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Tuesday, December 28, 2021

A Year in Review, plus Top 2021 Posts on BIM Chapters

As another interesting year comes to a close I want to share a post on the year that was 2021, the top ten posts, highlights, and mention a few of my favorites...



Before the top 10, here are a few of my personal favorites:

Monday, December 27, 2021

AIA 2030 By The Numbers - 2020 Report

Every year the American Institute of Architects (AIA) publishes a report which tracks progress on their AIA 2030 Commitment initiative. My First summary on this was back in 2017... here is my latest installment covering the 2020 data, that just came out.


keep reading to learn more...

Wednesday, December 22, 2021

Revit Ideas - Revit Materials Hosted in BIM 360 - Added to Roadmap

Happy to see Autodesk has added the ability to host shared appearance asset resources in BIM 360 to their public roadmap.


keep reading to learn more...

Tuesday, December 21, 2021

2021 World Green Building Trends - Doge Report

A new Dodge Data & Analytics report was recently released... 2021 World Green Building Trends. Today's post shares a link to this document and mentions a Lake|Flato project included in the table of contents.


keep reading to learn more...

Monday, December 13, 2021

Penn State - Department of Architecture - Student Design Review

Last week I had the opportunity to participate in Associate Professor Rahman Azari's Arch 431/491 end-of-semester design review at Penn State. This is the topic of today's post.



keep reading to learn more...

Thursday, December 9, 2021

Revit + Insight - Custom Schematic Wall Construction

In Revit we can specify a Schematic wall construction which is applied to all walls/vertical mass surfaces, determined to be an exterior wall by the energy analysis model (EAM) creation algorithm. While the list has a fairly large number of wall constructions to choose from, it is possible create custom selections. That is the topic of today's post.


keep reading to learn more...

Tuesday, December 7, 2021

Revit + Insight - Mixed Use Occupancy Energy Model

In today's post I will show how we can define a mixed use occupancy in Revit to develop a more accurate energy model.


keep reading to learn more...

Thursday, December 2, 2021

New Book - Lake Flato Houses: Respecting the Land

Lake Flato's newest residential book has been published by Rizzoli... Lake Flato Houses: Respecting the Land.




keep reading to learn more...

Wednesday, December 1, 2021

Enscape 3.2 Released

Enscape released their 3.2 update, and as usual it is packed pull of new features! Today's post covers this and gives a plug for The Revit Kid's review on YouTube.



Keep reading to learn more...

Tuesday, November 23, 2021

Inside the Firm Podcast

I recently had the opportunity to be a guest on INSIDE THE FIRM the podcast hosted by Alex Gore. In today's post, learn about this episode and a recent/previous one with one of the founders of KPF...


keep reading to learn more...

Monday, November 22, 2021

University of Minnesota Presentation on Lighting Analysis

For several years I have been presenting to Professor Abimbola O. Asojo's interior design students at the University of Minnesota. Last week I covered lighting analysis using the Autodesk Revit add-in ElumTools by Lighting Analysts, Inc.


keep reading to learn more...

Thursday, November 18, 2021

Revit Kid - live tonight! We are talking Energy Analysis in Revit (Insight 360)

What are you doing this evening at 8pm central time? I am joining Jeffrey Pinheiro again, on his YouTube channel BIM After Dark. Live. (Episode 65). 

Connect live and ask questions!



keep reading to learn more...

Tuesday, November 16, 2021

Lake|Flato Customer Story by Autodesk

Autodesk recently interviewed me about our sustainability workflows, with a focus on operational and embodied carbon... This resulted in a customer story about Lake|Flato. Today's post shares the published article!


keep reading to learn more...

Saturday, November 13, 2021

Autodesk Revit for Architecture Certified User Exam Preparation (Revit 2022 Edition)

In the competitive world in which we live it is important to stand out to potential employers and prove your capabilities. One way to do this is by passing one of the Autodesk Certification Exams. A candidate who passes an exam has credentials from the makers of the software that you know how to use their software at a base level. This can help employers narrow down the list of potential interviewees when looking for candidates.

