most cases, it makes more sense to make modifications in floor plan or section or 3D views, but
in some cases (especially if the changes of some parameters are tied to other parameters) its
easier to find and change elements in a schedule view than trying to locate them on a floor plan.
Return to the schedule and re-set the original width and height values of the selected door
(4650/5500). Lets see what else we can list. Click Scheme Settings....
In the upper panel, we can select which schedule we would like to edit. (Later, we will create new
schedules as well.) Select the current Door List and return to the Field/Door List panel.
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By clicking the arrow button beside the Add command and selecting the Add Object
Parameters menu item, we can select any library part in the loaded libraries and then select any
of their parameters to be available (even down to the material of the handle).
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We can add and remove schedule fields. Select the Nominal W x H size field and click the
Remove button. Attributes can be added simply by drag-and-dropping them from the list into
the schedule fields as well. Add ID from the General parameter set. Move it to the first field.
Click OK.
We are going to add dimensions to the preview picture in Schedule. Select the preview of the
Double Door with 2 Sidelights, Transom 18 door, then click on the Annotate button.
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The Element Preview opens in a separate window. We can use 2D tools to annotate, such as
dimension, label and text. Activate the Dimension tool and use Linear dimensioning. Click on
the points of the opening and the points of the door leaf. Place the dimension line by doubleclicking, then click with the hammer cursor.
Click OK in the window menu of the drawing to close this window and apply the annotations to
the selected preview.
Now lets create a completely new schedule for the amount of concrete. We would like to find out
how much concrete we need on the different floors for each type of structure.
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Open the Scheme Settings dialog again and click on the Create New... button. Choose
Components in the Items list and name the schedule as Concrete. Click OK. The new schedule
appears in the list of available schedules.
In the Criteria panel change Wall to All Types. Add Building Material as Criteria with an and
condition and select @Concrete - Reinforced as Value. Add the three other concrete types as
well the same way, but with or condition.
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In the Fields panel add:
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Note: If a parameter is not available for listing choose Add Object Parameters from
the list of the Add button below. This makes it possible to search for specific elements
of the library and add their own object parameters to the schedules. The same way, IFC
properties can also be included.
Check the flag for Name and sum for Composite Skin/Component Volume. The flag sets the
summary by Building Material (the different types of concretes).
Click OK to see the schedule. Set proper cell widths and heights.
Lets add some formatting to the schedule.
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First, check Merge Uniform Items and Show Headline. Select Entire Schedule in the Apply
Format Options list and select No borders.
Select Total, change Row Height to 8,00, Font Size to 4,00 and change color to pen 20.
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Change to Headline, choose Separators only and set Row Height of 9,00.
Select Grand Total as well, and set the same as for the Headline.
Rename the top headers to Composite and Volume.
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As a result we have a well organized list of the quantities of each type of concrete, the composite
it belongs to and the story where it should be transported to.
To demonstrate the true power of BIM in ArchiCAD, lets scroll down to the end of the list to see
the grand total value.
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Thanks to the uniquely handled Building Material Priorities and the automatic Priority-Based
Connections on all details of the model, ArchiCAD is ahead of its competitors regarding speed of
the workflows, efficiency and precision. But how much is the extra precision we gained?
For a moment, let's disable priorities and automatic junctions and turn our project back to what
other BIM softwares can provide. Open Options/Project Preferences/Legacy.... Check the Use
legacy intersection and Surface methods for model elements checkbox and click OK.
The project will be reverted to a state where there are no automatic junctions created and the
schedules will also be updated - this process takes a few seconds.
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Once the results are displayed we can clearly see the increment - the amount we have reduced
the quantities with by appr. 3% just by choosing the right software. This saving equals with more
than 30 large concrete mixer trucks.
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Chapter 6 - Visualization
Chapter 6 - Visualization
Lets open the Office building_6.pln file from the ArchiCAD_Training_Series_4\Demo
files\Startup files folder or continue the project that you completed in Chapter 5.
