Autodesk’s 2014 Software Release – What’s New for the Public Sector?

In addition to the new 2014 software release, Autodesk has also undergone a rebrand. Visit www.autodesk.com for a look.

Last week, Autodesk announced its 2014 software portfolio line-up live on the web. So what impact will we see for the public sector?

As expected, there remains a big focus on Autodesk suites – a more cost effective way to purchase complete solutions across a variety of industries. So what’s new? Here’s a quick re-cap:

What’s New for Infrastructure Professionals?

The state of the U.S. infrastructure is also a big focus for Autodesk:

The world is facing a tremendous set of challenges in maintaining, designing and building the infrastructure we need to support the estimated growth of the population to nine billion people by 2030,” said Lisa Campbell, vice president, engineering and infrastructure, Autodesk. “Decades-old approaches coupled with century-old delivery processes simply can’t meet the global challenge in the face of shrinking funds. The adoption of BIM will lead to a dramatically more efficient infrastructure design and construction process. The combination of easily accessible technology for reality capture, plus the next generation design technology in our 2014 product line, offers an unmatched platform that marries the power of the desktop and the cloud to will help transform the industry to meet these global challenges.

Autodesk’s new 2014 portfolio of software and cloud services for civil for infrastructure is highlighted by new Autodesk InfraWorks software (previously known as Autodesk Infrastructure Modeler) and Autodesk ReCap software.

Specifically, Autodesk Infraworks will help civil engineers and designers optimize design processes, speed project delivery and reduce costs by tapping into cloud-based service to automate engineering calculations and models, explains the Autodesk PR team. “This enables engineers and designers to develop engineering models in 3D from the start to help confirm scope, budget and schedule. These capabilities are the first in a series of modules that will expand the functionality of Autodesk InfraWorks for select industry segments.

A new solution, Autodesk ReCap, will “… speed the creation of intelligent 3D models based on laser scans, photographs and other forms of reality capture. The norm today in most civil infrastructure design processes is to begin a project with a blank screen on a workstation.  Autodesk ReCap will leverage the power of the cloud to make it dramatically easier for civil engineers and designers to add, modify, validate and document their design process in context from existing environments, and start with a model of reality instead of a blank page. Seamlessly integrated with Autodesk Design and Creation Suites, including Autodesk Infrastructure Design Suite, Autodesk ReCap makes it easy to clean, organize, and visualize the massive datasets captured from reality.”

Autodesk ReCap makes working with Reality Capture data easy, quick and cost effective (Image courtesy of Autodesk’s “In the Fold” blog)

What’s New for the Architecture and Building Professionals?

Also upgraded for 2014, Autodesk Building Design Suite. An end-to-end software solution that gives building design and construction professionals have a broad palette of tools that streamlines streamline the design and construction process by extending design intent through to construction with the use of intelligent model based design from the earliest stages. New products in the Suite include AutodeskReCap, Autodesk Raster Design, and Autodesk InfraWorks. Other enhancements include improved design, analysis and documentation capabilities to Revit that will improve workflows, plus the addition of the new Building Element Energy Analysis tool. Interoperability has also been enhanced, specifically between AutoCAD and Revit – making it easier for designers to transition to BIM. New quantification tools in Navisworks Manage and Navisworks Simulate make it easier to bring quantities from an aggregated model into a project.

Find Out More

For a useful breakdown of these and other Autodesk 2014 software releases, including AutoCAD, and enhancements by industry, check out this blog from our friend and Autodesk Technologist for the Office of the CTO – Shaan Hurley: Autodesk 2014 Product News From Around the Blogosphere. You can still view the 2014 release live event on Autodesk’s YouTube channel.