To help those interested in taking this exam I wrote a small preparation guide. As you can see in this photo, the book is thin, with just over 100 pages, and intended to be a simple, to-the-point, study guide.


keep reading to learn more...

Monday, November 8, 2021

Lake|Flato's Confluence Park - Nature as Inspiration

In today's post I want to share one of my favorite Lake|Flato projects, Confluence Park here in San Antonio, Texas. From Biomimicry, to POE, to an AIA Institute Honor Award, this project has a lot of exciting features to share.


keep reading to learn more...

Friday, November 5, 2021

My Enscape Article on Interior Rendering in Italian!

I am excited to share that one of my Enscape articles has been translated into Italian, for professionArchitect.


keep reading to learn more...

Wednesday, November 3, 2021

Pratt Futures Presentation on Land, Energy, and Building Cycles

I had the opportunity to present to students at Pratt Institute last night, via Zoom. The presentation segment, called Land, Energy, and Building Cycles, had two other speakers from BlocPower and Cornell (Circular Construction Lab).

The presentation was streamed live on YouTube. The recording is now ready to view.


keep reading to learn more...

Thursday, October 28, 2021

Presentation to University of Michigan Architecture Students

Yesterday, I had the opportunity to present, along with Lake|Flato's design performance coordinator Kate Sector, on operational and embodied carbon for University of Michigan graduate architecture students. This is the topic of today's post.


keep reading to learn more...

Friday, October 22, 2021

NVIDIA CloudXR for AEC

There is magic in the air... wireless real-time VR delivered via Wi-Fi or even 5G streamed across the internet!

Which is all made possible by the cutting edge NVIDIA CloudXR tech, along with NVIDIA DLSS-enabled Enscape for real-time rendering. This presents an exciting opportunity for AEC, and Lake|Flato in particular given our tech topology.

This is the topic of today's post, which includes a YouTube video.



keep reading to learn more...

Thursday, October 21, 2021

Introducing Enscape for TestFit

In case you missed it, at the first-ever global Enscape virtual conference last month, an Enscape API/SDK was announced... and the first integration is with none other than TestFit. This is the topic of today's post.


keep reading to learn more...

Monday, October 18, 2021

ARCHITECT Magazine article on open source software for Architects

A new ARCHITECT magazine article just came out, written by Michael Kilkelly, on open source software for architects. I was interviewed and quoted for this article! 

Today's post is about this article, and another open source tool for engineer's, called The BHoM, by Buro Happold.


keep reading to learn more...

Tuesday, October 12, 2021

The Revit Kid - Revit Groups vs Links

A fun deep dive on BIM After Dark, Jeffery Pinheiro, aka The Revit Kid, hosted Aaron Maller on the age old debate on using Groups vs. Links, within Revit, on repetitious items like apartment units.


keep reading to learn more...

Monday, October 11, 2021

Autodesk Revit 2022 Video I am Featured In

A quick share about an Autodesk video I am featured in, sharing my thoughts about Revit in general, and the good stuff in the latest 2022 release.



keep reading to learn more...

Friday, October 8, 2021

Conference Follow Up - Advancing Computational Building Design 2021

This week was a wrap for the 5th annual Advancing Computational Building Design conference hosted by HansonWade. The event was amazing on multiple levels... from IRL people (finally) to networking to session content, and top notch hospitality by the sponsors. This is the topic of today's post.


keep reading to learn more...

Saturday, October 2, 2021

Autodesk University 2021 - Implementing Early Energy Modeling in an Architectural Practice (AS500067)

I have an exciting session coming up next week, at Autodesk University 2021... 

The entire event is free and there are nearly 400 people already signed up for my presentation!


keep reading to learn more...

