Autodesk University 2011 – Day Two

Yesterday was a long day of presentations and classes.

The General Session Keynote was done on a single massive display that must have been well over 100 feet wide and Autodesk CEO Carl Bass always entertains and informs.  I am hearing stats like 8000 attendees from 80 countries and the crown is a wide mix and buzzing with energy.

Classes got underway and the hallways were jammed at the breaks. The day ended with the opening of the Exhibit Hall. AUGI was there in force with the Top DAUG competition.

There are 7 products in the testing now – not just AutoCAD.

Walking the Exhibit hall was tough as the crowd was fairly large.  The hall  is long and narrow with two main aisles and branches off both sides like little cul-de-sacs.

I did not have much time to wander but I did notice the cheerleading squad and also stopped by the HP booth to check out their modular chassis desktops that allow you to quickly snap in major components in the box in seconds.  Swapping out a power supply is a breeze and airflow is maximized for cooling.  They also demoed their large touch screen that outranks anything I have seen recently in that it allows multiple touch points in ways that others do not. There was a large wall mount and a desktop model.  Very Nice.

The night ended with the hall closing and the crowd scattering to other events or to get some rest prepping for the next day.

Read a little more each day in AUGI’s HotNews Daily

After arriving yesterday, I jumped into full swing today with the Leadership Forum.  Last night there was a reception where everyone had the opportunity to meet and greet.  I interacted with Joseph Joseph (www.bim-managers.com) who helped organized the whole thing.  He has done a great job.

Today was the full force attack with classes on leadership, BIM, Digital  Design, Sustainability and Cloud Computing – all from those who have lead the charge in these areas.  I presented on “Energizing a Multi-Generational Workforce. Some good conversations and many people connecting and sharing experiences and ideas.  Quite a buzz.

During the breaks I checked on the AUGI booth that is being set up and checked emails.  You can follow AUGI at AU on Twitter at https://twitter.com/AUGIatAU

Still meeting up with many that I have not seen in a while.  If you get a chance and are here – stop me in the hall and let’s chat.

CADD Manager Journal had the opportunity recently to interact with Greg Bentley, CEO of Bentley Systems about the involvement of Bentley and himself with educational environment and STEM.  I am always encouraged when firms embrace educational efforts for tomorrows leaders.

CADDManager Journal: For the unfamiliar, what exactly is STEM and why is it so vital?

Greg Bentley: The Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) movement is a collaborative activity by business, industry, government, and nonprofits to promote STEM-oriented curricula and outreach programs in today’s classrooms. A 21^st century workforce requires the knowledge and skills associated with these more demanding areas of study to fill the growing demand for more technologists and engineers of all disciplines, including the many that comprise the infrastructure professions. This technically trained talent is the key to driving long-term economic growth by, for example, improving and sustaining the infrastructure needed to support the housing, transportation, water distribution, communications, and many other service requirements of modern societies.

STEM-based curricula also serve the individual career development requirements of our young people. It affords them better and more fulfilling occupations that provide a higher degree of job security, particularly during economic downturns.

CMJ: How has the STEM focus impacted our educational progress in these areas?

GB: Schools in the United States face a crucial challenge in improving STEM education, especially for K-12 students. There is growing awareness that STEM learning is important not just for our country’s ongoing economic strength, but also for global health and safety, as well as the ongoing sustainability of our environment. Improving the STEM focus, especially in the K-12 student, builds a stronger correlation to success in post-secondary engineering endeavors. In a statement issued by U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan on the release early this year of the National Assessment of Education Progress report he warned that our nation’s students aren’t learning at a rate that will maintain America’s role as an international leader in the sciences. He said that, based on this “science report card,” the next generation will not be ready to be world-class inventors, doctors, and engineers.

Developing STEM literacy requires lasting commitment from government, educators, business leaders, and, ultimately, each of us. We are finding new ways for private, public and nonprofit agencies to better work together to develop programs and initiatives that engage, inspire, and educate young people in math and science. And with many initiatives under way, researchers are now able to study successful STEM-focused schools, as well as effective STEM education practices. Therefore, going forward we can promote best-practices and proven solutions to help create the most effective STEM education possible.

CMJ: What has Bentley done to assist in the STEM efforts?

GB: Bentley’s mission is to provide innovative software and services for the enterprises and professionals who design, build, and operate the world’s infrastructure—sustaining the global economy and environment for improved quality of life. Crucial to this mission is a commitment to helping develop, and, indeed, sustain the talented and multidisciplinary workforce of professionals charged with sustaining our world’s infrastructure. This can only be accomplished by attracting more students to the study of math and sciences, leading to greater interest in pursuing careers in engineering and technology. A number of our initiatives at Bentley are dedicated to this worthy endeavor.

