ArchiCAD's intuitive Virtual Building solutions enhance scope of services

B3 Architects - Santa Barbara, U.S.

Santa Barbara-based B3 Architects is an innovative firm that has leveraged technology as a means of gaining a competitive advantage and furthering its business objectives. And today's economic conditions demand practical solutions that save time and money. It is more important than ever that a building design and planning firm be forward-thinking and unrestrained by traditional approaches to architectural design. B3 utilizes Graphisoft ArchiCAD to strengthen its client relationships, increase its efficiency and augment the value it delivers to clients throughout the design process.

Offering its clients a range of services, from market assessment and conceptual master planning through construction administration, B3 Architects realized that a fundamental advantage of working with ArchiCAD^® is the overall efficiency earned as a result. "In my experience, architects can accomplish from 30 to 50 percent more work using ArchiCAD in comparison to other methods," said Keith Rivera at B3 Architects. Ultimately, the intuitive software enables B3 Architects staff to accomplish more work in less time. In addition, Rivera found the software so simple to use that a project done in ArchiCAD would not require the time and costly resources of a whole team of people.

Alumni Center, University of California Santa Barbara

One reason for this is that ArchiCAD enables B3 Architects to keep up with edits and changes easily, during both review board and client approval processes. "We were originally attracted to the software because of its three-dimensional capabilities, and learned that its integrated virtual building model ‘thinks' the way we design buildings," Rivera observed. "ArchiCAD allows you to explore the design more completely without worrying about coordination. It's a logical approach to the design and construction processes."

The benefits of ArchiCAD were evident in B3 Architects' recent project for a sophisticated, residential compound in Santa Barbara. The 5,000 sq.ft complex was designed as a series of pavilions located on a hill top with 360° views. As a result, the architectural plans included complicated curvilinear geometry in both plan and section. "The accuracy of ArchiCAD's three-dimensional model was a big advantage in our ability to convey designs to our client," Rivera said. "We used the software to explore internal spaces, layout and relationship of pieces of the design themselves. And, once you have the building model, all the information you need is right there for soliciting feedback and creating construction documents."

Ortgea Ridge Residence, Santa Barbara

ArchiCAD's Virtual Building model delivers a complete understanding of a design to both B3 Architects staff and its clients. Rivera realized the advantages of this in the confidence he gained; with ArchiCAD, he knows the building will come together in construction. "The fundamental benefit of ArchiCAD is the pure logic of it. The tool just makes so much sense," Rivera concluded.