Getting Real with AutoCAD Civil 3D

A look at a variety of projects which have been aided by the use of Civil 3D design software.
Autodesk has recently released Civil 3D 2008, and this new version sees
great improvements in functionality, speed and capacity. As Civil 3D
continues to grow as a product, we thought it was time to take a look
at how some of the organisations that have invested in the software
have been putting it to use on live projects around the UK and abroad.
WS Atkins has been utilising Civil 3D for Airport design. Atkins engineer
Dhammika Karalliedde used Civil 3D to design an overlay to an existing
taxiway at an international UK airport. In this project, the existing
concrete surface of the taxiway had degraded over time, and was to be
resurfaced using asphalt. The existing surface was to be planed out to
accommodate the new surface, which had to tie in precisely with the
runway at one end and another taxiway at the other. Civil 3Ds profile
tools were used to great effect in ensuring that this was achieved with
confidence.
Figure 1: Runway Design Profile
There are stringent design criteria in terms of allowable grades and
vertical curves for the taxiways, and so the corridor model for the
design was derived from two main alignments. The western edge of
the taxiway was judged to be critical to the design, having the tightest
horizontal curve, and formed one of the alignments, the other being
the taxiway centreline. A third alignment was placed on the eastern
edge of the taxiway and was used as an attached alignment in the
corridor design. Profiles of the alignments showing the existing
concrete surface were created and then the overlay profiles using
acceptable degrees of curvature were designed on these, giving
80mm surface above existing. The corridor was modelled using two
assemblies, one attached to the eastern edge, and one on the taxiway
centreline. Grading was included to tie in the edge of the taxiway to
existing ground either side.
Figure 2: Proposed Taxiway Section Detail
Getting Real with AutoCAD Civil 3D

Civil Engineering & Mapping
By Dave Bosworth, Business Development Consultant, Excitech Ltd.
41 www.excitech.co.uk/dpj Excitech Ltd Design Productivity Journal | 2007 Volume 4, Issue 2
Figure 3: Proposed Taxiway Plan Detail
Figure 4: Corridor model of taxiway overlay showing alignments used
Dhammika says of the projects We found the dynamic links between
the model and the profiles a big benefit during the design process, as
well as the ability to directly edit the resulting surface model
something that is not so easy using MX. Working directly in AutoCAD
was also very important, as we could complete our drawings by Xref-
ing in the designs and then adding additional notes and annotation.
We would definitely use Civil 3D again for similar projects.
Corridors are not just for transportation
These airport design projects are perhaps an obvious way to use the
corridor modelling tools in Civil 3D but a more unusual application
was for a river flood defence project.
One of Halcrows offices in Peterborough used Civil 3D to design a 2.5
km flood defence embankment, which had to incorporate spillways
and flow control structures in order to manage the floodwater.
Figure 5: River Flood Defence Scheme
Figure 6: Detail from Plan Layout
Figure 7: 3D View of Flood Defence Embankment
Civil Engineering & Mapping

Getting Real with AutoCAD Civil 3D

www.excitech.co.uk/dpj 42 Excitech Ltd Design Productivity Journal | 2007 Volume 4, Issue 2
Volume 4, Issue 2 2007 | Excitech Ltd Design Productivity Journal www.excitech.co.uk/dpj 43
Getting Real with AutoCAD Civil 3D

Civil Engineering & Mapping
The scheme was laid out in AutoCAD as a 2D drawing before they
considered using Civil 3D to generate a 3D model in order to calculate
accurate volumes. Once the decision was taken to model it in Civil 3D,
an initial attempt was made to use the grading tools to create the
earthworks, but it was quickly established that the site was too
complex to use these effectively. Neil Potter, CAD Manager at the
Halcrow office in Peterborough, decided that corridor modelling was
the best approach. He successfully modelled the embankment by
designing an alignment and profile, and then used six assemblies
along the route to grade to the existing surface. Once the corridor had
been modelled, a surface was applied and accurate cut/fill volumes
calculated.
Neils comments on the project that what became very obvious to us
early on is that Civil 3D should be used as a design tool and as such
brought into use very early in the design stage. The model was very
easy to amend, and has the potential of huge time savings with
dynamically linked cross-sections and profiles.
We are only just getting to grips with the software, but are already
starting to see the huge potential it has. Previously our design would
be carried out in 2D and then perhaps later converted to a 3D model
- now the design is started in Civil 3D, very easily tweaked if necessary
and then output to a 2D format for our working drawings. And we
havent even started to investigate the potential of the 3D rendering
yet..
Pipes are not just for Drainage
McNicholas, a national service provider delivering major infrastructure
projects and programmes in the utilities, rail and renewable energy
markets, was recently awarded a major utilities diversion design
contract in central Croydon.
The project involves the mapping of existing utilities, such as gas,
electricity, water, telecoms and drainage, as well as the design and
construction of diversions to these services including tunnelling. As
expected in such a highly developed location, the services involved
are extensive and the management of such a project in order to
minimise disruption to the public and existing customers is of the
utmost importance. In order to minimise risk and to be able to prevent
delays during the construction process due to insufficient information
or unforeseen problems, the decision was taken to model the site and
the existing and proposed services in 3D from the outset. Civil 3D was
Figure 8: 3D View of street showing existing services modelled in Civil 3D
chosen as the tool of choice because of its ability to create 3D models
of pipe networks, and to dynamically display these in 3D, cross-section
and profile views. A 3D survey of the site was commissioned along
with a comprehensive underground services survey. This gave
McNicholas the best possible data for modelling the existing site.
Several surfaces were created in Civil 3D, and assigned appropriate
render materials so that roads, footpaths and other areas could be
easily distinguished when viewed in 3D.
The pipe layout tools were then used to model the existing services
using information gathered from utility records and survey
information. Although designed for laying out drainage networks, the
tools are easily adapted for modelling other services such as pipelines,
cables and ducts. The pipes and structures Parts Builder in Civil 3D has
also been used to customise the application for the project, allowing
them to create services and structures of the appropriate dimensions.
Figure 9: Diverted Storm Water Sewer in Profile
Mark Watson, one of the technicians given the task of producing
drawings for the project says This is an excellent tool for this kind of
project. One of the major benefits is the ability to create sections
containing the intelligent objects. This will be invaluable when we
are looking to plan any tunnelling work. As we are diverting up to a
dozen different underground utilities and services, the other major
benefit is the ability to check for any interference between the different
pipes and ducts. With the intelligence of the structures and pipes, the
software assists us to plan and design, even if it is something so simple
as just a quick use of the orbit button whilst in front of the monitor.
The Future for Civil 3D
It is clear that for many companies who have adopted AutoCAD Civil
3D, the benefits of the object based technology are proving to be very
worthwhile; bringing tangible benefits in terms of ease of design and
fast production of drawings. With the appropriate level of training,
engineers and technicians are successfully applying the technology
to a wide range of infrastructure projects. Many of these projects
involve multiple disciplines, and the next challenge is to explore how
Civil 3D can be used in conjunction with other design tools such as
AutoCAD Architecture and Revit. Members of Excitechs Business
Development Team are currently exploring these possibilities in
partnership with our many clients in the construction arena.
For more information, see inside back cover 4211 or to
ask a question, email: dave.bosworth@excitech.co.uk