CAD/BIM Tools: The Huge Impact of Small Differences for AEC Professionals

And What This Means for Your CAD/BIM Design Life

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Would it be faster to go down to the river and pound your clothes on a rock or simply run them through the washer and dryer? Sometimes, the smallest differences can dictate a huge variance in outcome. Think in terms of the straw that broke the camel’s back, or the fact that an entire avalanche is impossible without one small flake of snow. For AEC professionals (engineers, architects and CAD designers), it's fundamentally no different. One tiny variance in a plan or design, now, could have a huge impact further down the line. You know, like that time that Bob was off by 1/32nd of an inch and it turned into a variance of almost a foot across the entire distance. Maybe it’s time to talk about CAD/BIM tools that increase accuracy and save you tons of time.

It Couldn’t Happen to Me!

A simple error — converting imperial measurements into metric units — destroyed a $98 million piece of equipment.

Not only can details be expensive in terms of the final outcome, but they can also cost you a ton of time. Think of all the items you own that save you a ton of time. Think email (faster than writing letters and licking stamps), vacuum cleaner (faster than getting down on all fours to handpick every piece of fluff, grit, pet hair, and crumbs off the floor), TV remote (faster than dragging yourself off the couch and across the living room every time a commercial comes on), coffee pods (faster than opening the coffee, measuring out a perfect scoop and cleaning up the mess every time you need a caffeine kick) or the dishwasher (no need for explanation on this one, right?), as examples. These things simply make life a little easier and save you time you can spend on better things.

But what’s their equivalent at work? What’s your CAD-platform equivalent of a toaster or Alexa setting your thermostat and playing just the right music for you?

How to Get Out of the Office Earlier (Oh, yeah!)

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A measurement error resulted in the loss of the $98 million Mars Climate Orbiter in 1999.

Wave goodbye to all the frustration and mind-numbing repetition.