sloArch

Month: May 2009

  • Modern Spanish Construction: Part II

    Yesterday we looked at the demolition and foundation of this building and the pouring of the foundation. Today we will take the building to it’s completion.

    Forming the First Floor
    The formwork has been removed from the 1st floor columns and the forms are being set up for the second floor. It was only a couple days since the first floor columns were poured but they won't be supporting any load for a few more. Metal jacks are setup steel joists and wood formwork are laid out.

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  • Modern Spanish Construction: Part I

    As I’ve mentioned previously, I’ve had a long time obsession with Architecture and construction dating back to a very young age.  The first plans I remember drawing were for an elaborate underground clubhouse that my sister and I were going to dig in my parents back yard.  I’m thinking I was about 10 or 11 at the time.  I had an opportunity to live in Spain for almost two years ending in July of 2001 and although I was there to do service with I never lost an occasion to enjoy the exposure to some very different Architecture and construction methods.

    I lived for 9 months in Guadalajara, the capitol city of the province of Guadalajara, located about 37 miles ENE of Madrid.  Although some of the structures in the city date back to the 8th century most the city is relatively new, constructed in the last 60 years.  With the addition of the AVE (high speed train) stop in 2003 the city has seen an explosion of growth.

    I lived in Guadalajara in the pre-AVE days on the 7th floor of the 10 story building in center of the photo below.  6 months after arriving I awoke on May 27th, 2000 to see that the small house directly across the street was being demolished.  I whipped out my camera and shot construction progress photos for the next 3 months.  The building is located on the  North East corner of Avenida de Castilla and Calle Alvargomez de Ciudad Real, one block West of Calle de Toledo.

    Birdseye View of Finished Building, via Live Maps on 5/21/09.
    Birdseye View of Finished Building in center of photo, via Live Maps on 5/21/09.

    The following photos chronicle the construction of the structural shell of the building.  I have added my thoughts on the methods of construction that were the norm for my time in Spain.  I pulled these pictures from my photo album and the notes I made 9 years ago are unfortunately glued to the pictures.

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  • First Impressions of the Artlantis Revit 2010 Add-In

    First off, if you haven’t downloaded the beta add-in you can do so by going to the Artlantis download page. I had the Revit 2009 add-in installed so I first had to uninstall this add-in. The install process for the 2010 add-in is very simple and just a standard installation. artlantis_install_1 (more…)

  • Artlantis Releases Revit 2010 Plugin

    Great news!  Artlantis anounced this morning the release of a beta export plug-in for Revit 2010 32bit and 64bit versions to Arlantis 2.

    The plugin is available from their download page.

    I will be installing it and giving it a test in the next hour or so.  I’will post more later today.

  • Best Revit Blogs on the Web

    There are a million Revit Blogs on the internet today.  I follow 28 of them and the flow of information and content being created it amazing.  According to my feedreader’s stats there are about 7.2 posts created everyday!  That’s a lot of content to stay on top of.  

     

    My top 5 Revit Blog Picks:

    1. Buildz
      http://buildz.blogspot.com
      Zach Kron, an architectural designer and software analyst for Autodesk is the new kid on the block.  His personal site launched at the end of March of this year and he only as posted 12 times to date, but his entries are being talked about all over the Revit community and his tutorials and tips are second to none.  From what Zach has shown us so far, he is a Revit Modeling Master and definitely one to follow in the future.
    2. The Revit Kid!
      http://therevitkid.blogspot.com
      The Revit KidWith an average of 1.4 posts/day The Revit Kid consistently turns out great content.  Launched on Feb. 12, ’09 by Jeff from Connecticut, it  has quickly become one of my must read blogs.  Besides Jeffs incite into the Revit world and great tutorials he also sells the Lock Noob Classic Thong, a perfect gift for that special person in your life!
    3. Revit OpEd
      http://revitoped.blogspot.com
      Launched on Friday, Nov. 19 2004 Revit OpEd was one of my first favorite Revit Blogs.  With a not easy to maintain 0.8 posts/day and over 600 posts to his credit Steve has made a substantial contribution to my Revit education and the community.  Steve has a great style to his writing and his article titles often make me smile.  “Dept. of Subtle”, “Dept. of Quirky”, “Dept. of Unfair”, “Dept. of Reviteristics”, and my favorite “Dept. of Moved Cheese” are just a few ways he prefixes his article titles.  I highly recommend Steve’s blog to all Revit enthousiasts.
    4. Revit 3d.com – The BIM Boom Revitulation
      http://bimboom.blogspot.com
      Featuring his now famous son and Florida Revit 3d licence plate, Gregory Arkin had made over 1100 posts since his site launched in Sept. of 2005.  Gregory is a Revit instructor and his site is a great source for Revit news and everything else.  The only way to find out what is on his site is to visit it.  There is just too much goodness.
    5. The Revit Clinic
      http://revitclinic.typepad.com
      This last spot on my top 5 was a hard decision, but I have decided to grant The Revit Clinic this position.  Authored by Autodesk employees Harlan Brumm, Kathryn Poulos, Ryan Duell, and Jeremy Smith this four person team packs a lot of experience and Revit expertise into one site.  The site features some excellent tutorials and clarifications on some of Revit’s basic and advanced features.

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