KS user group - April 11

It's that time of year again. We have scheduled the date for the next KS user group.

Here are the details:

Location:  Smeaton Room, Buro Happold, 17 Newman Street, London, W1T 1PD

Date:  Thursday 11 April

Start:  09.00

End:  14.00

Cost:  Free (Breakfast & lunch included)

We will be reviewing the latest KS tools in some detail, including a look at what’s coming up in the next 3-6 months. Plus a guest presenter or two.  Full agenda to follow, as the date gets closer. 

Places will be limited to 25, on a first come, first served basis.

Hope to see you there!

R

Testing Revit Architecture Skills - A 3-Step Approach

Revit Architecture is the most popular test title in the KS library. No big surprise. So let's take a look at how an AEC firm might create an appropriate testing environment for Revit Architecture, catering for users of all levels of experience and abilities.

Firstly, it's important to establish that not all users need to become Revit 'experts'. Many people have a primary role which means they come into contact with Revit on an occasional basis, but no more than that. So, do they need to become adept in the finer points of massing, curtain walls and Family editing? Certainly not! For example, PM's, Project Architects, Practice Principals, and so on.  However, in many instances, these people can benefit from a degree of knowledge and familiarity with the technology, not least from a project planning or resourcing perspective.  So some basic knowledge of the tools can be beneficial.

For these individuals, we have created a 'Level 1' assessment, called 'Revit Architecture for occasional users'. As the name suggests, it is a fairly gentle, introductory level test, which looks at some basic concepts, including:  Files & File Formats, Navigation, Views & Sheets, Measuring, Exporting Data, Families and Element Selection.

The fact is, casual users of Revit software sometimes make silly mistakes, mainly through lack of understanding, thus creating work for more experienced users tasked with tidying up their mess. This is a common complaint from design firms and one which is easily avoided.  Simply put, no-one gets access to a license of Revit, without first achieving a minimum 'pass' mark on the Revit occasional test (level to be determined by individual firms). Don't give someone the keys to the car, without first establishing they have a basic understanding of how to drive.

For the primary modeling team, we have the 'Level 2', or 'Revit fundamentals' level material. This is a general level test, covering a wider range of topics, including: Basic Element Creation, Views & Sheets, Detailing, Keynoting & Annotation, Worksharing, Dimensions & Rules, Interoperability, Families & Parts, Scheduling, Coordinates & Orientation and Outputs.

This level of test material can be used to create reliable benchmark data for the firm, compared to industry average statistics. Performance 'quartiles' (see image below) are an effective way of targeting users with incremental productivity improvements over time, with the appropriate modular training workshops addressing highlighted skills gaps.

For users placing in upper quartile 3 or quartile 4, we have a variety of modules which are designed to address more advanced Revit concepts. The 'Level 3' material covers more process based scenarios and looks at the impact of using the software in a project environment. Topics such as Revit Families, Work flows, Project process and Worksharing are covered in greater detail. 

In addition to test modules about Revit software, we have written some general questions about BIM and BIM management. So firms can create assessments which cover technology and also the wider Building Information Modeling environment, within which the software is deployed.

By targeting users with material appropriate for their job function, and also their current level of ability, AEC firms can now create more meaningful benchmark data, plan a more focused training strategy and adopt a stepped approach to measuring Revit and BIM knowledge across their teams.

R

KS & Global e-Training Links

KnowledgeSmart has been working with the team at Global e-Training, to map the results for our most popular test titles, to the corresponding modular training content, presented within the GeT Learning Management System.

These titles now have full links to learning enabled:


AutoCAD 2D fundamentals
AutoCAD 2D for occasional users
AutoCAD Civil 3D fundamentals (parts 1-4)
Navisworks fundamentals
Revit Architecture fundamentals
Revit Structure fundamentals
Revit MEP fundamentals (Mechanical)
Revit MEP fundamentals (Electrical)
Revit MEP fundamentals (Plumbing)

To follow in the Spring:

Inventor fundamentals (parts 1-4)

3ds Max fundamentals (parts 1-4)

Click here for a short video, which illustrates the user journey between testing and training.

