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Building Options Auto Update


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#1 Steve and Carla Farnam

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Posted 17 May 2019 - 02:05 PM

We are currently becoming familiar with the Building Options tool within Softplan and received a clients request to be able

to toggle between several different exterior options for one base plan. The client would like the option to meet with a customer

and add or subtract plan options to create the desired home for the customer and was wondering if Softplan would automatically

update all necessary pages throughout the plan set to reflect any and all changes for construction or would each page of the plan

set need to be adjusted to reflect the changes?

   If anyone is familiar with the Building Options tool and has used it for production building any insight is appreciated.

 

Thanks!! Steve



#2 Kevin Rabenaldt

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Posted 17 May 2019 - 02:17 PM

I can't answer your question, but I think it would be good for a good overview of building options and layers and their common uses and applications.  Even if you use them, I am sure there are many uses that many don't know to take advantage of.  Does anyone know a good source for this?


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#3 Jim Johnson

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Posted 17 May 2019 - 06:09 PM

Softplan will automatically update plan sets to the active building option in the project.  If you want a drawing on a plan set to hold to a certain option(s), edit the drawing in plan set and set the "custom visibility" to which building options you want.  Useful for showing different options in the same plan set.

softplantuts.com has a good tutorial on plansets done in version 2014.  May help but it has evolved a bit from then.



#4 Jon Churchill

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Posted 20 May 2019 - 02:39 PM

Steve, You might like to view a video on Annotated and Building Options at  https://youtu.be/ny1V83Wu7RM

Items of each option are placed on a Building Option, eg, Hip, Gable roof. Using radio buttons it is easy to make the selection.

 

Layers are on a Drawing by drawing basis.

Layers - Only turn on / off visibility  items in 2D - they do not affect 3D or elevations etc.

 

Building Options are on a Project by Project basis.

Building Options turn on / off visibility and existence in 2D, 3D, Material Lists and all drawings in the Project, eg, annotated elevations and sections.

 

Jon


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#5 Dennis Hilborn

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Posted 20 May 2019 - 03:10 PM

Softplan will automatically update plan sets to the active building option in the project.  If you want a drawing on a plan set to hold to a certain option(s), edit the drawing in plan set and set the "custom visibility" to which building options you want.  Useful for showing different options in the same plan set.

softplantuts.com has a good tutorial on plansets done in version 2014.  May help but it has evolved a bit from then.

 

SP only updates planset elevations if the "Annotated Model" elevations are used.  IF those have been savedas sp drawings those won't automatically update.



#6 Tom Rogers

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Posted 02 June 2019 - 02:14 PM

Steve:

 

Contact me at trogers@residentialproductions.com  I can show you how I do it with my customers.  I dont use live elevations but have it for 2D drawings that work well for me.  


"remember... what we are building today, should be what we want in the future"​
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#7 David Bearss

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Posted 10 December 2019 - 03:37 PM

SP only updates planset elevations if the "Annotated Model" elevations are used.  IF those have been savedas sp drawings those won't automatically update.

Why Why Why?? What would be the point of even having drawings that will not update?



#8 Steve Haarmann

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Posted 10 December 2019 - 05:03 PM

"Automatic" elevation updates can be done using annotated elevations. 

I.e. changing the building option on the floor plan will also change the annotated elevations on the plan set page because they are linked and live.

 

On the other hand, elevations also can by drawn using building options.

In that case you can change the building option on the elevation drawing and control what is visible.

No need to change the plan set - just the elevation building option that you want to show on the plan set page.

A new plan set page(s) is not required.


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#9 Jason Bishop

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Posted 11 December 2019 - 05:46 PM

Why Why Why?? What would be the point of even having drawings that will not update?


Once you generate an Elevation, it is now a “ Line” drawing and therefore the “live” link is broken. Any changes made to a Floor Plan afterwards will not reflect in the Line Elevation. You have to update manually, or you can Save the Model Elevation again and just re-do is sometimes quicker.

With that said, I would love to be able to use Annotated Elevations , but it is still too clunky and slow for me.

#10 Dennis Asher

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Posted 30 December 2019 - 11:17 AM

I am currently in the process of designing a "Master Plan" for a builder.  This plan will have 3 different roofs and 3 different garage configurations.  I set up my building options in a radial group so that only 1 of the roof / garage options can be selected at a time.  In order to submit this plan to the building department we would show a seperate elevation page for each instance.  I want to use live annotated elevations but I don't have the option to select "custom visibilities".  Furthermore if I show the live model on the plan set, I do have the option to "edit custom visibilities" but when I change the building option from Elevation "A" to Elevation "B" the live model changes as well, even though I have editied it to show Elevation "A".  Is this correct behaviour or am I missing something?  Thanks!



#11 Keith Almond

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Posted 30 December 2019 - 01:06 PM

As far as I'm aware, the live model and all the live elements throughout the model will change whenever the Building Options change.

 

I would expect this behaviour ... otherwise, what is the point?

 

Why would you want the live model to show Elevation A with the Building option for Elevation B selected?


Keith

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#12 Dennis Asher

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Posted 30 December 2019 - 02:12 PM

Hi Keith, I need to have 3 different elevation pages to submit to the building department.  For example if I have an optional kitchen layout I can bring my floor plan in to the plan set showing the standard layout.  Then I can bring the floor plan in to the plan set again and check "Use custom visibilities" and show the optional layout.  In my case I have modeled 3 different roofs to reflect the 3 different elevations and I wanted to be able to use the same technique to show each different elevation on it's own plan set page.  I can use that technique on line drawings but it's much more complicated and most importantly they're not "live" and don't update if something is changed.  I hate doing these "master plans" because my jurisdiction allows the builder to use them over and over again.  I do charge more for them but it's not as good as doing a site specific plan for each address.



#13 Keith Almond

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Posted 30 December 2019 - 03:17 PM

Why not just create three separate plansets ... one using each option. All the work is already done, it's just a matter of changing the building options for each one.


Keith

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Softplan user since version 5.5.2.5

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