Revizto 5.0

Revizto 5.0 preview

Greg Corke takes a sneak peek at the forthcoming release of the easy to use collaboration tool which now puts BIM object data at the heart of the issue tracking process.

In a crowd of AEC collaboration add deadlines and priority, then track which would return extremely broad software, Revizto stands out for its each issue until it’s been resolved, with results. In Revizto 5 you can go down to a sharp focus on issue tracking. The full accountability. much more granular level, and search on software combines 2D and 3D mod- This process has worked well, not least all types of object data. This could be anyels for a ‘single source of truth’ presented because of its simplicity. However, the thing from a door of a particular type or through a simple user interface that can software has had its limitations because material, a tank of a specific volume in a be accessed by anybody on the project it has placed too much emphasis on the specific system, or a steel section of a certeam. With a cloud or local server-centric model itself, and not enough on the tain size or grade. workflow, data is pushed out to a variety underlying BIM data. Object data has Once found, objects can be highlighted of devices, including desktop (Windows always been there, but you could only in the model at the click of a button, and MacOS) and tablet (iOS and really look at it, and it was very hard to either by making the rest of the model Android) so issues can be resolved in the use it to your advantage. Now with transparent or switching it off entirely. office and on site. Revizto 5.0, currently in beta and due to Alternatively, selected objects can be

When Revizto started out, most of its launch soon, this is set to change. completely hidden from view. This was customers were on the design side, but in just about possible to do in Revizto 4, but the last few years there’s been a big The new engine the process was far from straightforuptake in construction. Customers now From the outside, Revizto 5.0 doesn’t look ward. First you had to hide everything, include Atkins, AECOM, Arup, Balfour that different to Revizto 4. The interface and then start unhiding the objects that Beatty, Foster & Partners, Jacobs, Lendlease, Skanska, Vinci, Willmott Dixon and ‘‘ In the past, Revizto has had its limitations you actually wanted. A common issue with a lot of BIM-centric software is you many more. This is reflected in how the product is marketed. It used to be ‘BIM collaboration’ because it placed too much emphasis on the model itself, and not enough on the click on a component only to find you’ve selected the wrong one. In MEP projects, for examor ‘BIM co-ordination’ but it’s underlying BIM data ple, this could be pipe insulanow being pitched as an integrated collaboration platform. While the name might suggest a loose still has the same minimal look and feel, ’’ tion, instead of the actual pipe. The new search bar can really help here. Simply search on ‘insulaassociation with Revit, the software actu- albeit with a few tweaks, but it’s under tion’ to select every instance of insulation ally works with a huge range of CAD/ the hood that’s there been a massive within the project, and then hide all of BIM tools, focused on buildings and amount of development work, which them from view, making it easy to select infrastructure. There are plug-ins for gives users much more control over the the actual pipe you want. Revit, ArchiCAD, Tekla Structures, data, down to a granular level. Objects can also be used to help find Navisworks, SketchUp, AutoCAD Civil This all starts with the intuitive object similar objects within the model. For 3D, Vectorworks and MicroStation tree, which allows you to see the models example, click on a column, then right (including OpenRoads Designer and that have been brought into Revizto, click on its section size to automatically OpenBuilding Designer). The software break them down by level or category, and find similar objects based on that specific can also read in IFC, OBJ, FBX, PDF, then isolate and control them as required. property. point cloud (RCP and RCS) and BCF files. The new search bar now makes the By using search sets, it’s now much

With its ability to bring in data from a software tick, making it much quicker easier to search for and group compovariety of sources, Revizto has become a and easier to find components, and then, nents based on certain criteria or system bit of a hub for BIM model co-ordination. more importantly, visualise them and act classification. You don’t have to get Teams identify issues on site, or within on them accordingly. In Revizto 4, if you bogged down with scrolling through vast the context of the 3D model or 2D draw- wanted to find a specific component, you lists. Instead of having to first choose ing, assign responsibility to individuals, had to use generic terms like door or pipe from a category list, followed by a system

1 Revizto now makes it much easier to use object data to your advantage. For example, components with identical properties can now be found in a single click 2 Visualisation of selected data has been vastly improved. Objects can now be easily highlighted in the model, either by making the rest of the model transparent or switching it off entirely

type, system classification and so on, you can just type in the classification you want, and Revizto will automatically display which group(s) it comes from. It essentially means you can reclassify the order in which objects are grouped.

