Pen Sets, Part One » Shoegnome. History lesson. My two favorite changes between version 9 and version 10 where the merging of Plotmaker into ArchiCAD and the arrival of multiple pen sets. There is a lot of power and utility with multiple pen sets. At SALA Architects, I use 6 pen sets on a standard project. In this post I’m going to discuss the basics of two: one pen set, with colors: STANDARD (COLOR) one pet set, in black but with the same line weights: STANDARD (BLACK) Drawings placed on layouts can be set to black and white, grayscale, or original colors. To work in color or black and white? My ideal solution is to be able to work in color, print in black and white but also have access to grayscale and moments of color as needed. All the unused pens in both pet sets are set to a god-awful color. There’s a whole lot more to these pen sets, but I’ll save that for another post.
Proceed to Part Two… Save Related Pen Sets, Part Three If you haven't read Parts One or Two, you might want to start here. March 20, 2011. Minimal Space Requirements and improving your Design Criteria. Thou Shalt not do 2D. Thou Shalt not just do 3D. In the BIM circles there is a lot of talk about Information. There is this belief that Information trumps 3D models; that it’s the I over the B or the M in the term Building Information Model. I think this is a misunderstanding of the situation. It assumes the Information is something outside of the three standard dimensions, that it has to be something like a text field in a schedule or data about facilities management, or perhaps flow rate through a pipe or some such esoterica. Talk like this can drive people into feelings of BIM Guilt. BIM Guilt: the feeling that you aren’t ‘doing’ enough to claim BIM.
Talk of Information above all else can also be a handicap in learning ArchiCAD or another program. Information in a BIM: ANY discreet piece of code in a BIM file that furthers the production, coordination, design, or integration of the final building. Now of course that is an insanely broad definition. What is Minimal Space? Floor screed. A floor screed is usually a cementitious material made from a 1:3 or 1:4.5 ratio of cement to sharp sand. It may be applied onto either a solid in-situ concrete ground floor slab or onto a precast concrete floor unit. Application The screed may be directly bonded to the base, with a minimum thickness of 40mm, laid unbonded onto a suitable damp proof membrane which is placed over the slab, with a minimum thickness of 50mm, or, if containing underfloor heating pipes a minimum of 65mm thick.
Alternatively it may be applied as a floating finish over a layer of rigid insulation material where the screed should be a minimum 65mm thick or 75mm if it contains underfloor heating pipes. If reinforcement is required, this can either be in the form of a fine metal mesh or fibres which are normally polypropylene. The screed may be left as finished, or floated to produce a smooth surface on which to lay the specified flooring or finish.