B7 - Maita

I, initially, enrolled into AE 410 because it was a professional elective that fit my schedule and seemed to be interesting and somewhat relevant to my major. After ten weeks, this course has been a lot more than I thought it was going to be. It was a course that was sort of based on getting out of it what you put into it. Professor Mitchell presented the class with a lot of information on the topics covered and at some times that information was overwhelming. But it was presented in a way where it could be easily understood and used in the in-class assignments. Although we covered some topics that I thought I was familiar with (Revit, BIM, etc.) other topics like databases and even some aspects of Revit and CAD, like Dynamo, that I had no idea existed. One aspect of the class that I really enjoyed were the blog posts. Although they seemed somewhat repetitive and tedious, it was informative to read other students opinions and thoughts on the topics we were learning in class. The blog post format was also set up that depending on what group you were in, you researched different topics. I think I learned a lot more about these topics from reading student’s interpretations than I would have by reading the articles myself.

I think that Intelligent Buildings was a really great class that provided me information that I probably would never have learned if I never took the class. Being an AE with a structural concentration, my major tract never really touches on many of these topics in depth. I think that AE 410 provided relevant information even though it was not directly related to my concentration. Going forward in the rest of my time at Drexel and in my profession career, I would want to learn more about the topics of intelligent buildings. The field is ever changing as technology becomes more and more advanced and it can be used to improve buildings from every aspect, including the design phase and the implemented technologies.

Comments:
Dee Dee: I agree with your point about the guest lecturers; I think that having someone come in and explain and show how all the technology and things we were learning in class are used in industry added to the class.

Sarah: I think also that the Revit project was one of the more enjoyable parts of the class. I do not have a great background in Revit so it was cool to learn how to do some of the more technical things like making a family.

Brad: I agree that the way the scheduling of the class was set up was beneficial to learning. It gave Professor Mitchell a lot of time to go over the topics he was presenting in full without having to rush through anything.

B5 - What is SQL? - Maita

Structured query language, or SQL, is considered to be today’s standard means of manipulating and querying data in relational databases. SQL is a domain specific language that is utilized in programming. In addition to managing the data that is stored in the relational database, SQL can stream the processes in a management stream. There have been many systems that do what SQL does, called APIs. SQL has generally surpassed its competition by introducing the concept of accessing a multitude of records by using a single command. SQL also eliminates the use for an index by letting the user bypass entering a command to access a record.

Resources:

https://www.infoworld.com/article/3219795/sql/what-is-sql-structured-query-language-explained.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SQL

B4 - Intelligent vs. Green - Maita

For our project, Dee Dee and I are researching and comparing intelligent and green buildings. Intelligent and green buildings are both improvements on a normal building type but through different augmentations. Intelligent buildings are more catered towards improving the way the building can function through technological automation. Green buildings improve the building by helping reduce the harmful emissions and by-products produced by the building. Throughout many of the Architectural Engineering classes at Drexel, these subjects have been covered in various levels of detail. The main focus of this project will be to determine what exactly the two types of buildings are and research and explain the differences they have in design and implemented technology.

The paper will focus on the differences and compare the two but will also go in-depth on the different components of the systems. The subjects of intelligent and green buildings can be very broad topics. We decided rather than trying to do a general overview of both systems as a whole, we would focus on the specific design and implemented technology differences that go into each type of building and explain those. Although we know a decent amount of information on what goes into these systems, we are still doing extensive research to try and find all the information we can.

This project was chosen because we both had an interest in the topic of intelligent vs. green buildings. At first glance, many people may think that the two terms are interchangeable and at first, I shared that opinion. But through research, I found that there are a lot of clear differences that separate the two. Determining what exactly these differences are and comparing the two buildings types to see if they overlap at all is the goal of this project.

I think a challenge for this project will be staying on topic when writing the paper. As I stated before, the topics of intelligent and green buildings are broad. Although we have a plan on what we will be focusing on, I think situations are going to come up where we will have to explain topics that are not directly related to what we are talking about, but are relevant enough to include.

Comments
Dung T: I think that the topic of your project is an interesting one. Using a term-long project like this will be a really great way to help familiarize yourself better with BIM. You may want to think about adding more to your project since Revit has a lot of capabilities.

Carlos H: I like the idea of researching technology based on where it is available geographically, rather than as the field as a whole. I think it'll give you a really good understanding of how large of a technological gap there are between some parts of the world.

Mark and Zac: Combining this term project with your AE 391 project was a great idea since you guys won't have to worry about designing and making a whole new building and can do more advanced analysis on it.

B3

BIM tools have so many advantages. An advantage that I would like to first mention is the advantage of being able to provide 3D and prospectives drawnings in a matter of minutes even seconds, which is a great way an architect or a designer may communicate with the owner who might have no idea what a floor plan is. Other great advantages of BIM tools is that it allows engineers from different backgrounds and architects be able to communicate to achieve the wants and needs of a project owner in a timely manner through a single program or different programs which work together, and this is in some cases what is called an Integrated design system. The advantage of simulations that can be done through BIM tools makes it even more great and powerful, while being able to have the system run calculations to determine an appropriate system for a given building, which I believe is great for some aspects for a RFP "Request for proposal" since it's based on estimates and nothing precise is needed. 

