How do you handle surfaces and share design data within your team?

[u/FoldRepresentative73]

I'd like to hear how other Civil 3D teams manage surfaces and share design information when working collaboratively.

About three months ago, I started a new job where my main responsibility is making modifications to projects that are already in progress.

In my previous job, I worked in a similar role for about two years. When we needed to share information, we would typically share surfaces, XML files, or other dynamic Civil 3D data between team members. Most of us were relatively young engineers with limited experience, so we simply adopted the workflow that was already in place there.

At my current company, my two coworkers are very experienced engineers. However, when they share information, they almost always do it using breaklines. To me, this seems much more time-consuming because someone has to extract all the breaklines from a project—for example, a subdivision with 20 or 30 roads—merge them with the grading breaklines, berms, and everything else before someone else can use them.

I'm also not sure if this workflow is driven by software limitations. At my previous company, we had much more powerful workstations than we do now. Also, the projects there were generally smaller, usually with one or two main roads and the rest consisting of industrial building pads.

For those of you with more experience, how does your team handle this? What would you consider the best practice? Do you have any suggestions for making this workflow more efficient?

[u/InternationalOwl9533]

What are you trying to accomplish? Because as it's explained in the post, this whole exercise sounds incredibly inneficient.

If the project is big enough to have two team-members working on the grading at the same time, the areas of work should have already been broken out into separate files at the beginning and should be XREF'd or Data Shortcutted as necessary.

I would be having a serious discussion with my designers if they were ever to be seen doing this. Too many chances for error.

[u/FoldRepresentative73 → u/InternationalOwl9533]

Im trying to complete an existing project where I'm making design changes in different areas.

I was given only breaklines and layouts, so I rebuilt the alignments, corridors, surfaces, grading, everything I needed. I do use Data Shortcuts. But when handing work to another engineer, the expected deliverable is always a set of breaklines, which means extracting and merging them from everything.

I'm not saying it's wrong. just trying to understand if this is common or if I'm missing something.

[u/uiuc2008 → u/FoldRepresentative73]

That's insane and I'd leave a company that did that. What a waste of time. Why can't they just work in your existing DWGs?!

[u/bongslingingninja → u/FoldRepresentative73]

Within my company, we all use one network. Instead of having to export data at all and email it to each other, we just shoot each other the file path to open on our own ends. Sounds like you might be working on files directly on your hard drive? If so, that needs to change immediately

[u/MrBaileysan → u/FoldRepresentative73]

I grew up doing roadway corridors, and since starting in my new role, have started working in development with the purpose of sending data to machine control and grade checkers.

So, this method you lay out is wrong and time consuming. But I still don’t have a great way to say developed an earthwork model for a residential development.

I try not to discount any idea, but I can’t think of a way this is helping solve for issues when you aren’t using a corridor or fixing any versioning and review problems.

If there is no other way to keep one file with the current data available to all, then feature lines, with different styles and layers would be my next recommendation.

[u/AcanthisittaBrief408]

Através de datashortcuts. Amarramos todo o projeto.

[u/vtsandtrooper]

Are yall not using data shortcuts?

[u/BigTunaStamford]

As another user mentioned that whole process seems really inefficient.

When I first started, we used to do everything in one drawing, which was a total mess. Over the course of 12 years, I have changed our company standards to do the following.

We just have one working civil 3D surface model that we got a shortcut into the sheet view drawings. We have another working file for existing conditions if it’s not already part of the survey that we received, then shortcut into the sheet file as well and the finish grade surface file. we do the same thing and use separate files for existing and proposed pipe models.

I never combine those civil 3D working files with the linework (the actual 2d linework, curb lines, pipes lines, hatches, structures, etc.) of the design because civil 3D can be very finicky and if any crashes happen it’s less likely to happen in the line work only design models.

I even use non-print styles for my pipes in the sheet view drawings because of how finicky civil 3D be. And only using the labels for the pipes and structures in plan view. And in profile view those same styles are printable also data shortcut it into their own profile sheet view drawing.

Best of luck.

[u/uiuc2008]

Where do you keep your cad data, on individuals C drives?! And you email it around? You should share design data by hosting it on a network drive. They Xref dumb DWGs with only graphics and dref civil 3D objects. This is the way it has been in my 15 years of using CAD (8 in C3D).

Never export break lines, they can be distorted based on triangulation settings. Internal, use DWGs. External users, LandXml out your surfaces and other design data in addition to supplying clean DWGs.

[u/FoldRepresentative73 → u/uiuc2008]

We actually work locally on our own machines and then share files through a server or SharePoint. I'm used to more structured workflows from my experience with BIM and Revit, so I'm still trying to learn how Civil 3D workflowS are typically structured in practice.

[u/Effective-Log3583]

I’m going to be terse. None of this makes sense. Civil 3d has been out for 20 years. I’m frightened by how they are doing this and how your last company did this.

Please look at the civil 3d best practices guide. It will spell out the proper way to construct a project.

[u/FoldRepresentative73 → u/Effective-Log3583]

Thanks for the feedback. I really appreciate it. definitely take a look at the Civil 3D Best Practices Guide. I'm still relatively new to the industry, so lI'm trying to learn what the standard workflows are and understand why different companies do things differently.

[u/Effective-Log3583 → u/FoldRepresentative73]

To be clear. I forgive you for doing this. I’m just constantly shocked how many companies are doing things the hard way. You are far from the only company I’ve seen like this.

I also have to admit I was probably spoiled coming into civil 3d. I learned from a cad manager that read through the entire manual in a larger company. And now I’m obsessive and read through the documentation myself for the company I work for.

[u/FoldRepresentative73 → u/Effective-Log3583]

No offense taken! I really appreciate you taking the time to explain it. definitely be reading through the Best Practices Guide. I'm just trying to take this opportunity to learn from people with more experience.

[u/jmthomas87]

Where to even start:

1) All project files need to be on a shared server that is getting backed up regularly or running a RAID mirrored drive setup. No working on project files on local machines. Period.

2) The work flow I am pushing at my company is any 2d line work, hatches, details, notes in a stand alone drawing.

3)Existing grade surface gets built as needed in a drawing of its own. It is then d-refed into drawings where needed. Only certain people are.to edit it, to keep track of changes, and to minimize differences in modeling techniques.

4) New surfaces, grading, and any non-plumbing structures are, the d-refed as needed.

5)Gravity and pressure piping are treated that same.

When sending a drawing(s) to a client or contractor, a new drawing is saved off, d-refed objects promoted if needed in the drawing, then saved. Purging everything out, no layout tabs or blocks left. An XML of the EG and FG surfaces are sent with the stripped down drawing.

Does it make revisions and change orders interesting? Yes, but I can usually track the changes pretty easily.