Vectorworks 2021 SP3 gets real-time rendering link to Unreal Engine and Twinmotion, plus a direct connection with Solibri
Vectorworks has teamed up with Epic Games to develop an optimised workflow from Vectorworks 2021 Service Pack 3 into Twinmotion and Unreal Engine.
According to Vectorworks, its developers have utilised the Datasmith SDK (software development kit) to ‘ensure greater fidelity of the model export’ to these real-time rendering applications.
“Our partnership with Unreal Engine is a dynamic solution to Vectorworks users allowing them to create real-time renderings of their model with open and advanced real-time 3D creation tools such as Unreal Editor and Twinmotion,” said Vectorworks director of product technology Dave Donley. “It’s an amazing opportunity to bring this partnership to our users and we’re confident they will enjoy creating cutting-edge renderings and models.”
Vectorworks is one of the last major CAD/BIM tools to get tight integration with Epic Games’ real time viz tools. Direct link plug-ins for Twinmotion and Datasmith export plug-ins for Unreal Engine have been available for ArchiCAD, Revit, SketchUp Pro and Rhino for some time.
Enhanced BIM model exchange
Vectorworks SP3 also features enhanced BIM model exchange workflows with a new connection to quality assurance software Solibri and IFC export improvements.
The two-way Solibri Direct connection creates a ‘live sync’ of a Vectorworks BIM model to its corresponding IFC model in Solibri Office for model verification, checking and coordination.
Changes made to the Vectorworks model geometry or data ‘immediately synchronise’ with the IFC model. Customers also have the option to choose what type of changes to send to Solibri.
When running a model check or verification in Solibri, identified problems will sync with Vectorworks so customers can easily make changes.
“We have partnered with Vectorworks, our Nemetschek sister company, so we can make quality available to designers when they need it the most—while they are designing,” said Solibri product director Juan Rodríguez. “By exchanging live data between the two solutions, an architect can review their project to ensure it complies with certain quality standards or regulations. Solibri Direct is not just a one-way street, it will send information back and highlight the objects that need to be reviewed in Vectorworks, so the designers can continue with their work.”
Vectorworks SP3 also includes improvements to the base quantities included for IFC export. Common objects including roofs, slabs, hardscapes, landscape areas and columns now have accurate base quantities assigned by default. According to Vectorworks, this provides better interoperability with software packages that do Quantity Takeoff (QTO) calculations, and 4D and 5D BIM simulations.
Improved project collaboration
Project sharing and collaboration has also been enhanced with the Vectorworks Cloud Services folder sharing capabilities. A new “Sync and Edit” permission allows participants to sync a shared folder to their local desktop computer, enabling workflows that require multiple users to access and edit files stored in a common location.
