In architecture office: 3d a-cad modeling is used as basis for design and only then, on to 2d drawings?

Question

I graduated 10 years ago and haven't worked in an office since then. I am picking up my career again and want to arrive not so green to an office as an entry-level employee. In ten years much has happened in autocad [and the way it is used in an office...], and I wonder where to focus my knowledge of the [autocad tool] so that I have an idea already of how the process works from 3d to 2d etc. So, is the model understood more as a -sales/rendering and measure ratification tool, or is it now more used as, [the basic draft] from which detailed plans are later drawn. I have taken courses on autocad -lately, they have been very useful, but they focus on the commands etc, and not on how are they used in such a situation--- self help books are not really helpful either.

thanks for the answers

Answer 1

Well, more and more firms are going to 3D. Some prefer to stay with their 2D drafting methods. However if you can learn the 3D aspect of drafting it can work wonders. Yes it is a sales/rendering measure, but you can also pull your 2D views (Elevations, Sections, etc..) from your 3D model. If streamlines alot of work. Say for instance in Autodesk Architectural Desktop, while you are drawing your floorplan,  you are also drawing everthing else in 3D at the same time. Then on top of that, if you set up everything correctly, you can generate a materials list so you can do estimates on the cost of construction. I am a civil engineering / survey drafter and I use Civil 3D and Land Desktop. Civil 3D is wonderful in that I can use points and elevations to create a 3D surface and I can create my cross sections and plan and profiles from that and it takes me much less time to do that. So to kinda answer your question, 3D cad is the future and if you want to be really successful, I would make an effort to learn all you can. If you go to this website, http://students.autodesk.com,

You can download just about any of autodesk's products in Student version and they have very helpful self paced tutorials. I had to learn alot on my own.  Alot of teachers in the schools are from the old school and are learning alot of 3D cad on the fly. So take the initiative and learn as much as you can. Hope this helps you out. Oh yeah, the internet is a valuable tool as there are groups and stuff. www.cadalyst.com is a great website. I visit it quite often an I receive their monthly newsletter.