Few things trigger me more than seeing one of my works inaccurately invoked in relation to the tech workflow I was intimately involved in. @archpaper highlights the Hangzhou stadium in relation to #Revit being a "popular choice for parametric design." 1/12 archpaper.com/2020/07/autode…
For some #AEC tech news context, a group of architecture firms recently put @autodesk on blast for a lack of #Revit development while the cost of the software continues to rise with new licensing models. Here is coverage by @AECmagazine 2/12 aecmag.com/comment-mainme…
What caught my attention in the @archpaper article was the featuring of the Hangzhou Stadium. The image includes this caption: "Thanks to Grasshopper integration and the program’s BIM capabilities, Revit is a popular choice for parametric design." 3/12
This may seem like a small thing - but I feel compelled to make a mountain out of this molehill as it is an example of how tech product narrative and reality are often in stark contrast with each other and contribute to consumer frustration. 4/12
What is accurate: Yes, #Grasshopper3D and #Revit were used in the Hangzhou project. The stadium is one of the earliest large-scale examples of both Grasshopper and Revit being used together in architectural design. 5/12
In 2010, I published and presented a full research paper on the Hangzhou stadium as part of the @acadiaorg 2010 conference proceedings - the paper explicitly covers the shortcomings of #BIM, #Revit, and low software integration. papers.cumincad.org/cgi-bin/works/… 6/12
FIRST - When our team designed and documented this stadium (2008-2010), the complex geometry of the exterior was developed 100% in #Rhino3D and #Grasshopper3D. #Revit did not have capabilities for sophisticated parametric geometry system description and modeling. 7/12
THIRD - After getting the geometry into Revit, Revit's performance at producing documents for the design was problematic. #Revit-published DWG and PDF drawings were prone to error, contained missing geometry, and were ripe with artifacts. There was substantial cleanup. 9/12
In the end, we got it done. Not because #Revit enabled any kind of special capability - but rather the project outcomes were achieved IN SPITE OF Revit's shortcomings at the time - some have improved but many of which continue to persist over a decade later. 10/12
Have workflows improved since then? Yes, there are more streamlined options now - @provinggroundio's tech stack, Rhino.Inside, and many other new tools demonstrate this. But these are third-party addon investments created to fill gaps in core product interoperability. 11/12
A quick update on this thread: @archpaper has kindly updated their article to not include the project images and caption within their piece about @Autodesk’s PR controversy.
