G2

François L.

Principal

Architecture & Planning

Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.)

12/20/2014

"Vectorworks Architect is the designer's BIM"

5/5

What do you like best about Vectorworks Architect?

Vectorworks brings together robust free-form 3D modeling, BIM modeling, 2D drafting, and excellent rendering (with Renderworks) in a single application. Having these core parts of architectural software integrated in one place supports the inherently iterative nature of the design process, since I don’t have to export a 3D model into a separate BIM workflow and then draft documentation elsewhere. When the inevitable design changes and refinements happen later on, it’s straightforward to explore free-form 3D options, render them, fold the results back into the BIM model, and keep any supporting 2D documentation up to date.

My model files are comprehensive and Vectorworks handles them. Teams can use shared server files or cross reference individual files. When working with outside consultants, Vectorworks can import and export a wide variety of BIM, CAD, and 3D formats. I routinely import and export DWGs, grab component or equipment models from manufacturers and crowd-sourced communities, import textures, even import Revit families and files for reference.

Moreover, I don't feel like I'm locked into a corporate ecosystem. Annual subscription rates are reasonable, I can "park" a license if I don't need it, and I can open my archived files from up to 12 versions ago and backsave up to 6 versions back if I'm collaborating with someone who doesn't have the latest license.

The AI visualizer is evolving fast, as you'd expect. It integrates within Vectorworks, so I can produce seamless tiling textures, change paint colors on a photo, even clean up text on an imported JPEG—it's not just for rendering Vectorworks viewports.

If you want to see an example of integrating Camera Match—a photo-matching Vectorworks tool—with AI Visualization, check out a recent Vectorworks community meeting here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lKwRo3UQg9Q. And speaking of communities, the message boards are full of helpful and dedicated fellow users who love the software and are eager to share. You can learn from architects, landscapers, scenic designers, and event creators from all over the world. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about Vectorworks Architect?

I don’t really have any specific dislikes about Vectorworks. Like any sophisticated software, though, you do need to invest the time to learn it thoroughly. Because Vectorworks is so broad, there’s a lot of ground to cover and plenty of tools to get familiar with. Once you have those tools in place, you can become phenomenally productive. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Recommendations to others considering Vectorworks Architect:

If you are a design-oriented architecture firm using Mac or Windows, I highly recommend Vectorworks Architect with Renderworks. Seat costs, while decidedly at a professional level, are about half of competitors. Take those savings and invest in training with your new software (good advice for any software really). Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What problems is Vectorworks Architect solving and how is that benefiting you?

Vectorworks allows me to be extremely efficient with my time; in the same time that other software users might develop a plan, I've explored 2 or 3 design options and developed a very informative 3D model. Vectorworks makes me fast.

I also routinely use the worksheet and reporting functions of Vectorworks to quantitatively support my qualitative design decisions. While I'm designing, I'm also doing sun studies in realtime, generating door and window schedules, material and area takeoffs, checking the rainwater harvesting capacity of a roof, assessing the ratio of south-facing glass to internal thermal mass, and/or validating estimates of passive cooling with a thermal chimney. I never have to export to do this; I've built these tools right into my workflow. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.