"NLCS makes designing easier"

Whether the GWW designers at Dura Vermeer would want to go back to their old drawing standard? Definitely not. Indeed: since they have been using the NLCS, their work has only become more enjoyable, faster and better. Designer Raymond Ket: "The Dutch CAD Standard provides clarity and convenience."

Ket started at engineering firm Advin, a subsidiary of Dura Vermeer, some eight years ago. In 2018, Dura Vermeer integrated the design expertise of Advin colleagues into its own organization's infrastructure division. The idea behind that strategic move was that it would allow Dura Vermeer to meet (complex) challenges even better. 

Ket looks back on the merger with a good feeling, although relatively little changed for him in terms of work content. "My daily work consists of preparing drawings, from the preliminary design phase to the delivery of as-built models for management and maintenance. We actually only deliver our drawings in accordance with the NLCS, a drawing standard that saves me a lot of time. What else makes my work fun? The variety. I have done inner-city project development, designed provincial roads and even airports. Almost the entire design of Lelystad Airport, for example, was done by me. The variety is also in the way we work: at Dura Vermeer we have a strong affinity with the implementation teams. So we're not just in the office to throw the occasional design over the fence, we like to spar a lot with the people in the field. The result: designs that are well put together and eminently manufacturable."

NLCS WITH INFRACAD

About six years ago, Ket and his colleagues switched to the NLCS as a drawing standard. "We already had the idea then that this might become the standard of the future. Slowly but surely clients were asking for it more, and when InfraCAD also came on the market, working in accordance with the NLCS became easy in one fell swoop. So there was really no resistance in our organization." 

Of course, a different working method always takes some getting used to, Ket agrees. For example, he and his colleagues suddenly had to arrange their plotting styles differently. But the NLCS got used very quickly: "A big advantage is the clear structure of the layer structure. The same goes for the content of lines: you can easily filter what you want to see displayed. And do you want to change an existing line into a line that indicates an expired situation? Then you adjust one parameter and InfraCAD does the rest."

Interchangeability

That the NLCS-InfraCAD tandem is successful, Ket underlines with more advantages. He mentions importing KLIC notifications, retrieving and processing cadastral maps, and retrieving information from the Large-Scale Topography Base Map (instead of downloading and converting). "And I could go on and on. Scaling a drawing is done at the push of a button, and in the same effort the program puts arrow sizes in cross sections or a slope delineation between two lines. But the biggest advantage of the NLCS is the interchangeability of your drawings. If the recipient is also familiar with the NLCS, he or she can immediately continue working with your design."

It also saves time for Ket and his colleagues. In the past, they would sometimes spend one or two days converting a drawing; today this is no longer necessary at all. "An additional advantage is that you reduce the chance of interpretation errors," said Ket. "And it provides more job satisfaction. After all, it is much more fun to be able to go straight into the content with your design."

No discussion 

Clearly, Ket and his colleagues do not miss the old way of working before the NLCS. All the drawing work they deliver is in accordance with NLCS and they and the clients like it. "Take the maintenance project on the N244 and N246. These are two provincial roads between Zaanstad and Alkmaar, a stretch of about seventeen kilometers with two bridges. Because the designers of the other parties were also familiar with the NLCS, we were able to work seamlessly. We didn't have to explain anything and knew exactly what we had to do with each other. That's the portability I mean: thanks to the NLCS, exchanging drawings never results in discussion again."

'NLCS is here to stay'

The NLCS is a BIM level 1 standard (managed by the BIM Loket). Ket also regularly makes the connection between 3D modeling and the NLCS. "For that we use Civil 3D, in which, for example, the layer names are already tuned for NLCS use. Imagine a top view of a model, in which the representation of lines and cross sections, for example, immediately have NLCS appearance. There is no more extra stroke between translating between a 3D and a 2D design." 

All in all, Ket undoubtedly sees the NLCS as a "keeper. "I understand that there are already applications in the civil sector and in railroad construction: so the NLCS also offers opportunities beyond the boundaries of the ground, road and hydraulic engineering sector, who knows in which sectors it can be a reinforcement. My advice to designers who hesitate about switching to the NLCS: definitely do it. More and more clients and contractors are including it as a condition in their contracts, but that's not even the most important reason. In my view, the NLCS is the drawing standard of the future."   

About Dura Vermeer

Dura Vermeer is one of the Netherlands' oldest construction companies (founded in 1955 as a carpentry store). Today, Dura Vermeer is a leading organization specializing in infrastructure and construction & real estate projects. Dura Vermeer's head office is in Rotterdam; its dozens of branches are spread throughout the country.

NLCS 

The NLCS (Dutch CAD Standard) is a uniform drawing standard for civil engineering. The information in an NLCS drawing is unambiguous, complete and clearly structured. As a result, drawings can be exchanged easily, the chance of errors is smaller and the entire GWW chain can save on costs. The NLCS is a BIM level 1 standard and is managed by the BIM Loket.

About CAD Accent | Arkance Systems

CAD Accent is an Autodesk specialist with a strong focus on Construction and Infrastructure. The company helps clients implement BIM, optimize work processes and work methodologies, and standardize CAD environments. As a manufacturer and supplier of InfraCAD, CAD Accent is the market leader in the field of the NLCS.