B3: Revit v. Other Software

The links of the articles you added in your post are useful to especially the Revit Vs. AutoCad, which shows how autocad is still the number 1 tool for drafting floor plans. 

Maita - B3 Post

I agree with you about BIM tools can't replace the work of engineer especially if you have "high level analysis" as you stated but some tools are considered fair enough to perform design or simulations for analysis, but may be design in terms of a structural aspects still remain a mystery. 

Dee Dee Strohl - Blog 3

Since you mentioned how BIM tools allow seeing how design are interconnect some business have become big on using virtual reality to allow the owner see how truly the architectural system of a building is interconnected.  

Maita - B3 Post

What are the current problems with Revit/BIM?

I believe that even though Revit and other BIM programs have mostly positive impacts, there are some problems with them. One of my main problems with Revit is the current availability as a program. This may not be considered a huge problem with the program as a whole but I do know a lot of different people who share this same opinion. During coops at Drexel, most students use BIM software like Revit or AutoCAD but more often CAD than Revit. In addition to this, there are little to no classes offered that teach students any sort of BIM. Freshmen have a half quarter course on CAD but that is about it. Revit is also not the most user-friendly program, especially if someone has experience in CAD and think that some of the techniques they have learned could be used in Revit. Things as simple as the move command have different shortcuts and are executed differently between the programs. I believe that this makes it harder for people to initially get the grasp of Revit and may turn some people away from the program.

Revit and other BIM programs have problems addressing other needs of engineers. Advanced structural analysis cannot be performed in many BIM programs which causes engineers to either create their designs in other programs, like SAP2000, or complete the calculations by hand. There is no good way to transfer the data that a user has inputted into Revit to other programs to perform other types of analysis on them. The same goes for HVAC analysis of buildings. Revit gives the user the ability to insert many ducts and vents into their building and to perform an okay flow analysis but to perform any high-level analysis of the building, all data must be input into another program, like eQuest. As stated above and in my post last week about interoperability, Revit currently does not allow the users to efficiently move their models into other programs for advanced analysis and does not offer means to perform the said analysis in the program itself.

Comments
Jordan: I like your point that soon buildings are going to be downloaded by a computer program rather than an engineer. I disagree somewhat with your post, however, I do think there will need to be a human element for design and construction. Your addition of the video was helpful to your point. 

Tyler: I completely agree with your friend Alex on all the problems and struggles that were faced with Revit. I also think that the point of using a personal story helps explain your point. I have experienced a lot of problems with Revit and have been in their shoes with the having to explain how programs work to other employees.

Chris: I like your comparisons between CAD and Revit; I think that Revit is a great program but CAD is always going to have a place in the field. I think CAD can be used for some simpler drawings and Revit is very useful for more complicated drawings or buildings.

B2 - Chapter 3 "Interoperability" - Andrew Maita

 Reading:

C. M.        Eastman, “Chapter 3: Interoperability,” in BIM Handbook: A Guide to Building Information Modeling for Owners, Managers, Designers, Engineers, and Contractors, 2nd ed., Hoboken, NJ: Wiley, 2011, pp. 99-150.

Interoperability is defined by Eastman as “the ability to exchange data between applications, which smoothes workflows and sometimes facilitates their automation.” Throughout the construction and design process, there are multiple applications that require the same parameters or data to run and complete their task. Through interoperability, these applications can exchange data between themselves, which can improve the time put into the work greatly. In many architecture and engineering firms, most employees must be diligent while making various changes and updates to BIM files to make sure that they are saving the right copy, not overriding things, etc. Failure to make sure everything is saved properly can result in the firm losing work, which costs time and money to redo. Through interoperability, these changes can be automatically updated and managed even though multiple people may be working on the document at once.  I have seen this specific example applied in AutoCAD, where all the .dmg files were put into a firm server and could be updated and worked on by multiple people.

Interoperability is not always implemented or used efficiently. For example, students taking AE design classes or senior design will have to design a building from the ground up and do various analyses on it. To run an HVAC analysis on their building, students can use eQuest to model the building at set a variety of parameters. At the moment, there is no way for a student to automatically upload say a Revit or AutoCAD file into eQuest to get an exact analysis of the building that they designed. Instead, they would have to go into eQuest and re-enter all dimensions and details about their building. Interoperability has traditionally used file-based exchange systems like DXF and IGES to transfer files between different applications. If the applications that are trying to be used cannot utilize these file formats, interoperability may not be able to be implemented.

In this day and age, interoperability can be a key component to any system. Interoperability can enable the design and construction process to be sped up greatly because it lets many of the applications work with one another to take out more of the repetitive work. 

Comments:
Carlos H: As other students have mentioned, I think the addition of a video to your post really helped to hammer the point you were trying to explain home. I agree with you point about the most important stage of the building being the BIM planning. The more efficiently the initial BIM plans are in the early stages, the more money, time, and effort will be saved in the long run.

Allison A: I like the way you added a real life experience to your write up because it helps to show how what you were writing about had an application that many of us may have experienced. I agree with you that BIM applications for owners and managers are great tools to be used to help improve the construction process greatly.

Mariano A: I found your writing on the debate between 3D and 2D BIM models to be really interesting. I think that 2D drawings will always be needed due to the fact that models in plan view may be easier to read and understand since they are not 3D. I do think that rendering in 3D bring a lot to the table for showing an accurate model of what you are producing.