ArchiCAD Tutorial | Site Modeling Basics

http://www.acbestpractices.com/quickstart - Learn how to build a terrain model in ArchiCAD using the mesh tool, in this excerpt from Eric Bobrow's Best Practices QuickStart Course.

This meaty 49 minute lesson will teach you how to import a DWG survey file into a Worksheet, then use it as a Trace Reference to build a terrain mesh. You'll be able to model your site in the most expeditious and efficient sequence when you follow the method I share with you.

YOU MAY DOWNLOAD THIS VIDEO FROM THIS PAGE:
http://www.acbestpractices.com/quickstart-part-7-2/

If you've ever struggled to build a terrain model, or made one that was overly detailed and slowed down your 3D views, this detailed training will point you in the right direction. Even if you have never used the mesh tool, you'll learn enough to get started, and after watching the lesson you'll be able to do it yourself!

-- BONUS: Sample files you can use to follow along, in both Imperial and Metric systems. This is real training, not just tips and tricks!

-- Survey DWG file for USA (imperial units) users (zipped)
http://www.acbestpractices.com/member-download/QUICKSTART-SITE-SURVEY-(USA).d...

-- Survey DWG file for International (metric units) users (zipped)
http://www.acbestpractices.com/member-download/QUICKSTART-SITE-SURVEY-(INT).d...

WHERE TO GET MORE VIDEOS LIKE THIS ONE

This lesson is part of my new QuickStart Course, a 13 hour series of easy to follow video lessons that cover the basics of ArchiCAD with a Best Practices perspective. (The QuickStart Course is one component of my comprehensive Best Practices Course.)

For more info or to sign up, please visit the QuickStart website:
http://www.acbestpractices.com/quickstart

If you have any questions or comments about this tutorial or about the QuickStart Course, please feel free to email me.

Best regards,
Eric Bobrow

Category:

Education

Tags:

• ArchiCAD
• ArchiCAD tutorial
• ArchiCAD training
• ArchiCAD tips
• learn ArchiCAD
• ArchiCAD help
• ArchiCAD terrain model

[EricBobrow]

@mohamedabbasismail - Thank you for your kind words about how my videos are helping you improve your skills with ArchiCAD. You may view and download this video on the Best Practices Course website page (see the notes for this video for the URL).

For more help improving your skills, please consider signing up for my QuickStart Course (on the basics of ArchiCAD) or the Best Practices Course (a comprehensive training) -- Eric

[EricBobrow]

@e21fabio -

Roads are a challenging geometric construct that are best done in other tools focused on civil engineering rather than ArchiCAD. That being said, one can approach them in any of three ways:

1) Simply color the terrain mesh to indicate the road, using the SEO trick that I show in that video (simple, but unrealistic).

2) Create a separate mesh to define the road (very tedious, but workable).

3) Buy ArchiTerra from Cigraph (more realistic, relatively easy, but somewhat limited).

Eric

[EricBobrow]

@e21fabio -

I agree, it would be nice to have an easier way to do this.

However, in practice, I rarely find this to be a problem. I can take a complex site survey and create a site model in a few minutes, or at most an hour or two. Since this process usually is done once for each project, it's not a big deal.

My aim here is to show an optimized sequence, with guidance for how to make it efficient and keep the polygon complexity manageable. It actually goes pretty quickly once you know how.

[mohamedabbasismail]

Thank you, I highly appreciate what you presents in your videos which gave me a lot in improving my skills , but they are not downloadable , or are they ? may be I just missed how to that . Please help

[Maryparfait]

Really good video! It's really pleasant to learn with teachers like you, who don't just go and click, or type, assuming we already know all the commands.

[e21fabio]

@EricBobrow

ok, i saw a video once made by you showing how to make roads in terrains using SEO

but the road kept the shape of the mesh

is there a way to make it flat? like a real road

and sidewalks, i´m really curious about creating good looking sidewalks with inclination.

Thank you Eric

[e21fabio]

Thank you Eric

But i think that ArchiCAD should have a easier way to model sites.

I mean... we´re in the 15th version, and it seems that they don´t care about this.

I know that we can import TXT coordinates from the survey, however they should learn with other modelling softwares and do something not so tangled