Autodesk Excellence in Infrastructure 2014 Awards announced

San Rafael, Calif. — Autodesk’s Excellence in Infrastructure Competition seeks to highlight extraordinary examples of practical, cost-effective and inspiring solutions that show how the latest in technology can make a profound difference. Sponsored by Autodesk, Inc. and hosted by CGarchitect, an online magazine and end-user community for visualization and design professionals, each Excellence in Infrastructure winner demonstrated an exemplary use of Building Information Modeling (BIM) for civil infrastructure.

The competition’s jury of industry experts selected the winners from submissions covering a wide range of transportation, land development, urban planning, water/wastewater and energy related projects. Entries were judged based on complexity, innovative use of technology, sustainability factors and the overall value Autodesk software and BIM for Infrastructure provided to the project outcome, whether used to plan, design, build or manage infrastructure projects.

The winners will be honored at the upcoming Autodesk University 2014 conference — Infrastructure Symposium session this December in Las Vegas, and will be given more than $10,000 in prizes by competition sponsors including HP.

Following are the 2014 winners:

1st Place: Huettenwerk Krupp-Mannesmann (HKM) — “One Digital Factory” project, Duisburg, Germany. HKM captured first place with the creation of a comprehensive 3D model of a factory, including 3D-Scans and aerial photogrammetry of the factory, and the creation of a 3D model of the factory and surrounding environment within Autodesk InfraWorks. With this model they are able to reduce redundancy and contradictory 2D and 3D data, which helps to boost productivity in design and planning processes, reduce lead times for decision-making, and optimize inventory. More information, images and a video: https://bimontherocks.typepad.com/my_weblog/2014/10/from-point-cloud-to-steel-factory-site.html.

Large scale “One Digital Factory” hybrid infrastructure and architecture 3D model. Image courtesy of HKM.

2nd Place: Dewberry & Loudoun Water — Potomac Water Supply Program Visualization, Loudoun County, Va. To effectively communicate the mission of the Potomac Water Supply Program, Dewberry used Autodesk design and visualization tools [including Autodesk InfraWorks] to assist in the development of a community outreach video for the program, communicating how the program is designed to protect the Potomac River by using an innovative water banking system. More information, images and a video: https://bimontherocks.typepad.com/my_weblog/2014/10/communicating-to-owners-with-engaging-content-.html.

Trap Rock Water Treatment Facility. Image courtesy of Dewberry & Loudoun Water

3rd Place: Huitt-Zollars and Orange County Public Works — La Pata Gap Closure, Orange County, Calif. Huitt-Zollars used AutoCAD Civil 3D to significantly reduce the cost of a road project in Southern California, and Autodesk InfraWorks helps the design firm communicate with and update stakeholders during the construction on the project. More information, images and a video: https://bimontherocks.typepad.com/my_weblog/2014/10/hz.html.

La Pata Gap Closure, Orange County, Calif. Image courtesy of Huitt-Zollars and Orange County Public Works

Small Projects Award: Anchorage Municipal Light and Power 3D modeling of underground facilities, Anchorage, Alaska. Using a camera and Autodesk ReCap 360, ML&P’s Locates, Engineering, and Operations personnel are creating 3D models of hard-to-access underground electrical vaults. These 3D models are then made available to utility personnel through Autodesk ReCap 360 out in the field or back in the office. More information, images and a video: https://bimontherocks.typepad.com/my_weblog/2014/10/small-projects-award-2014-excellence-in-infrastructure-mlp.html.

Using a camera and Autodesk Recap 360, Anchorage Municipal Light and Power personnel are creating 3D models of underground electrical vaults. Shown above is an image of the ceiling of a vault created with Autodesk Recap 360. Images courtesy of Anchorage Municipal Light and Power. 

Special Visualization Award: COWI and the Norwegian Public Roads Administration – E16 Highway Project, Oslo, Norway. COWI uses a 3D model, created with Autodesk InfraWorks 360, of existing geographical conditions connected to the cloud, to plan and visualize the new E16, a four-lane, 32 km long highway in the east of Norway. More information, images and a video: https://bimontherocks.typepad.com/my_weblog/2014/10/visualization-award-2014-excellence-in-infrastructure-cowi.html.

Visualization of a new four-lane highway in eastern Norway. Image courtesy of COWI and the Norwegian Public Roads Administration

A number of notable submissions to this year’s competition include projects focused on improving sustainability, resiliency and economic vitality in urban centers around the world, a crucial area of investment as humanity increasingly moves to and inhabits cities — 70 percent of global population is expected to be urban by 2050. Some of those notable projects include:

• GRAFF3D’s Opera District project in Dubai and Polo Audiovisual project in Puerto Madero, Argentina.
• Atkins Consultants Ltd.’s M4 Elevated Section Management Strategy and Strengthening Trial project, Chiswick, West London.
• China Railway Eryuan Engineering Group's Sichuan Xicheng Railway Passenger Dedicated Line project in Jiangyou City, Sichuan Province, China.

“All of the firms submitting this year are to be commended for the application of BIM workflows and the latest cloud and mobile enhanced solutions,” said Lisa Campbell, vice president, customer strategy marketing, Autodesk. “In fact, the winners this year used InfraWorks to aggregate diverse data to quickly generate 3D models ideal for showcasing initial design intent, exploring possibilities and creating compelling visuals and animations.”