Cadalyst - ZCorp - June 2008 - (Page 2) By Heather Livingston 3D Printing in AEC Just as building information modeling has the potential to deliver projects more efficiently, using 3D-printed models throughout the design process can help firms conduct business in ways never before possible. W ith approximately half of all architecture firms now using 3D building information modeling (BIM) software, few can argue that the introduction of BIM has revolutionized the way that architects, engineers and designers are conducting their businesses. Architects can deliver their visions with greater speed, clarity and accuracy and with more visual acuity than ever before. However, when it comes to presenting the physical model to the client, most architects have yet to embrace similar innovations. A model provides a deeper understanding of the design, as well as a visceral connection that a computer image alone cannot. While the 3D computer model is very helpful in relaying design intent, architects still need the physical model to effectively convey details and scope and, perhaps more importantly, communicate to clients in a way that they can comprehend. And clients can benefit from physical representation to emotionally connect with the design and gain an understanding of the complexities of composition and spatiality. The art of handcrafting architectural models is a respected tradition, but one so laborious that it is, in effect, a design project itself. The architect’s blueprint is relayed to the model maker, who delivers the best interpretation/approximation possible in about two to four weeks’ time. Then, if the architect is lucky, the project is won and moves ahead without significant alteration. If Case Study Raising the Bar: 1 3D Printing Moves Projects Ahead In his two decades in the computer-aided design industry, R. “Partha” Parthasarathy’s first question to clients has always been, “What problems can we solve for you?” “Getting our projects to market more quickly,” was the inevitable answer. In the AEC world, Partha has discovered that projects are often delayed due to two main reasons – inappropriate communication and lack of scientific project management. Just two years ago, however, Partha discovered a technology that offered an entirely fresh way to compress time to market for architects and everyone involved in building projects: 3D printing. With 3D printing, one can provide identical sets of 3D physical models of buildings and communities at every stage of a project to every stakeholder. Partha instantly realized that this could improve communication, increase efficiency and eliminate costly errors. Thus was born iKix (www.ikix.in), India’s first service bureau chain for architectural 3D printing. The traditional method for creating an architectural model is handcrafting. Because of the long lead time and expense required to produce such a creation, architects usually commission these models only when it’s time to reveal final plans to the public. iKix, however, can “3D print” a typical project in six to 10 days, far less than the month that handcrafting a comparable model requires, Partha said. “In fact, we can print a model of a community of 1,000 acres – including homes, schools, churches, temples, golf courses and more – in six weeks versus five months for handcrafting the model,” he said. “The time and cost advantage is even more pronounced when plans change and models need to be modified on the fly.” iKix uses the Spectrum Z510 full-color 3D printing system from Z Corp. The Z510’s agility enables architects and project managers to quickly obtain multiple physical models of a project – one for the architect, the client, the general contractor, the http://www.ikix.in
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