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American Idol contender talks about his
trials with importing spreadsheets into MicroStation.
CLEARWATER, FL, USA — This month’s user
spotlight comes from the entertainment capital of the world,
Las Vegas, Nevada. We’d like to introduce you to MicroStation
user (and aspiring performer) Paul Villaluz.
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| Engineer, singer and actor Paul
Villaluz. |
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MicroStation Today: Please
tell us a bit about your background in the field.
Paul: I am an engineer in
the design team for a soundwall installation project in Nevada.
[Editorial note: A soundwall is a wall built between highways
and residential areas, to minimize the noise emanating from
the highway.] My prime responsibility is to ensure that our
plans, specifications and estimates (PS&E) adhere to Nevada
Department of Transportation (NDOT) standards. NDOT requires
its projects to be designed and delivered solely in MicroStation.
I have had three years of experience with MicroStation during
the course of four major NDOT projects. I graduated from the
University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) in 1997 with a Bachelor’s
degree in civil engineering. I am registered in Nevada (2003)
and California (2001) and I am planning to graduate with my
Master of Science in Civil Engineering from UNLV in May 2005.
MST: What are your experiences
with Microsoft Office Importer?
Paul: While I was with another
firm, Microsoft Office Importer was a lifesaver during
the design of three phases of a major freeway-widening project
in Las Vegas. Our CAD leader and I were faced with preparing
.DGN files that contained many lines of text within specific
columns. One such file pertained to concrete surfacing quantities.
Per NDOT requirements, we had to provide the tonnage of each
type of concrete for every typical section. Mathematically,
this is a straightforward procedure. However, time constraints
complicated the process. Changes to the overall roadway design
would sometimes be done the night before submittal. Since
the same tonnage numbers appeared in multiple places within
the plan set, it would have been suicidal to resort to the
traditional process of correcting every sheet with the text
editing features of MicroStation. Normally, these sheets are
the last to be produced and the pressure to meet the deadline
is really tangible.
Microsoft Office Importer permitted me to make the
changes to the calculations only once in the Excel spreadsheet.
Our CAD leader would then import the spreadsheet information
into MicroStation and produce the sheets. This process also
helped us during the production of the overall project quantity
lists.
It easily cut our total production time per sheet by half!
We did not have to worry about the most time-consuming task
of formatting the column and line spacing in the DGN file.
Microsoft Office Importer imported all the formatting
(like column width, line spacing, font size and style). All
we had to do was ensure that our source file adhered to NDOT
standards. Any future changes made in Excel would be automatically
updated in MicroStation via the source link.
Using Microsoft Office Importer not only saved time,
but it also gave us peace of mind. Microsoft Office Importer
also reduced the possibility of us making mistakes due to
haste or fatigue. No longer did we have to risk an incorrect
mark-up by chasing the changes throughout the set. We had
complete confidence that all the design files were automatically
updated.
If Microsoft Office Importer were not around back
then, I would have seriously considered leaving engineering.
The resulting tedium and inconvenience from not having the
program around would have frustrated me. I shudder to think
what our workload would have been without it.
MST: I am looking over your
list of extracurricular activities and I must say I am impressed.
Tell me more.
Paul: I started singing in
choirs in 1993 at UNLV. I sang seven seasons with the Southern
Nevada Musical Arts Society and one season with the Las Vegas
Master Singers. I also sang three concerts with the Las Vegas
Philharmonic. Theatrically, I have been in twelve local productions.
My favorite play was “Twilight of the Golds”. I
did it in 2003. Our production was critically panned; but
I enjoyed every minute of it.
I have been featured in Comedy Central’s “Viva
Variety” and on a commercial for the Sahara Hotel. I
won $750 on the TV show “Win Ben Stein’s Money”.
During that show, Ben said I was the goofiest contestant in
the history of the show and that I should leave engineering
for Hollywood.
MST: You even tried out for
American Idol?
Paul: I tried out for the
2005 season of American Idol. I got cut in the first round,
so I didn’t have the opportunity to make it on camera.
MST: When did you last “break
the rules”?
Paul: I wore blue socks with
black shoes today. Somebody get me the whole milk, I feel
wild!
MST: Thanks Paul. Good luck
with your masters degree, your musical career and with engineering.
Paul: Thanks for the opportunity
to endorse Microsoft Office Importer.
Learn more about Microsoft Office
Importer
For more information on Microsoft
Office Importer contact an Axiom MicroStation
Consultant today! Call 727-442-7774 extension 9243 or e-mail
9243@axiomint.com.
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