Friday, October 1, 2021

NEMA Webinar - BIM Data Requirements for Electrical Products

Check out this upcoming webinar, lead by industry design professionals, on a new standard by the National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA).


keep reading to learn more...

Wednesday, September 29, 2021

Enscape Envision21 - Day 1

Well, day1 of Envision21 was pretty amazing... this is Enscape's first-ever user group conference. Today's post will touch on the highlights of the first day, and some exciting announcements they made. Plus, some details on Day 2 (today) which you can still attend!


keep reading to learn more...

Friday, September 24, 2021

Revit 2022.1 Update - What's New

Revit 2022.1 was released this week. In addition to the usual big fixes, it has several nice enhancements. This is the topic of today's post... which includes a short video!


keep reading to learn more...

Wednesday, September 22, 2021

WWR Calculation Method in Revit + Insight Workflow

When an Energy Analysis Model (EAM) is pushed to Autodesk Insight for analysis, we find that the Revit Model's Window to Wall Ratio (WWR) is listed as the BIM Setting. Today's post will show how this number is derived... which is rather clever!


keep reading to learn more...

Monday, September 20, 2021

New NEMA Standard in Support of BIM Standards for MEP

I am excited to announce a new formal standard, in support of Revit-based workflows, by the National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA). Learn about this standard, my involvement, and my support for this and similar efforts in today's post!


keep reading to learn more...

Thursday, September 16, 2021

Free Autodesk Cloud-based File Viewer - Two Examples - Revit and gbXML

Did you know Autodesk has a robust cloud-based file viewer, and it's free? You can drag and drop full Revit files (incl 3D model and 2D sheets) and even gbXML files. Learn more in today's post...


keep reading to learn more...

Wednesday, September 15, 2021

UTSA Daylight Analysis Presentation

Yesterday I had the opportunity to present to UTSA architecture students on daylight analysis workflows employed at Lake|Flato. This is the topic of today's post.


keep reading to learn more...

Tuesday, September 14, 2021

IES Mexico Presentation - Open to All (Spanish and English)

I have the pleasure of presenting to the IES Mexico, Monterrey Section, next week. This free virtual presentation will be in both english & spanish and is also open to anyone. This is the topic of today's post!


keep reading to learn more...

Monday, September 13, 2021

Copy a Revit Family from Linked Model into Current model

Today's post will show how a Revit family, located in a linked Revit model, can be easily copied into your current project... without needing to open the linked model.


keep reading to learn more...

Wednesday, September 8, 2021

NVIDIA blog post about Lake|Flato NVIDIA A40 PoC + DLSS Webinar Tomorrow

NVIDIA just published a blog post featuring a proof of concept (PoC) project Lake|Flato participated in, to properly size a VDI environment to optimize power consumption, yet still fully support our large complex projects in Enscape.

On a related note, I will be participating in a webinar tomorrow to talk about Enscape's implementation of NVIDIA DLSS.


keep reading to learn more...

Thursday, September 2, 2021

Enscape to VR Basics for Architecture

There are a handful to fundamental steps to help ensure a successful VR experience, whether in the office or away. This is the topic of today's post.

Plus, hear about a free virtual Enscape user group conference, Envision'21, I will be presenting at later this month.



keep reading to learn more...

Thursday, August 19, 2021

Embodied Carbon Report via Lake Flato Investigations

Here at Lake|Flato, we have a research program called Investigations. The fruit of this effort is a journal, which is used to disseminate the findings of the effort, both internally and externally.

In today's post I want to share some of the details of this program and our latest completed project on Embodied Carbon!


keep reading to learn more...

Wednesday, August 18, 2021

Autodesk University 2021 - Virtual again + my session

Once again, thanks to COVID-19, the annual Autodesk conference will be virtual. While I really miss seeing people IRL the plus side is the event is entirely free again. Today's post is about Autodesk University 2021 and my session!


keep reading to learn more...

