ACA vs Revit

[backtothefuture4]

I'm ready to begin learning a BIM software.

Can anyone refer me to public information about AutoDesk's plans for ACA, I've heard they are going to phase it out.

Thank you

[bbeck]

I'm not to sure about Autodesk phasing out ACA. However, they have now bundled
Architectural Desktop with Revit Architecture Suite. This could be interpreted as a sign that they want to make it easier for ACA users to get exposure to Revit without forcing anyone down a particular path at this time.

[backtothefuture4]

I'm not to sure about Autodesk phasing out ACA. However, they have now bundled
Architectural Desktop with Revit Architecture Suite. This could be interpreted as a sign that they want to make it easier for ACA users to get exposure to Revit without forcing anyone down a particular path at this time.

Thank you for the reply

[david.kingham]

From what I have seen/heard they will not be phasing out ACA anytime soon, there is still a huge amount of seats of it in use and it will continue, they would be ignorant to stop supporting it.
There are still areas in the industry it works better than Revit for now. It really depends on the type of work you do. But overall most people will recommend Revit long before they recomended ACA (myself included)

[Revit3D.com]

I had a conversation with an Autodesk employee recently and they called ACA 2.5D. It's just not quite the same as Revit and 3D. If you're really talking about BIM, I can't see how'd you have the choice of ACA versus Revit because you have the combination of Revit Architecture, Revit Structure, Revit MEP and ALL of the peripheral software and analysis tools. I think if IPD starts to get adopted sooner than later, you won't even have a choice.

Also, Autodoesk is out there marketing to government, owners, developers and contractors about BIM. The fact that they don't go out and brag about ACA is pretty indicative of their marketing strategy. They're only keeping ACA alive because of the laggards. Perhaps if ACA data could import right into Revit, then maybe it'd be a consideration. Nah, what am I saying, it's AutoCAD Heavy.

Lastly, does ACA truly "model"? Building + Information + Modeling. Are you really building and how much information does ACA have? 2.5D vs 3D, 4D and 5D!

From what I have seen/heard they will not be phasing out ACA anytime soon, there is still a huge amount of seats of it in use and it will continue, they would be ignorant to stop supporting it.
There are still areas in the industry it works better than Revit for now. It really depends on the type of work you do. But overall most people will recommend Revit long before they recomended ACA (myself included)

[Beancud]

I had a conversation with an Autodesk employee recently and they called ACA 2.5D. It's just not quite the same as Revit and 3D. If you're really talking about BIM, I can't see how'd you have the choice of ACA versus Revit because you have the combination of Revit Architecture, Revit Structure, Revit MEP and ALL of the peripheral software and analysis tools. I think if IPD starts to get adopted sooner than later, you won't even have a choice.

Also, Autodoesk is out there marketing to government, owners, developers and contractors about BIM. The fact that they don't go out and brag about ACA is pretty indicative of their marketing strategy. They're only keeping ACA alive because of the laggards. Perhaps if ACA data could import right into Revit, then maybe it'd be a consideration. Nah, what am I saying, it's AutoCAD Heavy.

Lastly, does ACA truly "model"? Building + Information + Modeling. Are you really building and how much information does ACA have? 2.5D vs 3D, 4D and 5D!

^you sir got it bang on the head!

I wish Autodesk is more harsh on the laggards.

[dbaldacchino]

Plus there is no third party development options within Revit.

You're kidding, right?

[Revit3D.com]

Of course he's kidding. OK everyone, let's agree to disagree. Their will always be a few people with specialized work who will need 2D and 2.5D tools. For those of you in that situation I say 'AutoCAD Revit Architecture Suite 2009.1". It includes AutoCAD, AutoCAD Architecture and Revit Architecture. Revit MEP Suites includes AutoCAD MEP and AutoCAD Architecture. There, problem solved and the big bad Autodesk company has given you the ability to deal with mutiple workfows and software options. Yes, the terrible monopoly is forcing you to have a suite of software options. Now you have to pay for training to learn these new products.

Did you read the brand new 48 page BIM report that shows firms getting 500% ROI from switching to Revit. The battle is over. Revit, BIM and IPD are making A/E firms profit for the first time in 25 years. McGraw-Hill BIM Report Link.

Here's a link for products compatible with Revit. There are over 50 and the list grows every day. Name one bidirectional structural anaylsis tool for ACA.

Autodesk is continuing to develop ACA, but they keep buying analyisis companies and partnering only with BIM compatible products.

You're kidding, right?

Now for the fun part. ACA is not BIM and will never be BIM. ACA is a linear workflow. The work and errors get passed from person to person along the design chain with NO interoperability. Sorry, you lose this battle every time. It is archaic to think that it imbraces Integrated Project Delivery and I personally believe that you are impedind the Design to Build workflow. Fight your fight and watch the world change around you. I don't want you to move to Revit because I think it's better. I want you to consider the possibilities that you may be wrong and may be excluded from future work because you refuse to accept alternatives. Why are you using ACA anyhow? Why aren't you still using pencil and paper? Someone forced you to switch to digital drafting at some point over the last 25 years and it's not in your best interest to shun new technology.

Revit, with all of it's 3rd party developers, analysis and design tools, visualization options, LEED design linking, estimating capabilities, Facilty Management tie ins all give you more flexibility and capabilites. There's no way to compare line, circles, arcs and polylines to a relational database that can be shared live across the internet with multiple people simultaneously working on a project, in a room. XRefs versus Workset sharing? You must be joking.

Autodesk has invested hundreds of millions of dollars now into BIM products. They're not undermining their own products, their expanding all of them to try to have interoperablity. They're still spending development money on you and your friends that refuse to embrace BIM.

I will agree with you that with some discipline specific fields, Revit is not yet strong enough to contend with, but with the API, third party development, internal development, it will overtake all areas.

It's not a matter of if you move to Revit, it's only a matter of when. You must download it and start practicing with it. I beg you to only because the AEC industry is demanding it. I want you to have a job and make more money. It sounds like in your field, there's a different workflow. Maybe you learn to use Revit within your field, find workarounds for Revit and outshine your peers and become a BIM Consultant.

We love you and we care about your future. We want you to be happy and enjoy your work. We know it's battle fought firm by firm and person by person. We only have these forum discussions to help you and I personally appreciate your stubborness and will fight the battle every time because we all win as a result.

In terms of interoperability and direct integration in a multi-discipline environment ACA far exceeds any comparable capability within Revit. In terms of BIM - taken as a process that encompasses the whole design procedure from conceptual to facility management the plethora of Autocad based options provide much more flexibility and capabilities.

It is obviously in Autodesks interest to undermine their own product ACA to persuade potential customers to adopt or move to the Revit camp. Working solely in Revit restricts the user to the Revit way of doing things there are no alternatives.

Don't get me wrong - it is a good suite of programs - but in my line of work I prefer to be able to offer a choice of programs for the various discipline specific applications.

[jaberwok]

I had a conversation with an Autodesk employee recently and they called ACA 2.5D.

which was disingenuous. AutoCAD R10 was called 2.5D because it had no real 3D objects just 2D objects given depth/thickness.

[dbaldacchino]

But hold on a second, you're talking about two completely separate issues here.

Revit is purpose-built for buildings. Autocad is not. It can be customized for a wide range of industries, while Revit is purpose-built for buildings. There are already a lot of 3rd part applications sprouting out there to automate certain functions in Revit. If that's not 3rd party development, then I don't know what is. Autocad requires a ton of 3rd party apps because it's just an infrastructure/platform which you have to customize to your very specific needs if you want to be profitable and productive.

Here's an example:

www.strucsoftsolutions.com