Definition:

The letters CAD stand for Computer-Aided Design. Architects, Drafters, Engineers, and Artists use CAD software to create plans and construction drawings.

Before the age of computers, drawings and blueprints were drafted by hand. CAD is more efficient because the software records lines as vectors based on mathematical equations. Portions of a drawing can be twisted, stretched, or moved. The picture as a whole will automatically adjust.

CAD Software will let the designer:

  • Switch between two-dimensional (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) views.
  • Zoom in and out for close-up and distant views.
  • Rotate images to view them from different perspectives.
  • Change the scale of images: When one value changes, related values are automatically adjusted.
  • Manipulate the shape of images: Changing one portion of an image automatically changes the entire picture.

CAD is also known as CADD, which stands for Computer-Aided Design & Drafting Examples. Popular CAD programs used by architects and engineers include: ArchiCAD, Graphisoft EcoDesigner, AutoCAD.

Sustainable Design with ArchiCAD

Green design has been embraced openly by many architectural firms worldwide. They appreciate the value and financial sense of developing a truly green design and architects who actively take ‘green’ decisions early on are saving their clients real money, now and in the future. EcoDesigner coupled with ArchiCAD’s open standards place the Virtual Building T at the heart of energy analysis.

Informed decisions

“Sustainable architecture” is the practice of designing, constructing and maintaining buildings in a way that their environmental impact is minimized. One of the most important aspects of sustainable design is energy efficiency – a drive to reduce the amount of energy a building consumes over its life-span. The truth of sustainable design is that approximately 80% of the design decisions that influence a building’s energy performance are made by the architect in the early design phase; the remaining 20% are made by engineers at the later phases of design. Therefore it is crucially important for architects to be able to utilise a quick and reliable energy performance evaluation at the very early stage of the building design process.

Using Graphisoft EcoDesigner we  can easily analyze, at an early stage, Green Passive Solar Homes Design for energy efficiency. Providing invaluable feedback on the building’s energy performance means we  can make better decisions on how to conform to regulations and satisfy the interests of the client and the operator of the building. Ultimately, with energy efficiency we all win!