Hurricane Sandy caused major damage in New York and New Jersey in October 2012. In this video, New Jersey Chief Information Officer Steven Emanuel talks about the storm's impact on critical state computer systems and lessons learned from the event.

The public is more involved than ever in influencing whether proposed infrastructure projects in their neighborhood get the green light. They want to know how the project will affect them? Will it increase traffic in their back yard? Is it the best use of tax payer dollars? And so on. The problem is, under our conventional workflows, projects are typically communicated through 2D exhibits – plan views, aerial imagery, charts, etc. And while this is a language that design professionals speak very fluently, it isn’t a language that most people in the public speak! If citizens don’t perceive that a project will benefit them then it can be extremely unlikely that the project will come to fruition.

What can digital design help the public sector achieve in the face of the many challenges the public sector is currently facing? How can advanced CAD tools such as visualization and collaborative design software help rebuild and strengthen our nation’s infrastructure in the light of catastrophic events like Super Storm Sandy?

DLT Solutions and [acronym] Magazine cosponsored the Public Sector CAD Awards last week. This two-part, four-question series will recap a conversation with the four judges called “Digital Design Tech, Trends, and Talking Points for 2013 – A Q&A with Public Sector Industry Pros.” Acronym Online editor Caron Beesley moderated the presentation. The judges were:

We live in a convergence era of infinite computation, sensors, and materials that can be combined to create brand new possibilities. The speed of making a material transition from concept to production has increased and the cost has decreased exponentially. Decades ago, it would take you years and thousands of dollars to develop a product, but now it can take you hours and less than one-hundred dollars. This has happened because digital manufacturing is now mostly open source and open design, allowing people to utilize a community to create a better product.

DLT Solutions and [acronym] Magazine cosponsored the Public Sector CAD Awards last week. This two-part, four-question series will recap a conversation with the four judges called “Digital Design Tech, Trends, and Talking Points for 2013 – A Q&A with Public Sector Industry Pros.” Acronym Online editor Caron Beesley moderated the presentation. The judges were:

DLT Solutions and [acronym] Magazine cosponsored the Public Sector CAD Awards last week. This two-part, four-question series will recap a conversation with the four judges called “Digital Design Tech, Trends, and Talking Points for 2013 – A Q&A with Public Sector Industry Pros.”

Achievements in building information modeling (BIM) ruled at the [acronym] 2^nd annual Public Sector CAD Awards and Expo, held online at a unique virtual event. Hundreds of you turned out online to view the awards ceremony and attend and network with some of the CAD industry’s top speakers at a series of free educations sessions, including:

• Lynn Allen’s “60 AutoCAD Tips in 60 Minutes”
• What does it take to Implement 6 Million Square Feet of BIM?

A CAD event isn’t one without a certain Autodesk Evangelist showing up. Thankfully, Lynn Allen not only made an appearance during [acronym] Magazine Public Sector’s CAD Awards virtual event, she gave the keynote talk. 60 AutoCAD Tips in 60 Minutes provided users with more valuable tricks and shortcuts than a magician carries up his infinite sleeve and within his endless hat. We caught up with Lynn afterward to bring you her thoughts on her most useful tips, cloud, and the next five years of digital design.