Back in June, I wrote a blog introducing the new Autodesk BIM 360 cloud offering. Available mostly to Autodesk Subscription customers, BIM 360 gives users “anywhere, anytime” access to design models and BIM workflows through a variety of services offered on Autodesk’s cloud-based platform.

Last year’s east coast earthquake was a first for many – including myself. Many are questioning whether or not the eastern seaboard will continue to experience earthquakes in the near future.

Do you need to access and edit AutoCAD files on the go? Did you know Autodesk has a free app for that? AutoCAD WS has been around for a few years now. If you’re not using it, then the new features that are yet to be released might just change your mind.

How can local governments reduce their costs while keeping up with their services and readiness? For the past two decades, local governments have been using GIS technology to manage and improve responses for service departments, as well as citizens. GIS applications gives the ability to view and evaluate the locations and status of emergency equipment and early response crews, police and fire infrastructure. Current geospatial information gives government teams the ability to respond faster and plan for the future more effectively.

Maintaining seamless citizen services in a city the size of Charlotte, NC, back in 2009, was quite a challenge. From garbage pickup, administering construction permits, to street maintenance, the City its staff and customer service representatives (CSRs) needed to be able to provide a comprehensive and seamless service to its 730,000+ residents. The problem was that City staff and CSRs had to navigate several applications and conduct multiple searches when responding to inquiries and status requests. Not only was this process time consuming and frustrating to citizens, these legacy solutions were intimidating to Charlotte’s staff and CSRs.

Maintaining seamless citizen services in a city the size of Charlotte, NC, back in 2009, was quite a challenge. From garbage pickup, administering construction permits, to street maintenance, the City its staff and customer service representatives (CSRs) needed to be able to provide a comprehensive and seamless service to its 730,000+ residents. The problem was that City staff and CSRs had to navigate several applications and conduct multiple searches when responding to inquiries and status requests. Not only was this process time consuming and frustrating to citizens, these legacy solutions were intimidating to Charlotte’s staff and CSRs.

Google has now added a 3D bird's-eye view to its mapping service! Government agencies are using this new feature, which enables users to experience the feeling of being in a helicopter when viewing the path they’re traveling.

How does BIM help the City of New York champion design and construction excellence across its $6 billion portfolio? As the primary capital construction project manager in the city of New York, New York City Department of Design and Construction (NY DDC) works with over 20 agencies and numerous contractors to design and build the city’s public facilities and street infrastructure. This portfolio is valued at over $6 billion. A fast moving city doesn’t wait for anyone, which is why the NY DDC turned to building information modeling (BIM) technologies and best practices to help it overcome the fundamental challenge of doing more with less.

Some of us - including myself – may read a Dummies book and experience “sensory overload”. For those of you who are learning about LiDAR and how it works, here is some basic knowledge (drawn from this free “LiDAR for Dummies” ebook ) that can help you understand this system better and how it can help optimize your surveying activities.

Last week Autodesk extended its Autodesk 360 cloud offering to the realm of building information modeling (BIM). If you are a subscription customer, then you can now get “anywhere, anytime” access to your design models through a variety of services offered on Autodesk’s cloud-based platform. What does this mean? Well, you can free up your desktop by moving computing-intensive designs and processes, such as clash detection and energy analysis to the cloud. Field construction personnel can also access BIM models from their mobile devices in the field. Users can do all this while giving team members, contractors, and other stakeholders access to the same models for improved collaboration.