R

2013 Library Updates

Happy New Year!

We've been busy over the holiday period, putting the finishing touches to a selection of new KS library updates.  These include:

Revit Architecture 2013 - Advanced
Part 1 of 2 sets of challenging questions, looking at more advanced aspects of applying RAC on projects. Written by Paul Aubin.

Revit Architecture 2013 - Occasional Users
An introductory set of questions, written by Chris Senior, with part-time users of the software in mind.

Inventor 2013 - Part 3 (Drawings)
Part 3 of 4 sets, written by John Evans. Part 1 covers Assemblies. Part 2 covers Part Modeling. Part 4 to follow in Feb/Mar covering Welding & Sheet Metal.

BIM Management
A general set of questions, edited by Evolve Consultancy, covering a variety of different aspects of BIM Management and Coordination, including IFC and COBie.

Plant 3D - Part 1 (Project Setup and Specifications)
A general level set of questions, written by Joel Harris, covering project setup, template creation and customization. Parts 2-5 to follow in the coming months, covering the following topics: Piping specs & catalogs, 3D modeling, Document generation and P&ID.

USACE BIM Process
A general set of questions about the official BIM process, as created by the US Army Corps of Engineers. This assessment comprises questions looking at both the Policy and Content of the USACE BIM protocols. Edited by a sub-committee of the USACE BIM team.

We are working on some new titles in the Spring months.  These include:
Inventor Part 4 - Welding & Sheet Metal
Plant 3D Part 2 - Piping Specifications & Catalogs
Revit Structure 2013 Advanced
Revit MEP 2013 Advanced
Civil 3D 2013 Advanced
ArchiCAD
Bentley ProjectWise
Synchro

R

AUGI Top DAUG 2012 - The Results

Building on the success of last year's contest at AU, KnowledgeSmart and AUGI once again teamed up to provide an interactive skills assessment, across 8 popular Autodesk software tracks: 3ds Max, AutoCAD 2D, AutoCAD Civil 3D, Inventor, Navisworks, Revit Architecture, Revit MEP and Revit Structure.

Here's a brief history of the TD contest, from AUGI.  And here's a summary of last year's competition.

Once again, we had some cool prizes up for grabs.  Track winners walked away with a $100 USD Amazon voucher (a combination of high scores and fastest times determined the winner of each track) and the overall winner won a HP laptop and a free pass to AU2013.

Here's a shot of the contest rules board:

We spent several hours on the Monday, setting up 18 networked PC's in the exhibition hall, at the AUGI stand. We got off to a slow start when the exhibition hall manager decided that the PC's were facing the wrong way round. So we dismantled all 18 PC's, turned them around 180 degrees and wired them all back in again! (Which, of course, we were delighted to do!).

Now properly oriented, all 144 copies of  Autodesk software needed checking, then all the KS sample data sets had to be uploaded to each machine and checked again.  Big thanks to Joe Croser and Mike Johnson for their help in accomplishing this rather onerous task!

Here's how we looked when we were all nicely set up:

The competition ran over 2 days (1 x 3 hour slot on day one, then 1 x 2 hour and 1 x 3 hour slot on day two). Contestants had to answer 10 questions, using the 2013 version of each software title. Each session was limited to just 10 minutes, so people had to work fast!  Special thanks to awesome AUGI team members, Kristin, Bob, Michael, Donnia and Richard, for briefing users and making sure everything ran smoothly.

Here are the Top DAUG's in action:

By the end of the contest, we posted 336 results, with 0% failed tests. Considering the hotel web connectivity was, at times, positively creaking with the competition for bandwidth in the main hall, we are rather proud of the resilience demonstrated by the KS system.  Particularly when we saw some users juggling a beer in one hand, a mouse in the other and a bag of popcorn balanced somewhere in the middle! (Editor note: When you're writing technical specs for software, somehow you never quite anticipate all of the live scenarios your code might end up experiencing! :) ).

Throughout the competition, we posted a rolling list of the top 10 contestants for each track, on the AUGI big screen.

The Results

Congratulations to the following contestants, who won their respective software tracks:

And a special mention to the overall winner of AUGI Top DAUG 2012:

Fred Wismer

Analysis

So, let's take a detailed look at the results of this year's Top DAUG competition.