For example, simply by typing ‘system’ and clicking the relevant fields, you can now quickly pull out all the components in the model, or those on a specific level, whose system classification equals, for example, either domestic cold water or domestic hot water.

Of course, in large projects this could still bring up thousands of objects, so if you want to search in a particular room, level or building, you can also narrow things down by creating a 3D section box that focuses on a specific volume inside the model.

Search sets can be saved, so common searches don’t have to be redone from scratch. They can also be shared with the team.

The results of any search, complete with object data, can also be exported to Microsoft Excel, which could be used to define basic quantities. For example, to quickly tot up the total length of a specific type of steel column. Unfortunately, it’s not yet possible to do this within the software.

As you’d expect, when importing BIM models, Revizto automatically brings over all of the object data. But, of course, not all of that information is relevant, so you can now set up a list of favourites. Once an object is selected, all of the most important information appears at the top of the list in the object tree.

This focused data can even be seen when hovering the cursor over an object in the model, giving you much quicker access to object data without having to scan the property panel. A construction manager, for example, could set up favourites to show the volumes or grades of concrete, and have different favourites for different workflows.

Custom data It’s now possible to add custom data to objects within Revizto and then, of course, use that data to create custom searches. It means Revizto can be used to track a lot more information than it previously could, opening up many new use cases.

On a construction site, for example, it could be used to track whether or not something has been installed or inspected, and on which date. In theory, this could even extend to phasing information, allowing Revizto to be used as a rudimentary 4D tool.

In the design phase, custom properties could help confirm that an engineer has checked and approved a section size change.

All of this data can be thematically displayed in the model. It could be as simple as green equals yes, red equals no, or something more nuanced.

At the moment, custom data can only be viewed inside Revizto, but longer term, the development team is exploring the possibility of feeding that data back into the original BIM model, which would close the loop.

Performance Revizto is multi-platform and runs on Windows, MacOS, iOS and Android, on laptop, desktop or tablet. The performance and specs of these machines can vary dramatically and when you start working with multiple 3D models, it’s very easy to run out of memory, and for the system to grind to a halt. This is particularly true for those using Revizto on tablets which tend to have limited memory.

In Revizto 4, while it was possible to ‘hide’ models, which would reduce the load on the CPU and GPU, the model would still be held in memory. With Revizto 5 individual models can now be

Object data can now be viewed simply by hovering the cursor over a component in the model

completely unloaded from memory, so, if authoring software and correct it. This ticularly groundbreaking in Revizto 5.0 you’ve got models that you don’t really not only took time but could be particu- — the team has simply fixed an issue need to be turned on all the time — MEP, larly challenging if the model came from a where ghost points might be left behind architecture or specific buildings, for third party. With the new version, it’s now when creating sections. However, there is example — then simply switch them off. possible to change the location of a model some useful new functionality coming

It’s not just through model manage- within Revizto itself. This also extends to soon, which will allow users to measure ment that Revizto 5 can free up memory. 2D/3D overlays, so if you bring in the 2D point clouds. For example, you might The new release also uses significantly drawings from your BIM software, they want to quickly measure between a pipe less memory for tracking issues. will automatically be transformed as well. and a wall to check there’s enough room According to the developers, version 4 for maintenance. could easily use up 1.5GB for 7,000 Raising issues issues, which is pretty standard on a pro- The fundamental part of Revizto is issue Conclusion ject. For the larger projects, where you tracking and the new release refines It feels like version 5.0 is a pivotal might have 30,000 issues, this could how issues are raised. release for Revizto. It might not come swell to 6GB. Issues are now directly attached to an with headline grabbing features but

In the new version this memory foot- object or objects, whereas previously don’t underestimate the importance of print has been significantly reduced, they were just placed in the general vicin- giving users more control over the data. with 7,000 issues only using 100MB, ity. This could lead to ambiguity when Rather than having to rely on the model which of course, will free up space for larger models. ‘‘ The new focus on data opens up possibilities to drive the issue tracking process, users can let the data do the work for them. Model control Revizto is all about bringing in models from different for project management, the potential to feed in data from other sources, or even lay the The new focus on data is also allowing Revizto to spread its wings. It opens up sources, and it’s now a lot foundations for built-in clash detection new possibilities for project easier to keep track of what’s inside your federated model. Improvements to the ‘Scenes and trying to resolve specific problems. ’’ management, the potential to feed in data from other sources, and it even lays the foundations Scheduler’ mean you can now see where It’s also possible to apply a single issue for built-in clash detection, for which the models have come from, who export- to multiple components but give each Revizto currently relies on Navisworks or ed them and when they were exported. component its own stamp so you can Solibri. However, as Revizto’s Rhys Lewis

