As we say farewell to 2022 and are preparing to welcome 2023, we would like to take a look back to see what trends shaped the architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) and manufacturing industries during the past year. And, if there was one major trend that we found most interesting, it was the blurring of the lines separating these two industries.
In 2022, we saw the AEC industry increasingly embracing manufacturing technologies and processes as a way to increase efficiency, expedite projects, and decrease costs. Prefabricating parts of large construction projects in factories became increasingly discussed and adopted across the AEC industry in 2022. Prefabrication is now being lauded in the AEC industry for its ability to expedite construction projects and eliminate rework.
This past year, we also saw one of the hottest technologies in manufacturing – additive manufacturing and 3d printing – becoming more pervasive in the AEC industry. 3d printing is being evaluated and assessed by state and local governments as a potential solution to the country’s affordable housing crisis. It’s also being evaluated by federal agencies for use in the military and space exploration.
Digital design solutions are the eraser that’s effectively eliminating the line between these two very different and disparate industries. Digital design and BIM models enable the manufacturing of prefabricated buildings or parts of larger construction projects in controlled, off-site environments. The development of a 3d model provides the exact specifications that make prefabrication possible.
And the importance of digital design clearly did not go unnoticed in the past year.
Digital design also enables the 3d printing of structures. Without a digital design to replicate, the large 3d printers that are used to make concrete structures would have no blueprint or plan to build.
And the importance of digital design clearly did not go unnoticed in the past year. The following articles were the most read, and most popular articles on the GovDesignHub in 2022. These articles show that exciting use cases for 3d printing in both manufacturing and AEC were a hot topic for our readers in the past year. And readers were doing more than just reading about digital design – they’re putting it into practice. Among some of our most popular articles this past year were posts filled with tips, tricks, and recommendations for using and getting the most out of digital design solutions.
Here are your top five GovDesignHub articles of 2022:
Is 3D Printing the Answer to America’s Affordable Housing Crisis?
When the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development conducted its annual point-in-time homeless count in January 2020, 580,000 Americans were sleeping in a shelter or on the street. Now, a consortium of organizations and industry partners, including Iowa State University, Iowa Central Community College, and the Iowa Economic Development Authority is exploring if 3D-printed homes can help make a difference in America’s affordable housing crisis. The GovDesignHub sits down with Pete Evans, assistant professor of industrial design, to learn more.
How Additive Manufacturing Can Revolutionize Making Things for the Military
Generative Design and additive manufacturing could revolutionize the way the United States Department of Defense (DoD) makes products, replaces parts, and builds weapons systems. But they’re not adopting it as quickly as some would like. The GovDesignHub sits down with Dr. Samantha McBirney of the RAND Corporation to discuss the benefits generative design and additive manufacturing can have on the military and DoD and how these new technologies help make the impossible possible.
New US Center to Drive Adoption of Advanced Manufacturing
In June of this year, the World Economic Forum launched its U.S. Center for Advanced Manufacturing. The GovDesignHub speaks with Francisco Betti and Cynthia Hutchison to learn more about the new center and its mission to accelerate the adoption of advanced manufacturing in the United States.
Civil 3D 2023 – What’s new and exciting? Part I
ProSoft’s Shawn Herring stops by the GovDesignHub for Part 1 of his series on the new features and enhancements in Autodesk’s recently released Civil 3D 2023 update. Shawn examines the features, tips, and tricks from Autodesk’s newly released Civil 3D 2023 update. These updates include improvements in performance enhancements, drawing transformations, and more.
Civil 3D 2023 – What’s new and exciting? Part II
Shawn Herring from ProSoft returns to the GovDesignHub for Part 2 of his series on the new features and enhancements in Autodesk’s released its exciting Civil 3D 2023 update. In this article, Shawn examines how Autodesk has updated Civil 3D’s Project Explorer functionality, optimization grading, and more.
SIXTH BONUS ARTICLE:
Autodesk Construction Cloud – What’s new in the Unified and BIM 360 Platform
Norman Richard Akin of IMAGINiT stops by the GovDesignHub to examine what’s new in Autodesk Construction Cloud’s Unified and BIM 360 Platform. Norman looks into the latest and most exciting tools in the Autodesk Construction Cloud. There are some pretty nifty new features in the Autodesk Construction Cloud and he has highlighted a few of them in this article.
