Dear [customer first name],

Welcome to the April issue of Building News, the newsletter designed for professionals in architecture, building engineering and construction.

In this issue we have details about the new 2008 Family of Products, the DWF community portal, online resource centres and webcast links, some useful tips & tricks, details on upcoming events plus a great example of how Woolworths set up distribution centers in a short time with the help of effective collaboration tools.

Building News to be re-branded as AEC News
Our next issue of Building News will be updated to cover Architecture, Engineering and Construction to provide you, our readers with a wider range of news and information affecting your industry.

As always, if you would like to share your comments on how we can improve this newsletter, please send them to anz.marketing@mail.autodesk.com.

Happy Reading!

The Building News Editorial Team

Community
DWF community online resource centre
Top organisations worldwide are harnessing the power of DWF™ technology to extend design information beyond the initial design teams. With extensive 2D and 3D design collaboration capabilities, DWF is the choice for critical design-related manufacturing, architecture, building, facilities, and infrastructure workflows. The DWF resource centre contains information on utilities, tools and Plug-Ins, blogs and discussions and user submitted tips and tricks.

Click here to enter the DWF world…

Buildings that breathe?
At first blush, Manhattan skyscrapers are about as far removed from nature as one can imagine. Sleek and shiny, clad in steel and glass, they are beautiful but sterile-lifeless without the buzz and colour of human activity.

Click here to read more of this article from our Sustainability Centre.

Focus on
Introducing the new 2008 Family of Products
Today, everyone is facing more risks, complexities and competitive pressures than ever before. That’s why you need the ability to innovate, visualise and simulate in the digital world before creating anything in the real one. In fact, you need to experience your next project before it’s real. Learn how our new 2008 industry-specific software helps you analyse the real-world performance of your designs. All before you build a thing.

The exciting new 2008 Family of Products include:

• AutoCAD Revit Architecture Suite 2008
• AutoCAD® Revit® MEP Suite 2008
• AutoCAD Revit Structure Suite 2008
• Revit® Architecture 2008
• AutoCAD® Architecture 2008 (formerly Architectural Desktop)
• AutoCAD® MEP 2008
• Revit® Structure 2008
• Revit® MEP 2008

Tips and Techniques
Tip 1: Showing solid fills for all cut objects in a building section
This handy tip was provided by David Baldacchino on the AUGI user forum.

Tip 2: Linking Excel speadsheets with Revit
This handy tip was provided byKirk Bricker on the AUGI user forum.

Tip 3: Recreating a central file from backups
This handy tip was provided by the Revit Architecture services and support Team.

General News
Online Adviser: Building Software for Architects & Engineers
Need Building Design Software? Get a Free Personalised Recommendation from our online Advisor. Whether you're an architect, an MEP engineer, or a structural engineer, we have a building solution just for you. Spend a few minutes with our interactive product adviser, and she'll personally help you choose the right Autodesk design tool for your building needs..

AutoCAD Architetcture: New Features Webcast
Our live webcast offers architects, designers and drafters a greater understanding of the new features and tools included in AutoCAD® Architecture (formerly Autodesk Architectural Desktop). This purpose-built solution is simple to implement and use, which means immediate increases in productivity and accuracy. Discover how easily you can leverage visualisation to bring client presentations to life!

Test drive our new 2008 products with a 30 Day FREE trial
The new 2008 versions of AutoCAD, Revit Structure and AutoCAD Raster Design are available for a 30 day free trial. Order your FREE trial today and experience the difference for yourself.

Subscription News
NEW - Google Earth Plug-in (Available to Autodesk Subscription customers only)
Publish 3D building information models directly from Revit Architecture into Google Earth™ mapping service. Streamline the preliminary project planning process by sharing conceptual plans with your clients in real time. Connect everyone involved in your project from the planning stage through public approval.

Autodesk Vault download at Subscription Center
Autodesk Vault is an easy to use data management tool integrated with various Autodesk products. It helps design teams track work-in-progress designs and maintain version control in multi-user environments. It also helps workgroups organise and reuse design data by consolidating product information and reducing the need to re-create designs from scratch.

Autodesk Vault download is now available for the following Autodesk 2008 version products at the Subscription Centre.

NEW e-Learning lessons on Subscription Centre
Autodesk Subscription e-Learning features self-paced lessons that are a quick and convenient way to learn Autodesk software. Each lesson takes 15 to 30 minutes to complete and includes hands-on exercises so you can practice what you’ve learned. Please note that e-Learning requires Microsoft Internet Explorer 6 or above.

New e-Learning lessons that went live on the Subscription Centre this week include:

Getting started with AutoCAD Architecture 2008: 4 lessons

Customer Success
Better collaboration speeds the establishment of Woolworths distribution centres
By using Autodesk® Buzzsaw®, design and construction teams efficiently coordinate resources and information,and as a result the distribution centres are successfully opening on compressed timelines.

Slashing design time by 20%, reducing errors and increasing accountability means Woolworths’ customers never run out of products.

Click here to read more and find out how Buzzsaw can impact your business.

Industry Events
Presenting the Design Visualisation Asia Pacific Tour

Autodesk design visualisation solutions allow you to experience before you build—quickly and easily transform AutoCAD®, AutoCAD Architecture and Revit® data into breathtaking visualisations. And, with the new Mental Ray 3.5 rendering engine in Autodesk 3ds Max, do it all in less time.

As part of its Asia Pacific Design Visualisation User Tour, Autodesk is proud to present David McDonnell, creative director of Last Pixel, one of Australia's foremost 3D production companies specialising in architectural visualisation and Zac Arato, senior 3D animator/ production manager of Digital Line, Sydney based visualisation studio that specialises in high-quality 3D renderings for architects and developers.

Join us in Brisbane on 2 May, 2007 and ask our experts the questions that directly affect your business and projects, and learn how Autodesk design visualisation solutions can transform your designs into dramatic renders, walk-throughs and fly-by animations that win bids, accelerate design reviews and create stunning marketing presentations.

Date: 2 May
Time: 3pm-6pm
Venue: Grand Ballroom Marriott Brisbane 515 Queen Street, Brisbane Qld

Click here to register.

Experience the possibilities at Autodesk Live : Building Solutions

Today, simply seeing what your next architecture project will look like isn’t good enough – you need to experience it before it’s real. Join Autodesk experts Michael Beer and Vikram Grewal, both Architects, as they take you through the new features & functionality Autodesk’s 2008 products have to offer along with presenting real-life workflow examples.

In a special networking reception, you’ll also have the chance to ask questions directly to our product experts. This is your chance to get a head start over your competitors.

Find out how Autodesk Building Solutions can give you the power and performance you need to experience your next project before its real, at an Autodesk Live event near you: