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What's the best software for producing quick elevations?

I'm interested in producing elevations quickly and accurately. What's the best software for producing quick elevations?

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16 answers

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j francis [ Editor ]

The best software is you! hand sketches still can give an idea life quicker than any software.

A second point to consider is that only draw things once if possible and ensure the drawings can be used or developed later! A coloured up elevation produced with photoshop from an AutoCAD drawing can (if your not carefull) be difficult to revise or reproduce.

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ben adarkwa

The answer to this and all your CAD problems is straight forward, use 'Microstation' it is the best software around for architectual work. You won't need a third party applications for enchancements and you can revise the drawings at will. Majority of CAD software around are just basic drawing tools and don't offer anything more. It is hoped the next generation of CAD software would be able to offer 'design potential' and be 'intelligent' for interactive usage, until then Microstation is your next best thing and well ahead of everything else available but not cheap.

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joseph lyth

I have to disagree with Ben Adarkwa. I haven't used Microstation so I can't and won't comment on how good it is, but:

"Majority of CAD software around are just basic drawing tools and don't offer anything more. It is hoped the next generation of CAD software would be able to offer 'design potential' and be 'intelligent' for interactive usage"

Is just plain wrong.

I've used Vectorworks for 3 years, ArchiCAD for 2 and have a fair amount of AutoCAD experience and none of the three are 'just basic drawing tools'. They are only as good as the person using them obviously, but their 3D, 2D and BIM capabilities are amazing, and with a little practice you can draw, design and build virtually anything.

Each of these packages goes about the issue of Architectural drawing in quite different ways, so I think the best advice (bar the above, drawing it yourself) is to try the different software. Most of them offer free trials and downloads which will enable you to make your own decision and find out which one works best for you.

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noah murney

I agree with all of the above answers with the exception of Ben's, who gives the distinct impression that he is a sales rep for microstation, as his comments on other programs are extremely misleading. I've used autocad, microstation and vectorworks to produce 2d and 3d presentation drawings and production information for buildings both simple and complex, and not just for elevations. They're all excellent programs, including microstation, and they are all capable of exchanging files with each other.

Based on experience, my own personal preference is vectorworks because it feels like a program designed by someone who likes to draw. Perhaps this is because it started out as minicad on the mac platform. On the other hand, microstation feels like it's been designed by software engineers with an active dislike for the process of drawing. However it does have compensations for this, mainly in terms of 3d modelling and file management, but last time I looked there was a hefty premium.

The final choice is down to cost, which needs to take in to account versatility, future adaptability, and training. The final results, in terms of quality as well as speed, are entirely dependant on the skills and talent of the architect. If speed is your most important consideration then this needs to be built in at the very start of the design process. Excel seems to work fine for lots of commercial practices.

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graham wood

I have to agree with J Francis - the quickest and simplest has to be - draw/sketch it by hand - the client often appreciates your skills more that way. I guess the downside is thatyou have to scan the sketch before it's suitable to send by e-mail.

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alan milne

Hi Paul ... I'm assuming you're past thestage of the freehand stuff, suitably impressed you Client and are looking to generate your proposals in suitable software ...

If this is the case ... it's got to be REVIT !!!

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del hossain

PaulD, this is a question which will get subjective answers, as for those strong on Autocad, Microstation or Vectorworks they will individually be comfortable and confident to work at speed on those platforms. Drawing by hand is a skill that does not necessarily come as naturally to new graduates as many are as likely to produce everything from day one in CAD.

Simple answer do you use a software and if so then thats your best option. For anything more three dimensional and presentation based, many practices now use 'Sketch Up,' as its easy to learn.

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del hossain

PaulD surely the answer is based on how good an individual is in a particular software as to which is the 'best software.' I think it is a subjective answer for those with a sound grasp and years of experience in a particular CAD software they will presumably say that software irrespective of what it is , is the best. Likewise with hand drawing if you are a recent graduate you will probably feel as confident in cad as you would drawing by hand, or perhaps more confident then drawing by hand. Many companies use 'Sketch up' as a quick way to model up, and stretches across all cad platforms.