Overall

No. of Tests Completed:  336

Overall Average:  41% in 9 mins 26 secs

(NB the average score for 2011 was 53%).

Track 1 - 3ds Max

Track Winner: James Clarke (NB James is the Max track winner for the second year running).

Winning Score: 75% in 10 mins 0 secs

Top 10 Contestants:

No. Completed: 13

Group Average: 17% in 9 mins 34 secs

Track 2 - AutoCAD 2D

Track Winner: Glenn Sinclair

Winning Score: 100% in 8 mins 5 secs

Top 10 Contestants:

No. Completed: 113

Group Average: 37% in 9 mins 45 secs

Track 3 - AutoCAD Civil 3D

Track Winner: Fred Wismer

Winning Score: 100% in 7 mins 30 secs

Top 10 Contestants:

No. Completed: 46

Group Average: 61% in 8 mins 20 secs

Track 4 - Inventor

Track Winner: Tracy Chadwick

Winning Score: 60% in 10 mins 0 secs

Top 10 Contestants:

No. Completed: 16

Group Average: 22% in 9 mins 50 secs

Track 5 - Navisworks

Track Winner: James Austin
Winning Score: 80% in 10 mins 0 secs

Top 10 Contestants:

No. Completed: 19
Group Average: 42% in 9 mins 34 secs

Track 6 - Revit Architecture

Track Winner: Michael Patrick

Winning Score: 98% in 9 mins 30 secs

Top 10 Contestants:

No. Completed: 84

Group Average: 55% in 9 mins 20 secs

Track 7 - Revit MEP

Track Winner: Maxime Sanschagrin

Winning Score: 53% in 10 mins 0 secs

Top 10 Contestants:

No. Completed: 26

Group Average: 34% in 9 mins 50 secs

Track 8 - Revit Structure

Track Winner: Eric Bernier

Winning Score: 95% in 10 mins 0 secs

Top 10 Contestants:

No. Completed: 19

Group Average: 43% in 9 mins 32 secs

Popular Tracks

The most popular tracks, in order of completed tests, were as follows:

AutoCAD 2D - 113 results

Revit Architecture - 84 results

AutoCAD Civil 3D - 46 results

Revit MEP - 26 results

Navisworks - 19 results

Revit Structure - 19 results

Inventor - 16 results

3ds Max - 13 results

Range of scores

Interestingly, across the 8 tracks, we saw scores ranging from 0% to 100%. Here is a summary of both ends of the performance scale:

4 x 100% scores (2 x AutoCAD 2D, 2 x AutoCAD Civil 3D).

12 x 0% scores (1 x AutoCAD 2D, 4 x AutoCAD Civil 3D, 3 x Navisworks, 3 x Revit MEP, 1 x Revit Structure).

Honourable mentions

Along with our track winners, the following contestants deserve a special mention, for their performance in the competition:

Brian Mackey - yet another stellar performance from our 'Mr Consistent' competitor. Just pipped for 2nd place in the RST track, top 3 finish for Navisworks, plus a very good Revit Architecture score.

Brent McAnney - a winner in last year's contest, placed top 3 in both AutoCAD and Civil 3D tracks.

Glenn Sinclair - winner of the AutoCAD 2D track, top 10 for Revit Architecture and 2nd place overall in the contest.

Tracy Chadwick - winner of the Inventor track, top 5 finish for AutoCAD 2D, plus a very good Revit Architecture score.

Kate Morrical - another consistent performer, placing top 3 in both AutoCAD 2D and Revit Structure tracks.

Rebecca Frangipane - track winner from last year, top 5 finish in Revit Structure, plus a very good Revit Architecture score.

John Fout and Ben Downey for completing 4 tracks apiece.

Boys vs Girls

Finally, let's take a look at the demographic breakdown of the competition. Out of 336 contestants, 303 were male and 33 female. The average overall performance for each group breaks down like this:

Girls: 49% in 9 mins 18 secs

Boys: 41% in 9 mins 29 secs

So, that's Top DAUG done and dusted for another year. A thoroughly enjoyable 3 days at AU2012. 336 completed tests, across 8 popular Autodesk software applications. Once again, the overall standard was extremely high, with some outstanding individual performances from our track winners and top 10 contestants. And once again the Civil 3D track takes the overall prize!