Tuesday, August 17, 2021

Level Computation Height - What it does and why

Ever wonder, or even noticed, what the Computation Height parameter associated with each Level in Revit is all about? This somewhat obscure parameter is the subject of today's post.



keep reading to learn more...

Friday, August 13, 2021

Dell, NVIDIA, SIGGRAPH - Fireside Chat on Omniverse

As SIGGRAPH 2021 rolls to an end today, I thought I would share info on a fireside chat I did with Dell and NVIDIA about Omniverse...


keep reading to learn more...

Tuesday, August 10, 2021

BIMThoughts E2127 - Dan Stine

I recently had the opportunity to be a guest on BIMThoughts again. It is always fun to chat will Bill Debevc and Carl Storms! In this episode we talk about my new Microsoft office books, my bike ride/commute to "work", life at Lake Flato, and more!-


Not in the shownote, but worth mentioning is Bill's firm, LPA, was the largest firm to reach the Architecture 2030 goal in the AIA 2030 Commitment reporting! Way to go Bill and company. More on that here: click here.



This was my fourth time on the program!






For BIM Chapters updates, follow @DanStine_MN on Twitter or connect on LinkedIn

Check out my video-based  courses on ArchSmarter.

I also write blog posts for Enscape - a new paradigm in rendering, animation and VR for AEC.

Monday, August 9, 2021

Revit + Insight Workflow - Defining Spandrel Panels in Curtainwall

A few weeks ago I was presenting a three hour workshop on Revit + Insight for the AIA San Antonio COTE committee, sponsored by Autodesk. A good question came up about how to define a spandrel panel within a curtainwall. My answer was "I don't know, but it will probably be answered in a blog post someday". That "someday" is today:)



keep reading to learn more...

Friday, August 6, 2021

Flake Lato - The Magic of Lake Flato

Hospitality unmatched.
    Breathtaking natural beauty.
        Camaraderie beyond measure.

These sentiments barely do Lake Flato's annual outing justice... this is the topic of today's post!


keep reading to see more...

Tuesday, August 3, 2021

Advancing Computational Building Design 2021

Coming soon... Advancing Computational Building Design 2021 in Dallas, Texas. Today's post is about my session and the event in general. Plus, a BIM Chapters discount code.



keep reading to learn more...

Monday, August 2, 2021

NVIDIA DLSS and Enscape - Upcoming Webinar (with me)

I will be participating in a webinar, hosted by Enscape, called NVIDIA DLSS and Enscape: Introducing the Latest Technology in Real-Time Visualization. This webinar will also feature Enscape's lead rendering developer and NVIDIA's AEC marketing strategist!


Keep reading to learn more...

Friday, July 30, 2021

Section Cut - Conference for AEC practice operations professionals

In about two weeks, Monograph will be hosting a free virtual conference for AEC practice operations professionals called Section Cut.

Lake Flato will be presenting... our Director of Operations, Scott Lelieur and I will be talking shop! This is the topic of today's post.


keep reading to learn more...

Thursday, July 29, 2021

Lake Flato HQ Remodel Experienced with Microsoft HoloLens 2

I recently shared the magic of the Microsoft HoloLens 2 with the office... and what better project to use for this demo than our own Lake Flato HQ remodel here in San Antonio, Texas. This is the topic of today's post...

Architect Evan Morris using Microsoft HoloLens 2 at Lake Flato Architects


keep reading the learn more...

Tuesday, July 27, 2021

Insight Energy Model - Mixed-use facility and part-time space usage

For mixed-use facilities and areas with reduced occupancy, we need to use the Space command, in Autodesk Revit, to properly define this for the Insight energy model. That is the topic of today's post.


keep reading to learn more...

Thursday, July 22, 2021

Enscape 3.1 is Out - With Many New Features!

Enscape has another update packed with new features... get a quick overview and links to more in today's post!

New Enscape 3.1 commands shown in ribbon in Revit

keep reading to learn more...