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anon_48

I would go with sketchup, it is free quick to learn and looks sketchy too if you need it to. other cad programs involve a greater level of detail to look good so it is not usually as quick as sketchup. rhino is another but involves slightly more detail than sketchup, also has a free trial!

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nats

An ink pen and T square are still fine for quick professional looking elevations for planning purposes etc. Otherwise in terms of CAD elevations I would say Autocad LT would be fine and is around £500. In terms of more advanced design work sketchup will enable you to look at the elevations in 3d and you can general flat elevations from them (I think). BIM packages like Revit and Archicad are really advanced and not suitable for quick general use in my opinon. Other CAD packages that are cheaper such as TurboCAD could be used but these arent as good as the market leaders such as Autocad and Microstation.

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mdeakin

I personally think you should use whatever you are confident with and whichever package suits your needs. I was trained on AutoCAD so i would say AutoCAD. I'm sure that other people would disagree but it depends where your skills lie. Play to your strengths.

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watson

For small projects and especially for individual use - ArchiCAD (and possibily Vectorworks) but for big projects that require extensive work of 2 or more people it must be defenitely Microstation. For massive project Microstation is just inevitable - it is just CAD harvester and probably there will never ever be something more efficient that this digital devil. I am using it constantly since 2000 and I don't plan to change it for anything else.

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andrew smith [ Editor ]

Hi, I've used AutoCAD, ArchiCAD and Revit extensively over the last ten years since graduation - my overwhelming preference is for ArchiCAD - it and Revit do much the same functions in terms of 3D modelling except ArchiCAD has a much more intuitive graphical user interface.

It's remarkably easy to place a desired window in plan, and immediately view it in elevations, sections, schedules etc.

I personally wouldn't bother with 2D drafting any more (AutoCAD or Microstation).

Thats my recommendation.

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artur

ArchiCad, no doubt. I guarantee you that Archi is not only the best software for elevations but for everything in architecture. Complete solution for the practice. I have something like 9 years of experience in ArchiCad and this soft is almighty.

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john kellett

To return to the basics of the question. Why does PaulD only want to produce elevations quickly and accurately? A building is an object in space: the interior plan, spatial organisation and environmental context are fundamental.

Both hand drawing and BIM connected software can prepare 2D presentations from the design. If the full spatial design is only in the head then hand drawing will be the quickest and cheapest. If the design is fully modelled in the computer the 2D presentations can be produced quicker but at greater cost (of modelling the building in the first place). If the design is only complete in terms of 2D CAD then you can't really take advantage of either method!

The commonplace use of Photoshop and similar software to create images is, to my mind, time wasting foolhardiness, unless there is a nice fat fee for it of course!

Having worked with many CAD programmes I would recommend the one that is of best 'value for money' for you: Vectorworks, ArchiCad or Revit (all of which, I believe, meet the IFC criteria for international BIM use and information interchange). The majority of other available software is too engineering based, not written for architects and expensive.

The use of an A0 drawing board, parallel motion, scale rule and set of Rotrings might be very satisfying for our artistic and creative side but very time consuming in an age where everything is required, not necessarily needed, to be done quickly.

Sketchup is an interesting 'compromise' and the 'Pro' version is certainly a contender for projects where information interchange is not a requirement, or the early stages of a project avoiding the costs of a full BIM model too soon.

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matthew jackson

How long is a piece of string? My answer is totally dependant on what type of project it is, how big, and how many people are working on it!!!

Everyone above (or below) is praising Microstation, don't get my wrong it's a great program but does anyone know how much you have to invest to get it!

Look this is an old question and by now you've probably made a decision but if your spending you have to make sure you get a return.

Vectorworks 2011 has great capabilities for fast drawing with great accuracy as does ArchiCAD. AutoCAD is a 2D approach rather than a 3D (unless you are highly skilled!)

You could always use SketchUp Pro, but that's not a professional program although does give a good starting point.

Check out my blog and website I'm trying to review all major CAD programs - http://bit.ly/CAD4MAC

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