BUDAPEST, HUNGARY — Graphisoft released ArchiCAD 13, the latest version of its architectural design software. ArchiCAD 13 includes a patent-pending BIM Server that the company says introduces a new paradigm in design file sharing by allowing anywhere, anytime access to BIM files, which relieves workflow management bottlenecks.

“With the rapidly growing adoption of building information modeling, architectural firms have reached scalability limits with their model-based design and documentation workflow,” said Miklós Szövényi-Lux, vice president of product management at Graphisoft. “To overcome these limits, ArchiCAD 13 with Delta Server Technology introduces design teams to an unprecedented level of accessibility and management of BIM projects. With ArchiCAD 13, the physical location and distribution of your workforce becomes almost immaterial, benefiting both small practices and large, distributed firms.”

ArchiCAD 13 overview
BIM brings unique challenges to the design team: When implementing BIM on a large scale, architects often run into bottlenecks in model accessibility and workflow management. ArchiCAD 13 includes GRAPHISOFT BIM Server for on-demand access rights management and project access for teams of any size, both within the office and over the Internet. According to the company, Delta Server technology dramatically decreases network traffic, so team members can collaborate on BIM models in real time. The same technology makes BIM projects accessible through standard Internet connections from virtually anywhere in the world.

Data corruption due to network or hardware failure is a major concern for CAD/BIM managers. A single faulty computer literally can ruin the work done by the whole office. But the BIM Server's robust system architecture ensures the integrity of the BIM project at all times, the company says. Any data errors from malfunctioning components are blocked, preserving the project's integrity on the network.

ArchiCAD 13's new Teamwork, with on-demand element access and server-level conflict management, combines the flexibility of 2D workflows with the coordination power of the model-based world. Companies can utilize their workforce much more efficiently with a dynamic and centrally controllable design workflow.

Graphisoft notes the following productivity improvements in ArchiCAD 13:

Annotated schedule drawings — Door and window previews can be annotated associatively, right in the Interactive Schedule window. This feature saves significant drafting time for the documentation team.

Oriented views — In ArchiCAD 13, the project alignment is completely flexible: Simply rotate the view on screen to a perpendicular position. This way, diagonal wings can be edited naturally, while annotations adjust automatically to the final layout orientation.

Intelligent “soft” insulation — Although fills have been around since the advent of CAD, modeling soft insulation in composite structures has been always a problem. ArchiCAD 13’s soft insulation offers a solution for both 2D and 3D Documents.

Improved object handling — Global model view options help control the display and handling of library objects at a project level. Project-specific library parts can now be saved into the ArchiCAD project file itself, ensuring the complete integrity of the project now and in the future.

DWG enhancements — ArchiCAD 13 makes significant progress in the development of DWG file exchange. New features include improved layer management and the ability to export multiple layouts into a single DWG file.

Data exchange with engineers — ArchiCAD 13 supports the classification of BIM elements as either load-bearing or non-load-bearing structures, for more accurate export to programs used by structural engineers. Thousands of standard steel products are now available from within ArchiCAD 13.

64-bit support for Windows — The latest version of ArchiCAD is available on Windows with native 64-bit support.

ArchiCAD 13 will ship starting in mid-September with a compact release schedule that brings all 26 local versions to the market in the fall season. More information is available at www.graphisoft.com/products/archicad.