As data often comes from multiple track them individually. For example, told us in 2018 (tinyurl.com/revizto-AEC), sources, file names are not necessarily you may want to check that a group of adding clash detection to Revizto would consistent, might not be understood by columns, selected through search crite- be more than just a technical challenge — everyone, and can sometimes be quite ria, have been installed correctly. there would be business and relationship bizarre. As a result, it’s now possible to Previously you’d have to create one issue obstacles as well. give files an alias to make it easier for the that covered all of the columns. This not All of this points to an exciting future user to recognise data, while still keeping only made it harder to track, but it meant for a product that starts at £420 per user the original file name to maintain the the issue could only be closed when all of per year. However, the developers will connection to the original source file. the columns had been checked. need to be careful to maintain the good balance between capabilities and ease of Spatial awareness Point clouds use. After all, this is what made the prodIn Revizto 4, if a model was brought in Revizto is no stranger to point clouds, uct so appealing to AEC project teams in and the coordinate system was wrong, which have been supported in the soft- the first place. you’d have to go back into the original ware for some time. There’s nothing par- ■ revizto.com

A Q&A with Enscape

Greg Corke caught up with Enscape’s new CEO, Christian Lang, to talk BIM objects, issue tracking, RTX ray tracing, collaborative VR, point clouds and what the future holds for the popular real time visualisation tool

Greg Corke: When we first looked at And where does that leave the traditional Enscape in 2016, the quality of the ren- arch viz ray trace rendering tools? dering was good, but nothing special. Now it’s gone to quite amazing levels and CL: Definitely. As you were saying, in you also have Nvidia RTX ray trace ren- many, many cases the visual quality is dering technology built in. How has that more than good enough for what the changed the way that your architects need when they customers are using the present to a customer, software in their workflow? when they use it for the design development, for Christian Lang: I personally design reviews, absolutely. believe it’s not really chang- However, I think there is ing the way the customers still a kind of a legitimaare using the software. One tion for other renderers, of the key strengths of offline renders. Enscape is the visual quality, There are things we yes, but it’s much more don’t do at Enscape. We about the integration into don’t do dynamic smoke CAD and BIM, and it’s much more about the ease of use and creating high-performance workflows. And this ‘‘ What’s interesting about simulation, or we don’t do stained glass shadows, things like that. Who knows, maybe we will do integration into BIM has [the integration sometime in the future, never changed. So yes, you’re right there is now a much higher quality when it comes with] BIM track, is that it really but clearly not today. And when it really comes to the perfect marketing shots, to the visual look of the provides for the this one picture that you graphics, but that’s just one industry a need, I think this is somepiece of the value we offer. GC: We’ve heard that some collaborative workflow in a thing they will always use some other tools to make it almost perfect. architects are now using fully photo- However, I think the gap Enscape to do visualisations realistic between what we have that previously they may have passed onto a viz sperendered model today and what they offer is closing. Will we be able cialist. So, I guess what I mean is have you found that ’’ to go to one hundred percent? Most likely not. I your customers are now bypassing other think there will always be space for some rendering tools and your architects are very, very specific things that we don’t do, becoming more hands-on with visualisa- but for most rendering, especially in early tion, for presentations and stuff like that? design, it is exactly what architects need. GC: Since the 2.7 release, objects can be selected in Enscape and their associated BIM information displayed. This is great, because I know your customers have been asking for that for ages. Now you’ve delivered, what feedback have you had and how has it changed the way your customers use the software?

CL: The feedback we are getting is, it’s a good first step. However, customers always want more. They now want to have it in the standalone version, they want to have it in VR. So, it’s the first step into that direction, and more to come.

GC: So, you can only access the BIM information if you’re connected to your BIM authoring tool?

CL: Correct, you have to have the connection.

GC: Now you’re on to version 2.8 and one of the most exciting developments is this new focus on design /review. You now have tools for annotation and issue resolution through the integration with cloud-based BIM collaboration platform BIM Track. This takes Enscape beyond its core remit of real-time rendering. Can you explain how this works?