The Bentley colleague STEM grant program enables each Bentley colleague to “earmark” grants – one per calendar year – to help support STEM programs in schools, nonprofit organizations, and nongovernmental organizations. Since the program’s inception in 2008, more than 1,500 STEM grants, each totaling $250 (or other country equivalent), have been directed by Bentley colleagues to enhance students’ involvement in STEM-related learning activities. These awards have gone to providing lab and science equipment, supporting robotics competitions, enabling students to attend science camp, and much more.

We also encourage students to explore the infrastructure professions through a Bentley Systems’-hosted program called Techies Day. Students from surrounding high schools visit our corporate headquarters in Exton, Pa., where they learn about potential areas of study and career opportunities. This year was our third annual Techies Day, and students were able to learn about 3D computing in engineering, what it takes to support a company’s IT needs, as well as what’s involved in designing, creating, and supporting software for infrastructure professionals.

In addition, Bentley is a long-time sponsor of the National Engineers Week Future City Competition, an annual engineering outreach program in which sixth-, seventh-, and eighth-graders from across the U.S. work in teams to design cities of the future. Each school team is supported by a teacher and an engineer-mentor. Through this problem-solving process students are able to experience firsthand what it is that engineers do: research, analysis, innovative thinking, and team collaboration.

The students create their vision of the city of tomorrow first on computers and then as large 3D models. They then write detailed narratives outlining the key features of their respective city, and a research essay on the real-world engineering challenge it addresses. By offering an opportunity to explore real issues, programs like this actively engage students, increasing their interest in science and math, and introducing them to the field of engineering. Helping young people discover what the field has to offer is a critical step in ensuring that the engineering professions continue to thrive in the years ahead.

CMJ: Please tell me a little history about National Engineers Week Future City Competition and how Bentley got involved.

GB: The Future City Competition is now in its 20th year, and Bentley has been involved since 1995, with the first Philadelphia regional competition. Since then, Bentley has continued and expanded its support of this great program, both at the regional and national levels, financially, and through the volunteer efforts of our colleagues who serve as mentors and judges for the competition. It also is our privilege to host the National Finals, and to sponsor the National Finals Grand Prize winners with a trip to the U.S. Space Camp in Huntsville, Ala.

CMJ: How can a student or family get more involved with STEM or the competition?

GB: Anyone can become involved with STEM by contacting his or her school for in-school programs and outreach activities. They can get involved with the Future City Competition by visiting the website at www.futurecity.org.

CMJ: What has your involvement taught you about future generations and their focus on technology?

Our participation in these wonderful programs has taught us that sharing real-life work experiences with students inspire them to take on and excel in the more challenging subjects that are crucially needed to sustain our society, environment, and economy. Once their curiosity is engaged, it continues to increase at an exponential rate, and the Future City Competition bears this out. I can say, most sincerely, that one of my favorite events of the year is the National Finals in Washington. Watching the presentations of these incredibly bright and enthusiastic young people is a remarkable experience that always leaves me encouraged about our nation’s future.

CM: What lessons have you learned from your personal involvement that has impacted you?

GB: Mentoring can make a huge difference in a child’s life. I know this is the case through my own involvement as a Big Brother with the Big Brothers Big Sisters program. Through this rewarding experience, I am convinced that mentoring is of key importance to inspiring our next generation of infrastructure professionals. To further promote mentoring at Bentley, we have started the Be Mentors initiative, which is designed to support mentorship in STEM areas by both individuals and corporations.

The Be Mentors program provides assistance and resources for STEM mentors, and is open to all interested persons and organizations. The initial phase of Be Mentors is aimed at supporting the Future City Competition mentors in 2011-2012. From here we will expand support for ACE Mentors, SMART Competition, MATHCOUNTS, the National Academy of Engineers Grand Challenge, and other STEM-related programs in growing capacities, focusing on the value of the mentor in the learning process.

As I mentioned earlier, many of our Bentley colleagues currently volunteer as mentors, both for the Future City Competition and other STEM-related programs such as robotics and solar car competitions. Through the Be Mentors program, these colleagues will, in turn, support others in learning to inspire and encourage students in science, technology, engineering, and math.

You can learn more about our Be Mentors program at www.bentley.com/bementors.

CMJ: What other areas or programs has Bentley embraced in education? Software donations? Training? Partnerships with educational institutions?