Adding Environment
Before creating the renderings quickly lets add the environment to our building. Since this phase
is the construction documentation the terrain has already been used in the early phases when
the building was designed. To avoid a floating building in our visualizations however, we can
import the terrain from surveyors data.
Go to 0. Ground Floor and select Design/Place Mesh from Surveyors Data.... Browse the
Surveyors_Data.txt file. This file contains coordinates of surveyed spots of the terrain only,
which is a widely used standard. Select the file and click Open, choose Original location
placement and click OK.
The Mesh is placed immediately. Open its settings and turn off its Cover Fills in the Floor Plan
and Section panel.
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Later we can decide whether we want to include the terrain in the documentation as well or not.
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Cameras
Weve already explored axonometric and perspective representations of the building in the 3D
window. These views are created with OpenGL technology, capable of showing simple textures,
vectorial cast shadows of the sun and making transparent objects disappear.
If we want to see a more realistic view of the building with ray-traced transparency and
reflectance effects or soft shadows or perhaps show the project as a hand-made sketch, well
have to create these images separately using the built-in CineRender engine of ArchiCAD.
Go back to the floor plan 1. Story. Lets double-click on the Camera tool in the Toolbox to open
the Camera Settings palette.
Were going to view the building from the ground, so the camera stays at the 1700 eye-level. Set
the height of the target point to 45000. Click Apply.
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We need two clicks to place the Camera on the floor plan. First we place the camera itself, then
the target point. Close the Camera Settings palette.
As soon as the camera is placed, a new model view is created in the Project Map under 3D/00
Untitled Path.
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Double-click on the Camera 1 to get to that view.
It seems we are too close. One way to fix this is to go back to the floor plan
and move the camera (Move sub-element command on the Pet palette)
or the target point. Sun direction can also be changed by clicking on the
Sun object of the camera and moving it.
Try changing the View Cone angle in the Camera Settings, so that the building fits into the 3D
window.
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Another convenient solution is to Orbit and Explore in 3D view. When the perfect position and
view is found, right-click on the Camera 1 view in the Project Map and select Modify this
Camera to Current view from the context menu. This will overwrite the settings of the camera.
Note: Cameras save the view of 3D window. If the camera position is changed on
the floor plan, modifications are automatically stored. Changing the position of the
camera in the 3D window requires the Modify this Camera to Current view
command to overwrite previously saved camera position settings.
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Right-click in the 3D window and open 3D Window Settings.... Turn off contours and click OK.
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These 3D window settings are not stored with the camera as they are not position related, only in
the Views (created in the Navigator - View Map).
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Rendering Settings
Select Document/Creative Imaging/PhotoRendering Settings from the menu.
Select the CineRender by MAXON engine at the top. This engine will provide the most photorealistic results. Change to the size tab and specify 640 x 480 Screen resolution.
Go back to Settings and make sure Outdoor Daylight Medium scene is selected, uncheck
Detailed Settings checkbox if it was checked and set HDRI Sky and select Overcast GS.hdr
using the image browser (Libraries/ArchiCAD 18/HDRI Images 18/HighRes Luminance). Note
that the rendering scene changed to Custom.
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Hit Render.
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Create Fly-Through
Now go to 0. Ground Floor and place a second camera to the opposite side of the building.
Together with the first camera they make up a Path. The handles on both sides of the cameras can
be moved to change the path shape.
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Right-click on the path in the Navigator and choose Path.... Select Everything at Display
Options and set In-between frames to 100 below Motion Resolution settings.
Click OK, the floor plan shows now all frames and their orientation. Now select the cameras oneby-one and use the handles to create a path around the building.
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Open Camera 2 in the Navigator and move the view so you can see the roof terrace. Save the
camera position with Modify this Camera to Current view.
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Return to the rendering settings. Check Detailed Settings and go to Environment/HDRI Sky/
Rotation. Set Rotate Around X Axis to -20 degrees.
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Thanks to the smart Cloning Folders feature, all the stories, sections and elevations that we
created since the beginning of the project have been cloned automatically into the View Map
folders (except in folders where views were placed manually, like the Schematic Design folder).