Congratulations to all our winners. Thanks to the AUGI team for all their support, with a special mention for AUGI President, David Harrington and past-President, Mark Kiker. Lastly, a big thank you to everyone who took part in this year's contest.

R

KS server update

Quick technical heads up for this Sunday. We're moving the KS system from the existing Rackspace local server to a cloud based server. Nothing especially earth shattering. But an important update to our back-end hosting, which sets us up well for next year and beyond. The nice thing about cloud based hosting is the scalability. If we need to ramp up our RAM or increase overall capacity in future, then we'll have greater capability to do so.

So for 2-3 hours on Sunday 09 December, around 12pm EST / 5pm GMT, you might experience a little down-time in the live system.  We'll do everything we can to minimise the impact of this work.

R

KS Devs Update

As Q4 rolls around, we thought it would be useful to jot down a brief summary of what we're working on at the moment.

KS Library

All of the existing (Autodesk) library titles have been updated to 2013 format.  Our favourite task of the year. (Not really).  This includes: Revit (x3), AutoCAD, Civil 3D, Navisworks, Design Review and 3ds Max.

We're over half way to finishing an expanded Inventor 2013 question set.  Working with ace US author, John Evans, we are covering 4 key areas: Assemblies, Part Modeling, Drawings (and presentations) and Welding and sheet metal.  Our goal is to complete the set in time for AU2012.

We're compiling a larger set of general BIM related questions, for the KS Community area of the library.  These will be a FREE addition to the KS library.  Should be ready in time for AU, or thereabouts.

We have started work on a set of ArchiCAD fundamentals questions - our first foray into the Graphisoft world.  Covering 4 levels of difficulty, this set will be available in the New Year.

Advanced RAC, advanced RST and Revit for occasional users are all works in progress. Our deadline for these sets has slipped a bit, due to author commitments, but we're aiming for something on all 3 fronts by AU2012.

USACE has put together a working group to check the Attachment F assessment material.  We're awaiting the green light from the Corps, to release this free question set into the general KS library.

On the drawing board (can we still use that phrase?) for the next round of updates, include the following topics: Advanced RMEP, advanced Civil 3D, Bentley ProjectWise, AutoPlant and Plant 3D.

A variety of vendors are currently discussing writing test material for their own software products.  These include: CADS (CADS RC), Tekla (Tekla Structures), Synchro (Synchro Professional), Savoy (AutoTrack) and Codebook (Codebook).


KS System

The latest release of the KS tools hit the live site in early October.  This completed our program of works for the summer, within two weeks of our original goal, which is excellent.

Next up, we have two point-releases in the works, which address the remaining items on the KS user group wish list.  These include: capturing additional user data for more detailed statistical & benchmarking analysis; update to the test report format; additional library searching & grouping; tidy up of the users data page (including option to edit and delete master records); prep for supporting different languages in the test library;  update to account hierarchy options (including option to delete and move accounts); new charting option for flagged training request data, plus a few other smaller tidy-up tasks.

We'll also be moving to a new cloud server next month, which gives us a greater capacity to grow.  We anticipate a small amount of down-time, during the move, so we'll keep you updated.

Looking ahead, we'll be discussing the following additional features with our user group, in the coming months: User dashboard pages, new question types, survey questions & charting, links to third party systems, more detailed regional benchmark stats, additional charting & reporting options and a web based skills matrix.


Out and About

We'll be attending a few events in the next couple of months.  Autodesk host their annual BIM conference, in London, on 19 November.  The same week sees a free BIM learning and networking conference, hosted by Ramboll, in London, on 22 November.

Plus, KS is once again co-hosting the AUGI Top DAUG skills contest at Autodesk University.

So hopefully we'll have a chance to cross paths at some point this quarter.  Once again, thanks to our ever-enthusiastic user group, for a steady stream of ideas for new system features and library additions.

R