GB: Many of the programs and initiatives that we embrace are in the form of mentorships, donations, and financial support. Examples include software donations to: Engineers Without Borders; AASHTO’s high school outreach program, TRAC; ACE Mentor; and the soon-to-be-launched “SMART Competition.”

At the university level, Bentley just recently awarded a research grant to the Society of Fire Protection Engineers Scientific and Educational Foundation named in memory of FDNY Assistant Chief Donald Burns. Chief Burns died in the collapse of the World Trade Center Towers on September 11, 2001, while setting up his command post to direct the evacuation. Through our partnership with SFPE, Bentley is awarding $25,000 annually in grant funds over a period of five years. Each grant will fund one or more baccalaureate, masters, and doctorate student global research projects that apply information modeling to improving emergency responder safety when training for, responding to, and operating during building emergencies.

Bentley’s Be Careers Network is dedicated to helping students graduate with the technology skills needed to start careers as infrastructure professionals in the architecture, engineering, geospatial, and construction fields. It does this by providing programs for students, faculty, and schools, including comprehensive and cost-effective software (for school labs and each student’s home computer and textbooks covering the full range of infrastructure disciplines; blended learning encompassing OnDemand eLearning available 24 X 7, product videos, and eSeminars, as well as curricula for educators; the tracking of student progress; professional networking and development through the Be Communities professional networking website; and academic competitions, such as the Student Design Competition, offering awards and scholarships. Just recently, we deployed STUDENTserver, a web based application where students and faculty can download software, enroll in training, or gain access to our Be Communities server with one single login. Be Careers is geared to the needs of students in universities, colleges, high schools, and technical schools. In addition, a special Be Employable initiative launched early in 2009 makes software and training available at no charge to outplaced infrastructure professionals.

CMJ:  Where can someone go to get more information or get involved?

GB: For additional information about the National Engineers Week Future City Competition, your readers can visit www.futurecity.org. For additional information about (or to join) our Be Mentors initiative, they can—and I would encourage them to—visit www.bentley.com/bementors. For additional information about our Be Careers Network, they can visit www.becareers.org.

My CAD Leadership class this year is on Change.  How to manage it well.  Change is going to happen and you need to be leading it.

Leading change will draw upon your skills in ways that you may not have fully developed and will continue to develop your entire career.

I have broken this topic down into two areas:

Leading

This part will draw upon your leadership skills and uses your people and political skills.  People skills as you interact with others and Political skills where you interact with misgivings, misunderstandings, misinformation and outright positioning by others to help you succeed or attempt to make you fail.

Change

This draws upon your planning skills and uses your creative and organizational skills.  Planning is used as you map out the future and you are going to get there.  Creative and Organizational skill to originate ideas and align them with other initiatives in the organization.

What does a Leader need to do to create and energize change?  Linda A. Hill in her book on “Being the Boss” helps us understand.

• They need to demonstrate their character—the intention to do the right thing.
• They need to demonstrate their competence—knowing how to do the right thing.
• They need to demonstrate their influence—the ability to deliver and execute the right thing.

I will unpack these and many more  perspectives in  the class.

I am presenting on how multiple generations of workers is impacting the workforce.   When working through the data I came up with some conclusion.

Five Keys of Understanding the Generations

•  Traditionalists (WW2 generation) and Baby Boomers are as likely as Millennials to be technology contributors. Enhancing and clarifying the old – producing and creating the new
• Baby Boomers and Generation Xers look for a work life/home life balance, while Millennials see work as “part of life.”
• Millennials and Generation X place a high importance on working for a company that develops both their career and life skills
• Millennials are likely to select an employer based on the ability to access the latest tools and technologies at work
• Both Traditionalists and Baby Boomers place high importance on a manager who understands age diversity in the workplace.

One of my classes is on CAD Momentum.  It is about making things happen by capitalizing on the energy and momentum of change.

Here are some of my thoughts…

The Enemies of Momentum.  The people and comments below can be killers of your progress.  You can hear people saying these things and it will cause things to stall or even fail.

• Complacency – people who don’t care say…
• We are fine
• We don’t need to change
• Self-Protection – people who are protecting their turf or process or function
• My way is working good
• Your way won’t work
• Defiance – those who are refusing to change
• You can’t make me change
• Pessimism – those who think you will fail or don’t trust you planning
• This won’t work
• What if we fail?

One of the things that I think we may have lost is knowing what you are actually depicting.  In the days when the draftsperson had to interact with the Architects, Engineers and Designers they learned what they were actually trying to depict in the finished product.  They would show pictures, sketch images and actually take team members out to the field or factory to see what was being built.

