April 14, 2021
Shimizu Corporation (President: Kazuyuki Inoue) has developed a program to link data from the structural analysis software SNAP, which is widely used in Japan, to the Rhinoceros®※ 3D modeling software that provides the platform for Shimz DDE, Shimizu’s internal computational design platform. It will be released to the general public at a later date. This program enables us to conduct seamless data linkage between computational design and structural analysis from the early design stage, and, as a consequence, we can enhance structural design quality and design proposals further.
SNAP has become the de facto standard software in Japan for analysis of both typical and irregular shaped structures with advanced analyses, performance evaluations and multi usages. However, it requires a high degree of expertise for users to integrate SNAP analysis into Rhinoceros 3D modeling. Therefore, we wanted to develop a program which makes it possible to link data between Shimz DDE and SNAP.
For the reason above, we decided to use KONSTRU, a cloud tool that is highly compatible with Rhinoceros and serves as an intermediary for bidirectional data linkage among multiple different types of software. We proceeded with the improvements of KONSTRU as an effective means of linking Rhinoceros and SNAP data. This resulted in successful development of a program that enables SNAP to download the 3D model data uploaded from Rhinoceros to KONSTRU as well as the analytical conditions. Installing this program in KONSTRU made it possible to link SNAP and Rhinoceros data easily and rapidly, including reverse data flow to reflect SNAP analysis data in Rhinoceros.
Data linkage among the various kinds of design software essential to expand use of computational design and BIM is a common issue in the entire construction industry. A linkage method that is easy to use and does not involve much work by the user is needed to solve that problem. As a leading digital general contractor, Shimizu recognizes the need to lead in digital transformation (DX) in architectural design and plans to release the developed program to the general public in about one year. We are also using KONSTRU internally to evolve data linkage for Shimz DDE and Shimz One BIM, and will continue to work on improving productivity.
We have enlisted the cooperation the CORE Studio R&D team of Thornton Tomasetti, the U.S. developer of KONSTRU and a global leader in computational design, KOZO SYSTEM, INC. the developer of SNAP, and ALGORITHM DESIGN Lab., the authorized distributor of KONSTRU in Japan, in this series of development projects.
Rhinoceros is a registered trademark of Robert McNeel & Associates.
≪For Reference≫
Diagram of Data Linkage Between Shimz DDE and SNAP
Shimz One BIM (BIM linking design and construction)
A system based on Revit that achieves operating efficiency quickly and without excess effort by linking design BIM data to all stages from construction to fabrication (order placement) and operation.
URLs for Reference
- KONSTRU official website in Japan：https://konstru.jp/
- Thornton Tomasetti CORE Studio：http://core.thorntontomasetti.com/
- KOZO SYSTEM, INC., SNAP：https://www.kozo.co.jp/program/kozo/snap/index.html
- ALGORITHM DESIGN Lab.：https://algo.co.jp/
Comment Received from Thornton Tomasetti and KONSTRU
Konstru and Thornton Tomasetti are pleased to support Shimizu Corporation in becoming a leader in BIM and computational design in our collaboration developing a new integration of SNAP with the Konstru common data environment.
The information contained in this news release is the current information on the date of publication. Please be aware that this information may have changed by the time you view it. Please contact the company to inquire for further details.