We'll repeat the process for the last intersection with Alley 3 and Alley 4. Notice that because of the transitioning geometry at the northwest curb return, the pavement edge is setback beyond the 10' lane width value we have been using. This is not a problem because instead of configuring... Continue reading

We're defining each alley using the intersection tool. Before using the intersection tool, an assembly set needs to be created. I determined that the following set of assemblies would serve my purpose for Alley 1 and probably the remaining intersections as well. My reasons should become clear as we work... Continue reading

In this example, you could create the entire roadway network in one corridor. Since there are so many baselines in the Road A corridor, the rebuild isn't instant. Creating each alley in isolated corridors will allow us to save time on rebuilds. Plus since the entire pavement area was done... Continue reading

To add the curb and gutter from Road A, we create baselines along each section of curb and configure assemblies containing the curb subassembly only. Since one side of the road is catching, the other side is spilling, and header curbs are being used in various locations, the following assemblies... Continue reading

In this example, we need to maintain the planar 3% cross slope but extend the pavement into the parking areas while respecting the curb returns. With the Feature Line from Objects command, the edge of pavement for the corridor can be extracted from the preliminary drawing and joined at the... Continue reading

In this example, we have a main road called Road A and five alleys called Alley 1, Alley 2, Alley 3, Alley 4, and Alley 5. The centerline alignments and profiles have been created for these roads. The edge of pavement meanders along Road A because of the parking areas.... Continue reading

Corridors are 3-dimensional models based on: Alignments Profiles Assemblies (typical cross sectional template) Corridors are composed of Baselines (alignments and their associated profile) Regions (segments along an alignment where an assembly is assigned. A corridor can contain more than one baseline. A baseline can contain more than one region. Assemblies... Continue reading

Townhouse corridors are complex. Parking stalls, odd transitions, and even intersections are difficult to model with a typical section. With planning, perseverance, and a complete understanding of corridors, near perfect contours can be created in a short amount of time. This workflow will be divided into the following posts: The... Continue reading

At Autodesk University, a parallel event was held called the Leadership Forum. This took place on Monday, November 28, and my contribution was facilitating a round table discussion on the successful marriage of IT and BIM. Below are the class discussion points with a summary of the ideas exchanged. 1.... Continue reading

Although this is a known issue that has been around for ages, I still find people who are experiencing this. Therefore, I'm posting the solution here. This is actually an odd issue caused by creating associative hatch patterns that use the linework in external references as part of the boundary... Continue reading

Grading groups are a quick and easy way of placing sloped surfaces in your terrain model. Unfortunately, there are people out there who believe that they are the work of the devil. The purpose of this post is to provide you with a few best practices when working with these... Continue reading

If you are a CAD Manager, your goals and objectives have drastically changed from what they would have been in the past. Ten or so years ago, the CAD Manager: Might have doubled as the IT Manager Might have worked for the IT Manager Might have worked simultaneously in production... Continue reading

In recent years, the cloud has become a preferred venue for training. The benefits are: No travel Flexible schedule No software required Only one workstation spec requirement - Internet Cloud-based training has you log into a training portal and either interact live with an instructor or watch training video. With... Continue reading

One Land Desktop convenience missed by my users is the ability to grip-edit contours for minor cosmetic edits. What I'm about to post isn't a new or original concept. It's a trick us veteran Civil 3D-ers have been using for a while. For some reason, I can't find anyone who... Continue reading

I was recently contacted about an issue involving the execution of a Traverse Analysis. The gentleman was experiencing fatal errors while trying to set it up. His surveyor provided him field book notes. Here is the traverse: BS OC FS ANGLE DISTANCE 100 241 154 89.3337 298.800 241 154 155... Continue reading

In the good ol' days, before data collectors were in wide spread use, we used to get our existing topo on paper. We'd have to throw it over a big ol' digitizing board and trace it with a puck. This was referred to as digitizing which was a very time... Continue reading

I've been reading the Mastering Civil 3D 2012 book by Richard Graham & Louisa Holland. Although I haven't read it from cover to cover, I started from the beginning, skimmed through to specific sections within each chapter, and read those sections then skimmed again; I even tried out some exercises.... Continue reading

Quite often when surveyors collect points, two shots are collected at a vertical face to describe the top and bottom elevations. One way to deal is to take the two point labels, grip them, and move them in place one on top of the other. Another way to do it... Continue reading

The purpose of this post is to document two features of leaders in Civil 3D labels that are pretty nifty. These features have been present in a few releases so if you are still working on 2010, these are available. Change Leader Attachment Side We used to create duplicate label... Continue reading

The Create Intersection command is a very handy tool accomplishing 10 mind numbing tasks in a matter of seconds. However, after this command does its magic, you are not necessarily finished. You may want to put a low point along your curb return to accommodate a basin. If that's the... Continue reading

There are two very important import eccentricities in particular that need to be mentioned. They are not show stoppers but are essential to be aware of: Storm Sewers Migration Defaults (Pipe Networks-Feature Settings) The following is not an eccentricity but a must do: Do select your Part List Used for... Continue reading

Why should you grade with Civil 3D? Because there is a tremendous chance for disconnect between the eyeball, the scale, the calculator, the pencil, the paper, what the CAD person perceives he is looking at, the typing of text, the manual creation of the profile, the manual rendering of contours... Continue reading