Many have said both on this blog and others that BIM and the newer 3D software actually brings back the true interaction or knowing what was being designed because you have to “build it” in 3D.  While this is true and I embrace this, I am focused on the personal interaction of the designer working with the drafter to get them to see what they were drawing in their minds so that they could then transfer that to paper.

Today I see a little less interaction between most designers and those that are working under them.  Sometimes the drafter is left to their own to figure it out.  And if they can’t, they are looked down upon.  Many complain about the lack of drafters understanding of what they are creating, but if those who complain are not willing to discuss, share and improve the understanding of those they are working with – then they are part of the problem.

I would encourage those that create design form nothing, from the mixing of construction materials, form the raw metals of fabrication to get back in touch with teaching.

Craftsmen who work in trades bring new members along.  They mentor them. They encourage them to understand. They take time to work with others who need a little assistance.  We need to encourage our senior staff to mentor the junior staff. We need to be creating opportunities for interaction.  And when those teachable moments are created or just happen.  Slow down and share what you know with the next person coming up the ladder.

Think before you draw.

Hand drafting took a long time.  It caused you to think before you actually set information to paper.  Thinking is good.  In today’s fast paced CAD and BIM markets, the software moves quicker than some people think.

Moving from one sheet to another caused you to give pause and think “Am I done?”.  Since you had to remove the vellum or mylar or whatever from the drafting board, you stopped and thought about your next step.  Do I want to commit to removing this file now?  You can say that it is easier now to call up a drawing that when needed when you realize you need to add something.  But that is a break in the flow of thought.  Stopping and starting jars the thought patterns and derails creative and detail oriented thought.  Deep thought in a unified direction is better. I am sure that you have seen disjointed CAD files because they were created piecemeal.

Starting a new sheet was a daunting task, again causing you to pause.  Do I have enough info to get started?  Drafting has always been an iterative process, but the iterations were much longer.  When you had to add a sheet to a set, you use to first see where the data you were adding might fit on an existing sheet.  Not as often now.  Just click “NEW” and start drawing.

I use to be a Technical Illustrator.  It was a moonlighting job that I worked at night.  Boy that is going back a ways.  I would work all night long on one or two sheets, creating technical documents to show assemblies and systems in exploded views.  It was tedious and took some planning to figure out how to get down on paper what the graphics were trying to convey.

It was a thinking process.  I cannot tell you how many times I have heard some designer say that he wished the drafter would just think about what they are drawing.  It used to be forced upon us.  Now it is becoming a lost art.

We need to retain the ability to put together a set of Plans

I mentioned this before so this is an expansion on that comment.  You should be thinking about how a set of plans are used and then group them for maximum efficiency and clarity.  The entire set should tell a story that starts off with the overall story and then gets in the details as you march to the back of the set.  Think smaller scale to larger scale as you zoom in from the overall plot plans to the minute construction details.

Keep it as simple as possible.  Do not duplicate information on more than one sheet.  Avoid multiple callouts of the same thing.  Avoid over dimensioning and duplicate dimensioning form one sheet to another.  Avoid adding superfluous detail that is not needed to communicate what you are trying to show.  Sections should not extend beyond the area of focus.  Data beyond a match line should not extend too far.  Use enlarged plans only if there is too much data to display effectively on the standard plan.  Reduce the replication of other disciplines information on your disciplines drawings.

Putting together a set of plans first includes defining what drawings come before others.  Getting things is the right order is critical.  In general, it follows the flow of trades on the construction site or processes in a manufacturing flow.

Here is a typical order for the building design process.  This may change from industry/building type, etc.

General Drawing Set Order

• Titles and general information sheets
• Civil
• Landscape
• Architectural
• Structural
• Mechanical
• Fire Protection
• Plumbing
• Electrical
• ID
• Interiors / furniture layout
• Equipment Schedules
• Signage / Wayfinding
• Security

Here is an expansion of the Architectural bullet above that will show what might be done in other disciplines also.

• General sheets and notes (cover sheet, drawing index, project description, governing codes, architect and consultant addresses)
• Code analysis, exiting
• Overall and enlarged site plans
• Demolition – Existing conditions
• Floor plans
• Reflected ceiling plans
• Roof plans
• Exterior elevations
• Building sections, wall sections
• Enlarged room plans, enlarged toilet room plans, enlarged circulation drawings (stairs, escalators, lifts, etc.)
• Interior elevations
• Schedules (door, window, finish)
• Details

Do you have other ideas on the order?  Comments?