When considering BIM 3D modeling software for bridge design, three major options stand out: Autodesk’s Revit, Bentley’s Microstation, and McNeel’s Rhino. Each offers distinct modeling capabilities, so how do you choose the right one for creating bridge models?
Autodesk Revit offers robust modeling capabilities but has limited surface representation, making it challenging to handle complex spatial surfaces. It includes an extensive library of component families, primarily parameterized through dimensioning. However, this parameterization approach can become cumbersome for large and complex structures. Thanks to Autodesk’s wide range of interoperable software, Revit benefits from strong integration. That said, its built-in families cater mostly to construction projects, so bridge-specific components often need to be custom-built.
Bentley Microstation provides powerful modeling and supports parametric design. Bentley’s diverse software suite ensures excellent collaboration across platforms. However, its ability to integrate information is relatively weak, and applying it to bridge engineering typically requires using multiple software platforms in tandem.
Rhino excels in modeling and surface representation. With the powerful Grasshopper plugin, it enables complex parametric modeling. While Rhino is fundamentally a 3D modeling tool, it supports a wide range of data formats, facilitating information sharing with other BIM platforms. After comparing the options, Rhino was ultimately chosen as the core 3D modeling software due to its exceptional parametric modeling capabilities when combined with Grasshopper.
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