Civil Training on the Web

Quicker Civil 3D Corridors with Contextual Tools

8/20/2019

Autodesk's Jeff Bartels demos how to employ some of the many Corridor contextual modeling tools in recent versions of Civil 3D to build an intersection.
From the Jeff Bartels YouTube Channel.
and the Civil Immersion blog.

Comments

Ok Jeff. The Intersection wizard might have been quicker in this case but intersection mechanics is not the topic of the video.
Jeff's real point is, of course, the Corridor, Baseline, and Region tools in the Ribbon and the Right Click menus. Great stuff.
The main Corridors edit and construction box is probably used more in much older courseware because the Civil 3D interface and tools change more in little but important ways. These tools have improved significantly since the 2018 release.
Did Jeff use Connected Alignments to create the Curb Return geometry control. It is easy to tell, isn't it?
We do have to regularly question and challenge our habits and workflows to make better use of the software tools.

Surface Smithing in Civil 3D

8/13/2019

Frank Diemert, a Technical Specialist at ATG, explains a basic workflow for Volume calculation with Volume Dashboard Tool from combined multiple surfaces in Civil 3D.
From the ATG YouTube Channel.

Comments

You can construct the differential volume surface(s) before you open and use the Volume Dashboard Tool. That has some workflow benefits Frank does not cover here.
Frank's tip about the use of LandXML files to help you manage the Civil 3D dynamic model interaction here is as important as he states, but maybe not that obvious when the surfaces are not large.
Sometimes is helps to keep the new design surfaces in separate XML files as those specific design surfaces usually change. The data Imports, Surfaces, and Reports can be refreshed after the files are updated.
In other words, you can build a standard placeholder drawing(s) for basic volume calculation into your Civil 3D Project Template to optimize user time spent and the namining conventions. Placeholer Surface drawings and empty XML files work.

See the videos on the Civil 3D Projects and Setup page
The Framework for Civil 3D includes Style collections of themed Surface styles for both contours and points and triangles and Surface representations. This video demonstrates the need.

Convert a Plant 3D Pipe Catalog to Civil 3D

8/12/2019

Craig Batchelor, a Senior Application Expert for IMAGINiT, shows how to to leverage Plant 3D Catalogs to build pressure pipe content in Civil 3D. Visit the IMAGINiT YouTube page

Comments

The methodology and workflow to convert Plant 3D database catalog data over into a viable Civil 3D is worth knowing.
Craig does an HDPE Pressure Pipe one from a free Autodesk downloadable catalog in this example.

This may or may not be more inclusive than the HDPE PP catalog available with Civil 3D which depends on the age of your install.

Your more practical Civil 3D Parts List will be produced by thinning down after some testing as Craig demonstrates.

You might want to use headphones to hear this video clearly. It is a pretty quiet recording.
You do need an AEC Collection license and/or access to the Plant 3D Spec Editor that is employed in the process.