Revamped SDS/2 Users Group Conference a Hit With Attendees
More than 250 SDS/2 users, Design Data representatives and industry partners attended the 2012 SDS/2 Users Group Conference, held October 10-12 at The Cornhusker in Lincoln, Nebraska.
The three-day conference hosted partnering companies via the event's Partner Pavilion, which was home to the conference kick-off event, Wednesday evening's reception (sponsored by Peddinghaus), and exclusive conference sessions.
AISC's Luke Faulkner served as the conference's keynote speaker, discussing the present and future of the model review process. While many believe they understand the process, they aren't sure reviewing models over drawings would save time. However, according to Faulkner, model review is a sustainable, innovative, collaborative, and efficient process with benefits that include improved communication, faster turnaround, and easier interpretation of intent.
Following the keynote speech, a series of roundtables were held, on varied topics such as CNC, reports, model imports and exports, MRP, and connections. The roundtables gave conference attendees the opportunity to have a voice in future development of the software. The first day of the conference also included the business meeting and Design Data update.
The last two days of the conference were dedicated exclusively to learning opportunities. This year's sessions focused on such topics as SDS/2 v7.3, parametrics, uses of status and custom properties, the basics of Report Writer, BIM, point cloud technology, and real-life model approval implementation. In addition to conference sessions, attendees also had hands-on training in labs dedicated to parametrics and custom members, SDS/2 Connect and SDS/2 Erector.
Design Data's annual Thursday night conference dinner featured a reception and awards show at the Rococo Theatre in downtown Lincoln. Attendees received trophies and prizes in categories such as The Best Use of Material in a Shear Tab Connection, Most Innovative Design of a Walmart, and Detailer of the Year. The winners of Code Clash 2012, the SDS/2 Solid Steel Competition and the Connectors Club Award were also announced.
To view additional images from the conference, visit the SDS/2 by Design Data page on Facebook.
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Design Data to Present, Exhibit at Autodesk UniversityDesign Data will once again be exhibiting at Autodesk University, to be held November 27-29 at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, Nevada. In addition to exhibiting, Design Data will be part of three educational sessions: Learning to Design Connections in Autodesk® Revit® Structure with SDS/2 Connect (lab); Building Information Manufacturing: Optimizing Your Design with SDS/2 Connect; and Autodesk Revit Structure: The Complete Solution for Steel Buildings. The latter session will be co-presented with CSC. |
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San Diego Library Dome Project Featured in MSCSME Steel Contractor's San Diego Library Dome project — the grand prize winner in the Commercial category of the 2012 SDS/2 Solid Steel Competition — is featured in the November 2012 issue of Modern Steel Construction. SME detailed the dome entirely in SDS/2, creating hundreds of rolling diagrams with varying radii, thousands of difficult pipe wraps, and complex, frame-based shop drawings. SME hand modeled each member, gusset, and connection, while each architectural clevis, swage fork and other hardware was modeled to the manufacturer's exact specifications to meet tight tolerances. To read more about the project, click here. |
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Flexible Licensing Options Now Available for SDS/2 ConnectWith the latest release of SDS/2 Connect, users now have additional functionality for network licensing, which allows the software to be utilized by multiple users in the office. Licenses can be checked out when needed; when not checked out, the Revit model will behave as if SDS/2 Connect is not installed. For more information on other new enhancements in the latest release of SDS/2 Connect, click here. |
Jim Dager Honored With the 2012 Connectors Club Award
Design Data's Doug Evans and David Henegar from SDI, Inc. presented the annual Connectors Club Award during the Design Data Reception and Awards Show, held October 11, 2012, during the SDS/2 Users Group Conference. Previous winners of the award also joined Doug and David on stage to present the award.
Advisory Board members and past recipients of this award nominate standout individuals who have demonstrated exemplary dedication and commitment to the development and application of SDS/2 during the preceding year.
The recipient for 2012 is Jim Dager. Jim, the owner of Design Data, founded the company in 1981 and retired as president in 2009. He has previously been honored by AISC with a Special Achievement Award, recognizing his role in the advancement of 3D steel detailing and the use of BIM in the steel industry.
To see previous winners of the award, click here.