Clicking around however we can see that all these views have the exact same settings - the
defaults of ArchiCAD. The Properties panel of the Navigator shows that they have the 02 Drafting
layer combination and the 03 Building Plans model view options selected in a 1:100 scale.
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Now select the Stories, Sections and Elevations folders of the Design Development folder and
open the Settings. Change Layer Combination to 04 Plans - Approval and Zooming as earlier
and leave other settings unchanged.
Clicking around the floor plans we can see that the plans have different zoom factors everytime
they open and fit in the actual window. Lets open 1. Story since this contains most of the
information we added.
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Quickly browse through the View Map in the Navigator to see how the document views are
different from the model views weve been using up to now. The easiest way to compare the
views is to open the 1. Story floor plan in each folder.
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We have successfully created many different views of the same model, this way ensuring that all
content is kept within one project file. Using a properly set template has made the creation
process very fast and effective.
Now that the model and the schedules are completed, its time to think about how to put the
drawings on paper. Weve already created floor plans, sections, elevations and detail documents,
now lets add the schedule model views. Open the Organizer and show the Project Map on one
side, the View Map on the other.
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Close the Organizer. Now that our model and view sets are finished, let's hand over the model to
our documentation team to create the layout book and make our project ready for publishing.
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they can continue assembling the layout book within the same project file, or
in case of large projects they might want to separate the model from the documentation.
The latter is an advantageous choice in case of projects that have hundreds of layouts in the
Layout Book, since layouts can significantly increase the file size and memory usage, slow down
the computer and eventually effect productivity. Our project is not that large, but for the sake of
this training lets continue with this second option.
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All modified views of the set are saved as IFC files after clicking the Publish button at the bottom.
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Now it is time to separate the model and the documentation by creating the Layout Book in a
dedicated documentation file.
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Locate the previously saved file and click Open. The linked content opens automatically with the
View Map activated.
Note: Browsing the model file from the Navigator will not appear in the Organizer
automatically and has to be browsed independently.
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Now that the structure is ready for importing the views, lets drag the following views into the
Layout Book (from/to the corresponding folders). Note that while generating the drawings in the
new file, the model file opens in another instance of ArchiCAD prompting about the export
process with a palette.
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1. Story
Design Development:
Construction Documents:
STRUCTURAL:
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Select the A0 Portrait master layout and drop it on the ARCHITECTURAL and STRUCTURAL
folders. This way all sections and elevations will fit.
Now select A0 Landscape and drop it on folders that contain stories:
AA_DD_100_A0 Stories
AA_CD_100_A0 Stories
ST_100_A0 Stories
Check the result by clicking the layouts, the actual master layout is displayed in the Properties
panel.
Open the AA_CD_100_A0.2 1.Story layout. This drawing still does not fit, so lets change its
scale. Selecting the actual view in the View Map however we can see that its settings are disabled.
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Any model- or view-related task can be made in the model file only, so lets change to the other
ArchiCAD that opened during the drawing export and open the linked file there.
Change to the View Map and select the Stories, Sections and Elevations of the Construction
Documents views and open their settings.
Change scale to 1:100, click OK and save the file with File/Save.
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Lets change to the 1. Story of Design Development and arrange it similarly. We will add
external drawings to this layout.
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To monitor the status of all drawings (internal, linked and external) open the Drawing Manager
by using the Project Chooser.
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Select the Layout Book on the left side and Publisher on the right side. Use the arrow on the
right to go one level up and see all existing publisher sets.
Data can be published in several ways from the Publisher. By clicking on the Publishing
Properties button, we can select one in the upcoming dialog.
We either print, plot documents, save files (to our hard disk or to a computer we are connected
to) or upload a BIMx Hyper-model.
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Browsing through the publisher sets we can see that we do not have to define which documents
to publish, only their format thanks to our template. Currently all sets have PDF set as a default.
Open the Contractor publisher set.
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This way, whenever the model changes the updated documentation sets can be published with a
single click to all project participants in their preset file formats.
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