CL: The new annotation feature allows you to store issue trackers in the Enscape scene. So you can set states, you leave comments there for other team members, you’re getting an immediate overview of the progress in the project. The Enscape rendering is automatically added to the annotation. The discussion points are saved in the CAD project, then it can be exported in BCF [BIM collaboration format] or it can be synced with BIM Track.

And especially this last part. That’s where the information throughout the whole design, you can leverage that full feature set and the interface of BIM Track with your Enscape visualisation without the need to export or import files.

What’s interesting about [the integration with] BIM track is that it really provides for the industry (for the first time ever I think) a collaborative workflow in a fully photorealistic rendered model. So, you can see light and materials and textures and get a feel for the design that you just couldn’t have prior to 2.8.

GC: Enscape loves powerful GPUs... GC: [smiling] That’s not specific to Enscape, of course, but because the GPU requirements of Revit are so small, has that been a barrier to adoption? For you to get Enscape on every single desk of every single Revit user, for example, they’re going have to update their hardware.

CL: Not that I’m aware of. I think it’s exactly the opposite. I think that the customers appreciate that with Enscape they can even use not the highest performing hardware. Enscape is already optimised in a really good way that it can be used on a slower machine. And if they really want to have the high, high visual graphics, then maybe it’s just one machine they have, where they render the final kind of image.

GC: Enscape was a pioneer of architectural VR. It was amazing how it was so seamless, while all these other tools were going through this long process of exporting and optimising BIM models. How are your customers using VR, and how has that changed over the years?

CL: I can just talk about one customer I met, where I had this specific conversation two weeks ago. The customer told me that they are using it in the same way they would do a design review or a design development session. So, it’s kind of integrated in their design meetings, where they have questions or they want to show something if they have a topic they want to discuss, then they integrate it into that, but it’s not really fundamentally changing the way how they do the design reviews. It’s just another tool that they use.

GC: So, at the moment, people are using it as a solo experience? So, if you were doing a design review in VR, you’d have to literally share a headset to get that done?

CL: Yeah, exactly.

GC: Are there any plans for collaborative VR?

CL: The only answer I have is it’s on our radar. But I think the moment when we can offer something to the customers, and if they can use VR in a collaborative way, I think that can be a game changer when it comes to how they use it in a design meeting. Because that’s then when you also have the chance to involve someone outside of your company, right? Again, we have it on our radar, but obviously I can’t talk more with regards to that.

GC: Because of how easy it is to go from BIM to VR with Enscape, are your customers using it day to day - to literally jump in and out of VR? You’ve got a VR headset on your desk, you’re in the design process, you just want to check something, so you hold the headset up to your head to get better understanding of scale, and then you go ‘right OK, that’s great, or maybe I can change this or change that’. Are your customers using it in that way or is it more for design review?

CL: It’s both. It’s while they are working at their desk, and it’s as part of the design review process. A really interesting story that came out recently about VR in preconstruction, where an architectural office actually invited the fire marshal and the building inspector and health inspector all in, for pre-construction to do their inspections. That’s another use case, beyond design review.

GC: Point clouds seem to be going crazy in AEC at the moment. Some CAD tools support them to various different degrees of capability. Enscape doesn’t at the moment. Is that something that you’re looking at?

CL: Well, the same here, it’s on the radar. [In order to support point clouds] we need to go deep into the core product, so into the programming code and things like that. So, it’s on the radar, absolutely. By the way, we see that as well - point clouds and the explosion of that in AEC is becoming a topic. But we will see how we can support that, if we will support that. Right now, it’s completely open.

GC: What’s Enscape’s long-term vision?

CL: As you can imagine, this is of course a big question. What I can tell you is that, typically, I’m very much ‘outside in’ driven. And this is something that I’ve already figured out here at Enscape where I think we will become better — and this is really listening to our customers and involving the customers much more in the planning of the future of Enscape. And this could even go beyond pure real-time rendering.

But at the end of the day, what we are doing here, we are supporting the workflows of the customer. This needs to become the number one, or rather, this is the number one key theme for Enscape. I would love to become mission critical to customers. In our industry, there are still cases where we are ‘nice to have’ and this is changing slightly, but I think the future of Enscape is definitely in that direction.

■ enscape3d.com The new BIM Track + Enscape integration allows users to sync issues created in Enscape (1) with BIM Track’s centralised issuetracking platform (2)